John’s Bread

November 1st, 2009

Botanical Name: Ceratonia siliqua (LINN.)
Family: N.O. Leguminosae/Fabaceae
Subfamily: Caesalpinioideae
Synonyms: Locust Pods. Carob. Algaroba (Spain). Bharout (Arabia). Sugar Pods.
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Fabales
Tribe: Caesalpinieae
Genus: Ceratonia
Species: C. siliqua
Part Used: Fruit.
Habitat: Southern Europe, Africa and Asia – bordering on the Mediterranean.

Description: There was a tradition that this tree was the food of St. John in the wilderness, and the name is derived from the legend. It is very common in the south of Spain, where it forms a small branching tree about 30 feet high, the wood of which has a pretty pinkish hue. Leaves pinnate in two or three pairs of oval blunt-topped leaflets, leathery texture, and colour shiny dark green. Flowers in small red racemes followed by flat pods 6 to 12 inches long and fully 1 inch wide, 1/4 inch thick, a shiny dark browny purple colour. They do not split open when ripe; they contain a number of seeds in a line along the centre of the pods, each seed in a separate cell of fleshy pulp. This tree is much cultivated in dry parts because its long roots can grow deep enough in the ground to find moisture. The pods contain a large amount of mucilage and saccharine matter of pleasant flavour, and are largely employed for feeding all sorts of animals, and in time of scarcity for human consumption. In 1811 and 1812 they formed the principal food of the British cavalry during the War; they have been imported in considerable quantities for cattle food, though they do not contain much nutritive property, the saccharine matter being carbonaceous, or heat-giving, the seeds alone being nitrogenous. These seeds are so small and hard they often escape mastication.
Leaves are 10–20 centimetres (3.9–7.9 in) long, alternate, pinnate, and may or may not have a terminal leaflet. It is frost-tolerant.

John's Bread …. John's Bread. fruits jpg

Most carob trees are dioecious. The trees blossom in autumn (September-October). The flowers are small and numerous, spirally arranged along the inflorescence axis in catkin-like racemes borne on spurs from old wood and even on the trunk (cauliflory); they are pollinated by both wind and insects. Male flowers produce a characteristic odour, resembling semen. The fruit is a pod that can be elongated, compressed, straight or curved, and thickened at the sutures. The pods take a full year to develop and ripen. The ripe pods eventually fall to the ground and are eaten by various mammals, thereby dispersing the seed.

Traditional uses
Carob was eaten in Ancient Egypt. It was also a common sweetener and was used in the hieroglyph for “sweet” (nedjem). Dried carob fruit is traditionally eaten on the Jewish holiday of Tu Bishvat. Carob juice drinks are traditionally drunk during the Islamic month of Ramadan.

Carob pods were an important source of sugar before sugarcane and sugar beets became widely available.

Modern uses
Carob, dried or roasted and having a slightly sweet taste, in powder or chip form, is used as an ingredient in cakes and cookies. Carob is sometimes used as a substitute for chocolate. The seeds, also known as locust beans, are used as animal feed. They are also the source of locust bean gum, a thickening agent used in numerous processed foods. In Egypt, carobs are consumed as a snack. Crushed pods are used to make a refreshing drink. Compotes and liqueurs are made from carob in Turkey, Malta, Portugal, Spain and Sicily. Carob has proven effective in relieving diarrhea in infants. In Libya, a syrup is extracted from carob named rub used as a complimentary to Asida meal. In Peru carob syrup is used in a popular mixed drink, la algarrobina.

Carob has also been used as a non-toxic alternative to chocolate in dog treats, as the theobromine in chocolate is toxic to all dogs.

Constituents: Similar to Cassia pods, it is not known to what constituents its laxative properties are due.

Medicinal Action and Uses: Years ago the seeds were sold at a high price by chemists, as singers imagined they cleared the voice. By fermentation and distillation they give an agreeable spirit, which retains the flavour of the pod. The seeds were once used by jewellers as the original carat weight. Johannisbrod, so greatly esteemed in Germany, is made from the pulp of the Syrian Ceratonia siliqua. The fruit of John’s Bread have similar constituents to those of Cassia pods and are also laxative and demulcent, with an odour somewhat like valerian.

Dosage: Same as for Cassia pulp and pods.

Resources:
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/j/johnsb09.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carob_tree