Broccoli

The Rasenna (later known as the Etruscans) began cultivating cabbages, the precursors to broccoli, in Asia Minor (now Turkey). During the 8th century BC, the Rasenna began their migration to Italy. Their broccoli cultivation spread throughout the region and eventually reached Rome when they settled in what is now known as Tuscany. The Romans loved broccoli. Apicius, the famous cookbook of ancient Rome, recommended preparing broccoli by first boiling it and then seasoning it with cumin, coriander seeds, and chopped onion, plus a few drops of oil and wine. Catherine de Medici of Tuscany arrived in France with her Italian chefs and many vegetables, including broccoli, when she married Henry II in 1533. Broccoli was mentioned in England in 1724.

Thomas Jefferson, an avid gardener, recorded his planting of broccoli, along with radishes, lettuce, and cauliflower on May 27, 1767; however, broccoli did not become popular in America until the 1920s. Commercial cultivation of broccoli in the United States can be traced to the D'Arrigo brothers, Stephano and Andrea, immigrants from Messina, Italy, whose company made some tentative plantings in San Jose, California in 1922. A few crates were initially shipped to Boston, where there was a thriving Italian immigrant culture in the North End. The broccoli business boomed, with the D'Arrigo's brand name "Andy Boy" named after Stephano's two-year-old son, Andrew, supported by advertisements on the radio. By the 1930s, broccoli was a staple American vegetable. Demand for broccoli lagged behind cauliflower until after the Second World War, when Americans returning from Europe demanded broccoli at home.