Everyone likes a bonus or, in business-speak, added value, right?
That’s exactly what several seasonal fruits, vegetables and goodies deliver: a surprise nutritional bang for your bite that makes them doubly good for you. And many are as close as your nearest farmers market.
What are we talking about? Persimmons. Pumpkins. Beet greens. Craft beer.
“When you talk to people about foods, instead of nutrients,” says Robin Plotkin, “it’s a lot more exciting.” Plotkin is a Dallas registered dietitian and culinary nutritionist. “When research shows a food is even healthier than we thought, that’s all the more reason to eat it.”
Or take a bigger sip. Did we say beer? Yes, we did.
It’s just one of 12 foods and beverages with unexpected nutritional perks. Read on for the lowdown on each one.
Beer
No doubt you’ve heard that red wine is awash in heart health benefits when consumed in moderation. But there’s a piece that health experts sometimes omit, say Dallas registered dietitian nutritionists Mary Kimbrough and Cindy Kleckner: All alcoholic beverages, including our outstanding North Texas craft beers, have some cardiovascular benefits, although not as many as that merlot or pinot noir. Just don’t forget: moderation.
Here’s a little more beer buzz: Dark beers contain a modest amount of fiber, and the more malt in a brew, the more B vitamins it packs.
Beef
Like all beef, the local grass-fed variety is a great source of protein, vitamin B-12, zinc and niacin. But the fats in beef aren’t all bad actors, as once believed. “The surprising fact is that half of the fatty acids in lean beef are monounsaturated,” says Kleckner, “the same heart-healthy type found in olive oil.” And about a third of the saturated fat is a cholesterol-neutral variety.
“The BOLD [Beef in an Optimal Lean Diet] study conducted by researchers at Pennsylvania State University,” she says, “found consuming lean beef as part of a heart-healthy diet can lower LDL cholesterol levels as much as 10 percent.” LDL is the bad cholesterol. And that’s lean beef, folks.
That’s good news coming from Kleckner, a specialist in cardiovascular nutrition, who looks out for folks at the Cooper Fitness Center Craig Ranch in McKinney.
Beets/beet greens
Love ’em or hate ’em, beets are good for you. What’s not always obvious: The green tops are, too. “Dark leafy greens, including beet greens,” says Plotkin, “have high levels of vitamin K, the essential vitamin needed to help clot blood. Less bitter than their frenemy, kale, beet greens are more similar to spinach.”
Instead of tossing them, she says, try these suggestions:
Mix them in a salad with other greens; use an acidic dressing to make the leaves less fibrous, as you would for kale.
Sauté over medium heat in olive oil until wilted. Season with salt, pepper, lemon juice and some Parmesan cheese.
Steam along with spinach.
Coffee
Sometimes lost in the debate over the bean’s nutritive value is the fact that coffee is a zero-calorie beverage, says Kimbrough. “I love black coffee,” she says. And forget the wags who say you can’t count coffee toward your daily fluid intake. You can, says Kimbrough, who’s a partner in Culinary Nutrition Associates (culinarynutritionassociates.com) and who works primarily with food service. Tea, too, for that matter.
Honey
Allergy sufferers have long believed that honey relieves symptoms, but the evidence is iffy, says Plotkin. Here’s a surefire surprise benefit. “If you use table sugar to sweeten beverages, hot cereals or baked goods, consider switching to honey to save calories,” she says. How’s that work? “Because honey is 25 percent more sweet than sugar, you’ll be satisfied with less.”
Pecans
We love our pecans, a good source of high-quality plant protein and heart-healthy fats, says Kleckner. But experts are uncovering so much more. A 2011 Loma Linda University study included this surprising finding: “Naturally occurring antioxidants in pecans may help contribute to heart health by reducing LDL cholesterol.” That’s a bonus, with crunch.
Here’s how to get more pecans in your life:
Toast them and sprinkle in hot cooked breakfast cereals and garden salads.
Use them in place of other nuts to make pesto.
Include pecans in chicken and tuna salad.
Crush toasted pecans for a coating on baked fish or poultry.
Persimmons
They’re not only in markets, but also lots of yards locally, and most are the sweet-fleshed variety. Like other orange fruits and vegetables, persimmons are rich in betacarotene, which turns to vitamin A in the body. A small- to medium-size fruit generates over half the vitamin A you need for a day, say dietitians in the October issue of the “Environmental Nutrition” newsletter. But that’s not all: Persimmons are good for your bones, providing nearly a third of your daily manganese.
Here are some ways to eat them (make sure they’re ripe):
Slice the flesh and add to Greek yogurt or a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast.
Add slices to a salad with greens and nuts, such as pecans.
“Environmental Nutrition” suggests topping peeled and sliced persimmons with cottage cheese that you’ve mixed with a little vanilla and cinnamon.
Pumpkin
There’s that orange flesh again, so rich in betacarotene that turns to vitamin A in your body, says Plotkin. But at 49 calories and 3 grams of fiber per cup, fresh pumpkin flesh is also a surprisingly low-calorie, high-fiber food.
“Add pumpkin to your cooking and baking staples during the fall months,” she says, “when holiday-inspired pounds tend to creep on unexpectedly.” Think about roasting it, adding it to soups and stirring purée into your muffin batter.
Rio Star grapefruit
Like all citrus, this rosy-fleshed, Texas-bred grapefruit is high in vitamin C. Less well known, says Plotkin: It’s rich in lycopene. “The antioxidant that gives certain foods the bright red pigment,” she says, “may reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease and age-related eye disorders.” Watermelon is also high in lycopene.
Her favorite way to serve its ruby flesh? “Sliced and broiled. No need for any sugar. They’re already so naturally sweet.”
Sweet potatoes
Just about everyone knows it’s a superfood, chock-full of cartenoids and other nutrients. Less well known is this: One potato delivers over 25 percent of your daily vitamin E needs, says Kleckner, “almost unheard of in a low-fat food.” And despite their sweet flavor, sweet potatoes are useful for stabilizing blood sugar in diabetics, thanks to their low glycemic index ranking.
Oh, and don’t throw away the skin. “You can shred [the whole potato] into burgers and meatballs,” says Kleckner. You can also add sweet potato to soups and stews. “Just scrub and cut it up like you would a white potato.”
Tea
All real tea, from the camellia sinensis plant, is good for you. That includes white, green, oolong and black. It’s the flavonoids, says Neva Cochran, a Dallas registered dietitian nutritionist who’s something of a tea fanatic. Flavonoids make tea a heart-health powerhouse. People sometimes forget that it’s also a zero-calorie beverage, she says. “Tea hydrates you, helps reduce bad cholesterol and reduces blood clotting.” That’s true for green tea and iced tea, but not instant or herbal teas.
Turnips and rutabagas
These related root veggies are rich in complex carbohydrates and cholesterol-lowering soluble fiber, says Kleckner. But would you ever think of them for vitamin C? One cup of cooked turnips delivers 20 percent of your daily requirement, and rutabaga, 36 percent.
Puzzled by the roots? Here are some easy ways to unpuzzle them.
Cook along with potatoes for a mashed potato blend.
Add chunks to soups and stews.
Add shredded turnip and rutabaga to potato pancakes.
Kim Pierce is a Dallas freelance writer.
