"broccoli rabe" news and stories

Can you identify spring vegetables? Take this spring vegetable identification quiz on Slashfood to find out.

According to conventional wisdom mothers have fought to get their little ones to eat veggies since before the earth was cooling. Cruciferous varieties, like broccoli and Brussels sprouts are often cited as particularly challenging.

Last week at my nephew's tenth birthday party, I was reminded of his surprising appetite for a particular green. It's not broccoli, kale, spinach, or even broccoli rabe, my Sicilian father's favorite. I don't know where the little guy stands on those. The object of his appetite isn't even a vegetable. It's an herb. He goes gaga for fresh parsley.

What reminded me of his parsley passion, was the birthday present his Aunt Dawn gave him: two fresh bunches of parsley. Ever since he had it in a salad his grandmother made for him when he was six he's been a parsley fanatic. Besides wanting to make her nephew happy, one of the reasons for Aunt Dawn's gift is that he once ate the better part of her parsley patch before anyone noticed.

By now you're probably wondering why this kid likes to eat what many regard as mere garnish.Taking a break from his hectic Lego-building schedule he provided me with the following quote: "I like it because it doesn't have much of a taste. How can you dislike something that has no taste. And it's healthy."

As for me, I was never into fresh parsley as a kid. I was too involved with my own food quirks, like slicing a notch in apple and stuffing it with a slice of bologna.

When I returned from my holiday vacation a few weeks ago, I went out to my garden to see what had been going on in my absence. I'm always a little fearful in doing this, as I never really know what I'll find. This summer, upon returning home after Hurricane Wilma had passed over the west coast of Florida, I found my Thai basil looking as if someone had sat on it. This time, however, I was pleasantly surprised to find my broccoli rabe about two feet taller than when I left. Earlier this week, a few of the plants were ready to be harvested. As you can see, some of the flower stalks were a little more than ready.