The Twelve Ingredients of A Christmas Dinner - Sprouts

The Twelve Ingredients of A Christmas Dinner - Brussels Sprouts (Brassica oleracea)

It is thought that that the current form of the Brussels Sprout, the vegetable that seems to the butt of all Christmas culinary jokes, can be dated back to the 13th Century from Belgium. Although it is has been considered that an earlier cultivar from the Gemmifera group was cooked in Ancient Rome.

The sprout is in season from September to March of the following year (source). Defra reports that sprout production increased by 10% in 2011 (Basic Horticultural Statistics 2012). The Scottish Government (2011) reports that 645 hectares (2009) of 15,246 hectares was used for sprout cultivation, this increased to 776 hectares in 2011 and produced 12.8 thousand tonnes in 2011. This 2011 sprout production raised an average of £13.39 million (Scotland.gov).

Brussels Sprout plants can leave a nursery after a period of sixty days where the stalk can be harvested after one hundred and ten days. Each stalk can be harvested up to five times over a seven week period and can lead to a potential 100 sprouts per stalk being harvested. The shelf life of a sprout is about twenty days if stored at one degree centigrade (Wired 2012)

An American cup measurement of sprouts contains 1,122 International Units (IU) of Vitamin A and 699 of beta-carotene (source). A fresh single sprout, be it raw or cooked, contains 10 calories whereas a cup of frozen sprouts that has been cooked contains 65 calories (source).

Why not treat them as a micro cabbage in a deconstructed Christmas dinner? A recent article in Wired (August/September 2012) states that the LYFE (Love Your Food Everyday) Kitchen in Palo Alto sees the Brussels Sprout as an alternative to the French Fry.

The Brussels Sprout is thought to contain anti-cancer chemicals (sulforaphane and indole-3-carbinol) that may boost "DNA repair in the body's cells and block the growth of cancer cells"(Wikipedia 2012); although boiling the sprouts will reduce the concentration of the anti-cancer compounds. It is thought best to roast, steam or stir fry and add the cross at the base of the bud's stem to increase the penetration of heat to the vegetable, if the sprout is large.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has published a roasted sprout salad here.

Schmallenburg Virus

Schmallenburg Virus (SBV), a name that brings dread to people involved with livestock, has been detected in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and recently in the United Kingdom. The SBV is transmitted by midges, mosquitoes and ticks and with the increase of warm and damp weather, it is ideal weather for the production of these virus vectors.It has been suggested by DEFRA that the insect vectors were blown across the English channel.

But what does the virus do? It can cause dehydration in animals through diarrhoea, decreases in milk production and fevers in adult animals and if a pregnant animal is infected, it can cause a late abortion or worse cause birth defects in cattle, goats and sheep.

The disease is being tracked across Europe and the United Kingdom.

The Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratory Agency reported, on the 13th of August, that "there are 276 UK farms reporting SBV: 53 in cattle, 220 in sheep and 3 premises which reported sheep (earlier in the year) and are now also reporting cattle cases".

 DEFRA suggests that although SBV "is not a notifiable disease...farmers are asked to contact their veterinary surgeon if they encounter cases of ruminant neonates or fetuses which are stillborn, show malformations or are showing nervous disease".

The Farmers' Weekly reports this week that "There is widespread concern that cases of the Schmallenberg virus (SBV) are being under-reported by farmers." It continues that "In northern Europe the proportion of sheep holdings with confirmed SBV was 4% a country and 7.6% a region.
But evidence from the Netherlands, France and Germany showed the number of animals infected on a single farm had been as high as 70-100%, the report revealed".

For more information on SBV, have a look at the Farmers' Weekly page or DEFRA's page or the NFU's page or the AHVLA's page.