Asparagus - Did you know...

that asparagus has been cultivated for millennia (although it still grows wild on the Adriatic coast)? It provides a delicate crunch when properly prepared (hint: don't over-cook) and is a good source of vitamin B6, calcium, magnesium and zinc, and a very good source of dietary fiber, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K, thiamin, riboflavin, rutin, niacin, folic acid, iron, phosphorus, potassium, copper, manganese and selenium. It is also low in calories and sodium and contains no cholesterol.

Whew...potent stuff!

Asparagus has been used from early times as a vegetable and medicine, owing to its delicate flavour and diuretic properties. The Romans and Greeks enjoyed this unique vegetable, which has also been immortalized in the hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt. The second century physician Galen described asparagus as "cleansing and healing." And, there is a recipe for cooking asparagus in the oldest surviving book of recipes, Apicius’s third century AD De re coquinaria, Book III.

"Asparagus has long been recognized for its medicinal properties," wrote D. Onstad, author of Whole Foods Companion: A Guide for Adventurous Cooks, Curious Shoppers and Lovers of Natural Foods. "Asparagus contains substances that act as a diuretic, neutralize ammonia that makes us tired, and protect small blood vessels from rupturing. Its fiber content makes it a laxative too."

The eye-catching white variety of asparagus is simply regular asparagus that has been shaded from sunlight and exposed to more ultraviolet light. It is very popular in the Netherlands, France, Belgium and Germany and has been making the scene more and more in Western cooking.

So...eat healthy...buy some asparagus and enjoy!

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