Mace comes from the same plant as nutmeg. Mace is the stuff around the outside of the
seed which is the nutmeg.
The flavour of mace is
similar to but more delicate than nutmeg – some say it is sweeter but I don't
think there is much difference really. I
first came across mace in a recipe for a Thai curry paste.
Oil of mace has been
used traditionally to cure insomnia – I wonder if that works!
Mace has been used for a
long time in British cookery in potted shrimp.
In Europe you find mace
in pates and sausages – particularly boudins blancs. You also find mace in baking and sweet
dishes.
Of course, any dish with
nutmeg in it can be done with mace instead.
If you can, buy it in
its original form rather than ground. It
doesn't keep that well for long in ground form.
My Recipes using mace – Yellow
curry of pork, Spinach
& Bacon Frittata, Corned
Beef Hash Cakes
BIBLIOGRAPHY - with thanks to Auckland Libraries
Cook's Encyclopaedia
of Spices by Sallie Morris & Lesley Mackley
Discovering
Vegetables, Herbs & Spices by Susanna Lyle
Spice Market by Jane
Lawson
Spicery by Ian &
Elizabeth Hemphill
Spices & Natural
Flavourings by Jennifer Mulherin
Spices by Sophie
Grigson
Spices Condiments and
Seasonings by Kenneth T Farrell
Spices, Salt and
Aromatics in the English Kitchen by Elizabeth David
The Cook's Companion
by Stephanie Alexander
Very interesting.
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