With the weather starting to warm up, the price of fruit and berries is starting to come down and I'm all about gettin' in when the gettin' is good. For the absolute best deals, I hit up the farmers market right before they close to scoop up all the goods they are looking to get off their hands. Today, I shelled out 7 euro and marched home feeling rich as could be with my bag full of raspberries, peaches, mangos and cherries. Bonus: Not only do fruits and veggies that are in season taste better, they are more nutritious for you! Cheaper, tastier and more nutritional bang? What are you waiting for, go treat yourself to some!
I know peaches 'n chia seeds is not quite as catchy as peaches 'n cream, but I promise it's pretty gosh-darn delicious and will keep you full for considerably longer. I went on a bit about the wonders of chia seeds in a post on chia seed pudding a while back. If you have not tried this superfood yet, do it now, now, now! I am so in love with them that I just ordered my second 2 lb. bag of them online. They are the perfect fast, filling snack. For a quick recap of their nutritional stats, they are a good source of protein and calcium and full of brain- and heart-healthy omega-3s and blood sugar-regulating fiber.
But what I really want to talk about here is fruit! Pretty much all berries are full of antioxidants that help fight cell aging and damage from free radicals. To give you a better picture of what that means, just imagine what happens to a slice of apple that's left out. That browning is due to oxidation and the same thing happens to cells in our body! Yikes! Blueberries happen to have the highest oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) value of any food in the world. But this breakfast has more to offer than that:
Blueberries: Everyone talk about salmon being brain food, but blueberries are perhaps even more impressive in this department. They are memory food! They contain a compound called polyphenol that helps your neurons talk to each other and even promote the growth of new neurons! They also help fight inflammation, which is involved in pretty much every major illness from alzheimer's and heart disease to arthritis and diabetes. Extracts of the phytochemicals in blueberries are also shown to significantly decrease growth of cervical and breast cancer.
Strawberries: Much like blueberries, strawberries are full of phytochemicals like phenols and anthocyanins that help inhibit cancer. Strawberries are also specifically shown to significantly inhibit growth of liver cancer cells. Extracts from strawberries may also help improve short-term memory!
Peaches: While nothing steels the show in terms of health benefits like berries, this stone fruit is not too shabby either. They are a good source of fiber, have a low glycemic load (won't spike blood sugar), contain carotenoids that promote eye health and prevent macular degeneration and contains calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin A, C and K. All this at less than 40 calories a fruit!
Peaches & Chia Seeds
Serves 1
Prep time: 5-15 min.
Ingredients:
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1/2-2/3 cup milk or almond milk (I scrimp of the milk, but some ppl. like their cereal swimming in it)
2 T. chia seeds
2 T. steel cut oats
1/2 peach
1 handful of blueberries
4 strawberries
Sprinkle of cinnamon
Optional add-ins:
Honey
Sliced almonds
Chopped walnuts
Drop of vanilla extract
Directions:
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1. Pour chia seeds into a cereal bowl, add milk and stir. If you want a thicker texture, let the chia seeds sit for about 10 minutes and absorb some of the milk.
2. Add in oats, beeries and fruits and sprinkle with a little cinnamon. Enjoy!
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