Why you ought to be eating some...
As the days get longer and the weather warms up, strawberries are a fantastic fruit that the whole family can enjoy. Now that it’s peak season to pick the juicy fruit - and particularly as punnets are on sale for a low as 80c to $1.60 across the country – make the most of the humble strawberry incorporate it into your next family meal.
A tasty sweet treat which can substitute as a remedy to curb stubborn sugar cravings, strawberries are also great to satisfy kids on hot summer days! Containing 92% of water and with only 7% of sugar in one punnet, strawberries are packed with nutritional goodness and full of health benefits for parents and kids.
One of the low GI super foods, strawberries can be used in a number of ways, satisfying even the pickiest of eaters! Whether you use it as an add-on to desserts, cake garnish and flavour enhancer, to freshen up a healthy salad with a sweet zing or even as a simple snack in between meals, the options are endless!
Kids especially can enjoy the sweet addition of strawberries to their day. Quickly transform strawberries into a fruity slushy, flavourful icy-poles or even a sugar-free soda to re-energise and rehydrate as they play all day in the sun.
To make the most of cheap strawberry prices this season, here are some of my favourite strawberry recipe ideas:
Strawberry Smoothie Poles (Makes 6-8 blocks)
1 punnet strawberries, washed with stems removed
1 cup (250 ml) water
2 tsp lemon juice
2 cups (500 ml) natural yoghurt
Sugar-free fizzy drink
1 punnet strawberries
Sparkling mineral water
Tap water & ice blocks
(Simply blend / food processor, strain puree and seeds. Fizz water in carbonator and mix together)
Strawberry Avocado Spinach Salad with Chicken
extra virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Loosely packed fresh spinach
6-8 large strawberries
1 avocado,
Red onion
Goat’s cheese
Sliced almonds
More than a flavour substitute, strawberries are also a great addition to a beauty regime! Beauty benefits of strawberries include:
Optimise health – Vitamin C - Natural antioxidant which, help boost immunities and resist against inflammation and infectious agents.
Variety of minerals – such as manganese, fluorine, potassium, copper, iron and iodine – collectively helps to control heart rate and blood pressure, cell formation and recovery as well as promoting health in bones and teeth.
Weight management – Low in calories (sugar), high in fibre, which helps in the quest for weight loss as the sweet flavour aids sugar cravings without packing on the pounds.
UV sun protection & anti-wrinkle agent – combination of amino acids, tartaric acids, glucose, citric acid, nicotinic acid, pectin, carotene, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants are excellent for improving skin tone and complexion, skin elasticity and protection again harmful UV rays.
While strawberries are a great treat for any time of the day, a balanced diet of fruit, veggies and protein will always be the best for your family!
This article was featured in Nine Coach as per link below:
https://coach.nine.com.au/2016/09/26/15/40/the-health-benefits-of-buying-big-on-cheap-strawberries
