February
Cabbage
Cabbage is one of the oldest known vegetables; there is evidence that cabbage was part of the Chinese diet thousands of years ago. Today, there are many varieties that are harvested at various times of the year and winter brings the Savoy , white, green and red cabbages. Raw, cooked or preserved, the cabbage plays an important role in the cuisines of the Orient and Europe , west and east.
This vegetable is packed with vitamins, is high in iron and potassium, and very low in calories. Cabbage is excellent shredded and eaten raw in salads. When cooked, the briefest cooking methods, such as steaming or stir-frying, are best. Apart from red cabbage, which breaks the rule and benefits from long cooking, overcooked cabbage releases sulphur, which reminds many of school dinners and is the reason why, for most of us, cabbage was not a childhood favourite.
Chicory
Chicory is a member of the lettuce family. It comes in red and white varieties and is available during the winter months. Growing the roots in warm, moist peat or sand and leaving the white, fleshy leaves to develop in darkness propagate chicory. Once picked and exposed to light, the leaves start to become bitter, so they should be stored wrapped in paper to keep out the light and eaten as soon after picking as possible.
Chicory can be eaten raw or cooked: the leaves are excellent eaten fresh in a salad, tossed in a little vinaigrette, or stir-fried and served as be baked, poached or griddled.
Jerusalem artichokes |
They are a bit ugly misshapen and dauntingly knobbly but don’t let this put you off! (we all feel like that at times)These vegetables with a distinctive flavour are a rather neglected delicacy. Although they are cheap and could not be easier to grow, they are largely ignored. They are easy to trim and once scrubbed and free of trapped grit- so delicious! They discolour quickly, so pop them straight into cold water as you peel.
When is an artichoke not an artichoke? When it's a Jerusalem Artichoke
Helianthus is actually a member of the sunflower family, and just to add to the confusion, this delightful yellow flower comes not from Jerusalem but from America where it grew wild along the eastern seaboard from Georgia to Nova Scotia . The native Americans called them sun roots and introduced these perennial tubers to the pilgrims who adopted them as a staple food.
The history of its name has been traced back to the 17th Century. The explorer Samuel de Champlain discovered the plants growing in a local vegetable garden in Cape Cod , Massachusetts in 1605. He thought they tasted like artichokes and as such he brought them to France . A few decades later this 'artichoke' had reached Italy where the word for sunflower, 'girasole' was later corrupted into ' Jerusalem '. So by the mid 17th Century Jerusalem Artichokes were known across Europe and even rated a mention in the Oxford English Dictionary.
Over the years it became a staple food in times of famine, its capacity for appetite control doubtless an added benefit. It was used as a food during the Second World War as it was not subject to rationing. Its effectiveness in supporting appetite control was well known to Bio force founder Alfred Vogel who recommended the use of the herb in tincture form (Helix Slim) for just that purpose in his seminal work, The Nature Doctor.
Jerusalem Artichoke works by increasing the elimination of toxins from the body, balancing blood sugar levels (preventing hunger and cravings) and is a prebioti, supporting the good bacteria in the bowel.
Recipe: Truffled artichoke and poached egg soup
Also in season
leeks
squash
cabbage
parsnip
shallots
forced rhubarb
celeriac
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