Freeze-dried raspberry bits are used in this intense dessert-enhancer for a sweet yet tart taste and colour. Mix in icing, glaze or cream. Sprinkle to decorate cupcakes, cakes, macaroons, ice cream and confectionery.
It has a slight taste of liquorice and can be used in many dishes and in combination with various spices.
Star anise is unsurpassed in soups, for chicken, in rice, for stews and in sweet dishes.
Chipotle is a smoked chilli from Chihuahua, Mexico.
Chipotle is made of medium-hot Jalapeno chillies that score between 2500 -10,000 on the Scoville scale.
These peppers are ripened on the bush until they get deep brown and wrinkled. The chilli is then dried for several days in burning fireplaces.
The resultant flavour is a combination of strong pepper fruit and smoke, which is typically used in sauces, salsas and marinades.
While black pepper is called the spice king, cardamom takes the title of the spice queen, partly because of the importance it has held in the spice trade, but also because it is the second most expensive spice in weight after saffron. Cardamom is expensive because it grows in remote places.