Blue Jean Chef

I like words. Let me rephrase that. I like some words. I quite dislike other words. Certainly there are some words that don’t affect me either way, but there are many others on which I have a definitive opinion. For instance, I have always loved the words “Deutsche Grammophon”. To my knowledge, these words are probably only ever uttered on classical radio stations. There is rarely an opportunity to use these beautiful words since they are a brand name, the name of a classical music recording label. Still, they run off the tongue nicely; they have a nice cadence.

I’m also particularly fond of the word “however”. “However” is so useful, changing the direction of a sentence or paragraph, similar to a key change in a piece of music. “However” is also a nice word to physically write and even to type. It must have something to do with the repetitive motion of writing a “w” and a “v” with an “e” right after both. (If you’ve decided now that I am certifiably crazy, you should know that I’m not alone in feeling this way about words…at least I don’t think I am! Tell me I’m not…please)

On the other hand, some of the words that I cannot stand are “droll”, “gross”, and “debone”. The definition of “droll” is “comical in an odd or whimsical manner”. “Droll” is derived from the French word “drole” and, though the meaning is roughly the same in both languages, “droll” is definitely not comical to me. One of the definitions of “gross” is “coarse, crude or vulgar”, and I find the word is just that. “Debone” is simply redundant.

Cruciferous. Cruciferous is another of my favourite words. Cruciferous. [kroo’sifurus] Say it. It sounds important. It’s easy to mess up the pronunciation. (I find great entertainment value in those who mispronounce words or get consonants or syllables mixed up – probably the only thing I like about a certain current political leader.) I’ve been thinking a lot about cruciferous vegetables lately, partly because I just like to think about and say the word out loud. I’ve also been thinking about them because it’s winter and cruciferous vegetables are everywhere you look. Although the growing season for cruciferous (I insist on repeating the word) vegetables ranges from October through April or May, they are not only available in winter – you can find them in your supermarket all year round. Other more exciting summer vegetables are not available in the winter, however (I love that!), so we find broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, and brussels sprouts on restaurant menus and family dinner tables everywhere.

Cruciferous vegetables are those belonging to the cabbage or mustard plant family, called Cruciferae. I think one of the reasons I’m so fond of the word “cruciferous” is that it has a meaningful derivation. Crucifers were so named because they have four petals that resemble crosses. It is not just the family name that holds meaning, however.

Broccoli is probably the most well known crucifer. It seems broccoli is always the “vegetable of the day” in steakhouses across the country, and as such has become almost boring. The word “broccoli” is derived from the Latin for “branch” or “arm”, brachium.

Brussels sprouts are often incorrectly called brussel sprouts. Once you learn that their name comes from the fact that they were first grown in Brussels, Belgium, you are unlikely to make that mistake again.

Cabbage comes from the French, caboche, or head. That makes sense since a head of cabbage is the right shape and weight to replicate the human noggin. Perhaps it also makes sense of the old Irish tradition of putting a head of cabbage on a stick and banging it on the doors of houses on Halloween night…then again, maybe it doesn’t.

Cauliflower is sometimes referred to as “cabbage flower”. Mark Twain once called cauliflower “cabbage with a college education”. I’m not sure it has a higher I.Q., but it does require more care and therefore financing. The leaves of the plant are tied around the head as it grows in order to keep it blanched white.

Collard Greens are said to be named from the Anglo-Saxon for “cabbage plants”, colewarts or colewyrts. It also has a variety name of acephala which means “without a head” in Latin. That comes from the fact that this is a loose-leafed cabbage of sorts.

What we in America call a rutabaga is known elsewhere as a Swede. It is actually a cross between a turnip and kale and originated in Sweden. In Swedish, rutabaga means “red bags” and this refers to the purplish tops of the vegetable.

Kohlrabi comes from Germany and is a crucifer with cabbage-like leaves and a bulb like a turnip. If you speak German, you already know this, since kohl means “cabbage” and rabi means “turnip” in Deutschland.

One quality that all cruciferous vegetables have in common is their cancer-fighting abilities. This was discovered in the early 90’s. The science of it is that by breaking down the cell walls, or by biting into the vegetable you convert the naturally existing glucoraphanin into sulforaphane. Sulforaphane triggers the production of enzymes that detoxify carcinogens before they damage DNA. This conversion can actually be tasted – it’s the bitterness that is apparent when eating cruciferous vegetables. That’s more than enough science for me, but it’s nice to know that there’s more to cruciferous vegetables than just a pretty name!

Two things happened to me today that left an impression. First, I heard the words “Deutsche Grammophon” on the radio again. This was a welcome sound – music to my ears. The second happening is a literary tragedy. I discovered today that the plant family Cruciferae has been renamed Brassicaceae. When and how this happened is still a mystery to me. I can hardly believe it! After all, the leaves of the plant resemble a crucifix, not a…

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 6th, 2005 at 7:02 pm and is filed under Ingredients. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.