CommunityTable

The Fabulous Fig

To eat fresh figs off the tree in the very early morning, when their skin is still moist with dew, is one of life's indescribably joys. Nothing can prepare you for the smooth, melting flavor of your first fresh fig - especially if you're only familiar with fig bars or dried figs.

Pliny, an ancient Roman author said, "Figs increase the strength of young people, preserve the elderly in better health and make them look younger with fewer wrinkles." We won't go quite that far, but we do know that fresh figs are one of the most healthful and delicious fruits you'll ever experience.

According to popular legend, Adam and Eve's first clothes were fashioned from fig leaves, so it's no surprise that figs are one of the oldest fruits known to mankind. Native to Western Asia and the Mediterranean, figs were likely among the first fruits cultivated by primitive man.

Figs were enjoyed as appetizers and desserts in Paris as early as the 14th century, and sweet puddings made with figs were popular in 16th century England. It was the Spaniards who originally brought figs to the New World. First planted on the island of Hispaniola in 1520, their popularity spread rapidly, and they were abundant in many parts of South America by the end of the 16th century.

Figs were brought to North America in the middle of the 18th century by the founders of the Missions along the coast of California. The fig trees thrived in the temperate climate and rich soil of the valleys and foothills, and produced exceptionally fine fruit.

Today, only a few small, family-run farms still grow premium gourmet figs for eating fresh.

Fig Varieties

Black Mission Figs - Plump and shapely, with deep purple skin. They take their name from the early California missions where they were first grown. Their sweet rosy flesh and black-purple color make them an exotic addition to fresh fruit salads, sliced and served with yogurt or ice cream.

Kadota Figs - Soft, sweet, aromatic variety, teardrop-shaped, with light green skin. You'll find their excellent flavor refreshing as a breakfast, snack or dessert. 

Calimyrna Figs - A beautiful golden color, with a shape like a tiny turban. They were originally grown on the hillsides of the ancient Aegean port of Smyrna. Early Spanish missionaries discovered them equally at home in the temperate climate and rich soil of California's valleys and foothills. Before long, Calimyrnas became one of the world's most sought-after figs.

Source: Harry and David. Fresh Tree-Ripe Figs.

 

Blueberry-Ricotta Tart

Blueberries have more antioxidant value than almost any other food! So eat them up this summer to protect your heart, brain and age-related illnesses. 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/4 cup finely ground blanched almonds
• 2 tablespoons toasted wheat germ
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 4 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1 1/4 cups part-skim ricotta
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 2 cups fresh blueberries

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a food processor pulse together flour, blanched almonds, toasted wheat germ, light brown sugar, kosher salt and baking powder. Add butter and process until largest pieces are the size of small peas. With machine running, add buttermilk until dough just holds together. Pat into a disc, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour (or overnight).
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly, floured surface, roll out dough 1/8 inch thick. Fit into a 9 1/2-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Trim edges flush with pan and prick holes in dough with fork. Freeze for 15 minutes. Line with parchment paper and fill with pie weights. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove parchment and weights and bake until golden brown and dry, 15 to 20 minutes more. Let cool. 
3. Puree ricotta, salt, cinnamon and 1 tablespoon honey. Spread into cooled shell. Stir 2 tablespoons honey gently into 2 cups blueberries and arrange on top of tart. Chill for 2 hours.      

Yields 8 servings

Nutrition: Per Serving: 256 calories, 6g saturated fat, 5g unsaturated fat, 28mg cholesterol, 32g carbohydrates, 193mg sodium, 8g protein, 2g fiber                                                                                                                                                                 

Watermelon Gazpacho

This mildly spicy soup is not only delicious, but easy on your waistline considering watermelon is 92% water. 

INGREDIENTS:

• 8 cups cubed, seeded watermelon
• 1 apple diced
• 1/2 cup finely chopped Vidalia onion
• 1/2 cup finely chopped green pepper
• 2 teaspoons fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a blender, puree watermelon with apple and 1/4 cup each of onion and green pepper, pour into a large mixing bowl.
2. Stir in the remaining ingredients (including the other 1/4 cup of onion and green pepper).
3. Refrigerate, covered, for at least an hour to blend flavors.

Yields 4-6 servings.

Watermelon Strawberry Banana Smoothie

This smoothie is an excellent source of Vitamin C, fiber and potassium, sure to give you plenty of energy!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 banana, broken into 4 chunks
• 1 heaping cup mini seedless watermelon, diced
• 2 or 3 strawberries
• 1 tablespoon natural agave nectar
• Water if needed

DIRECTIONS:

Throw all your ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Make sure the watermelon is closest to the blender blades to ensure easier blending.

Yields 1 serving

Your Mind Is Like a Beautiful Garden, So Plant Happy Seeds!

It is now being proven scientifically that a happy and healthy outlook to both ourselves and to life affects our mind in many noticeable ways. We do not get such a mindset by ignoring or denying negative feelings and pretending to be happy. Rather, we do it by becoming a good gardener, methodically and carefully removing the weeds of discontent while cultivating beautiful flowers.

Qualities such as kindness, compassion and forgiveness are the seeds we want to plant in order to cultivate a beautiful garden. But the self-centered ego's need for grasping, gaining and selfishness easily buries them. We are all capable of losing our cool, getting caught up in hot emotions and causing harm. When we only focus on our own concerns and problems we become too self-engrossed to really acknowledge anyone else's issues. These are the weeds we need to pull up, as are moments of closed-heartedness or anger, self-doubt and insecurity. We can bring mercy and tenderness to those places, to the wounded parts, so the fight within us can come to an end. And when we step beyond ourselves, then the ability to cultivate kind and caring qualities becomes possible.

When Ed was going through a difficult patch in his life he realized that he was stuck in his mind, which felt like being stuck in a paper bag. He had nowhere to go, just caught up in his own issues. It was like his mind was overcome by weeds, with no flowers to be found. He finally realized that our true mind is like the sky. Just as the sky has storms, wind, rain, and tornadoes, but is not affected by these things, so our true mind has worries, upsets and fears, but need not be affected by them.

In our recent book, BE THE CHANGE, we interviewed over 100 inspired people in all walks of life who verify the importance of transforming anger and self-negation into acceptance and generosity. Among them is scientist Richard Davidson who, along with the Dalai Lama and psychologist Daniel Goleman, has opened the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds, at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Here, a team of researchers will study such qualities as kindness, compassion and forgiveness, and how they affect the brain. The fact that such brilliant people have established this center highlights the importance of developing positive thinking versus maintaining negative thinking, such as self-dislike, anger and hatred.

Meditation is hugely important in this. In fact, kindness and compassion are such clear outcomes of meditation that there is now an overwhelming amount of research showing how meditation stimulates the circuits in the brain associated with contentment, happiness and the feel-good factor. Dr Davidson has scientifically studied Buddhist monks while they were meditating. When asked to focus on compassion, their brains reflected a remarkable generation of clarity and intensified kindness. The center is probably the only place in the world where there is a meditation room next to the lab!

"By training the mind, we can actually change the brain toward greater contentment," says Dr. Davidson in Be The Change, How Meditation Can Transform You and the World. "There is certainly evidence to show that meditation practices designed to cultivate compassion and loving kindness change the brain in many positive ways."

A regular practice of meditation can produce discernible changes in the brain in a matter of just eight weeks, which indicates that we can quite purposefully and systematically develop qualities such as kindness and compassion. 'Be Good and Do Good' is a great mantra for this!

To feel the difference in yourself try the practice below, or one of our meditation CD's.

Pulling Weeds Meditation
Find a comfortable and upright place to sit. Take a few deep breaths, then watch the flow of your breath as it enters and leaves.

Now bring your focus to your heart, and as you breathe in feel as if your heart is opening and softening; as you breathe out, release any tension or resistance.

Now visualize yourself walking in a beautiful but overgrown garden. All sorts of colorful flowers surround you, but among them are numerous weeds.

You find a place to sit amidst the plants and with awareness you mindfully begin to remove the weeds. Each one represents a negative aspect of yourself or your life. Name it as you remove it, and watch it leave your mind as you discard.

The more weeds you remove the lighter you feel, as if a weight is being removed from you. As you do this, the flowers are growing stronger and brighter.

Stay here as long as you like. You may not have time to pull up all the weeds, so before you leave promise that you will be back again to remove some more.

When you are ready, silently repeat three times, "May I be happy, may my mind be like a beautiful garden." Take a deep breath and let it go. Then fill the rest of your day with kindness and smiles.

Published June 22, 2010 in Huffington Post. Your Mind Is Like a Beautiful Garden, So Plant Happy Seeds! Shapiro, Deb and Shapiro, Ed.

Go Green This Summer & Take Your Exercise Routine Outdoors

Trying to decide on an activity to keep yourself healthy this summer?

Try green exercise.

Green exercise refers to physical activity that is done while simultaneously being exposed to nature. Various forms of green exercise include hiking, biking, outdoor sports or beach activities.

The University of Essex in the United Kingdom has been studying the health benefits of green exercise for more than five years – and has just published a recent paper on this topic.

This study has been published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, and shows that as little as five minutes of green exercise improves both mood and self-esteem. The greatest improvements were seen when exercise was done near a body of water.

The Essex researchers have also shown that after people perform green exercise:

—Two out of three people have improved self-esteem.

—Two out of three people have improved mood.

—Three out of four people feel less depressed, tense and angry.

Green exercise has numerous health benefits because connecting with nature reduces stress levels and offers a healing, relaxing environment.

These emotional benefits come with the pure physical benefits of exercise that include cardiovascular conditioning and muscle toning.

These results are not surprising. But for those of us who get bored walking on a treadmill or elliptical trainer, these findings suggest different exercise options.

How about going for a 30-minute, early-morning walk in the local park or an after-dinner stroll along the river? How about taking a bike ride instead of watching your favorite show on the boob tube in the evening? You will end up healthier, both physically and mentally.

So go green and go take a hike! It may be the best prescription you can give your health this summer. 

Published June 4, 2010 in The Republic. Integrative medicine: Green exercise is good for the body and mind. Judge, Kay and Barish-Wreden, Maxine.  

 

Raw Key Lime Pie

This is a twist on an American favorite! Vegans may enjoy this egg and dairy-free version of the original. It's not only delicious, but packed with vitamin E too! 

INGREDIENTS:

For the filling:

• 6 tablespoons extra virgin cold-pressed coconut oil
• roughly 2 medium avocados with skin and pits removed
• 1/2 cup ready-to-eat dried apricots
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin seed oil
• finely grated rind of 2 limes
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 tablespoon natural agave syrup

For the base:

• 1/2 cup ground pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup ground almonds
• 1/2 cup medjool dates, chopped
• 1 tablespoon natural agave syrup

DIRECTIONS:

1. Blend together all the ingredients for the base in a food processor or blender until you have a nice firm dough.
2. Lightly oil a 8-inch pie dish. Scrape the dough from the processor or blender and press the dough into the base of dish, ensuring it is evenly distributed.
3. Melt the coconut oil in a heatproof bowl resting in a pan of hot water.
4. Blend together the avocados, dried apricots, pumpkin oil, and lime rind and juice in a food processor or blender. Gradually stir in the melted coconut oil.
5. Spread the mixture evenly on to the pie base using a palette knife or metal spatula. Chill for about 2 hours.

Yields 6 servings.

Nutrition: Per serving: 360 calories, 4.9g protein, 15.4g carbohydrates, 31.4g fat, 0mg cholesterol, 48mg calcium, 3.6g fiber, 20mg sodium

Healthy Father's Day Ideas

 

Father's Day is this Sunday and it's time to show good ol' Dad how much he's appreciated! Instead of giving him the standard tie or baseball hat, why not show Dad how much you love him by giving him a thoughtful, healthy gift! 

Depending on the weather this weekend, you could pack up a healthy lunch and do a picnic at a local park or beach followed by some frisbee or ball. For lunch you could try one of our many nutritious recipes we post here. For the month of June we've been featuring all summer fruit and vegetable recipes in celebration of National Fruit and Vegetable Month. All Dad wants is to spend quality time with you and with this activity you'll be doing just that and keeping active and healthy at the same time!

You could also create a wellness basket for him. Stock it with healthy snacks like almonds, protein bars, protein shakes and whole wheat crackers. Throw a water bottle in there, maybe a baseball or basketball, whatever he's into to stay fit. A pedometer is a good idea, so he can keep track of his number of strides each day. Or get him a subscription to a health oriented magazine, such as, Men's Health and Fitness.

We all want our dad's around for a long, long time and a healthy Father's Day gift will convey that message much better than an overpriced wallet or a high-calorie dinner.

Mini-Strawberry Rhubarb Crumbles

Get in your Vitamins C, K and B in this delicious  low-calorie dessert!   

INGREDIENTS:

Strawberry Rhubarb Filling:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 cups thinly sliced strawberries
• 1 large-rib rhubarb, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Crumble Topping:

• 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pea-size pieces

DIRECTIONS:

1. Melt butter for filling in a saucepan over medium heat. Add fruit, and cook, stirring constantly for 2 to 3 minutes. Add sugar and lemon juice, and cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
2. To make crumble, hand mix flour, brown sugar, and butter pieces until mixture resembles a course meal.
3. Divide fruit into six ramekins. Crown each with crumble topping, until fruit is completely covered. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden. Serve warm.

Yields 6 servings

Nutrition: Per Serving: 175 calories, 10g fat, 6g saturated fat, 25mg cholesterol, 1g protein, 22g carbohydrates, 3g fiber, 5mg sodium

Quinoa and Summer Vegetable Stir-Fry

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
• 1 onion, diced
• 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 yellow summer squash, sliced
• Fistful of slender asparagus or green beans, trimmed, sliced
• 1 eggplant, peeled, sliced into bite size pieces
• 1 bell pepper - red, yellow, orange, or green, cored, sliced
• 2 cups mushrooms, trimmed, sliced
• Handful of grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
• Sea salt and ground pepper
• Herbs, to taste - parsley, basil, thyme, red pepper flakes - whatever you prefer
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• Extra virgin olive oil, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. When the quinoa is almost done, heat a splash of light olive oil in a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, stir until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for a minute. Add the remaining vegetables. Season with sea salt, pepper, and herbs. Add the balsamic vinegar. Stir-fry until tender.
2. Add cooked quinoa to the wok. Stir to combine with the vegetables. Taste test and add more salt or seasoning if it needs it. Remove from heat. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and toss to fluff.
3. Serve immediately; or allow it to cool, then cover and refrigerate it to eat as a salad. Before serving it cold, taste test again and adjust seasonings. 

Yields 4 servings