[Sca-cooks] Herb? Spice? Other?

[lilinah at earthlink.net]

Herbs are pretty much just leaves, fresh or dried. That's simple.

The category of spices, on the other hand, is much more complex and includes:
-- seeds, and, actually, some dried fruits, such as fennel, mustard, and black pepper;
-- roots and rhizomes, such as turmeric, ginger, and galangal;
-- barks, such as cinnamon and cassia;
-- dried buds, such as cloves;
-- arils, such as mace;
-- stamens, such as saffron;
-- resins, such as asafoetida and mastic.

I'm trying to decide if dried flowers are spices or not. I tend to list items such as roses, lavender, and safflower separately from spices.

Same goes for animal products, such as musk and ambergris, that were used in foods. I tend to list them separately from spices, too.

So i wonder what folks here think.
--
Urtatim (that's urr-tah-TEEM)
the persona formerly known as Anahita