Amazing Foods: Cabbage

Cabbage is one of those random foods I could never get enough of when I was a kid. I remember wishing my mom would make it more often. I still crave regular cabbage and also sauerkraut, uh, like all the time. I made some last night, so that's why it turned up on my blog today :)

The cabbage is derived from a leafy wild mustard plant, native to the Mediterranean region. It was known to the ancient Greeks and Romans; Cato the Elder praised this vegetable for its medicinal properties, declaring that "it is first of all the vegetables" (yeah it is!!). The word cabbage comes from the Normanno-Picard word "caboche", which means "head".


The so-called 'cabbage head' is widely consumed — raw, cooked, or preserved — in a great variety of dishes. It is considered to be a leaf vegetable. It is an excellent source of folic acid (prevents neural tube defects), vitamin C, and vitamin K (involved in blood clotting) and is naturally a low-calorie food...until you add bacon to it!! :)



Many of my favorite uses: red cabbage- shredded in fish tacos; green cabbage- mixed with salt and undergoes lactic acid fermentation, otherwise know as SAUERKRAUT; coleslaw; cabbage rolls.

How I usually prepare it: sauteed in olive oil with purple onion rings and garlic, seasoned with cooked bacon pieces and black pepper.

Sources: Wikipedia, 5 a Day Campaign