What better way to bring in the New Year than with Kumquats or Cumquats. Originally from China, Kumquats are a tart citrus fruit. Kumquat shrubs are a low growing evergreen and range from 2.5 – 4.5m in height.

Following is from Wikipedia

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Ok Ben left a comment for Kumquat to be December’s Fruit of the Month but after receiving an extremely funny email from Sam suggesting Jackfruit, Jackfruit won. Never Fear the Kumquat will probably feature as January’s Fruit of the month.

Following information is from Wikipedia

The jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus or Artocarpus heterophylla^[1]) is a species of tree in the mulberry family (Moraceae), which is native to parts of South and Southeast Asia. It is the national fruit ofBangladesh. It is called Kanthal in Bangla, Panasa in Sanskrit, Katahal  in Hindi, Halasu in Kannada, Pala in Tamil and Chakka in Malayalam language. It is well suited to tropical lowlands. Its fruit is the largest tree borne fruit in the world^[2], seldom less than about 25 cm (10 in) in diameter.

Jackfruit in popular culture, it is becoming apparent that a lot of people either name their band after fruit or write songs about fruit. Meet British Columbia 4 piece Jackfruit.

Posted by Leo from Heluva

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Alright we were super slack in December and  forgot to do a ‘Fruit or Veg of the Month’, we need your help! Give us a suggestion in the ‘Comments’ section on what you want to see as December’s Fruit or Veg of the Month.

Posted by Leo from Heluva

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Tamarillo a.k.a tree tomato is native to South America but can be grown and found in Indonesia, New Zealand, Australia and Kenya. Check out Burke’s Backyard for a great Tamarillo dessert recipe.

The fruit is high in fibre, iron, calcium and Vitamins A and C. Taste.com suggest that the name Tamarillo was coin by New Zealand in 1967 after a naming competition was held. The word is a derivative of the Spanish word ‘amarillo’ meaning yellow.

In terms of popular culture, The Tamarillos are a Finnish punk band with such hits as ‘Crossroads’, ‘Fake ID’ and ‘Kamikaze Girl’

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Cherries. Believed to have been discovered by the Romans in Asia Minor in 70 BC the fruit is part of the Rosaceae family, which includes almonds, peaches and apricots. Cherries are low in cholesterol, sodium and fat. They are high in fiber and Vitamin C.

Cherry blossom festivals are celebrated all around the world, the most famous being Hanami in Japan. Cherries have also been popularized in the kitchen with Cherry pies which you’ll find a recipe for at Women’s Weekly.

Glam rock band Warrant release the song Cherry pie in 1990 which sold 3 million copies in the US.

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A pumpkin is part of the Cucurbitaceae family which has brought us other great vegetables such as Cucumbers, Squash, Melons and Water Melon. ‘Pumpkin’ originates from the Greek word ‘Pepon’ which translates to ‘large melon. The French modified the word ‘Pepon’ to ‘Pompon’ and the British changed it to ‘Pumpion’. American colonists then change ‘Pumpion’ to ‘Pumpkin’

On a nutrition level Pumpkins contain large amounts of antioxidant and betacarotene. Pumpkins are low in fat and calories and high in potassium. They also contain Vitamin C, Niacin (B3), Vitamin E, Calcium and Iron.

The worlds largest pumpkin title belongs to Joe Jutras who presented a 766Kg creamed coloured pumpkin in September 2007. He took the title from Howard Dill, who had previously rained supreme in the giant pumpkin growing world with his own patented pumpkin breed the ‘Dill’s Atlantic Giant seeds’.

Pumpkins are seen throughout popular culture with events like Halloween. Artist have also started explore pumpkins as a new medium for craving, check out The Vine. Pumpkins have also made it on the music seen with The Smashing Pumpkins who disbanded in 2004, to reform in 2005 – 2009. Although some members have departed front man Billy Corgan is set to release a 44 song concept album under The Smashing Pumpkins titled ‘Teargarden by Kaleidyscope.

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