Cinnamon is utilized in both sweet and savory recipes, from coffee cake to curries. Nevertheless, if you’re making cinnamon apple pies for your soon-to-arrive visitors, you may worry when you go through your spice cupboard and realize you used your last teaspoon of cinnamon for eggnog.

Relax, because we’ve got five terrific cinnamon replacements for you.

Introduction: What is Cinnamon?

Cinnamon is derived from the Ceylon cinnamon tree, which grows in South Asia. It thrives in damp, lowland tropical environments. Its inner bark is harvested and dried for use in cooking and medicine. Cinnamon is available in bark, powder, and oil form.

Cinnamon is praised by researchers for its health advantages. It is an antioxidant that aids in the reduction of inflammation, the prevention of cancer, and the prevention of neurological illnesses such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

If you don’t have time to run out and buy another jar of cinnamon, these cinnamon replacements will keep your recipe on track.

Top 5 Substitutes For Cinnamon

1. Allspice

Since it closely matches the taste of cinnamon and many people already have it in their pantries, allspice is one of the greatest cinnamon substitutes. In its ground form, allspice has a texture comparable to cinnamon. Allspice, like cinnamon, may be used whole, although it will be in the form of little, dried berries rather than lengthy bark pieces.

Allspice is distinguished by its strong, earthy tones. It has a mildly sweet taste, similar to cinnamon. Allspice is derived from the Pimenta dioica evergreen tree in the West Indies, and many people compare its flavor to a blend of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and pepper.

When throwing things together, it’s tempting to go overboard, but when using allspice to substitute cinnamon in a recipe, use approximately one-third of the quantity. Start with a little bit of allspice and taste test as you add more until you’re pleased with the cinnamon flavor.

If your store is out of cinnamon and you buy allspice as a replacement, remember that you may utilize the leftover container in a variety of dishes. You may use your extra allspice in marinades, soups, sausages, and pureed root vegetables in addition to any dish that calls for cinnamon.

As you’re impressing your visitors with your innovative cinnamon substitute, you may share some intriguing facts about allspice with them. For example, when the British came in the Americas, they had no idea what to make of allspice due to its multi-layered flavor, so they termed it all spice.

2. Pumpkin Spice

What better way to replace cinnamon than with an item that already has it? Pumpkin spice is a delightful blend of various spices, many of which are cinnamon substitutes. While pumpkin spice may seem to be a recent development, with so many dishes and beverages using it throughout the fall season, pumpkin spice is hundreds of years old and originated in Mongolia.

It won’t take long for you to discover why pumpkin spice is such an excellent alternative for cinnamon. The following are the most noteworthy elements in this mixture:

• Cinnamon
• Vanilla
• Cloves
• Nutmeg
• Mace
• Allspice
• Cardamon

Pumpkin spice, unlike allspice, does not have a very strong taste. As a result, using pumpkin spice in the same ratio as your cinnamon recipe should be OK. If your recipe asks for a teaspoon of cinnamon, for example, you should be able to use a teaspoon of pumpkin spice. Don’t be shocked if you like your recipe with pumpkin spice. It has such a rich taste combination that it may just provide an additional pop to your food!

You may use apple spice for pumpkin spice if you like. Apple spice has almost same components, but in a different proportion. Alternately, if your cupboard or grocery store is depleted, go through your spices and check if you have any additional spice combinations that include some of the elements mentioned above.

3. Nutmeg and Cloves

Depending on the contents of your spice rack, nutmeg and cloves may be used as a cinnamon replacement together or separately. Let’s take a look at each one separately and then observe how they mix to create a cinnamon-like taste.

Nutmeg is a seed, not a nut, despite its name. The seed comes from an Indonesian evergreen tree. It is available in dry powder form (excellent for cinnamon substitute), essential oil form, and nutmeg butter form. Nutmeg contains antimicrobial qualities and is high in antioxidants, which help fight diseases including heart disease and cancer. It may also induce psychedelic effects, but only if used in large quantities.

Cloves are derived from a tropical evergreen tree as well. Farmers pluck and dry the trees’ unopened flower buds to create cloves for human use. Cloves may be purchased in two forms: ground (for your recipe) and essential oil. Cloves have a strong scent and a harsh flavor, so use them sparingly. They have several health advantages as an antibacterial and analgesic.

To avoid overloading your meal with nutmeg and cloves as a cinnamon alternative, gradually add one or both of these components. Both have a strong taste and are not as good a flavor replacement as allspice and pumpkin spice.

We suggest beginning with a quarter of the quantity specified in the recipe and adding more as required. Remember that if you’re using both nutmeg and cloves, split the quantity in half, creating one-eight of the original amount.

4. Cardamom

Cardamom, not surprisingly, is also from South Asia. If you don’t have the components we stated, using cardamom as a substitute for cinnamon is a good choice. Cardamom comes in two varieties: green and black, and both arrive as seeds in a tiny pod.

We understand that your alternatives may be limited, but if you have both green and black cardamom on hand, use the green kind as your cinnamon replacement. The reason for this is because green cardamom has a strong spicy taste. Black cardamom has a powerful flavor that is midway between smoky and cold mint.

In general, cardamom is a preferable cinnamon substitute when creating savory meals rather than sweet ones. This is due, in part, to the strength of its scent. While cinnamon replacements are the goal here, they are no match for the genuine thing. As a result, while creating savory foods, you may use cardamom to provide a cinnamon-like taste while knowing that the other components in your meal will assist to balance out its strong flavor.

Despite its strong flavor, cardamom and cinnamon are often combined in recipes. It implies you should be able to use one teaspoon of cardamom for one teaspoon of cinnamon. But, it is recommended to start gently and taste as you add more heat.

Whether you use cardamom as a cinnamon alternative or in other foods, regular intake may benefit your health. Cardamon prevents infections, promotes heart health, alleviates sciatica symptoms, and enhances cognition through improving memory function.

5. Cinnamon Extract

It may seem that we should have placed a cinnamon-containing item towards the top of our list, but since it comes in liquid form and might cause allergies, cinnamon extract isn’t always appropriate for recipes.

Cinnamon extract is made in the same manner as vanilla extract is made: by soaking cinnamon bark in alcohol and discarding the solids. As a consequence, cinnamon extract tastes more strongly than ground cinnamon. Nonetheless, cinnamon extract has a milder flavor than cinnamon oil, which is extracted straight from the bark. As a result, when looking for a cinnamon substitute, cinnamon extract is preferable to cinnamon oil.

Some individuals may experience the effects of cinnamon’s poisonous component, coumarin, when ingested in large amounts. As a result, using cinnamon extract instead of powdered cinnamon is not a viable option for persons who have food allergies.

If you have a bottle of cinnamon essence, add a few drops at a time to your recipe until you’re satisfied with the flavor. If you have cinnamon sticks and rum on hand, you may produce your own cinnamon extract by soaking two pieces of bark in a cup of rum for a few weeks.

When creating cinnamon extract, try to use it up quickly; unlike powdered cinnamon, cinnamon extract has a shorter shelf life.

Conclusion

With so many possibilities, if you receive a cinnamon pinch, you can simply pinch in one of the other spices we addressed here. Several of these cinnamon alternatives are so close to cinnamon that you could forget your recipe is missing it!