I picked my first bunch of rape during the week. It’s a green leafy vegetable known by many names and equally loved by the Italians and Chinese. It’s cooked by both cultures in a similar way. Blanched and then stir fried in oil and garlic. Olive oil for the Italians and a vegetable oil like peanut for the Chinese. It has a light bitter flavor which I just love. My mum used to squeeze lemon juice over it and eat a whole plate. I can easily do the same. I also add it to pas
ta by making into a kind of cooked pesto sauce. To do this you chop it in to small pieces before you blanch and saute it and then just add it to the boiled pasta. This is a typical Sicilian dish–simple but full of flavour. If you want more information on rape check out Maggie Beers info page at–
http://digital.gardeningaustralia.com.au/gardeningaustralia/200809/?pg=12#pg12
My Tiny Italian Garden 
Thanks for this insight Teresa. Rape grows all around our apartment and we see many people tending it and picking it daily – I didn’t know what it was!
Mandy the day after I picked my first bunch the rape were decimated by caterpillars. Maybe because all the leaves left were baby tender ones. Or maybe a whole lot of eggs hatch an arm of very hungry caterpillars–there were more than I could count. Anyway I’m trying to find organic ways of eliminating them on mass rather than the search and destroy by squishing. Although I’ve been doing a lot of that.
I wonder what the Chinese do. Maybe when you see them tending to it they are squashing the bugs. Does it grow wild or is it planted? I know in Italy it grows wild in many parts. Also would you mind taking a couple of photos for me, I’d love to see how they grow it around apartments. Maybe a couple of long shot and a close up. I can have a look when you get back. Also if they are communal plants maybe you should try cooking some. If not you might find them in the markets. Let me know if you have a go.