Licorice

After chocolate, licorice is my favorite sweet.  Black is good, but only in the form of Good and Plenty.  Red is the best.  But not just any red.  It has to be Australian.  Sambuca, licorice flavored liqueur, is great for a night cap and helps with digestion.  Further, licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is a flavorful herb that has been used in food and medicinal remedies for thousands of years. Also known as "sweet root," licorice root contains a compound that is roughly 50 times sweeter than sugar. Licorice root has been used in both Eastern and Western medicine to treat a variety of illnesses ranging from the common cold to liver disease. This herb has long been valued as a demulcent (soothing, coating agent) and expectorant (rids phlegm and mucous from the respiratory tract) and continues to be used by health care professionals today to relieve respiratory ailments (such as allergies, bronchitis, colds, sore throats, and tuberculosis), stomach problems (including heartburn from reflux), inflammatory disorders, skin diseases, stress relief, and liver problems.