Good and Good for You: Nutmeg

As you will probably note from recent (and upcoming) posts, I do love baking this time of year.  When it's cooler outside, there's nothing better than a warm kitchen and the wafting aroma of holiday spices throughout the house.  One of my favorite spices to use is nutmeg.  It goes great on eggnog, it makes up an essential part of pumpkin pie spice, but it's also a great addition to savories like stew and chili.

NUTMEG

Nutmeg has been around for a long time and is recorded to have made it's way from Indonesia to the Byzantine court in the 6th century.*  By the 7th century it was introduced into the Mediterranean and from there spread throughout Europe.  During the 16th and 17th century the monopoly of nutmeg (through the profitable and much up-for-grabs spice trade) bounced between Portugal and the Dutch East India Company.

In the Western world, nutmeg was originally used for perfumes and aromatics as well as used medicinally, though even then with a modicum of care.  Too much nutmeg can have adverse medical effects which is why even today it is used in small amounts.  Eventually it transitioned into a culinary additive.

Nutmeg is one of two spices produced by a nutmeg tree.  Ground nutmeg is made from the evergreen's seed and mace (a lighter more delicate spice) comes from the reddish lacy covering of the seed.

Though in large amounts, nutmeg can be a not-good-for-you thing, in smaller doses it possesses several beneficial qualities.

* Nutmeg contains several essential minerals and antioxidant vitamins.
* Like many spices, it has anti-bacterial, anti-fungal properties that can help protect from things like food poisoning (e.g., E. Coli).
* Nutmeg can be mildly sedative which ties into both its anti-depressant and aphrodiastic qualities (for that soft-edged feel-good feeling).
* It has anti-flammatory properties.
* Nutmeg is considered to play a part in digestive functions as well.

The one thing that was emphasized over and over in my research is that nutmeg needs to be used in moderation because it can be harmful in large amounts so BE CAREFUL and please keep that in mind!

*A special shout out to Joy E. who brought back some great spices, including the nutmeg seed in the photo, from her recent travels to Bali and to Juliet for sharing them with me!  Can't wait to use them.  Terima kasih!