Spice Wanderer

Journey with me to Morocco…

Nothing beats the smell of cinnamon wafting from the oven as homemade granola bakes or apples soften as they melt into the crust of an apple pie. Sweet dishes come to mind when thinking of cinnamon but many Middle Eastern and North African dishes incorporate cinnamon into savory dishes: chicken tagine, carrot salad, couscous to name just a few! Cinnamon has a bit of a mysterious and conflicted history and although I’ve said I’m taking you to Morocco, that isn’t the birthplace of it.

Evidence shows that cinnamon has been used by humans since 2,000 BCE. Cinnamon was used by Egyptians as a perfuming agent during the embalming process. In the Middle Ages the Arabs transported cinnamon to Europe but it was difficult to do so which resulted in limited amounts and the spice became a status symbol. It was sought after for its ability to preserve meats in the winter. The Arab merchants told colorful stories of where they were getting the spice from and kept people guessing for years. They managed to keep their source a secret until the early 1600’s. By that time, European explorers were actively searching for the origin of the popular and expensive spice. So where was it discovered and who found it?

Portuguese explorers found the spice in Ceylon, now known as Sri Lanka! Unfortunately, upon doing so, they enslaved the native population and took control over the cinnamon spice trade for a century. They were eventually overthrown by the Ceylon kingdom of Kandy who had allied with the Dutch. The Dutch held the kingdom in debt for their military services and the Dutch East India Company held on to the cinnamon monopoly for 150 years. In 1784, Ceylon along with its cinnamon monopoly were taken over by the British. The British East India Company owned the cinnamon empire until the mid-1800’s. By then, cinnamon had lost its status as an expensive and sought after spice; it was being cultivated in other places and was no longer rare. You can read more about the history of cinnamon in this History Channel article. It is sad to think that cinnamon is a staple of so many cuisines today because of explorers and the ugly history of colonization.

Today, there are two types of cinnamon: cassia and ceylon. Ceylon cinnamon is still mainly grown in Sri Lanka and is lighter, sweeter, and more delicate than cassia cinnamon. Cassia cinnamon grows in Indonesia, China, Vietnam, Myanmar, and other countries in that region. The standard home chef has cassia cinnamon in their spice cabinet. It is sold most widely in the US and it’s cheaper than the ceylon cinnamon. I’d love to be able to write about my experiences with cinnamon in Sri Lanka but, sadly, I barely remember my trip and cinnamon played no role in my time there. I traveled there from India as a chaperone for my students who were competing at a swim meet in Colombo, Sri Lanka. I was there for three or four days and spent almost the entire time sitting by a pool watching kids swim! Instead of boring you with the details of life by a pool, I’ve decided to transport you to the beautiful and colorful country of Morocco because cinnamon is used in many Moroccan dishes!

For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to go to Morocco. My first introduction to Morocco was through food. I grew up in Escalon, a small farm town in the Central Valley of California. It wasn’t diverse in any sense of the word. Especially not when it came to restaurants. At the time, it had a few Mexican restaurants, a Chinese restaurant that only served food to-go, two pizza parlors (shout out to Pizza Plus, the best one and my very first employer), and a couple of fast food joints. The only other cuisines I consumed were Middle Eastern food (at home) and Moroccan food! My parents had a close friend who lived in a neighboring city who is Moroccan. Tirtza is a fantastic cook…so good in fact that I reached out to her as I was doing research for this story and she told me she’s in the process of writing a cookbook! How cool and impressive is that?! As I reflect on my childhood, I definitely remember consuming Tirtza’s tasty Moroccan dishes such as chakchouka, a side dish made of spicy tomatoes and peppers, and bastilla (also spelled bastila/pastilla).

According to Tirtza, bastilla is the “masterpiece of Moroccan cuisine.” It is the perfect combination of sweet and savory. Sweet cinnamon, sugar, and almonds are combined with chicken, cilantro, parsley and wrapped in light and flaky phyllo dough. Cinnamon is definitely the star in this dish and bastilla gives savory pie a whole new meaning! Bastilla originated in Southern Spain and was brought to Morocco around the 15th or 16th century. This elaborate and rich dish is often served at special occasions such as holidays and large family gatherings. Is your mouth watering yet?

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While the food initially attracted me to the country, the colorful doors, ornate and gorgeous tile work, Berber culture, history of Jews in Morocco, beautiful rugs, and so much more fascinated me and called my name. My family shared this interest in Morocco and we knew we’d travel there one day. After years of wanting to go I finally made it happen and ended up traveling there two summers in a row! In 2018 I went with my parents and in 2019 I coordinated a faculty-led program in Morocco for Stanford University students to learn about the engineering and technology industries there and I did a site visit during the program. Ironically, both times I ended up traveling with a group of about 15 people. Although I could have planned the 2018 family trip myself and organized all the logistics, I decided to take a true break from work and went the group trip route and booked the North Morocco Adventure with Intrepid. It was fantastic. If you’re looking for a great small-group tour company that believes in responsible and ethical tourism, go with Intrepid!

With backpacks strapped to our backs (and fronts) in July 2018, my parents and I embarked on a nine day journey through Northern Morocco. Due to the nature of my work, I’ve spent my fair share of time traveling in a group. Usually the group consists of young students. This time, the group of 15 ranged in age from mid-20’s to late 60’s and people in every decade in between. At 68, my parents were the oldest but you’d never know their real age by looking at them and they have a youthful energy and ability to converse and have fun with people of any age so they fit right in. We started as strangers and quickly became great friends.

With Mohamed as our knowledgable and entertaining guide, we made our way from Casablanca, to Rabat, Moulay Idriss, Volubulis, Meknes, Fes, Chefchaouen, Tangier, and Marrakech via train, taxi, and private coach. We were all eager to learn and were constantly asking questions. We learned about the history and culture from Mohamed and guest guides along the way, like Fatima, one of only a small number of registered female guides in the ancient city of Fes. She showed us the oldest continually operating educational institution in the world. University of Al-Qarawiyyin was founded by a woman, whose name was also Fatima! As an educator, I was in awe of this fact and was bummed when I was told that we weren’t allowed beyond the huge wooden door. Many cities in North Africa have a medina; a walled historical section of the city with narrow streets that twist and turn. The oldest medina in the world is in Fes. If you’re looking for old architecture and love markets and bustling city centers, Fes is your place!

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We ate gorgeous feasts throughout the country, often served family style with side dishes of sweet dates, seasoned olives, and colorful salads. I think some of the best side salads we had were in Fes. The carrot salad has cinnamon and lemon juice and is a wonderful mix of sweet, sour, and savory. Moroccan food is an amalgamation of Berber, Arab, and European influences.

When we weren’t wandering through the narrow alleys surrounded by blue walls in the magical town of Chefchaouen (my FAVORITE place in Morocco) or putting mint up to our nostrils at the tanneries in Fes, we were sitting down with our crew laughing and chatting about the day’s adventures while we ate. We consumed lots of chicken, lots and lots of delicious olives, and only had couscous a couple of times (and I didn’t even eat it because I can’t eat gluten). Prior to arriving in Morocco I assumed that couscous was a staple at almost every meal. It wasn’t until I got to Morocco that I learned from Mohamed that couscous is traditionally eaten only on Fridays. Some say the dish originated with the Imazighen (singular Amazigh) the indigenous people of North Africa, and after Islam reached the region in the 7th century couscous became the traditional meal eaten after Friday midday prayers. Many of the meals were pre-planned for us which meant we literally strolled into a restaurant, sat down, and food was served. I don’t always enjoy this type of feasting but when I’m not the one responsible for ensuring everyone gets the right food based on their dietary restrictions, I’ve found I actually enjoy group meals.

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When I returned to Morocco in 2019, I made sure to plan my trip so that I’d be able to take part in a cooking class with the students and professors in Marrakech. Although I would have loved to take a cooking class in someone’s home in a relaxed and informal environment, when you’re traveling with a group of 15 that just isn’t an option. So, we ended up at Lotus Chef. Think Food Network for tourists. While it wasn’t a small and intimate environment, it was still in a beautiful building and with a full staff of women who knew how to cook AND knew how to teach us how to cook! We were given aprons and after drinking mint tea and getting an introduction to the menu, we were led to our individual cooking stations where we started making our very own chicken tagine with preserved lemon and olives! Tagine is named after the earthenware pot that the dish is cooked in; it’s the iconic Moroccan ceramic dish with a cone top. The food essentially gets stewed in the tagine. Turmeric, saffron, pepper, oil, garlic, onion, ground ginger, cilantro, and other ingredients were all set out and ready for us to turn them into a delicious chicken tagine. I had a blast cooking next to the students and listening to the chef down the hall telling us what to do. In the photo below, you can see the screen in front of us broadcasting from the chef’s station (told you it was like the Food Network). The food tasted delicious and they even made me gluten free bread to go along with my meal! It was a wonderful experience. Incorporate a cooking class into your next trip. It’ll make you appreciate the food more and will show you that you CAN recreate the flavors and aromas of places you’ve traveled to.

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Both of my trips to Morocco ended in Marrakech. I was told that Marrakech is the place to buy spices so that’s where I stocked up on spice mixes like harissa (smoked chili peppers, cumin, coriander, and other spices) and ras al hanout (cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, nutmeg and other spices), and dried mint tea. If you haven’t been to Morocco yet, don’t worry, cinnamon is found everywhere and most Middle Eastern markets sell harissa and other North African spices. Spices aside, you should still consider going to Morocco one day! It truly is a magical place and although I’ve been there twice, I feel like there’s still so much more to see. I want to go trekking in the Atlas Mountains and spend time learning more about Amazigh culture. I want to ride a camel in the Sahara. I want to check out the surfing town of Essaouira. Since traveling is tough to do these days thanks to the current pandemic, try bringing Morocco to you! The next time you pull out your cinnamon to make a sweet dessert, think about making one of these savory Moroccan dishes instead!

Recipes

• Carrot Salad (recipe is at the bottom of the article) – My mom passed this carrot salad recipe on to me and I often serve it at dinner parties. There’s something wonderful about the combination of cinnamon and lemon juice! The recipe is from Paula Wolfert’s cookbook, The Food of Morocco.
• Tagine – I just stumbled upon this wonderful food blog, My Moroccan Food. Nargisse is Moroccan and based in London. Here, you’ll find all types of tagines you can make – lamb, potatoes and olive tagine, chicken, preserved lemon, and olives tagine, roasted cauliflower, apricots, and chickpea tagine…and many more!
• Bastilla – This recipe is also from My Moroccan Food and includes lots of gorgeous photos of the process of making this sweet and savory chicken pie.

Besseha (cheers in Moroccan Arabic)