How to Eat a Pomegranate

This might just be the most brilliant way to remove the seeds from a pomegranate. Ever. Now you don't have any excuses not to eat this incredibly healthy fruit!

-B

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Organic Non-GMO Seeds - Vegetables, Herbs and Flowers!

Gardening season is getting close, it's time to start sprouting and figuring out what plants are going to grace your garden this year. (I'm leaning towards ones that I can juice!)

Juicing Adventures Vol. 3

I tried something new today - for some reason I normally juice my orange first then move on to the apple, carrots and greens. In an effort to be a little more adventurous I juiced my greens first. 

To juice them properly in my Jack Lalanne Power juicer, I roll them up (The lettuce, chard, purple kale, mint and beet tops) and I squish them between two celery sticks. The celery sticks hold them together as I push them into the chute, and the greens juice better than they would otherwise. As I've mentioned before, this juicer isn't the greatest for greens, but there are ways to make it work better.




I ended up with about a cup of green juice. And then I tasted it. I suppose I could have choked it down, but greens aren't really my favorite part of the whole 'vegetable'- ness, hense one of the reasons I am juicing. Next I added the lime, and tried it again. It was a little better, but still not easy to drink.

(At some point in the future I'm going to try juicing herbs with the greens and find out if any of them make them palatable.)

Next I added in one orange and a whole ton of carrots. The result was about four cups of juice that was MMMMMMmmmmm good. For some reason the carrots make anything easy to drink. Today was also the first day that I didn't have any apple. The only fruits were a lime and an orange.



I have started peeling the oranges, you don't have to do it nicely or remove all the skin, but it improves the flavour if you get rid of some. Limes and lemons that are mild don't need to be peeled. I find the orange skin just a little bit too overpowering in the juice.

I've been juicing for over a week and a half now, every morning, and I've definitely noticed a marked increase in my energy. I'm waking up a little easier, have more energy longer, and when I get home from work I'm not drop dead tired like I normally am. There is no way I'm going to stop juicing any time soon!

** As always, all fruits and vegetables being juiced are organic.

Pictures via Muffet and Rand_G

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The Pomelo

Also known as the Pummelo, Bali lemon, Limau besar, Buoi, shaddock, etc...




The pomelo is a citrus fruit, originating in Asia, and just a liiiiiiiiittle bit larger than your typical oranges. The pomelos that I have seen are about double the size of a regular grapefruit. They have ridiculously thick skin and an incredibly juicy and tasty interior.

Like a grapefuit, the color of the fruit inside varies; some are more greeny/yellow and some are more pink/red. I've heard that the pink ones are sweeter, but I haven't tried them myself yet so I can't really compare!




This fruit is great to test if you have a couple hours to waste or just want to spend a little quality time with the kids. You need to be prepared, especially the first time, for how long peeling this citrus will take.

I would suggest watching a few instructional videos to figure out a plan of attack. Merely clawing at it will take you hours. Obviously I should have done a little research BEFORE I undertook this particular adventure.

Peeling Method 1: (Note the music can be a little loud, you may want to turn it down.)

Peeling Method 2:

Note: The rind is bitter. Do not give into any temptations involving peeling the pomelo with your teeth. Please....

If you've peeled your first Pomelo and you're feeling rather confidant, why not take it to the next level and turn this unsuspecting fruit into a work of art!

Now, even though they remove it in the videos before eating it, the inner skin of the pomelo is what is supposed to contain the most nutrition; so if you really want to get the most out of it - eat the inner skin. The pomello is used in a variety of recipies for adding flavor to the food. If you are loath to toss the rind once it is peeled, then don't! Do a little research and you'll find a way to use up the whole thing. I've even heard of people cooking cornish hens inside a pomelo...

If you're interested in something sweet, check out this recipe for candied pomelo rind.

Thanks for stopping by -- see you soon!

Photos courtesy of John Loo. 

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Juicing!

Over the past few weeks I have been debating whether or not to begin the adventure that is juicing. My sister has been juicing nearly every fruit/vegetable imaginable for ages and swears by it. I know for a fact that I don't eat nearly enough vegetables and I don't mind the juice that she makes! But, is juicing what "I" need?

I'm still deciding, but in the meantime I figured I would share some of the things that I am learning!

Why Should You Juice Vegetables? 

Everyone knows that you're supposed to eat 6-8 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. How often does that actually happen? I know personally I'm lucky if I eat that much in a day once a month! Juicing allows you to consume the benefits of all those vegetables in a single glass. It is way easier to get all those nutrients into your body.

Your body can absorb the nutrients more readily in juice form; so you're not wasting nearly as much.

You will end up eating a greater variety of fruits and vegetables than you normally would.

Juicing is also beneficial because it uses fresh uncooked fruits and veg. Once a food has been cooked it loses its micro-nutrients, but not if it has been juiced!

Does it really make a difference?

Everyone that I know that juices has told me that they feel more energetic, healthier, they recover more quickly when they get sick, etc... I've seen how much of a difference it makes in their lives and really believe that it does. I don't think so many people would go through the 'hassle' of it if they didn't find it beneficial.

Why juicing and not making smoothies?

I'm not 100% clear on whether or not there is a big difference between blending and juicing; except that some blenders can heat the food resulting in a loss of nutrients. For me, the choice is more personal. I enjoy smoothies but I cannot get them down very easily. I can drink a whole lot more juice because it isn't thick; so juicing would be a better choice for me.

So what is taking you so long to decide?

I 'know' that juicing would be a good idea; but I'm a pretty busy person. My biggest concern is whether or not I would have the time/inclination to do it. I have no desire to spend the money on a good juicer only to use it for a few days and decide it is too much of a hassle. You have to clean the juicer RIGHT away or it will mold, something you want to avoid at all costs. Will I have the time to do that?

The other fact is that there are an absolute ton of juicers out there. I personally want one that is as easy to clean as possible, and still gets the most out of the vegetables that it can. (Without being too expensive.)



One of these juicers is just over $100 - The other... over $300! That is a lot of money for me to invest before I figure out what I really need.

If you are thinking about juicing you should check out what Dr. Mercola has to say about it. 

I'll keep you posted and share any new juicing information that I come across!

Thanks for stopping by!

Photos courtesy of mathiasbaert, rick and cbb4104

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Pesticides and Produce: The Worst Cases

It can be hard to dedicate yourself to eating wholly organic; trust me, I know. The price of organic butter is nearly enough to make my head explode. It is equally as hard to stick to an organic diet if you don't have access to organic stores. Lucky for me, Medicine Hat has become a little bit more Organically Inclined in the last few years.

If you want to make a go of eating organic and you find yourself struggling, then it stands to reason to choose what you eat organic wisely. There are some fruits and veggies that have much higher pesticide exposure than others. My logic is this: switch those veggies to organic first. Once you have taken the worst ones out of your diet then begin incorporating in others. It may not be as good as eating all organic, but at the very least you won't be eating the produce that is the worst for you.


I snitched the following list from EWG.com, you can check them out if you want to see where my info came from.

The WORST Fruits and Veg (Non Organic)

1. Apples
2. Celery
3. Strawberries
4. Peaches
5. Spinach
6. Nectarines
7. Grapes
8. Sweet Bell Peppers
9. Potatoes
10. Blueberries
11. Lettuce
12. Kale/Collard Greens

There you have it. If you're eating anything on that list that is non-organic, you just might want to consider switching!

Pictures via rduta and @joefoodie

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