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3 mythes sur les carottes

Posted on 3 min read

La carotte appartient à la famille des ombellifères et a une teneur en carotène extraordinairement élevée. La racine saine tire sa couleur orange du bêta-carotène. Cependant, ce n’est pas le carotène qui donne son nom à la carotte. Le nom vient de “carota”. Cela signifie “brûlé” en allemand, ce qui fait référence à la couleur de la racine dans les temps anciens : à l’époque, la racine était encore violette.

Dans cet article de blog, nous énumérons trois faits/ mythes concernant la carotte, un légume-racine, et ce qui est vrai dans ces affirmations.

Mythe 1 : Les carottes embellissent

Quelle est l’origine de ce dicton… ? Une explication possible serait que les mots “Rüebli” et “Büebli” (garçon) riment très bien et qu’une mère a probablement pensé que cela encouragerait ses enfants à manger plus de légumes.

Une explication un peu plus sérieuse de l’origine du contenu serait la coloration du teint de la peau par la consommation de nombreuses carottes. Le bêta-carotène des carottes est transformé en vitamine A dans le corps. Cela est apparemment censé donner un beau teint.

Bien sûr, elles ne te font pas vraiment bronzer, mais la peau peut prendre une teinte légèrement plus foncée grâce à une consommation “abondante” de carottes. Les composés de carotène se déposent dans la couche la plus externe de la peau et donnent à la peau une teinte dorée-rougeâtre. Ceux qui veulent obtenir ce résultat grâce aux carottes ne verront cependant des résultats qu’après quelques semaines de consommation de carottes.

Mythe 2 : Les carottes sont bénéfiques pour les yeux

De tous les légumes, les carottes contiennent le plus de carotène (alpha et bêta-carotène). de tous les légumes, les carottes contiennent le plus de carotène (alpha et bêta-carotène). Comme mentionné ci-dessus, cette substance est transformée en vitamine A dans le corps. Celle-ci est également importante pour la vision. Selon le type de carotte, la teneur en carotène varie entre 5 et 30 milligrammes pour 100 grammes de légume-racine.

Quelques conseils : Lorsque tu prépares des carottes, fais-les cuire avec un peu de graisse, car le carotène est liposoluble. Cela signifie qu’il peut être bien mieux absorbé s’il y a aussi un peu de graisse dans l’aliment. Le carotène est aussi mieux absorbé si les carottes sont coupées en petits morceaux.

Mythe 3 : La carotte est forcément orange

La carotte n’a pas toujours été orange ! À l’origine, les carottes étaient blanc crème ou pourpre ou cramoisi. Ce n’est qu’au 16ème ou 17ème siècle que les carottes orange sont apparues. Cette culture est probablement originaire des Pays-Bas.

Les indications :

  • La première peinture de carottes orange vient des Pays-Bas et a été peinte au 17ème siècle.
  • Les premières descriptions de variétés de carottes orange ont été faites par des agriculteurs néerlandais au 18e siècle.


Il se pourrait que les Hollandais aient élevé des carottes orange pour rendre hommage à la maison royale néerlandaise d’Orange-Nassau. Selon la légende, les agriculteurs voulaient remercier le roi Guillaume d’Orange pour la lutte pour l’indépendance contre l’Espagne au moyen de carottes orange. Mais attention : il n’existe aucune preuve historique de ces faits.

Quoi qu’il en soit, les carottes de toutes les couleurs ont bon goût et les variétés moins connues comme les carottes violettes, jaunes et blanches redeviennent de plus en plus populaires auprès des masses. Les carottes peuvent être utilisées, par exemple, pour faire cuire de délicieux muffins aux carottes ou comme garniture sur une pizza. Elles sont aussi très bonnes en accompagnement – comme les carottes à l’ail, par exemple.

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englishStories

11 exciting facts about aubergines

Posted on 2 min read
Aubergine - Fakten

In keeping with the name of our blog, today’s article is about aubergines. We present some facts about them you may not have known.

  1. Aubergines should not be eaten raw as they contain bitter substances and solanine.
  2. According to various sources, aubergines have the highest level of nicotine of all vegetables and fruits.
  3. There are three types of aubergines: the egg-shaped aubergine we know, a variation with long, slender fruits and one with small fruits.
  4. Aubergines are berries in the botanical sense, not vegetables.
  5. Aubergines are closely related to tomatoes and potatoes.
  6. They have few calories and are rich in potassium, calcium and vitamin C.
  7. People used to think that aubergines were poisonous because they belong to the nightshade family, which includes various poisonous plants.
  8. Italians thought for a while that aubergines drove people to madness.
  9. Some people experience allergic reactions such as an irritated tongue, headache or upset stomach after eating aubergines.
  10. It’s best to store aubergines in the fridge, at least if you don’t plan to eat them straight away. That way they will last the longest.
  11. A fried aubergine absorbs four times as much fat as potatoes. So it’s better not to deep-fry them if you want to keep it healthy!
lange auberginen frisch

By the way, aubergines are in season from June to September. In Switzerland, they are grown in summer and autumn. So if you prefer aubergines from a regional cultivation, you can mark the months June to September in your calendar.

How to recognise a ripe aubergine?

aubergine gebraten und garniert

The main way to recognise a ripe fruit is by its skin. The skin should be smooth, a little shiny and give slightly when pressed lightly. A fresh fruit contains relatively much water and feels full. A rich green should be visible on the stalk.

Get your aubergines

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3 myths about carrots

Posted on 3 min read
An assortment of carrots in different colours

The carrot – or “rüebli” in Switzerland – belongs to the umbellifer family and has an extraordinarily high carotene content. The healthy root gets its orange colour from beta-carotene. However, the carotene is not what gives the carrot its name. The name comes from “carota”. This means “burnt” in German, which is a reference to the colour of the root in ancient times: back then, the root was still purple.

In this blog article, we list three facts about the root vegetable carrot – and what is true about these statements.

Myth 1: “Rüebli git schöni Büebli” (Carrots make you beautiful)

What is the origin of this saying…? One possible explanation would be that the words “Rüebli” and “Büebli” (boy) rhyme very well and that some mother probably thought that this would encourage her children to eat more vegetables.

A somewhat more serious explanation of the origin of the content would be the colouring of the skin tone through eating many carrots. The beta-carotene in carrots is converted into vitamin A in the body. This is apparently supposed to give a beautiful complexion.

Of course, they do not really make you tanned, but the skin can take on a slightly darker hue through an “abundant” consumption of carrots. The carotene compounds are deposited in the outermost layer of the skin and give the skin a golden-reddish hue. Those who want to achieve this through carrots, however, will only see results after a few weeks of carrot consumption.

Myth 2: Carrots are beneficial for the eyes

Of all vegetables, carrots contain the most carotene (alpha and beta carotene). f all vegetables, carrots contain the most carotene (alpha and beta carotene). As mentioned above, this is converted into vitamin A in the body. This is also important for vision. Depending on the type of carrot, the carotene content varies between 5 and 30 milligrams per 100 grams of root vegetable.

Some advice: When preparing carrots, cook with a bit of fat, as the carotene is fat-soluble. This means that it can be absorbed much better if there is also a little fat in the food. The carotene is also better absorbed if the carrots are chopped small.

Myth 3: The carrot must be orange

The carrot was not always orange! Carrots were originally creamy white or purple or crimson. It was not until the 16th or 17th century that orange carrots appeared. This cultivation probably originated in the Netherlands.

The indications:

  • The first painting of orange carrots comes from the Netherlands and was painted in the 17th century.
  • The first variety descriptions of orange carrots were made by Dutch farmers in the 18th century.

It could be that the Dutch bred orange carrots to pay tribute to the Dutch royal house of Orange-Nassau. According to legend, the farmers wanted to thank King William of Orange for the fight for independence against Spain by means of orange carrots. But please note: there is no historical evidence for these facts.

In any case, carrots in all colours taste great and the lesser-known varieties such as purple, yellow and white carrots are also becoming increasingly popular again among the masses. Carrots can be used, for example, to bake delicious carrot muffins or as a topping on pizza. They also taste great as a side dish – as garlic carrots, for instance.

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Favourite image: Pear

Posted on 1 min read

Pear is a typical autumn fruit. Like the apple — incidentally the most popular fruit in Switzerland — it belongs to the pome fruit family.

The pear is a sweet fruit because it contains little acid. Popular varieties are Williams, Conférence and Gute Luise and Kaiser Alexander. The picture reminds of a beautiful autumn day and fruit trees in the country.

Photo via Flickr from user jon oropeza under CC BY-SA 2.0

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25 facts about rhubarb

Posted on 2 min read
rhabarber

It is rhubarb season! That’s why we have collected 25 interesting and maybe not so interesting facts about rhubarb for you here.

  1. Rhubarb means rheum rhabarbarum in Latin
  2. This means something like “foreign root“
  3. Rhubarb comes from the Himalayas
  4. It is part of the knotweed family
  5. Buckwheat and sorrel also come from this family
  6. Only the stems can be used
  7. Rhubarb is often considered a fruit because of its use, however it is actually a vegetable
  8. In the USA, rhubarb has been legally considered a fruit since 1947
  9. The leaves are toxic due to the oxalic acid they contain
  10. Oxalic acid promotes rheumatism, gout and the development of kidney stones
  11. Oxalic acid corrodes the enamel of the teeth, so it is recommended to wait at least half an hour after eating rhubarb before brushing your teeth
  12. The best red-fleshed rhubarb is called “Elmsfeuer” or “St. Elmo’s Fire”
  13. Rhubarb has a digestive (or laxative) effect
  14. It is therefore well suited for a detox or purification cleanse
  15. The flower buds of rhubarb can be used as vegetables and prepared like broccoli
  16. Per 100g rhubarb has only 13 kcal
  17. It contains vitamins A, B1, B2 and C
  18. Rhubarb has a sour taste due to its citric acid and malic acid
  19. 4800 years ago rhubarb was used as a medicinal plant, but only the roots, not the stems
  20. Only in the 18th century it was discovered as food
  21. In 1937 the area under cultivation in Germany was 1700 hectares, but by 1993 it dropped  between 350 and 400 hectares
  22. Rhubarb grows up to 2 meters high
  23. May to June is when rhubarb flowers
  24. The climatic requirements are low, rhubarb just needs plenty of water
  25. Final harvest is the longest day of the year (June 21)

You can read more exciting facts about the carrot here.

Sources:

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Picture from https://pixabay.com/

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Favourite image: Jerusalem artichoke

Posted on 1 min read

Did you know that Topinambur means Jerusalem Artichoke in German?

But the small tuber has very little to do with the city of Jerusalem. The name has developed etymologically from girasole (Italian for sunflower) in English as Jerusalem. Gardeners in the Vatican used the flower of Jerusalem artichoke to remind us of small sunflowers — hence the name.

Photo via Flickr from user F Delventhal under CC BY 2.0

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