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Spoon Sweets
Spoon sweets are sweet preserves, served in a spoon as a gesture of hospitality in Bosnia, Serbia, Albania, Greece, Turkey, Kosovo, Cyprus, the Balkans, parts of the Middle East, and Russia. They can be made from almost any fruit, though sour and bitter fruits are especially prized. There are also spoon sweets produced without fruit. Some of the fruits that are used include seedless grapes, mulberries, strawberries and other berries, bergamot, apricots, quinces, apples, pears, sour and sweet cherries, oranges, kumquats, lemons, grapefruit, tangerines, pomegranates, figs, prunes, etc. Even soft fruit like melon or watermelon can be thus prepared, although retaining a relatively firm texture is challenging. Other varieties include green, unripe walnuts, pistachios, hazelnuts, and other nuts, or even flower petals like rose. Many fruits or parts of fruits that are normally inedible, such as the various citrus peels and blossoms, or sliced citrus fruits with their peel intact, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Balkans
The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the whole of Bulgaria. The Balkan Peninsula is bordered by the Adriatic Sea in the northwest, the Ionian Sea in the southwest, the Aegean Sea in the south, the Turkish straits in the east, and the Black Sea in the northeast. The northern border of the peninsula is variously defined. The highest point of the Balkans is Musala, , in the Rila mountain range, Bulgaria. The concept of the Balkan Peninsula was created by the German geographer August Zeune in 1808, who mistakenly considered the Balkan Mountains the dominant mountain system of southeastern Europe spanning from the Adriatic Sea to the Black Sea. In the 19th century the term ''Balkan Peninsula'' was a synonym for Rumelia, the parts of Europe that were provinces of the Ottoman E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Apple
An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, ''Malus sieversii'', is still found. Apples have been grown for thousands of years in Eurasia before they were introduced to North America by European colonization of the Americas, European colonists. Apples have cultural significance in many mythological, mythologies (including Norse mythology, Norse and Greek mythology, Greek) and religions (such as Christianity in Europe). Apples grown from seeds tend to be very different from those of their parents, and the resultant fruit frequently lacks desired characteristics. For commercial purposes, including botanical evaluation, apple cultivars are propagated by clonal grafting onto rootstocks. Apple trees grown without rootstocks tend to be larger and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walnut
A walnut is the edible seed of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. They are accessory fruit because the outer covering of the fruit is technically an involucre and thus not morphologically part of the carpel; this means it cannot be a drupe but is instead a drupe-like nut. After full ripening, the shell is discarded, and the kernel is eaten. Nuts of the eastern black walnut ('' Juglans nigra'') and butternuts ('' Juglans cinerea'') are less commonly consumed. Description Walnuts are the round, single-seed stone fruits of the walnut tree. They ripen between September and November in the northern hemisphere. The brown, wrinkly walnut shell is enclosed in a husk. Shells of walnuts available in commerce usually have two segments (but three or four-segment shells can also form). During the bumming process, the husk becomes brittle and the shell hard. The shell encloses the kernel or meat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Watermelon
The watermelon (''Citrullus lanatus'') is a species of flowering plant in the family Cucurbitaceae, that has a large, edible fruit. It is a Glossary of botanical terms#scandent, scrambling and trailing vine-like plant, and is plant breeding, widely cultivated worldwide, with more than 1,000 variety (botany), varieties. Watermelons are grown in favorable climates from tropics, tropical to temperate climate, temperate regions worldwide for its large edible fruit, which is a Berry (botany), berry with a hard rind and no internal divisions, and is botany, botanically called a Glossary of botanical terms#pepo, ''pepo''. The sweet, juicy flesh is usually deep red to pink, with many black seeds, although seedless fruit, seedless varieties exist. The fruit can be eaten raw or pickled, and the rind is edible after cooking. It may also be consumed as a juice or an ingredient in mixed beverages. Kordofan melons from Sudan are the closest relatives and may be progenitors of modern, cul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Melon
A melon is any of various plants of the family Cucurbitaceae with sweet, edible, and fleshy fruit. It can also specifically refer to ''Cucumis melo'', commonly known as the "true melon" or simply "melon". The term "melon" can apply to both the plant and its fruit. Botanically, a melon is a kind of berry, specifically a " pepo". The word ''melon'' derives from Latin ', which is the latinization of the Greek (''mēlopepōn''), meaning "melon",. itself a compound of (''mēlon''), "apple", treefruit (''of any kind'')" and (''pepōn''), amongst others "a kind of gourd or melon". Many different cultivars have been produced, particularly of the true melon, such as the cantaloupe and honeydew. History Melons were thought to have originated in Africa. However, recent studies suggest a Southwest Asian origin, especially Iran and India; from there, they gradually began to appear in Europe toward the end of the Western Roman Empire. Melons are known to have been grown by the ancient E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prune (fruit)
A prune is a dried plum, most commonly from the European plum (''Prunus domestica'') tree. Not all plum species or varieties can be dried into prunes. Use of the term ''prune'' for fresh plums is obsolete except when applied to varieties of plum grown for drying. In this usage, a prune is the firm-fleshed plum fruit of ''P. domestica'' varieties that have a high soluble solids content, and do not ferment during drying. Most prunes are ''freestone'' cultivars (i.e., the pit is easy to remove), whereas most plums grown for fresh consumption are ''clingstone'' (the pit is more difficult to remove). The sorbitol content of dietary fiber likely provides the laxative effect associated with consuming prunes. Prunes are 64% carbohydrates, including dietary fiber, 2% protein, a rich source of vitamin K, and a moderate source of B vitamins and dietary minerals. Production More than 1,000 plum cultivars are grown for drying. The main cultivar grown in the United States is the 'Improv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ficus
''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family (biology), family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The common fig (''F. carica'') is a temperate species native to southwest Asia and the Mediterranean region (from Afghanistan to Portugal), which has been widely cultivated from ancient times for its fruit, also referred to as figs. The fruit of most other species are also edible though they are usually of only local economic importance or eaten as bushfood. However, they are extremely important food resources for wildlife. Figs are also of considerable cultural importance throughout the tropics, both as objects of worship and for their many practical uses. Description ''Ficus'' is a pantropical genus of trees, shrubs, and vines occupying a wide variety of ecological niches; most a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pomegranate
The pomegranate (''Punica granatum'') is a fruit-bearing deciduous shrub in the family Lythraceae, subfamily Punica, Punicoideae, that grows between tall. Rich in symbolic and mythological associations in many cultures, it is thought to have originated from Afghanistan and Iran before being introduced and exported to other parts of Asia, Africa, and Europe. It was introduced into Spanish America in the late 16th century and into California by New Spain, Spanish settlers in 1769. It is widely cultivated throughout West Asia and the Caucasus region, South Asia, Central Asia, North Africa, north and tropical Africa, the drier parts of Southeast Asia, and the Mediterranean Basin. The fruit is typically in season in the Northern Hemisphere from September to February, and in the Southern Hemisphere from March to May. The pomegranate and its juice are variously used in baking, cooking, juice blends, garnish (food), garnishes, non-alcoholic drinks, and cocktails. Etymology The name ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tangerine
The tangerine is a type of citrus fruit that is orange in colour, that is considered either a variety of the mandarin orange (''Citrus reticulata''), or a closely related species, under the name ''Citrus tangerina'', or yet as a hybrid (''Citrus'' × ''tangerina'') of mandarin orange varieties, with some pomelo contribution. Etymology The word "tangerine" was originally an adjective meaning "of Tangier", a Moroccan seaport on the Strait of Gibraltar. The name was first used for fruit shipped from Tangier, described as a mandarin variety. The OED cites this usage from Joseph Addison, Addison's ''Tatler (1709), The Tatler'' in 1710 with similar uses from the 1800s. The fruit was once known scientifically as "''Citrus nobilis'' var. ''tangeriana''"; it grew in the region of Tangiers. This usage appeared in the 1800s. Taxonomy Under the Citrus taxonomy, Tanaka classification system, ''Citrus tangerina'' is considered a separate species. Under the Citrus taxonomy, Swingle sy ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grapefruit
The grapefruit (''Citrus'' × ''paradisi'') is a subtropical citrus tree known for its relatively large, sour to semi-sweet, somewhat bitter fruit. The flesh of the fruit is segmented and varies in color from pale yellow to dark red. Grapefruits originated in Barbados in the 18th century. They are a citrus hybrid that was created through an accidental cross between the sweet orange (''C.'' × ''sinensis'') and the pomelo (''C. maxima''), both of which were introduced to the Caribbean from Asia in the 17th century. It has also been called the 'forbidden fruit'. In the past it was called the ''pomelo'', but that term is now mostly used as the common name for ''Citrus maxima''. Grapefruit–drug interactions are common, as the juice contains furanocoumarins that interfere with the metabolism of many drugs. This can prolong and intensify the effects of those drugs, leading to multiple side-effects such as abnormal heart rhythms, bleeding inside the stomach, low blood pressure ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lemon
The lemon (''Citrus'' × ''limon'') is a species of small evergreen tree in the ''Citrus'' genus of the flowering plant family Rutaceae. A true lemon is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange. Its origins are uncertain, but some evidence suggests lemons originated during the 1st millennium BC in what is now northeastern India. Some other citrus fruits are called ''lemon''. The yellow fruit of the lemon tree is used throughout the world, primarily for its juice. The pulp and rind are used in cooking and baking. The juice of the lemon is about 5–6% citric acid, giving it a sour taste. This makes it a key ingredient in drinks and foods such as lemonade and lemon meringue pie. In 2022, world production was 22 million tonnes, led by India with 18% of the total. Description The lemon tree produces a pointed oval yellow fruit. Botanically this is a hesperidium, a modified berry with a tough, leathery rind. The rind is divided into an outer colored layer or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kumquat
Kumquats ( ), or cumquats in Australian English, are a group of small, angiosperm, fruit-bearing trees in the family Rutaceae. Their taxonomy is disputed. They were previously classified as forming the now-historical genus ''Fortunella'' or placed within ''Citrus'', . Different classifications have alternatively assigned them to anywhere from a single species, ''Citrus japonica'', to numerous species representing each cultivar. Recent genomic analysis defines three pure species, ''Citrus hindsii'', ''Citrus margarita, C. margarita'' and ''Citrus crassifolia, C. crassifolia'', with ''C.'' × ''japonica'' being a Hybrid (biology), hybrid of the last two. The edible fruit closely resembles the Orange (fruit), orange (''Citrus x sinensis'') in color, texture, and anatomy, but is much smaller, being approximately the size of a large olive. The kumquat is a fairly cold-hardy citrus. Etymology The English word ''kumquat'' is a borrowing of the Cantonese (; zh, c=金橘), from "gol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
