There’s Nothing ‘Vanilla’ About Vanilla

It may seem a bland, standard flavor, but its history is deliciously rich

Credit: Brett Stevens/Cultura/Getty

According to legends of the indigenous Totonac people of Mexico, in a time before vanilla was cultivated, there once lived the beautiful princess Tzacopontziza of the Totonocopan kingdom. A young prince named Zkatan-Oxga saw her picking flowers for a temple offering one day…