September 30, 2012

Pondering on Peppers- 7 Interesting Facts


I've been harvesting peppers like it's going out of style thanks to the worms.  I was led to believe (by the seeds' packaging!)  that the peppers were RED, and I even witnessed one almost turn red....but I give up!

The impatient organic gardener in me is giving in and calling these GREEN peppers.
organic pepper
Peeping around on peppers online, here are 7 interesting tidbits about this green veggie:

1. Low in calories, high in Vitamin C
Nutrition Facts
(3/4 cup)
Info courtesy of Univ. of Illinois Ext.
     Calories 19.98
     Protein 0.66 grams
     Carbohydrates 4.76 grams
     Dietary fiber 1.48 grams
     Calcium 6.66 mg
     Potassium 130.98 mg
     Vitamin C 66.08 mg
     Folate 16.28 mcg
     Vitamin A 468 IU

2. There is no world record kept for the largest pepper ever grown.
Although there is no official record I could find recorded by a governing pepper body, my vote is for this random I found on Flickr:
Biggest green pepper ever

3. Many, many pepper festivals exist worldwide for this much-celebrated veggie.You can view an entire international schedule at Chilliworld, or if you live in North Carolina you can put this one on your calendar.
Kudos to the amazing artist that designs their posters- loved them all!!!
Pepper Festival Abundance

4. Cooks.com lists over 350 recipes for stuffed green peppers. These recipes use everything from the expected (rice, ground meat, tomato paste) to the unexpected (olives, cheddar cheese, beans, tuna). Another delish one from a new friend can be found here.

5. Green peppers can be cut up and frozen for later use.
And Traditional Foods provides some simple instructions so they don't get all stuck together in the freezer bag!

6. Green peppers can be picked and eaten at any size.
Important information for the impatient organic gardener in me!

7. Allergies to green peppers are rare, and people with allergies are often treated with capsicum (found in green peppers) to treat their allergies. 

I'm allergic to about a million things, so this was interesting to me.

Related posts & links:Snappy Stake Update
Fruits and Vegetables of My Labor
Red Pepper Update and Pesticides in Produce
USDA Green Pepper Nutritional Information

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2 comments:

Jean said...

Thank you so much for the facts that you shared. I really learned a lot from the post. Brilliant post!

Jean @ Cheap Sheds New Zealand Limited

Jill.BF said...

Thanks, Jean!