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A prune is the dried fruit of the Prunus domestica or European Plum. In the USA it is increasingly known as the dried plum.
Plums may be one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundant cultivars are only found around human settlements: Prunus domestica has been traced to East European and Caucasian mountains. Plum remains have been found in Neolithicage archaeological sites along with olives, grapes and figs -
A raisin is a dried grape. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia and Canada the word “raisin” is reserved for the dark-coloured dried large grape, with “sultana” being a golden-coloured dried grape, and “currant” being a dried small Black Corinth grape.
Raisin in French refers to the fresh fruit; grappe (from which the English grape is derived) refers to the bunch (as in une grappe de raisins).
The cultivation of the domesticated grape began 6,000–8,000 years ago in the Near East. The earliest archaeological evidence for a dominant position of wine-making in human culture dates from 8,000 years ago in Georgia.
Yeast, occurs naturally on the skins of grapes, leading to the innovation of alcoholic drinks such as wine. The earliest known production occurred around 8,000 years ago in Georgia. -
A simply delicious mix of roasted and salted peanuts, cashews and corn – Scrumptious and satisfying.
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What’s the difference between Sultanas, Raisins and Currants?
- Raisins are dried white grapes usually of the variety ‘Muscatel’. The main producers are the USA, Turkey, Greece and Australia.
- Sultanas are small raisins. They are seedless, sweet, pale golden in colour and come mainly from Turkey.
- Currants are dried, black, seedless grapes originally produced in Greece. They were known as ‘raisins of the sun’.
source: Royal Botanic Gardens – Kew
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The sunflower seed is the fruit of the sunflower (Helianthus annuus).
There are three types of commonly used sunflower seeds: linoleic (most common), high oleic, and NuSun. Each has its own unique levels of monounsaturated, saturated, and polyunsaturated fats.
The solid black husked variety (black oil sunflower seeds) is usually pressed to extract their oil. Striped sunflower seeds are primarily used for food
Sunflower oil is typically extracted by applying pressure to the sunflower seeds. It is used as is, or can be processed into polyunsaturated margarines. The protein-rich residue from the pressing is used as livestock feed.
Culinary Use
Widely eaten as a healthy snack, sunflower seeds can also be used as garnishes or cooking ingredients and are also sold for pet food and wild birds.
The hulls, or shells, are mostly composed of cellulose and decompose slowly. They are burned as biomass fuel. -
A walnut is an edible seed of any tree of the genus Juglans, especially the Persian or English walnut, Juglans regia.
The word walnut derives from the Germanic wal- and Old English wealhhnutu, literally “foreign nut”, wealh meaning “foreign”
Global production in 2010 was 2.55 million metric tonnes ; China was the world's largest producer of walnut seeds, with a total harvest of 1.06 million metric tonnes. The other major producers of walnut seeds were (in the order of decreasing harvest): United States, Iran, Turkey, Ukraine, Mexico, Romania, India, France and Chile.