They go on a long hike, then feast on kale and beer. The Germans have a kale festival, known as Grünkohlfahrt (Curly Kale Hike). Your parents and grandparents might remember a surge in its popularity following the Dig for Victory campaign of World War Two. We’ve been growing kale since the 4th Century BCE but this is far from its first moment in the sun. There was even a school of ‘rural life’ writing known as ‘Kailyard’. Kale was so ubiquitous in Scotland at one stage that the word ‘kale’ was used interchangeably with the word ‘food’. And yes, there is already a book called ‘Fifty Shades of Kale’. There are more than 50 varieties of kale, too. Kale is part of the same family as Brussels sprouts and has been cross-bred with sprouts to create kalettes*, a sort of kale sprout. Shetland has its own weather proverb about kale: “Dry sunny weather was best for maetin the corn and drying the peats wet, misty or rainy weather grew best kale.”Ī serving of kale has more vitamin C than an orange and more calcium than a pint of milk. Then coffee came along and spoiled everything. They boiled up (something like) kale (though it was definitely a green-leafed brassica), and drank the water to sober themselves up. The Ancient Greeks used it as a cure for drunkeness. While lesser veg are snoozing beneath the surface of the soil, gathering strength, or are still a twinkle in Thompson and Morgan’s eye in February, hardy and stoic kale is still out there, ripe for the picking. It’s practically the only vegetable you can pick in abundance right now. But here are ten more facts about Kale that just make us love it that little bit more… Lauded as a superfood, and loved by those who love their greens, we all know now that kale is very good for you indeed.
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