motd Sat March 10, 2012

[Guest guest]

LET ME PEEL YOU

A GRAPE...

Saturday, 10 March 2012

No, seriously, you deserve it, you adorable

thing, you. Let me spoil you, let me pamper you, let

me...peel you a grape. Okay,

just kidding. That little line was immortalized by

the legendary actress, Mae West, in a movie of hers

way back in 1933. But you know what, I really don't want to peel

you a grape and I'll tell you why later.

Grapes are often referred

to as "queen of the fruits."

Grapes are often referred to as "queen of the

fruits." They're surely one of the most popular

fruits in the world. Grapes have been around since

the beginning of history and you often see them

depicted in famous paintings of the Greeks and Romans

from thousands of years ago. Technically, they're

small round berries and grow in clusters on vines.

Grapes are native to Europe and Mediterranean areas

but are now grown all over the world. In fact,

California is this country's largest grower of grapes.

My mother loved her

grapes. She used to read New Orleans' Times-Picayune,

our daily newspaper, with a big bowl of grapes on the

table to enjoy as she read the paper.

Now grapes may be little but they sure do pack a powerful nutritional

punch. Not only that, being very low in calories,

they're an excellent addition to your weight-loss

plans, especially as snacks.

Grapes play a protective

role in the prevention of various forms of cancer,

coronary heart disease and even Alzheimer's disease.

Grapes are rich in a compound called resveratol, a powerful

anti-oxidant. They play a protective role in the

prevention of various forms of cancer, coronary heart

disease and even Alzheimer's disease. Resveratrol

also helps reduce the risk of stroke.

Grapes are rich in copper and potassium along with

vitamins C, A and K. Hey, a big dose of respect for

those powerful little grapes, please. And as I

mentioned earlier, like most fruits, they're also very

low in calories. On your FoodMover, a serving size

equals 12 grapes which is less that 40 calories. (The

average-sized grape contains less than 4 calories

each.)

Grapes are the perfect snack food. Some people like

to freeze their grapes and have them as little frozen

snacks. Hey, that's much better than having a piece

of hard candy melting away calories and sugar into

your body.

Be sure to rinse and dry

your grapes thoroughly before eating or using them.

Grapes tend to spoil easily at room temperature so be

sure and store them in your fridge's produce section.

(They'll keep for several days that way.) Also, make

sure to rinse and dry your grapes thoroughly before

eating or using them in a recipe. That way,

you're washing away any pesticides.

So, are you sitting back, waiting for me to peel you

that grape? Well, I told you, I'm not going to.

Why? Well, because, like many fruits and vegetables,

the skin of the grape is where its fiber is. Plus, the

skin contains the highest antioxidant content of the

entire grape.

So, sorry, Ms. West. We won't be peeling

that grape for you or for ourselves

anytime soon. But would you settle for us peeling a

banana for you instead?

Love,