Good and Good for You: Carrots

 

We're coming up on bunny season so was feeling inspired.  Let's talk carrots.

CARROTS

Carrots have been around a long, looooong time.  Native to Afghanistan, they were cultivated in the Mediterranean in the BCs.  As with many fruits and veggies, the ancient Greeks and Romans ingested them medicinally before they used them as a food source.

Carrots were used to relieve stomach aliments and increase virility.  Whether it was their phallic shape or association with rabbits who symbolized fertility, carrots were considered an aphrodisiac and eating carrots before lovemaking was thought to increase sperm count.  From what I've read, the preference was carrots stewed with sugar..weird.

In the 13th century, people were starting to become aware of carrots, but they were not recognized on a widespread scale until the 16th century. In England they were considered an exotic item and used primarily for their fluffy green tops which were used to decorate the hats of ladies in the court of King James I.  Carrots are a member of the parsley family so share the same foofy greenery, but are considered slightly toxic so not edible (always remove the greenery).

Carrots come in a variety of colors, ranging from yellow to red to purple.  Asian varieties land on the purple end of the spectrum and resemble beets. The bright orange carrot that we know and love today was a variety developed and cultivated by the Dutch in the Middle Ages which made them much more attractive than the bitter, lumpy purple roots they started out as.

Carrots made their way to the New World via the Colonists and were quickly adopted by the native culture.

So why are these roots so good for you?  Let me fill you in on that.

Carrots are chocked full of carotene which gets converted to vitamin A in the liver which is good for detoxification and promoting healthy eye sight.  They are rich in vitamins B, C and E as well.  Carotenes help protect against high blood cholestrol.

The darker orange a carrot is, the more carotenes it contains.  The carotenes provide the bright orange color you see and if you eat a monstrous load of carrots, it has been known to cause your skin to appear orange.  A mild, though harmless reaction and you would probably need to eat a TON of carrots.

Carrots are belived to offer protection against some cancers and cardiovascular disease, and keeping lungs healthy.  Carrots are also rich in fiber and contain calcium and potassium.

Carrots are one of the few root veggies you can eat raw, but to release the most nutrients, you really want to cook them slightly.  Stir-frying or steaming them will give you the heat you need to release the nutrients but still keep them crunchy. Though if you prefer them raw, serving them in a salad with some oil (like flax oil) will help unlease the nutrients as well.

So carrots, not just another pretty face in the veggie isle.