Cinnamon is a tree belonging to the Lauraceae family. The bark of the tree is what is used as a spice. True cinnamon or Ceylon cinnamon is native to Sri Lanka. Cassia is a related spice sometimes called cinnamon. Most powdered cinnamon sold in the United States is cassia. It is harder to find true Ceylon cinnamon (Williams Sonoma has it!). Cinnamon is mentioned in Chinese writing as far back as 2800BC. One last fact since we just celebrated (or not) Halloween, in ancient Egypt cinnamon was used in the embalming process.
These are just a few facts about cinnamon but all I think we care about is how wonderful it smells and tastes!
Faux Chef for Five 
I had no idea that I’d been using cassia rather than cinnamon, my whole life! Thought I was going gourmet by getting the roasted Saigon or Vietnamese varieties 😮 They’re delicious though and doubt that I’ll be switching to the real deal, mostly because Williams Sonoma is a VERY dangerous place for me and my credit card to frequent 😦 Thanks for the education!
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