PARSLEY

“Parsley – the jewel of herbs, both in the pot and on the plate”.

Albert Stockli

Parsley, or Petroselinum crispum, is a biennial flowering plant in the Apiaceae family that originates from the central Mediterranean region. In the first year, it produces deep green, curly, tripinnate leaves that are about 10–25 cm long with numerous 1–3 cm leaflets. In the second year, it forms a flowering stem that can reach up to 75 cm in height and has sparse leaves and flat-topped umbels (3–10 cm in diameter) with many little yellow or yellowish green flowers. The oval seeds are about 2–3 mm long.

Chemical Composition

Parsley fruits contain up to 22 % of fatty oil which is composed of flavonoids (diosmin and apiin), petroselinic acid glycerides, glycosides (apigenin and naringenin), luteolin, etc. Moreover, the fruits contain about 2-6 % of essential oil which consists of coumarin, apiol, myristicin, a-pinene, etc. The leaves of the plant contain vitamin C, apigenin, carotene, luteolin. The flowers contain kaempferol and quercetin. The roots are rich in apigenin.

Parsley also contains the following vitamins:

• Vitamin C
• Folic acid (vitamin B9)
• Nicotinic acid (vitamin PP)
• Tocopherol (vitamin E)
• Vitamin K
• Vitamin B2

Parsley and Cucumber Smoothie

What you need:

• 2 cups of chopped parsley
• 2 cups of cut cucumbers
• 2 cups of water
• 1 apple
• 2-3 tbsp of lemon juice
• 1 celery stick
• ¼ tsp of ginger powder

Take all the ingredients and blend them until the mixture becomes smooth. Your smoothie is ready!