(Arachis hypogaea); a Slow Food Ark of Taste variety; Landrace; Sold in shell; Minimum 1/2 ounce
The Carolina African Runner peanut has the distinction of being the first peanut cultivated in North America, carried into the New World at the end of the 17th century, by enslaved Africans. As early as the 1770s, peanuts were cultivated for oil production, cattle feed, and human consumption in the area around Cape Fear, North Carolina. Though to be extinct in the 1950s, a fortuitous discovery of seeds at North Carolina State University allows for the re-introduction of this culturally significant variety. And why are we carrying this southern variety? One word - biodiversity. Carolina African Runner, as its name implies is a runner variety peanut that differs from our other varieties in that it sets its pegs on branches that vine from a central stem. Additionally we appreciate and cultivate the rich genetic pool of a landrace variety.
Please click on over to the Carolina African Runner Peanut Ark of Taste page for an appreciation of its culturally relevant history.
Looking for what to do with your homegrown peanuts? Try your hand at these Ark of Taste Groundnut Cakes
https://www.goodfoodstories.com/lee-bros-charleston-kitchen/
https://charlestonmag.com/recipes/groundnut_cakes
https://www.cookingwithseki.com/groundnut-cake/
