Olive Oil Hunter News #242

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Rosemary and Black Peppercorns

Located in the south of France, Provence is steeped in history. Famous for its picturesque villages and dramatic landscapes including lavender fields, the sunny and dry climate and limestone-rich soil are perfect for cultivating aromatic herbs like my Provençal Rosemary. Rub a few needles between two fingers and inhale—you’ll be transported to this idyllic locale.

Though the recorded history of rosemary dates back thousands of years to early Greek and Roman times, the first culinary mention doesn’t appear until the 15th century. Used to preserve meat, rosemary was also found to impart a wonderful flavor. That association continues to this day—from roasted chicken to leg of lamb, both in marinades and dry rubs, rosemary is a popular seasoning for many proteins.

Rich in essential oils, rosemary’s flavor comes from eucalyptol and alpha pinene, aromatic compounds that impart the flavor of pine, citrus notes, and hints of mint and tea. The evergreen freshness of rosemary is a direct result of the local terroir—the soil, topography, and climate in which it’s grown.

A mainstay of French classics like ratatouille and coq au vin, rosemary also has a place in cuisines throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East regions. It’s integral tolamb dishes, roasted chicken,bean dipand other bean dishes. Sprinkle it over focacciaand other flatbreads before baking and on potatoes and other vegetables before roasting.As a garnish, just a pinch gives added zest to pizza, omelets, and popcorn.

Research tells us that rosemary has been used for medicinal purposes for centuries. The herb’s benefits may even include boosting memory—it’s said that ancient Greek scholars would wear a crown of sprigs to help during exams. It has anti-inflammatory phytonutrients with potential anti-anxiety compounds. In Mexico, for instance, rosemary is often used to make a tea to ease indigestion and other tummy troubles and as a calming agent for better sleep.

Black pepper is the most widely used spice on the planet. My Vine-Ripened Black Peppercorns are grown in one of the most fascinating places on Earth, the Zanzibar archipelago. Its location just off the coast of East Africa, with fertile soil perfect for growing spices and other crops, put it at the heart of the spice trade for centuries.

The history of black peppercorns dates back at least 4,000 years and can be traced to Kerala, a province in southwest India. Once the most coveted spice in the world, peppercorns were the original “black gold.” Grown in bunches like tiny grapes, they are the seeds of a plant and are considered a fruit. Traditionally, they’re harvested while still green, but on the organic farm where mine are grown, they’re allowed to ripen longer on the vine before being handpicked and sun-dried in a process that gives them their dark, wrinkly shell and strong yet bright spiciness.

The aroma reminds me of rich cedar—dark and woody—with a hint of florals, allspice, and anise. On the palate, its punch comes from its powerful compound piperine, along with notes of nutmeg, cacao nibs, and citrus.

You’ll want to reach for your pepper grinder for every meal! It defines many beef and pork dishes and makes a perfect crust for duck breast and tuna. It will enliven vinaigrettes and other dressings, roasted sweet potatoes and winter squashes, vegetable slaws, cold pasta salads,mulled wine, and poached pears.

Ancient Indian and Egyptian cultures used peppercorns as an anti-inflammatory, an analgesic, and a preservative. Contemporary research has found that science backs up those early practices, thanks to the enzymes in the compound piperine—they help the body better absorb both conventional and herbal medications. Although research is in the early stages, piperine is being investigated as a way to improve nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, which is reaching epidemic proportions worldwide.

Quick Kitchen Nugget

When Whole Spices Are Best

Black pepper starts losing its flavor the moment it's ground or cracked so it's best to buy peppercorns, not pre-ground tins or jars. The same is true for pod-like spices such as cardamon and star anise and seeds like mustard seed, coriander, and cumin. Also, these taste best when toasted before being ground in a spice grinder when needed.

For Your Best Health

Junk Food Can Scramble Memory

A new study conducted in the lab has found that high-fat junk food rewires the brain's memory hub, leading to the risk of cognitive dysfunction. It can impair memory within days by overstimulating key neurons, according to UNC School of Medicine researchers led by Juan Song, PhD, principal investigator and professor of pharmacology, and Taylor Landry, PhD, first author.

For the study, mice were placed on high-fat diet resembling fatty junk food, similar to the typical Western-style diet rich in saturated fat from meals like cheeseburgers and fries. The researchers then did behavioral testing. Within 4 days of eating the high-fat diet, results showed that CCK interneurons, a special group of brain cells in in the brain's memory hub, became abnormally active due to an impaired ability of the brain to receive glucose (sugar). This overactivity disrupted how the hippocampus processes memory. Results suggest that fatty junk foods can affect the brain almost immediately, well before the onset of weight gain or diabetes. The discovery also showed that a protein called PKM2, which controls how brain cells use energy, plays a key role in this problem.

"We knew that diet and metabolism could affect brain health, but we didn't expect to find such a specific and vulnerable group of brain cells—CCK interneurons in the hippocampus—that were directly disrupted by short-term high-fat diet exposure," said Dr. Song, a member of the UNC Neuroscience Center. "What surprised us most was how quickly these cells changed their activity in response to reduced glucose availability, and how this shift alone was enough to impair memory."

The findings highlight how sensitive memory circuits are to diet, underscoring the importance of nutrition in maintaining brain health. A high-fat diet, rich in saturated fats, could possibly lead to an elevated risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases, like dementia and Alzheimer's, according to the study.

The research also showed that restoring brain glucose levels calmed down overactive neurons and fixed memory problems in the mice: Dietary interventions like intermittent fasting periods following a high-fat diet were sufficient to normalize CCK interneurons and improve memory function.

"This work highlights how what we eat can rapidly affect brain health and how early interventions, whether through fasting or medicine, could protect memory and lower the risk of long-term cognitive problems linked to obesity and metabolic disorders," said Dr. Song. "In the long run, such strategies could help reduce the growing burden of dementia and Alzheimer's linked to metabolic disorders, offering more holistic care that addresses both body and brain."

This research is ongoing to further understand how these glucose-sensitive neurons disrupt brain rhythms that support memory. The researchers plan to test whether the targeted therapies could be translated to people, how a high-fat diet could be a factor in Alzheimer's disease, and how lifestyle-based interventions, such as dietary patterns that stabilize brain glucose, might offer protective benefits. The study was published in the journal Neuron.