innocent drinks : our drinks - smoothies, thickies, really lovely juices

acai

apple

acerola cherry

banana

blackberry

blackcurrant

blueberry

carrot

cranberry

damson

durian

ginger

honey

kumquat

lemon

mango

orange

pineapple

pomegranate

raspberry

rosehip

strawberry

Carrots are thought to have been invented in Afghanistan way back in the mists of time. Indeed, proper old carrots, which aren¹t actually orange (they¹re more likely to be deep red or purple in colour) are still grown there.

orange carrots

The first orange carrots appear in old Dutch paintings from the 17th century. It¹s likely that Europeans gradually and deliberately cultivated orange varieties of our small pointy friend, just because they liked the colour.

Luckily, it¹s this orangeness that makes carrots rich in beta carotene. Our bodies like to convert beta carotene into vitamin A, which has a number of very important functions it helps to maintain healthy skin, it helps strengthen the body¹s immunity from infections, and, just in case you were wondering, it actually helps vision in dim light. So now you know that stuff about carrots helping you see in the dark is true.

But a much more important carrot fact is this one, which we found on the internet. So it must be true. Mel Blanc, aka the voice of Bugs Bunny, was not very fond of carrots. Say it ain¹t so.