Cinnamon: characteristic of the composition, what healing effect the spice has when it is worth abandoning its use. What dishes are cooked with spices?
Harm and contraindications to the use of cinnamon
By itself, cinnamon will not harm a person, provided that it is reasonable, i.e. in moderation, add this seasoning to food and drinks, and not abuse it. Increasing the dosage of the spice to insane limits causes bad consequences. The fact is that it contains a fragrant substance called coumarin, which causes serious liver damage, and this process is asymptomatic.
Ceylon cinnamon is safer in this regard, since there is little of this harmful substance, but in Chinese (cassia) coumarin is 100 times more. Therefore, when buying this seasoning, you need to look at the country of origin. If, for some reason, it is unknown, it is better to refuse the seasoning.
Now let's look at who shouldn't be eating cinnamon:
- Patients with severe liver ailments … It was already mentioned above about the action of coumarin on this organ.
- Pregnant women … This spice contributes to the contraction of the uterus and can cause miscarriage.
- Patients with bleeding and high blood pressure … These categories of people are not advised to consume cinnamon often and in high doses. But if possible, it is better to refuse the seasoning altogether.
- People with individual intolerance … Cinnamon, like any food or seasoning, can cause various allergic reactions.
With disorders of the nervous system and increased excitability, cinnamon should be eaten in moderation so as not to provoke further damage to the central nervous system.
Cinnamon recipes
Cinnamon not only has many medicinal properties, it is also widely used in cooking. With its use, a variety of desserts, chocolate, pastries are prepared. Coffee lovers add a dash of spice to their cup of this aromatic drink. But the inhabitants of the East are very fond of seasoning meat with cinnamon.
Cinnamon recipes:
- Buckwheat and cottage cheese casserole with cinnamon … Components: 2 faceted glasses of cereals, 2 teaspoons of milk, 1 faceted glass of water, 400 g of cottage cheese. So few components? No, that's not all. We also need: butter (100 g), 2 eggs, sugar (4 tablespoons), lemon zest (1 tablespoon), breadcrumbs (3 tablespoons) and, of course, cinnamon (0.2 tablespoons). First of all, fry buckwheat in a dry frying pan, then cook it until it swells in water with salt and oil. Then pour milk and continue cooking until thickened. We cool the porridge and add cottage cheese mixed with eggs, sugar, spices to it. Put all this mass in a greased form (it can be a deep frying pan), sprinkle with breadcrumbs on top and put another piece of butter. We bake in the oven. Such an easy-to-prepare dish can diversify your menu.
- Potato balls … First, let's prepare the dough. To do this, cook 8 potatoes and pass them through a meat grinder. We drive 1 egg into this potato mass, add also half a glass of flour and semolina, 2 g of cinnamon and salt to taste. From this wonderful dough, we will form meatballs and fry them in vegetable oil. You can eat both hot and chilled.
- Stewed cabbage with cinnamon … First, cut the cabbage into strips (600 g) and chop 1 onion, then fry these vegetables in vegetable oil (1 tablespoon) until half cooked. Then add 0.5 cups of water and 1 cup of apple juice. We simmer our dish under the lid. Also add 0.5 teaspoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of sugar, 2 cloves and 2 g of cinnamon. An unusual taste and aroma will add 200 g of apples cut into pieces. That's all the ingredients have been added, we cook the dish until all the liquid has evaporated. Our cabbage goes well with roast goose, duck or game.
- Black bread casserole … Ingredients: 400 g of rye bread, 100 g of sugar, 500 g of apples, 2 g of cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of lemon zest, 100 g of butter and 300 g of sour cream. In preparing this dish, we successfully use stale bread. So, it needs to be grated and mixed with half the sugar, cinnamon and zest. Cut the apples into slices and mix with the remaining sugar. Grease the form with butter, lay out bread and apples in layers, adding another piece of butter and sour cream to each layer. Cooking the casserole in the oven. Eat to your health!
- Pancakes with carrots … First, prepare a batter from 3 eggs, 1 cup flour, 2 teaspoons of milk and a pinch of salt. Now we make minced meat in this way: rub peeled carrots (400 g), add 2 teaspoons of sugar, 0.1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 0.5 tablespoon of lemon juice. We bake thin pancakes, put the carrot filling on them, fold and fry on both sides.
- Lingonberry jam … We will need: 1 kg of berries, 500 g of sugar, 10 g of cinnamon, 0.5 cups of water and 5 g of lemon zest. Let's start cooking. Pour lingonberries with boiling water, put them in a colander. Put the berries in a saucepan, add sugar, add water, cinnamon and zest. Cook the jam until tender. Let it cool, put it in sterile jars and seal them, or better, cover it with parchment paper and tie it up. This jam is perfect for fried meat, be it game or poultry, lamb, beef or veal.
- Rug "Diet" … Take such products: kefir (2 cups), wheat bran (50 g), oatmeal (1, 5 cups), starch (3 tbsp. L.), Cinnamon (2 tsp.), Sugar (0.5 cups), eggs (2 pcs.). Well, let's cook! First of all, you need to grind the "rolled oats" on a coffee grinder, then mix it with kefir and bran, add cinnamon and sugar, then add starch and yolks. But the proteins should be whipped, and the resulting protein foam should be carefully poured into the oatmeal mass. The thickness of the dough should turn out like not liquid sour cream. Add a little baking soda. We bake in the oven for 40 minutes at a temperature of 200 degrees. The finished gingerbread can be greased with jam or sour cream. This dish is both tasty and healthy, and will not spoil the figure.
Interesting facts about cinnamon
Cinnamon is known all over the world as one of the most popular and most widely used spices. It is available in the kitchen of any good housewife. But there was a time when only a select few could use it, i.e. kings and emperors.
When the pyramids were excavated in Egypt, mentions of this most valuable seasoning were found, and the ancient Romans equated it with silver.
It is known that the best cinnamon comes to us from Sri Lanka. But in many other countries with a tropical climate, you can find a plant that gives this spice. Brazil, India, Egypt, Vietnam - these are not all countries that supply cinnamon.
Ceylon cinnamon and cassia differ not only in chemical composition, but also in appearance. The Chinese cinnamon tree has a red hue. It is much more economical to grow and manufacture such a spice than Ceylon, so there is more of it in supermarkets.
Ceylon cinnamon Cinnamomum verum has been growing for a couple of years. Then it is cut to the very root, and the resulting bark, or rather its thin layer inside, and used as a blank for making seasonings. In place of the cut off shoots, new ones grow, about a year later. After some time, the bark dries up and begins to curl into tubes 1 m long. The spice is sold in pieces up to 10 cm or in powder form.
They love this seasoning very much in the countries of the Caucasus. There it is added to soups, pilaf, meat dishes.
Europeans also keep up with Caucasians in the use of cinnamon. It is worth mentioning here French muffins and Austrian ridling pastries, which are enjoyed at Easter. Watch a video about cinnamon:
No one has any doubts about the usefulness of cinnamon, so those housewives who do not have it in the kitchen arsenal should immediately go to the nearest supermarket and make up for this shortage. But when buying this wonderful spice, remember about Ceylon cinnamon and cassia, about their differences. The first has a genuine aroma and is many times more useful than the second.
