Ray wrote:
>
> My wife recently bought something called broccoli rabe, and it was so
bitter
> that we couldn't eat it. Did she do something wrong, is that the way
the
> stuff is supposed to taste?

As you might guess from its appearance, rabe is closely related
to broccoli. Broccoli has seen generation after generation of
selective breeding for milder flavor, larger and higher
productivity.

Rabe has not seen the same degree of slective breeding. I don't
know for sure that it still resembles the original wild version
much, but it's bitterness does make it seem more like it's wild.

The bitterness is something some people like and others don't.
I prefer rabe over broccoli specifically for its bitterness.
That puts me in a minority, shrug.

> It was quite expensive in the gourmet-vegetable department of our
> supermarket.
Less rabe is grown. It probably also has a lower yield per acre.