A Plum Deal
Plums are a dandy fruit that are native to not one but a number of ports, including China, America, Europe and Caukasus, which is good because it offers so many health benefits that its good to know it can be appreciated all over the world!
Offering us minerals to help manage high blood pressure and reduce stroke risk and awesome antioxidants that help protect against cancer by mopping up those harmful free radicals, plums are indeed dandy for helping to improve our health in these areas and more!
Studies also show that prunes (dried plums) can help improve weight loss, offer us substantially higher bone mineral density, help prevent constipation and improve digestion.
It’s What’s Inside That Counts
Rich in vitamin C and other antioxidants, plums can also help us maintain healthy, radiant and youthful skin and help reduce dark spots and wrinkles.
Plums can also help our eyes, preventing age-related macular degeneration by protecting the eye against damage caused by UV radiation.
The best part of all is that plums can be used in a number of creative ways in the kitchen, giving us plenty of options to add them to our day.
They can be juiced or jellied and turned into jams. They can be pureed into sweet puddings or swirled into sweet or savory soups, or cooked into condiments, candies or confections. Plums can even be boiled down into an intoxicating drink. There simply is no perimeter around the boundless ways you can prepare a plum!
While there are so many ways and varieties to choose from, do be sure to start only with plums (or prunes) that are fresh.
Choosing The Perfect Plum
Buckets Full of Plums. Photo by Kelly Neil on Unsplash.
When selecting fresh plums, look for those with a slight whitish casting or bloom on their skins. This will indicate that they were not overly-handled.
Avoid the soft plums with bruises and instead look for ones that yield a bit to slight pressure and also have a sweet aroma.
Once home, if ripe, store them – unwashed – in the refrigerator until use.
If firm, keep in a paper bag at room temperature until they ripen. FYI: Prunes can be kept at room temperature for a few days.
Now that you have plenty of good reasons to pursue them, here are some pleasing ways to have a plum dandy time – ENJOY!
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