Edible Green Gem

Since St. Paddy’s day is right around the corner, I thought I’d pay a little tribute with a little green. During my years as a working engineer, my co-workers planned several St. Paddy’s Day parties. We each brought in a dish that had the color green: Green salad, green curry, green eggs, etc. It was a big hit. Anyway, I miss those get-togethers. And surely I recently discovered a greenish vegetable that would have been a crowd So you may be asking, “What the heck is that in the picture?” Germans know it as Romanesco. Apparently, the English version in Wikipedia doesn’t know what the heck it’s called nor knows whether its part of the cauliflower or broccoli family. But the ‘experts’ have settled to call it, Broccoflower. Other names from German are “minaret cabbage” [Minarettkohl] or “turret cauliflower” [Türmchenblumenkohl]. Weird eh? To me, one of florets resembles an eye of a cameleon.

One day I was flipping through the television and I happened upon a quick glimpse of this edible wonder. I found out that it is cultivated world wide, but mainly in Europe and Asia. Germany either grows it pretty much in all reputable vegetable farms but also receives shipments from France and Italy.

A few weeks later I found some sold at our local Aldi. Holy cow, Romanesco! I was so proud that I had recognized it. What did it taste like? was my second thought. To my surprise, the Romanesco was sold in the same package with broccoli and cauliflower all the way from Spain. (I’m guessing a lot of the discounter produce comes from Spain.) I quickly picked up a package with a little smile, dreaming ways I could cook up something I never thought I’d see in the light green, crystalline-looking flesh.

I finally settled on a hearty version of Broccoli Cheese Soup. I doctored up a few internet recipes and gingered a soup that used all three broccoli, cauliflower, and romanesco veggies. I also took into consideration that cheddar cheese is a very rare and expensive find in Germany. Instead I used Gouda. You can find my version here. So Romanesco, to me, has a softer consistency than cauliflower. It tastes more like cauliflower than broccoli but with a touch of added quality -maybe a hint nutty and a slightly sweet flavor.

From a nutritional standpoint, Romanesco is easy to digest and is suitable for people on a restricted or bland diet because of it’s tender structure. It contains little carbohydrates, but makes up for this deficit with important minerals such as Potassium (for a happy heart), a lot of Vitamin K (good for blood coagulation), and comparatively speaking, tons of Vitamin C. 200 grams of Broccoflower contains the Recommended Daily Allowance for Vitamin C.

Romanesco Stats

Broccoflower (raw), 1 cup (93g)
Calories: 20
Protein: 1.88g
Carbohydrate: 3.9g
Total Fat: 0.19g
Fiber: 2.0g
* Excellent source of: Vitamin C (56mg)
source: Wikipedia

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