Christmas Spices – How to Use Them

Cookies mulled wine and the like – at Christmas time, hardly any pastry, dish, or drink can do without Christmas spices. In this practical tip, we explain how to use cinnamon, clove, and Co. correctly.

Cinnamon, clove or vanilla: an overview of Christmas spices

Christmas wouldn’t be the same without the right spices. Only the spicy scent of cinnamon or the aromatic taste of vanilla make the festival a culinary highlight. In this section, we will introduce you to the most popular Christmas spices and explain how to use them.

• Cinnamon: Cinnamon is the ultimate Christmas spice. A distinction is made here between the aromatic-sweet-mild Ceylon cinnamon from Sri Lanka and the less valuable but stronger cassia cinnamon from China.
• At Christmas, you can theoretically add a cinnamon note to any dish – from pastries and cinnamon rolls to punch, fruit bread, sauces, and red cabbage. One or two cinnamon sticks are also excellent in a festive roast. Try it.
• Vanilla: The so-called “queen of spices” convinces with its unique sweet-floral taste. You can use vanilla for vanilla crescents and Christmas stollen as well as for roast game and poultry dishes.
• Clove: The dried flowers of the clove tree have a sweet, slightly pungent taste. Therefore, the following applies to cloves: dose consciously. Too much clove can quickly make a dish or drink taste too intense. You can use cloves to refine baked goods such as gingerbread, and mulled wine and hearty dishes such as soups and roasts.
• Cardamom: Cardamom is related to ginger and has a spicy-sweet and slightly hot taste. With the spice, you can give gingerbread, speculoos but also chai tea, or cocoa a special touch.

More Christmas spices for pastries and co.

In addition to the classics, other spices are often used during the Christmas season.

• Star anise: The star-shaped spice has an intensely sweet aroma. The spice is used for Christmas cookies, printer, and gingerbread. You can also use star anise to add an exotic touch to jams, desserts, meat and vegetable dishes, as well as soups and sauces.
• Anise: Anise is not the same as a star anise. Anise has a sweet, licorice-like taste. Therefore, the spice goes particularly well with hearty dishes with peppery aromas. But aniseed is also ideal for pastries and tea.
• Nutmeg: Nutmeg is also used at Christmas time. The nutty taste of the spice goes perfectly with pastries, soups, sauces, and mashed potatoes.
• Allspice: The so-called clove pepper has a slightly burning spiciness and a sweet-tart aroma. With allspice, you can give pastries such as Christmas cookies, but also sauces and game dishes that certain something.