It’s a Miracle!

If I told you there is a single ingredient that is available to every American for mere pennies a pound that is a veritable miracle food would you believe me?

There is. Here are some of its more notable properties. It’s a vegetable. It has very high levels of Vitamin C and depending on how it is cooked, it maintains a lot of it so that it can be absorbed by your body. Vitamin C is important todevelop and maintain healthy skin, teeth and bones. It is a natural antioxidant. And because your body can’t produce vitamin C, it is important to round out your diet in fruits and vegetable full of the good stuff.  More about vitamin C can be found here.

This miracle food has also been proven to be high in iron and sulfur, to lower cholesterol and to help detoxify the liver. Because of its sulfuric properties, it is rumored to reduce stomach ulcers when eaten raw and prevent infection when applied topically to wounds. The latter application is not needed with modern medicine but it has been used ground up in poultices for hundred of years to prevent infection. The next ideas are a little more vague on true outcome, but still being investigated as a natural addition to the diet to prevent certain ailments such as Alzheimer’s and stomach, prostate, and intestinal cancers.

Every country in the world has its own variety of this vegetable. Germans and Russians like Koreans, Chinese and Japanese can’t imagine their cultures without it. Have you guessed yet what this may be? Cabbage, of course! Americans tend to shy away from this very cool vegetable, primarily due to the smell when the vegetable releases its sulfuric compounds while cooking. But sometimes we just need to get over it to enjoy something so plentiful, healthful and inexpensive.

We never grew cabbage on the farm. I first experienced cabbage in its natural environment when my husband, then fiancé, visited a friend at the family home in upstate NY.  There were acres and acres of cabbages, just like in the Cabbage Patch Doll commercials, but without the scary little baby attached. It took another ten years however before I got over the hump with the smell, and just the general ignorance of how versatile this vegetable can be. I am glad that I overcame this stumbling block. We now enjoy cabbage and its healthful properties often on an average of about two times a week.

The following is one of my most favorite recipes using cabbage.

Simple Roasted Brussel Sprouts (Printable Recipe)

When done, these will be crispy and caramelized on the outside and creamy and buttery on the inside. I could make a dinner just of this side dish alone.

• 1 pound of brussel sprouts
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
• 10-12 grinds of fresh black pepper or ¼ teaspoon
  

Preheat the oven to 350^oF. Trim the end off the brussels. In a ziptop bag or a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and toss. Pour the mixture onto a lined cookie sheet, add 2 table spoons of water and cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes. Uncover, stir, recover and bake another 15 minutes. Then uncover, stir and bake another 15-20 minutes until it looks like you must have just burnt then horribly. Really. Remove them to a serving bowl and let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.