Fresh Anise

[caroline]

IWent into my favorite bakery yesterday and there was wonderful smell of anise (at least if you love anaise as I do). Grandmother, mother and young daughter were picking over piles of fresh green seeds on the trays that you normally put your bread on. The seeds were dry but so fresh they hadn't gone brown and shrivelled. And they were picking out bits of stem and stones.

They were doing it, they told me, to begin making pan de muerto next month. I asked where the seed came from and they told me in the south of the state. But that was as far as we got and it seemed rude to press further with other people coming in for bread.

But i'm now determined to use the anise seed from the plants in my garden. anyone trid doing this?

Rachel

[esperanza]

Rachel, would you be willing to post your recipe for Pan de Muertos? I have a request for a recipe and have never made it (I'm not a baker), so don't want to give out something that's not tried-and-true.

Thanks

Esperanza

IWent into my favorite bakery yesterday and there was wonderful smell of anise (at least if you love anaise as I do). Grandmother, mother and young daughter were picking over piles of fresh green seeds on the trays that you normally put your bread on.  The seeds were dry but so fresh they hadn't gone brown and shrivelled.  And they were picking out bits of stem and stones.

They were doing it, they told me, to begin making pan de muerto next month.  I asked where the seed came from and they told me in the south of the state.  But that was as far as we got and it seemed rude to press further with other people coming in for bread.

But i'm now determined to use the anise seed from the plants in my garden.  anyone trid doing this?

Rachel

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[caroline]

I have to admit I don't have a recipe that I can say is tried and true. In fact, I'm not sure I've made pan de muerto though I have made rosca de reyes on various occasions. I also think it varies enormously across Mexico--shape, flavorings, etc. Why don't I root around in my books and you in yours and ask around a bit and see what we can come up with?

Anyone else on the list an expert on this?

Rachel

[esperanza]

Sounds good to me. I will root con todo gusto.

I have to admit I don't have a recipe that I can say is tried and true.  In fact, I'm not sure I've made pan de muerto though I have made rosca de reyes on various occasions.  I also think it varies enormously across Mexico--shape, flavorings, etc.  Why don't I root around in my books and you in yours and ask around a bit and see what we can come up with?

Anyone else on the list an expert on this?

Rachel

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[ludja]

I love anise also; especially in desserts so I'd love to hear if someone has a good recipe.

I looked thru a few of my books and I found a recipe (haven't tried it yet) in Zarela Martinez', Food From my Heart.

This egg and butter enriched bread is flavored with orange flower water and also has condensed milk in it! Maybe this recipe could be adapted by flavoring with anise seeds instead of the orange flower water...

In terms of shapes she mentions shapes such as: human figures, alligators, lizards, skulls, cross bones, teardrops or crosses. Often decorated with colored sugar.

[waldorf]

see Norman Van Aken New World Kitchen p.227

Should you require more info, pm me

[fifi]

I used to keep fennel going to provide a host plant for the swallowtail butterflies. When they were really going, I could count on finding a new butterfly spreading its wings in the morning sun as I left for the office. I get a little confused as to what is anise and what is fennel. In the markets here, they sometimes call the fennel bulbs anise. Anyway, I would clip off the seed heads (that the caterpillars hadn't munched) and use a comb to remove the seeds from the stems. I used them in various Italian spagetti sauces and such. They were great. The flavor of my "fresh" seeds was more intense than those bought at the store. So, I say go for it if you have some seeds on your plants.

As to the recipe, I am not a baker, either. But I will bet that Zarela's recipe will work wonderfully. I have that book and find that the recipes are very reliable. Some of my favorite things are from that book and have become family staples. Now that this comes up, I am tempted to try it myself.

[caroline]

Esperanza, Ludja, Fifi,

Do I have a recipe for pan de muerto? As of today I have something spectacuar. But I'm going to put it on a separate thread because Mexico has many uses of anise and because not all pan de muerto includes it.

On anise. Fifi I too love fennel. I love it fresh, I love it cooked, I love fennel seeds. Great with pork.

But rooting around again and using the book of one of my heroines and Texas treasure, Madalene Hill, I discover that fennel is Foenicuum vulgare. And anise is Pimpinella anisum. and it does not give enough seeds in the garden to make it worth harvesting.

And that in any case what I have in my garden (apart from fennel) is not anise but anise hyssop, probably Anise mexicana since it does have a lovely rose flower.

I believe it's the Pimpinela anisum that is used so frequently in Mexico. It's a standard name on a set of six spice jars. It goes into mole, into syrups, into sweet breads and into liquors. Wonderful stuff. I'll look out for specific recipes, Ludja,

Rachel

[caroline]

Anise is obviously a widely spread flavor in the vegetable kingdom. Pounding along the old mining road that overlooks Guanajuato yesterday, I met a well-dressed lady in a jogging outfit collecting plants. "Oh what lovely flowers," I said. "Well this is wild anise," was her reply. I pinched off a bit and it had a strong, strong anise flavor. "You must add it to black beans," she said. "It prevents bloat."

Now you know,

Rachel

[fifi]

Thanks for the botanical names, Rachel. That clears it up... some. I was too lazy at the time to start looking it all up. I wonder if the "wild anise" is the same as Pimpinella anisum.

Interestingly enough, this site implies that true anise is not native to the New World.

The plot thickens!

[FaustianBargain]

"You must add it to black beans," she said.  "It prevents bloat."

We always have sugar coated anise after a meal. Supposedly, it is a digestive aid.

[Carrot Top]

It must be that whatever chemical is in anise is also in fennel and also in licorice root....for all these are used as teas in various cultures 'as a digestive aid' or to soothe the tummy.

Yummy...they are all good. The licorice tea in particular is so sweet fresh from brewing that you can't believe you didn't forget, and put sugar or honey in it.

[caroline]

Hi Fifi, Lalitha, Carrot Top,

I have to try liquorice tea. sounds wonderful. And so does sugar coated anise or fennel.

And I'm sure you're right, Fifi, that the Pimpinella is not native but was one of the many Mediterranean herbs that came with the Spaniards. I'm going to try to get a specimen of the wild plant. That could be local. The number of wild plants used in Mexican cooking/medicine is truly staggering. Oh for a good botanical guide. I think I shall have to lay out the money for one of the expensive guides to Mexican ethnobotany,

Rachel

[fifi]

Just please don't munch on this one!

[caroline]

Para nada,

Rachel