Category Archives: Culinary

The only flower in the cauliflower is in its name.

• Cauliflowers are a vegetable that grow on the annual or biennial plant Brassica oleracea botrytis.
• Cauliflowers are roughly spherical in shape, cradled by leaves, and the more it is cooked the softer it becomes.
• ‘Cauliflower’ comes from the Latin word for ‘cabbage’, which is ‘caulis’.
• Cauliflowers are from the Brassicaceae family, the family of mustards, crucifers and cabbage.
• Cauliflower heads can be coloured cream, green, orange or purple.

• Cauliflowers are believed to be originally from the area of Asia Minor and western Asia’s Syria, and from there, spread throughout Europe.
• Cauliflower heads are not flowers but instead numerous flower buds.
• Cauliflowers are commonly eaten raw, in salads, soup, casseroles, or as sides, and is often accompanied with a white sauce.
• Cauliflowers contains numerous healthy chemicals that, when boiled, can be significantly diminished.
• Raw cauliflower is very high in vitamin C, is a good source of vitamin K, and it also has many other vitamins and minerals.

Bibliography:
Cauliflower, 2011 Fresh for Kids, http://www.freshforkids.com.au/veg_pages/cauliflower/cauliflower.html

Cauliflower, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cauliflower

Cauliflower, 2014, The World’s Healthiest Foods, http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=13

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Don’t let those turnips nip you.

• Turnips are vegetables and the root of the plant Brassica rapa rapa.
• Turnips are from the Brassica genus, which includes brussel sprouts, broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower, and are from the Brassicaceae family, the family of mustard, cabbages and crucifers.
• A turnip is typically spherical in shape with a smaller root at the base, which is generally removed when sold commercially, and it has long green leaves at the top.
• Turnips are usually mainly white in colour, with a green, red or purple area at the top caused by sun exposure, and the flesh is generally white, although in some of the baby turnip varieties it can be red, yellow or orange in colour.
•  Turnips grow to be 5 to 20 centimetres (2 to 8 inches) in diameter, and can be as heavy as 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) in weight.

• Turnips are commonly cooked, pickled or added as side vegetables, or made into soup, and the baby vegetables can be used raw in salads.
• Turnips have been grown agriculturally since 1400 BC in India, and the origin of the vegetable is uncertain, although it is believed to be most likely native to Europe or possibly Asia.
• Turnips have a sharp taste, which becomes less strong by cooking, and the young vegetables are sweeter.
• The long leaves of turnips can be eaten, and are usually cooked, although they can also be added to salads.
• Turnips are high in vitamin C, are a good source of fibre, and contain many other vitamins and minerals.

Bibliography:
Turnip, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turnip

Turnip, n.d., Goodfood, http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/glossary/turnip

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Don’t parsnip these facts!

• Parsnips are vegetables and the root of the annual or biennial plant Pastinaca sativa, and there are a number of varieties available.
• Parsnips are native to Europe and Asia, and are from the family Apiaceae, family of carrots, celery and parsley.
• Parsnips become sweeter during a frost, due to some of the starch being converted to sugar.
• Parsnips are cream in colour, and are typically conical in shape.
• Parsnips can be eaten either raw or cooked, in soups, stews or casseroles; as well as side vegetables, made into chips or used as a starch replacement.

• Parsnips were popularly eaten in Ancient Rome, and were sometimes confused with carrots due to similarities in colour at the time.
• Parsnips, in Europe, were commonly used to sweeten foods before sugar cane was introduced.
• The sap of the foliage on parsnip plants is poisonous, which can cause a type of burn on the skin.
• Parsnips have a sweet flavour and a taste of nuttiness and anise, and are high in vitamin C, maganese, folate and fibre.
• Parsnips, before harvest, are firm, but when harvested, turn soft, and are best stored in the refrigerator.

Bibliography:
Parsnips, 2014, Nature’s Pride, http://www.naturespride.eu/our-products/product-detail/parsnips/

Parsnip, 2011, Fresh for Kids, http://www.freshforkids.com.au/veg_pages/parsnip/parsnip.html

Parsnip, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parsnip

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Lemonade is a delicious beverage.

• Lemonade is a sweet beverage that is traditionally flavoured with lemon.
• Lemonade is typically homemade or manufactured commercially, and the latter is carbonated to make a soft drink and often contains citric acid as the flavouring ingredient.
• The primary ingredients of homemade lemonade, are sugar, lemon juice and water.
• Lemonade, although typically used as a beverage, can be made into a frozen snack or dessert.
• Lemonade is sometimes coloured pink, due to the addition of red berry juices or food colouring, and is often sweeter.

• Lemonade recipes can vary widely among countries, with some including ginger, alcohol, mint or pear in their mixes.
• Lemonade was possibly invented by the Egyptians, as there is evidence of sweetened bottled lemon juice, known as ‘qatarmizat’, being made and exported from the 900s AD.
• Lemonade is traditionally yellow to white in colour, although can be coloured differently with fruit juices and food colourings.
• Lemonade has its own national day of the same name, in the United States of America, and is celebrated annually on the 20th of August.
• Homemade lemonade has a significant quantity of vitamin C and carbohydrates.

Bibliography:
History of Lemonade, 2012, 20-20 Site, http://www.2020site.org/history/history-of-lemonade.html

Kartha D, History of Lemonade, 2009, Buzzle, http://www.buzzle.com/articles/history-of-lemonade.html

Lemonade, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemonade

Wright C, History of Lemonade, 2014, CliffordAWright.com, http://www.cliffordawright.com/caw/food/entries/display.php/id/95/

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These facts are sour cream.

• Sour cream is a thick and creamy dairy product that is generally derived from the cream of cow’s milk.
• Sour cream is commonly used as a condiment with Mexican dishes or on baked potatoes; and is sometimes used as an ingredient in dressings, bakery items, and desserts.
• Despite ‘sour’ being in its name, which is a reference to the traditional process of souring, sour cream is not very sour.
• Sour cream is made with typical cream that has been through a fermentation process, usually with lactic acid bacteria types.
• Besides lactic acid bacteria, sour cream can be made with other acids, and sometimes thickeners are added.

• Sour cream can come in a low fat version, that is made from a combination of milk and cream, or just milk with added thickeners.
• Sour cream is refrigerated when stored, so that it does not spoil.
• Fermented cream cannot be marketed as ‘sour cream’ if it contains less than 18% fat from milk in weight.
• Sour cream was probably invented by the Russians, before the 1600s, and is said to be a derivative of the Mongolian alcoholic drink ‘kumis’, that was originally made from mare’s (horse) milk, and eventually became popular in western societies in the mid 1900s.
• Sour cream has a very high content of saturated fat, and is a good source of vitamin A, calcium, riboflavin and phosphorus.

Bibliography:
Nealon T, De Condimentis (12): Sour Cream, 2011, HiLoBrow, http://hilobrow.com/2011/06/10/de-condimentis-12-sour-cream/

Sour Cream, 2012, Nutrition Health Connection, http://www.nutritionhealthconnection.com/Milk-Products/Sour-Cream.html

Sour Cream, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sour_cream

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An Asian invention, an American condiment.

• Ketchup is a condiment that has tomato as the main ingredient, and is typically used as a flavouring on food.
• ‘Ketchup’ is also known as ‘tomato sauce’, ‘tomato ketchup’, ‘catsup’ and ‘red sauce’, and of all the households in the United States, 97% own a bottle of the sauce.
• Modern ketchup is primarily made of tomato, sugar, vinegar and seasonings or spices and it often contains onion, although traditional base ingredients were mushrooms, seafood or walnuts, rather than tomato.
• Ketchup is commonly eaten on hot food, such as burgers, sandwiches, hot dogs, pies, sausage rolls, chips, eggs and meat, and can be made into other condiments.
• Ketchup, was originally a fish sauce, that was from China and South East Asia, that became popular in England in the early 1700s, and eventually in America, due to its long shelf life.

• The earliest known use of tomatoes as the main ingredient for ketchup, was in the late 1700s in the United States of America, and during the 1800s, tomato based sauce became popular.
• Ketchup is commonly found in supermarkets, in bottles of varying sizes, but it is also commonly available in single-serve mini packets and sachets in fast food outlets.
• Commercial production of ketchup began in the early 1800s, and by the early to mid 1900s, commercial versions were preferred over those that were home-made, mostly because of the significant time involved to make the sauce at home, and the affordability of the store bought sauce.
• Heinz, a leading ketchup brand, sells 650 million bottles of their condiment throughout the world, every year.
• Ketchup has a very high content of sodium, a high content of vitamin C and vitamin A, and is a good source of copper.

Bibliography:
Gandhi L, Ketchup: The All-American Condiment that Comes from Asia, 2013, Codeswitch, http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2013/12/02/248195661/ketchup-the-all-american-condiment-that-comes-from-asia

Ketchup, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketchup

Swaby R, Ketchup Used to Be Made of Fish: The Crazy History of The World’s Greatest Condiment, 2012, Gizmodo, http://gizmodo.com/5907313/ketchup-used-to-be-made-of-fish-the-crazy-history-of-the-worlds-greatest-condiment

Smith A F, Pure Ketchup: A History of America’s National Condiment, with Recipes, 1996, http://books.google.com.au/books?id=hAq_EvcAIW4C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_atb#v=onepage&q&f=false

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