Some of these will burn your mouth if given the chance (thanks peppers), some may stink up your cupboards if you you're not careful (beware asafoetida!), and some want to put you to sleep forever if they could only be bigger (that's maybe a dramatic depiction of a poppy seed). And then there is the bay leaf, which...does nothing.
For the most part, these flavorful substances don't want to be enjoyed. Could the Cinnamonium tree have reasonably foreseen being stripped of its bark to have it rolled, dried and ground? This is not to say that cinnabons are an aberrancy, but to say let us remember what went into them.
And let not terms like garam masala, baharat, ras al hanout or even everything bagel seasoning stand in the way of knowing what makes our food delicious.
This tool is meant to be a guide to magic of these barks and seeds and resins and blossoms and their blends that have sustained empires and meals.
How does it work: On the left are the spices and herbs. These are organized by type; some are seeds, some are leaves, some are resins, seaweeds, husks, flowers and more. When you click a spice, the left side will be replced with a little bit of information about that spice and the right side will be replaces with all of the mixes in this small database that include it. To get back to the view of everything, click the "Reset" button at the top. The right side is the spice mixes, arranged by the region of which they are characteristic. When you click a spice mix, the right side will disappear and be replaced with a litle bit of information about that mix and some recipes that include it if I have any. The left side will be replaced by the spices that are in that mixture. To get back to the view of everything, click the "Reset" button at the top.