Tag: snack

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Fruit Benefits

Pineberries are the new berries. Try them!

Pineberries are the new berries. Try them!

Let’s learn about these new berries!

When you see pineberries at the grocery store you may wonder if you should try these new berries – as they don’t look like your conventional fruit.

Pineberries taste very sweet and they are delicious! You may think they taste a little tart because of their pale color. But don’t get confused with an albino fruit when you see these new berries! The pale color is just one of their characteristcs.

Even though they look like strawberries, they taste different. The rather sweeter side of it comes from the similarity they have from pineapples. Pineberries have a soft bite to it if compared to strawberries, which feels firmer. Their bite also feel soft like pears. But pineberries feel firm like strawberries when you are holding them while rinsing them off or cutting out their stems.

Try pineberries with pancakes!
Chocolate lava pancake

The pineberries get their name because it is a combo of the words pineapple and strawberry. They are a novelty type of strawberry, because they range in color and flavor. They are usually white with red achenes (seeds) but they can turn pink when they grow in sunlight. Berries are harvested when the achenes turn from green to red – that is when you should try them!

Pineberries taste delicious on their own! They are great for kebabs with other fruits, which gives a unique touch. Pineberry is also delicious with hazelzut and chocolate spread – a great way to get the kids to eat them! They are also good with oatmeal or pancakes. You can be creative on how you eat pineberries, they are just another form of berry anyway and go well in so many dishes!

Here is a little bit of history on these newer berries: white-fruited strawberries of Fragaria chiloensis (Chilean strawberry) have been traced back to Chile where the native peoples cultivated them more than a thousand years ago. They were then introduced into Europe around the 1700’s. Only about 20 years ago,

the Netherlands developed the pineberry through crossbreeding the red and white varieties.

Ten years later, pineberries started selling in the U.S. and they are now more popular.

These new berries are delicious with hazelnut spread. Try them!
Pineberries are delicious with hazelnut spread.

Pineberries are high in vitamin A and vitamin C which helps the immune health. They are antioxidants and rich in fiber. This pineapple flavor berry also helps support gut health, weight loss efforts and they may even support healthy blood sugar levels in people with diabetes.

Pineberries are sold most of the year from different regions. Florida growing season runs from November through April and the pineberries from California, from January through September. Other great news about pineberries is that they are non-GMO!

Check out our blog post on how to clean fruits properly so you are ready to try the new berries: pineberries!

Pineberries are the new berries. Try Pineberries in kebabs!
Fruit kebabs with pineberries for Valentine’s day
Categories
Fruit Tips

How to boost your afternoons with one simple ingredient

Cucumber capsules – that is how you boost your afternoons!

How to boost your afternoons

Sometimes in the afternoons, we feel a little tired or sleepy, and we need a boost to wake us up and keep the day going! Therefore, we usually grab a cup of coffee, drink sugary drinks, or eat sweets, like a chocolate bar or cookies.

But if you are looking for something on the healthier side and that will give you the same results, eat cucumbers! My kids, for instance, love to eat them, any time of the day! They are sweet and good for you. Cucumbers have enough carbohydrates and B vitamins that will help you feel more energetic. Cucumber juice can also be very helpful!

Before watching the video on how to boost your afternoons by making our easy cucumber capsules check out our post on snacking on grapes. We should always make sure to have healthy snacks, like fresh fruits, available and ready to eat. Now let’s learn these easy steps on how to keep your cucumbers easily ready in the refrigerator for a boost of energy.

Cucumber Capsule by Lovely Mango

We hope that you enjoy this simple idea that can change your eating habits for the better! In addition, you can keep your Cucumber Capsules ready to consume for a couple of days in the fridge. But it’s best to enjoy them within 24 hours!

Categories
Fruit Tips

Try eating grapefruit in a different way

Grapefruit in yogurt is delicious!

I often hear that eating half of a grapefruit a day is very good for our health. Well, in fact, one half of a grapefruit has about 34 mg of Vitamin C, nearly half of the recommended daily intake. You can benefit from eating grapefruit not only because it has lots of antioxidants, but also because its vitamin C helps maintain healthy skin, bones, and teeth, as well as our immune system.

In one of our blog posts, 8 fruits that will boost your immune system, we talk about the importance of fruits that makes you stronger for the winter season, grapefruit is one of them! Another important benefit of this citrus fruit is its amazing anti-inflammatory and bone-regenerating powers. This is because grapefruit is a rich source of naringin. But there is more to that. Narigin found in most citrus fruits can help you against all of these: atherosclerosis, cardiovascular problems, diabetes, neurodegenerative disorders, osteoporosis and rheumatologic illnesses. No wonder why we hear that eating half a grapefruit a day is so important!

Grapefruits are in season from Fall to Spring because they grow in different parts of the US with different climates. But you are able to find them year round at most grocery stores because they ship well due to their resistant peel. The longer grapefruits are left to ripen on the tree, the sweeter they get. So stay tunned when January comes around.

If you think grapefruits have a tart taste, try eating them with your favorite yogurt. It’s very simple!

Slice half of one grapefruit then cut around the perimeter. In a cup, add a little bit of yogurt then a couple of pieces of grapefruit. Repeat by adding the yogurt and the grapefruit one more time. My daughter Isabella thought this combination tastes sweet and delicious! We hope you enjoy it too!

Cut around the perimeter of the grapefruit slices
Add the slices in a cup with yogurt.

Enjoy it!

Categories
Fruit Crafts

How to make a fun snack out of a tangerine

TANGERINE FLOWER

This creation was done by my daughter Isabella! She was able to put this beautiful flower together, just by playing around with the tangerine before she started eating it. It’s a fun and easy idea to make for kids! Be certain that the Tangerine Flower will grab their attention more than just regular slices of tangerine laying on a plate or bowl. And you need to peel the entire tangerine anyways, so why not arranging it like this on a plate?! You can even add a few berries (or small grapes, or even a strawberry) at the center to make it look like a real flower!

You might already know this, but its important to reinforce that tangerines are full of vitamin C. A medium tangerine, weighing about 100 grams, has 26.7mg of vitamin C. You can also benefit from water intake as you eat this citrus fruit because it contains about 85% of water. Despite being a very refreshing fruit and appropriate for Summer, tangerines are in season from November through January. So if you want to enjoy them in season, you also get an extra boost of vitamin C during the cold weather.

So next time you are peeling your colorful, bright, full of water and vitamin C fruit, remember to make this easy and special arrangement! It will not only taste good, it will look delicious!

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Uncategorized

Learn how to make a snack out of a melon

It’s time to make MarshMELON!

A marshmallow bite after a melon bite is a great combo to get your kids to eat fruits. You can make these easy kabobs for parties or anytime snacks. Melons are not only a great source of fiber and packed with vitamins, they are also low in sodium, saturated fat, and cholesterol.

Even though marshmallows have no real nutritional value, they are cholesterol-free, fat-free and they are also low in sodium. That is why marshmallows are often used in certain foods to help boost the intake of healthy vegetables – for example, when marshmallows are added to sweet potatoes during Thanksgiving! But we should avoid eating more than a single serving of marshmallow which is about 28 grams – equivalent to 4 large marshmallows.

So when making our MarshMELON, you don’t even need to use a whole marshmallow between the cantaloupe or honeydew. Just cut it in half, and start alternating a cube size of your favorite melon, then one half of marshmallow, and repeat until the MarshMELON Kabob is ready!

SWEET TIP:

When picking a melon at the grocery store or farmers market, avoid bruises or cracks. Choose a melon that feels heavy for its size. And now my favorite tip, the one I use all the time: pushing the fingers on the round section of the cantaloupe or honeydew. It should feel soft!