Broccoli, affectionately know as “trees” in our family, is a member of the Brassica family of vegetables. It’s a close relative to cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, rutabaga, choy sum, collard greens, kohlrabi and kale. Like artichokes and cauliflower, broccoli is an edible flower with a mildly cabbage-like flavor to most palates. Sadly, some individuals dislike this vegetable because it may be bitter or tasteless to them.
Broccoli is an annual plant, grown each season from seed. This plant grows well in cool weather conditions such as in the Vancouver area. You’re apt to find broccoli appearing in our local farmers markets about now. To select the most flavorful and nutritious, choose the greenest stalk that sports the tightest flower buds. Also be aware that broccoli comes in several varieties: one with thin stalks and heads called sprouting broccoli and an unusually bright yellow green, pyramid shape named Romanesco.
Broccoli is a nutritious, healthy vegetable. This veggie provides high amounts of vitamin C, vitamin K, manganese, calcium, and fiber. Scientific studies suggest that broccoli, as well as all other brassica vegetables, are protection against cancers of the lungs and digestive tract.
Broccoli began as a native in the Mediterranean area. It is purported to have been engineered from a cabbage cousin by the Etruscans — an ancient people who lived in an area of Italy now know as Tuscany. (As a historical note, the Etruscans were in power from 500 BC to 200 BC but were in turn conquered by the Romans.). It’s an English name that comes from the Italian word broccolo, which means “the flowering crest of cabbage” and the Latin word brachium that translates into arm, branch, or shoot.
