first of all I have to apologize for my long absence. The last two weeks have been incredibly busy with a lot of unpredictable appointments, which left me with no time to sit down in front of the computer and come up with valuable information and recipes as to not bore you with what you already knew. So, here I am and as it frequently happens, my dear husband comes up with the topic and I develop it. What a team-work!
Yesterday when we were having dinner, he inquired about the benefits of Broccoli. He loves Broccoli (which is a good thing) and I had some answers for him right away.
My father on the other hand hates Broccoli. He insists it is "an American vegetable". I consider myself mature enough in the meantime to have the right to contradict him. :) As he is on my mailing list, I suppose as soon as he reads where Broccoli originally came from, he will change his mind....
Here we go:
BROCCOLI IS NATIVE TO THE MEDITERRANEAN!!! (Dad? Listening?)
It was engineered from a cabbage relative by the ancient Etruscans, who were considered to be horticultural geniuses. Can hardly get more historical... The ancient Romans considered Broccoli a uniquely valuable food (that was like 2000 years ago just for the records) and it only became known in the States as of the 1920's (Dad? Still listening?)
Enough with the historical excursion, let me talk about the benefits of this delicious vegetable, which you should consume if possible more than once a week:
Believe it or not, 100g Broccoli contain twice as much Vitamin C as 100g Orange!!!
It is high in dietary fiber, comes with a rich supply of vitamins and minerals, folate (folic acid), and potassium, it contains the phytochemical sulforaphane, which helps reduce the risk of cancer. In addition, broccoli contains a good amount of beta-carotene. And, unless you drown it in cheese sauce, broccoli is (like all green vegetables) low in calories and virtually fat free :).
In a separate post I will give some delicious recipes. Meanwhile...enjoy your Broccoli!!!
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