12 Recipes That Will Put Cinnamon in the Spotlight This Fall

To cook with cinnamon, the gourmet spice that mainly enhances desserts but also any type of preparation, here are some practical tips.

Why is cinnamon so good in autumn?

Beyond its warm and spicy aromas, incorporating cinnamon into your recipes helps limit the addition of refined sugar in desserts, thanks to its sugar-like flavor. In the fall, when we crave comforting recipes, cinnamon is perfect. Not to mention that given the drop in temperatures in the fall (and winter), the antibacterial, antiviral, and antiseptic properties of cinnamon make it an ally against all seasonal ailments: colds, flu, or tonsillitis! Cinnamon is rich in virtues, so to soothe an irritated throat, for example, infuse cinnamon in a cup of tea, with a little honey to soothe the throat.

Cinnamon stick or powder, two possible forms

In grocery stores, cinnamon comes in two forms: sticks and powder. In sticks, the spice is sold raw, it is the dried bark of the cinnamon tree, ideal for stews or to infuse into drinks. Since it has not been transformed into powder, its flavors are more concentrated. As for powdered cinnamon, it is more practical when it comes to incorporating the spice into mixtures, such as cake batters, since it binds more easily to the preparations.

How to store cinnamon properly

Whether in powder or stick form, cinnamon should be stored in a dry place, away from humidity and light. To prevent it from losing its flavor, store it in an airtight container.

Cooking with cinnamon

Cinnamon, with its spicy taste, enhances flavors. It is known in particular for the famous recipe of the “cinnamon roll”, the cinnamon roll, and is cooked simply by pouring the cinnamon powder on or in the preparations before cooking; or by infusing the cinnamon stick in drinks. It is also possible to break a cinnamon stick by passing it lightly in the mixer to decorate a cake, a brioche or to blend in a crumble.

Cinnamon in desserts

The most common use of cinnamon in cooking is in desserts. Cinnamon is perfect when incorporated into gingerbread, a crumble, and goes particularly well with autumn fruits such as apple, pear, banana and citrus fruits. Ideal for preparing an apple pie, a banana bread with cinnamon, or even simply sprinkled on a raw orange,

Finally, to use cinnamon even more easily, add it in powder form to yogurt, fromage blanc or applesauce. This will replace the addition of white (or brown) sugar and will change the classic flavors. Speaking of classics, we know that cinnamon is the flavor of festivities, especially Christmas! You will therefore find it in a large number of Christmas cookies, gingerbread, or infused in mulled wine.

Cinnamon in savory recipes

Cinnamon is also suitable for savoury recipes, particularly with meat. For example, experiment with flavour combinations by adding cinnamon to a preparation of roast pork, apples and pears! Generally speaking, cinnamon enhances the flavours of vegetables, fish and white meats. Otherwise, in more specific cases, cinnamon is often found in oriental dishes, such as tajine or pastilla, a traditional dish from the Maghreb, prepared with brick pastry sheets, onions, meat, parsley, coriander, hard-boiled egg, almonds and, of course, cinnamon. Cinnamon is also used to flavour soups and veloutés, if added in small quantities (at the risk of overpowering the main flavours of the meal).