Vanilla gets a bad rap in our culture—it’s used to describe something bland, boring, or just bad–be it food, music, or sex.  That’s a shame, because in fact the vanilla bean is the sex organ of a tropical orchid.  Spicy, exotic, flavorful, worshipped–it’s pretty much the opposite of bland!

The Totonaco people of the Vera Cruz region in Mexico were the first to cultivate vanilla, which they believed to be a gift from the gods. Their mythology told of a pair of fallen lovers, whose sacred blood marked the spot where a vigorous vine and beautiful flowers grew to fill the air with the aroma of true love and beauty. 

The Aztecs, who learned about vanilla from the Totonaco, called it tlixochitl, “black flower”.  Tlixochitl was served with cacao, ground corn, and honey in the drink of the Gods, aka the original hot chocolate! When Cortes came to the New World, he drank this brew and was suitably impressed. Had the Aztec not mistaken him for a god, who knows when Europe would have learned about vanilla? 

They did, however, and Cortes took vanilla back to Spain. The word “vanilla” comes from the Spanish word for “vagina” (see—they knew it was sexy!) It quickly caught on all over Europe. The sexy French loved it, although it took them three hundred years to figure out how to cultivate it successfully!

Today we build on their success with our French Vanilla Almond Granola base.  It’s lots of things, (especially delicious!) but definitely NOT boring. Try it for yourself and revel in the magnificent and mysterious taste of vanilla!