Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Another Mystery Photo - Random # 4

I know you are all eager to know the answer to last week's mystery photo post ...

Barcelona 143, edited

There were some great guesses, and some funny ones - sea cucumbers or anemones, turmeric root, chickens' feet with in-grown toenails, and fossilised troll toes.  The correct answer (Anonymous, you were right) is gooseneck barnacles, or sometimes also called goose barnacles.  They grow on rocks in exposed coastal areas, and are harvested commercially on the northern coast of Spain -  a particularly hazardous occupation!  The barnacles are known in Spain and Portugal as percebes, and are widely consumed there as a somewhat expensive delicacy.  They were called goose barnacles because, back in the days before people learned that birds migrate, it was thought that Barnacle Geese grew out of these little barnacles - they were often found growing on pieces of driftwood, and people believed that they were attached to the branches (presumably "laid" by the geese) before they fell in the water.  This YouTube video will give you some idea of how they are eaten.

Time now for a new mystery photo  - can you guess what the brown, "twig-like" things in these photos are.  Once again, these photos were taken at La Boqueria market in Barcelona.

Barcelona 123, cropped & edited

Barcelona 122, edited

I am submitting this post to the Two for Tuesdays blog hop, and don't forget to come back to get the answer.

18 comments:

  1. Hmmm this is rough. i'm guessing it's a kind of spice that you would have to grate in order to use it. Turmeric maybe?

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  2. Not a clue. I was closer to guessing last weeks. Might this be some sort of cinnamon?

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  3. Pretzels??? Naw that'd be too ordinary! I always love your Two for Tuesday post! Thanks for linking up!

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  4. Thanks for teasing our brains at Two for Tuesday. There's dried fruit all around, surely that must be a hint.

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  5. Suzy Q! Thanks for posting on the two for tuesdays! I didnt get the barnacles but I KNEW they were sea life! lol--Those other things are twigs! yep, thats it! lol--hmmm...sasafras maybe? Cinammon bark? There is so much food out there that we have no clue about! Thanks for opening our eyes baby cakes! :) Alex@amoderatelife

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  6. I was trying to cheat and read the tag but it was too faint and referred to the item in front. Once again, no idea but I love your two for Tuesdays blog.

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  7. Hmmm...I'm gonna guess Sassafras??? I think I read about the barnacles in the Tom Parker Bowles book The Year of Eating Dangerously??? That's what I was trying to remember last week, LOL! Love your mystery food photos, Sue! Thanks so much for sharing them w/ Two for Tuesdays =)

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  8. Possibly licorice root. Or Liquorice. Depending on what side of the Atlantic you are on. I have been on both sides. It is very confusing.

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  9. I LOVE the Boqueria! What a fun idea!

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  10. I'm with even-star. I think it looks like licorice root.

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  11. It really looks like licorice root, so I'm another vote for it.

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  12. I was also going to guess sassafras! But someone beat me to it. ;)

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  13. Wow, everyone, thanks so much for visiting and having a guess. I'm loving the enthusiasm from all of you for looking at these photos and guessing what they might be. What am I going to do when I run out of photos?
    Sue

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  14. I would guess they are salsify root.

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  15. Oops..I want to change my answer to Burdock root instead of salsify root.

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  16. Great guessing everyone. The correct answer was liquorice root - even-star, Elizabeth and Alaskan Dave Down Under all had it right. Check out my latest mystery photo here http://bit.ly/aczQjU

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  17. Wow I love the blog! I'm following
    http://abundanceyeah.blogspot.com/2010/09/many-flavors-of-salsa-jalapeno-carrot.html

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  18. Abundance Yeah - thanks for visiting and following and also for your lovely comment.
    Sue

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