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Maca

Maca

Maca Pronounce it: makka A root native to Peru, maca grows in a variety of colours and each is said to offer different health benefits. It is available dried in individual types or mixed together…

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Muscat

Muscat

Muscat Pronounce it: muss-cat The ‘grapey’ wine Muscat has a long history. The islanders of Samos in Greece are part of that history and still make sweet and fortified wines much as they did centuries…


Mulled wine

Mulled wine

Mulled wine Pronounce it: mulld w-eye-n Like ice-cold Spanish sangria, warm mulled wine is essentially red wine that is slightly sweetened, flavoured with citrus, lightly spiced and, usually, finished with a spirit or liqueur. However, mulled wine…


Maple syrup

Maple syrup

Maple syrup Pronounce it: may-pul sir-rup The rising spring sap of a number of varieties of maple tree native to northeast America, mainly in Canada but also in such US states as Vermont. The syrup…


Coconut milk

Coconut milk

Coconut milk Pronounce it: ko-ko-nut mill-k Coconut milk is not the slightly opaque liquid that flows from a freshly opened coconut – that is coconut water. Coconut milk is made by grating fresh coconut flesh and…


Millet

Millet

Millet Pronounce it: mil·let Worthy of far more than its bird food label, millet actually ranks as the sixth most important grain in the world, sustaining more than a third of the world’s population. It was one…


Malbec

Malbec

Malbec Pronounce it: marl-bek The Argentinian hero Malbec was once one of the regular participants in Bordeaux blends. Today it has fallen out of favour. Further south in Gascony it still has a role to…


Mustard

Mushroom

Mustard Pronounce it: muss-tard A condiment made by mixing the ground seeds of the mustard plant with a combination of ingredients usually including water, vinegar and flour. There are three varieties of mustard plant: black,…


Mangetout

Mangetout

Mangetout Pronounce it: monj-too The French name tells you all; it means ‘eat it all’. Mangetout properly means a type of garden pea picked very young, so young that the pod is still flat and…


Molasses

Molasses

Molasses Pronounce it: moh-lassiz More commonly known as treacle or black treacle or, in the US as blackstrap molasses, molasses are essentially what is left over after cane sugar is boiled to produce sugar and…