Q: A recipe from Giada De Laurentiis calls for "broccoli rabe, stems trimmed." Is this different than regular broccoli? Or what is the process to get it this way? Karen Craig, Bacliff, TX

AskFN: Despite the name, broccoli rabe shouldn't be mistaken for broccoli. Though interchangeable in many recipes, broccoli rabe — which also goes by broccoli raab, broccoletti, and rapini — is basically a kind of turnip; whereas, broccoli is a type of cabbage. The evidence is in the flavor — broccoli rabe is distinguished by an intense, peppery bitterness similar to turnip top.

To recognize broccoli rabe, think of it as broccoli gone to seed — overgrown with leaves, loosely bunched florets, and some yellow buds showing a bit of flower. When Giada speaks of 'stems trimmed,' she simply means to cut off the bottom inch or so of the stalks. Don't bother trimming off much more - the stalks are good eating. Broccoli rabe is available year-round, but is best in winter. When shopping for broccoli rabe, look for thin stalks and pass over any bunches showing a white core at the base of the stem.

An interesting side note: both broccoli and broccoli rabe are relative newcomers to the US. It wasn't until 1927, that the D'Arrigo Brothers Company of California, first began marketing a vegetable it called 'broccoli.' (In Italy, the word, which means 'little sprouts' is used to refer to a wide variety of crucifers.) Initially marketed to the Italian immigrant communities, broccoli's popularity was quick to catch on. Slower to catch on with the general public, likely due to its intense bitterness, broccoli rabe was a vegetable bred from wild Italian seed that D'Arrigo Brothers introduced in 1964. Fortunately for those of us who adore bitter greens, broccoli rabe finally seems to have caught on and become widely available.

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