Some things you might not know about artichokes:
- are in the same family as lettuce.
- are a kind of thistle
- The core of the artichoke stem is edible as well – don’t throw it away!
- If you cook artichokes in an aluminum pot it will turn the pot grey.
Botanical Information
Family: Asteraceae (the daisy family).
Scientific Name: Cynara cardunculus L.
Etymology: articiocco, Northern Italy, a variant of Italian. arcicioffo, from Old Spanish, probably from influenced by the Italian ciocco for stump.
Uses: The flower buds are boiled or fried – often dipped in sauce (eg. hollandaise, aioli etc). The part that is eaten are the fleshy leaves or bracts surrounding the inflorescence.
August 10th, 2009
Some things you might not know about figs:
- There are about 800 species of figs.
- The ‘fruit’ that we eat is not a fruit, but actually a collection of flowers called an inflorescence.
- These flowers grow on the inside of the ‘fruit’.
- Each species of fig is usually pollinated by its own species of wasp in a symbiotic relationship.
- It is thought that figs could be the oldest cultivated crop (preceding wheat and rye by up to 1000 years).
- Figs have a higher quantity of fibre than any other dried or fresh fruit.
Botanical Information
Family: Moraceae
Scientific Name: Ficus L. ( the common edible fig is Ficus carica L. )
Etymology: Ficus is the Latin for fig (you get that with very old plants).
Uses: Figs can be eaten fresh or dried. Fresh figs don’t travel very well, so unless you are lucky enough to have your own tree, you can usually only buy dried figs.
History: Figs are an ancient plant and are mentioned in the Bible and the Qur’an.
Another species of fig is the Indian banyan tree (Ficus benghalensis) that is considered sacred. It represents eternal life because of its seemingly ever-expanding branches.
May 9th, 2007
Some things you might not know about artichokes: