[Sca-cooks] Spices was licorice,

[lilinah at earthlink.net]

As i was studying the origins of spices for a class i taught on them, 
one of the books i read, possibly the Oxford Companion of Food, said 
saffron pretty much originated in Persia, which is far from Tropical.

As for some other items under discussion, if to be a "spice" the item 
must come from the Tropics, then what does one call anise seed, dill 
seed, fennel seed, mustard seed, coriander seed, for example, which 
grow around the Mediterranean (far from Tropical) and most grow in 
points much farther north. Certainly, these seeds are not herbs.

I am of that school that thinks that herbs are generally leaves, 
spices are seeds - bark - roots/rhizomes - certain dried flower parts 
(like cloves) - etc. I consider dried flowers to be, well, dried 
flowers (i use rose petals, lavender buds, jasmine blossoms as 
seasonings).

It seems to me that dictionary definition only shows the ignorance or 
at least lack of thorough thought, on the part of those who wrote the 
particular definition.

Anahita