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​Vanilla: the flavor of the holidays
Publish Date : 1395/5/23 Time 13:13:07

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Vanilla: the flavor of the holidays

The holidays are upon us! For some, this means a lot of baking; for others, it means a lot of eating. Regardless of which category you fall into, chances are you’ll encounter a staple of the holiday season: vanilla.
Vanilla originated in Mexico and comes from the seed pod of orchids in the genus conveniently named Vanilla, which originally was thought to only be able to be pollinated by the Melipona bee, a species local to Mexico and Central America. Once it was discovered that the orchid could be pollinated by hand, which is still done today, vanilla’s popularity rose significantly. Vanilla is now primarily produced in tropical areas, including Madagascar, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its flavor comes from hundreds of flavor compounds within a vanilla bean – above all is vanillin, vanilla’s characterizing flavor chemical.

We often write about how flavor is about all five senses, not just taste, and that flavor perception has much to do with experience. Every season has a group of flavors associated with it and as fall comes to an end, the public’s desire for pumpkin is shifting to vanilla.

So why exactly is vanilla such a popular flavor? The Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD), which we have written about in a previous blog post, calls vanilla “the most ubiquitous flavor in the world.” Vanilla is often considered as somewhat of a default flavor, which is why vanilla ice cream is sometimes called “plain.” However, vanilla is anything but plain. It is versatile and adds a sweet aroma to recipes.

When you twist open a bottle of vanilla extract, you are hit with a strong, pleasant smell, which conjures positive memories. According to The Smell Reportcomposed by the Social Issues Research Centre, a non-for-profit organization based in Oxford, UK, “Not all childhood memories are pleasant, of course, but those associated with vanilla are almost invariably positive – sweet treats and rewards, ice-cream holidays, innocent flavor, etc. – which certainly helps explain its popularity.”

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Vanilla is used in flavoring most traditional desserts such as ice cream, cake and candy. In fact, nearly every recipe for homemade icing calls for at least a drop of vanilla extract. While this may seem like a small amount, it is still enough to add richness and strengthen all other flavors in the recipe. Let’s face it, that icing, which forms the “snow” surrounding gingerbread houses, just isn’t the same without vanilla.

So we ask you, how do you use vanilla in your holiday baking? What other flavors do you consider to be the flavors of winter and would like to learn more about? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.

From all of us at FlavorFacts.org, we would like to wish our readers a happy and flavorful holiday season!

The Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association of the United States (FEMA) was founded in 1909 and is the national association of the U.S. flavor industry.  FEMA’s membership is comprised of flavor manufacturers, flavor users, flavor ingredient suppliers, and others with an interest in the U.S. flavor industry.  The association is committed to ensuring a safe supply of flavor ingredients used in foods and beverages enjoyed by billions of men, women, and children around the world.