Cinnamon
Cinnamomum verum

Cinnamon is the dried inner bark of various evergreen trees belonging to the genus Cinnamomum.

Cinnamon comes from Sri Lanka, and the tree is also grown commercially in southern India, Java, Sumatra, the West Indies, Brazil, Vietnam, Madagascar, Zanzibar, and Egypt.

Sri Lanka cinnamon is a very thin smooth bark, with a light-yellowish brown colour, a highly fragrant aroma.

Cinnamomum burmannii is primarily imported from Indonesia and is the most common form of Cinnamon.

Vietnam has become the source for Cinnamomun loureirii, referred to as Saigon Cinnamon,
and considered the finest Cinnamon available.

When harvested, the bark is stripped off and put in the sun, where it curls into the familiar form called "quills."

Cinnamon in the ground form is used in baked dishes, with fruits, and in confections and predominantly in the spice blends of the East and Southeast Asia.

Cinnamon was one of the first known spices.

The Romans believed Cinnamon's fragrance sacred and burned it at funerals.

Medicinally, Cinnamon once had a reputation as a cure for colds and has also been used to aid problems of the digestive system.