AS GOOD AS GOLD

It seems we need to constantly try new things, and we have been inventing new kind of food day by day to its purpose, even if they are non-sense. So, edible gold is the latest gourmet sensation to enjoy a dish.

Don’t be afraid, it is not the first time you have this chemical element in a meal. Gold is a very common food additive, specifically colour E-175 which gives it a golden touch. It can be found in some products like sweets, chewing-gums, cakes or dehydrated soup.

Nowadays, people who can afford edible gold are more creative and go to fashionable restaurants to enjoy a shiny delicatessen.

The most frequent use of gold in edible form is in chocolatiers. Some chocolate makers produce chocolates flecked with gold leaf. There is also a liqueur called Danziger Goldwasser which is made with particles of gold. Moreover, some premium food producers have even successfully use gold to cook.

Edible gold is almost pure gold, but mixed with silver, which is edible too, so it is completely digestive. Generally speaking, there is no danger in ingesting Edible Gold, it simply passes through the intestinal system and it will pass out of the body after 24 hours without causing any harm or reaction to the body. However, in larger quantities gold does become toxic and harmful to human health.

The Europeans have a very old tradition in using Edible Gold on Food. Italian Dukes used to decorate their risotto with Edible Gold leaves in the XVI century. Alchemists of the XV century used gold medicinally. The Elizabethans created magnificent banquets by adding Edible Gold Dust on fruits such as oranges, grapes, pomegranate... And apparently on the 80’s gold was a very common delicatessen in Japan

So… gold fever is on! You can find edible gold in any gourmet supply store in three different ways: sheets, flakes, or sprinkles. It is a great alternative to impress your friends because the quantity of gold is so small and the price is not unreasonable (yet gold makes a meal appear to be extravagant and give restaurants an excuse to charge exorbitant prices)

There are so many recipes that can be prepared with gold. Some beverages like Champagne with edible gold consist on a bottle of Champagne and 100 mg of Connoisseur Edible Gold flakes. You can find edible gold in some dishes such as sushi covered with gold flakes or turkey filled with meat, butter and gold sprinkles. And, of course, desserts are usually decorated with gold flakes or sprinkles, mostly those which are made of chocolate.

But, there’re some interesting delicatessen made of gold, such as Champagne and gold lollypop or Gold Pills. Imagine you are in an exclusive club hanging out with a few rappers and VIPs, and a waitress gives you a pill and a glass of water, you open it, and have it… and that’s the way you swallow 538€ (that’s the prize of ONE pill!!)

But gifts made of edible gold are very popular too, like a heart-shape strawberry lollypop with gold sprinkles as a romantic present or cigarettes made of gold sheets. Gifts like these will make your social status shine, but your economy will be seriously damaged, because they’re worth their weight in gold.

REAL GOLDMINE

Argan Oil

For centuries the Berber tribes of south western Morocco have used Argan oil as a basic component of their diet and as a traditional medicine. In the earlier nineties, chemical researches confirmed the valuable nutritional and dermatological properties of the Argan oil (including its use as a treatment for acne, wrinkles and wounds).

Argania Spinosa

Argan (Argania Spinosa), also known as thorny olive tree, has characteristics of Sapotaceae family, leathery leaf, small, with yellow flowers, and the fruit as dates...Argan is of slow growth, taking five to six years to bear its first fruit. 

Argan tree is heat resistant and can withstand temperature up to 50ºC. It can reach 8m to 10 m in height. The trunk is short and tortuous. The fruit is the size of a walnut, yellow or sometimes red. It consists of a fleshy husk that covers the hard bone.

Goats climbing Argan tree

The fruit of this tree, from which oil is extracted, begins to mature with the first warm days of June, and is traditionally collected in a very original way: it is harvested by goat.

When the grass is scarce, goats climb the trees to eat their leaves, its sprouts and fruit. At night, animals begin to chew and spit the bones of the fruit; big as acorns and hard as almonds. The pastor then collects them without being stuck even once. Another method is to collect them under the tree when they have fallen ripe and let them dry, to later peel and remove the bone.


Dermatologists recommended Argan oil for sunburn relief and to combat skin diseases such as neurodermitis and psoriasis.

In modern cosmetology Argan oil is applied to the skin for its regenerative effect. French scientists from the university of Metz have succeeded to prove that the oil causes a rejuvenation of the cells. According to the German physician Dr. Peter Schleicher, taking two tea spoons a day of the oil is sufficient to enjoy its healing effects.

The extraction of this oil is totally handmade; there are no factories for industrial extraction. 100 Kg of ripe fruit is composed of 50 litres of water, 22 Kg of dry pulp that the cattle use, 25 Kg of shells that serve the fire and only 3 Kg of pipes, where oil is extracted by a really handmade and Neolithic method. Each bone is cracked, a task performed by women ad children, and contains 3 pipes similar to those of pumpkins. These are roasted until they begin to blacken, then crushed and grinded in a rustic stone mill until a thick and opaque honey starts to drip from the mouth of the mill. It has the consistency of a sesame cream. During one week, it rests in a cool dark place until it dries. Women form balls they will tighten until, little by little, the oil of that semi-dry past begins to dry. The oil is light and transparent, lighter and more digestive than the olive's, brown and strong, with sweet flavour.

Argan oil is the most expensive oil in the world, hence it is also called the liquid gold of Morocco. A 20 cl of extra virgin Argan oil can easily cost a whopping 17€ .