Category: Fruit, vegetables

A strawberry a day, may keep the doctor away. Well, ¾ of a cup might. US researchers found eating a small amount of whole strawberries significantly suppressed symptoms such as body weight loss and bloody diarrhoea in mice with inflammatory bowel disease, as well as lessening inflammatory responses in their colonic tissue. More investigation is

Want to get a perfectly diced onion? All it takes is practice and a sharp knife. Start by peeling your onion, but make sure you leave the root intact. Cut in half lengthwise. Place the onion halves flat-side-down on a board. Make cuts lengthwise, at regular intervals, across the onion, leaving the root end attached,

New research shows less than 40 per cent of Kiwis are eating five or more servings of fresh fruit and vegetables every day. Of the 700 Kiwis surveyed about their fresh fruit and vegetable intake, 37 per cent reported they ate five or more servings every day. Meanwhile, 59 per cent of New Zealanders reported

Figs Figs are gaining popularity in New Zealand but can be hard to come by in shops. Figs are usually an expensive delicacy due to their short season. Your best bet is to befriend someone with a tree. These sweet fruits provide a small amount of a wide range of vitamins and minerals, along with

Dill Although used in small amounts, herbs add beneficial polyphenols to our diet and, while not true for all herbs, fresh dill has more polyphenols than dried. Use Dill is a favourite herb of Scandinavian and Eastern European cuisines and is a delight to those of us who love it. Its feathery leaves and fennel-y,

The sweet, juicy goodness of pineapples are a favourite in Kiwi fruit bowls, and not just because they’re available year-round. This tropical fruit is not just a source of vitamin C to aid immunity throughout the winter months, it also makes a great meat tenderiser and contains bromelain, which has anti-inflammatory properties. Many of the

Cape gooseberries While this pale orange-yellow tart fruit has been shown to have lower antioxidant activity than its more vibrant red berry cousins, you’ll get 3g fibre in a half-cup serve as well as two-thirds of the amount of vitamin C that you’d get from an orange, which is pretty good. So, if we add

Jerusalem artichokes are related to the sunflower family and differ to globe artichokes. These knobbly tubers, available in autumn and through winter, are sweet, nutty and creamy in flavour and lend themselves to salads, soups, stir-fries, roasting, boiling, steaming and mashing. A squirt of lemon stops discolouration when cut. Buying Choose even-sized roots that are free

Rhubarb A rhubarb patch was once a common sight in Kiwi backyards. The red-pink stalks of this hardy plant were plucked, chopped up, sweetened, stewed and made into pies and crumbles. For a while this vegetable — no, it’s not a fruit, we just tend to think of it as one because it’s usually in

Sensory-based food education of three to five-year-old children increases their willingness to choose healthy foods, according to a new study. Kindergarten children, including those identified as picky eaters, who were educated using the Sapere method were more likely to choose vegetables, berries and fruit. The Sapere method makes use of children’s natural way of relying