The first of October is National Pumpkin Spice Day. It isn’t
so much about the round orange winter squash as it is the spices
themselves; a blend of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice, nutmeg and mace.
Cinnamon is ground bark from certain tropical trees. It’s thought to improve blood
sugar control, reduce heart disease risk, and preserve brain function. Ginger, from
the same family as turmeric and cardamom, aids in digestion and helps with
osteoarthritis pain. Cloves are the dried flower buds of a tree in the myrtle
family. They’ve been used since ancient times for toothache. Allspice tastes
like a combination of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and pepper, hence the name.
Nutmeg and mace are actually from the same tree. Nutmeg is the seed, and mace
is the aril or seed covering. Pumpkin spice is a uniquely American blend, but
it resembles poudre-douce (sweet powder) which was popular in Europe during the middle ages.
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