Delicious Cousine

Anise Lends Licorice Flavor to Sweets and Liqueurs

Anise is a spice from a small annual plant, Pimpinella anisum, a member of the parsley family, Apiaceae or Umbelliferae. It's related to dill, caraway and fennel. The plant has long-stalked stem leaves near the base and shorter-stalked leaves higher up. The two and a half feet tall plant holds its small yellowish-white flowers in umbels.Anise is cultivated for its fruits, called aniseed, which have a licorice-like flavor. The seeds are about an eighth of an inch long with five longitudinal ridges. The plant is native to Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean region. It's cultivated in warm areas because it requires a warm climate in order to set seed. Southern Europe, southern Russia, the Near East, North Africa, China, Chile, Mexico and the United States are areas of cultivation for anise.The licorice-like flavor is used widely for spicing up baked goods and flavoring meat and vegetable dishes. Available in whole or ground form, the seeds are preferred as they retain their aroma for a longer period of time compared to powdered anise. Purchase the seeds and bruise them in a mortar and pestle to release the aroma just before using in cooking.German and Scandinavian breads, cookies and cakes, and Italian biscotti are flavored with anise. Fish, vegetable dishes, pickles, cabbage slaw, sausages, soups, curries and fruit dishes are some other foods that use aniseed. The leaves can be added sparingly to salads, cooked greens or cooked vegetables. Add the leaves at the end of cooking for the strongest aroma.Therapeutically, aniseed has been used since ancient times as a soothing tea. It is a digestive aid so people may chew on seeds after a meal or take tea before a meal to fend off flatulence or to aid digestion.Essential oil content is about 2.5% with anethole being the main component. Anethole is the chemical that gives anise its characteristic aroma and flavor. Anethole is also the primary essential oil present in Star Anise. The essential oil is used to flavor liqueurs such as anisette, ouzo, absinthe and Pernod liqueurs. Anise oil is a flavoring agent for cough syrups.Anise may be estrogenic in nature due to the presence of estrogen-like compounds dianethole and photoanethole in the essential oil. Relief of menopausal symptoms may be as simple as drinking anise tea a few times a day. Bruise a teaspoon of seeds with a mortar and pestle or the back of a spoon and steep with boiling water for 10 to 20 minutes.