Organic dehydrated pitted apricots

The apricot is a plant native to the part of north-eastern China bordering Russia. Its presence dates back more than 5000 years of history. From there it slowly extended westward through Central Asia until it reached Armenia (from which it took its name; even today in Liguria they are called "armugnin" in dialect, in Lombardy "mugnàgh" and in Veneto and Friuli "armełin" ) where, it is said, it was discovered by Alexander the Great.

The Romans introduced it to Italy and Greece in 70-60 BC, but its diffusion in the Mediterranean basin was consolidated by the Arabs: in fact "apricot" derives from the encounter between the Latin word praecoquum (early) with the Arabic word al- barqūq .

The apricot tree appears as a small deciduous tree that can reach 12-13 meters in the wild. In cultivation, however, the plant is kept below 3.5 meters to facilitate fruit harvesting. It has an umbrella-shaped crown, with a thin and slightly twisted trunk and branches. The leaves are elliptical, with sharp tips and serrated edges and purplish-red petioles.

The fruit is a drupe, has a size between 3.5 and 6 cm , an egg-yellow-orange color with slight red shades and a slightly velvety skin. It has a single seed, which resembles an almond. Apricot trees are quite precocious and begin to bear fruit as early as the second year, but full production does not begin until the third/fifth and is more abundant on small trees and short branches. Apricots require a period of 3 to 6 months to develop and ripen and are mainly harvested by hand from early May to mid-July.

Among the macronutrients present in apricots, carbohydrates stand out, equal to 91% of the energy provided by this fruit ( 28 calories per 100 grams); 6% of the remaining calories correspond to proteins, and 3% to lipids.

The fruit is very rich in water , in fact in 100 g of apricot there is 86.3 g, to which are added: 6.8 g of soluble sugars 1.5 g of fibers (of which 0.71 g in the form of fibers soluble and 0.83 g in the form of insoluble fibre).

Among the micronutrients, again per 100 g, the following stand out:

• 320 mg of potassium
• 16 mg of calcium
• 16 mg phosphorus
• 0.5 mg of iron

The sodium intake is 1 mg per 100 g.

Apricot is also an excellent source of vitamins. In particular, in 100 g of this fruit you can find:

• 13 mg of vitamin C
• 0.5 mg niacin ( vitamin B3 or PP)
• 0.03 mg riboflavin ( vitamin B2 )
• 0.03 mg thiamine ( vitamin B1 ) and vitamin A (360 µg retinol equivalent)

It is also a source of vitamin K , organic acids, phenols, volatile compounds (such as benzaldehyde), esters, norisoprenoids and terpenoids.

Our apricots come from Turkey and in particular from the area in the heart of Anatolia called Malatya. Here the varieties of fruit most suitable for drying are grown. Our apricots have no added sugars, additives or preservatives.

Ingredients: 100% organic apricots