Summer-ready apricots are a great and healthy way to satisfy your urge for something sweet, but also jam packed with many surprising health benefits.
For instance, if you consume between two or three servings of apricots a day, studies have revealed that they can be beneficial in preventing an age-related disorder of the eye called Macular Degeneration.
It is definitely worth practising preventative health care here as this disorder can cause loss of sight.
When an apricot is left to naturally ripen, they become rich in antioxidants. The more antioxidants present in the fruit, the more protection you get against free radicals when you eat it.
Try these 5 interesting ways to nibble this healthful fruit.
1 Chicken & Apricot Tagine
This tagine recipe offers you not only antioxidant rich apricots but also spoon fulls of anti-inflammatory benefits. This is from the soul warming flavours of the cinnamon, turmeric, garlic and red onions.
Anti-inflammatory compounds found in foods can help to reduce inflammation, reduce pain, and lower your risk of developing certain chronic diseases such as arthritis, digestive issues, to even cancer.
Recipe @ somethingnewfordinner
2. Low Sugar Homemade Apricot Jam
Store bought jams are often loaded with good bacteria killing sugar, and preservatives that don’t do the rest of our body any favours. But this recipe is as low in sugar as you can get, and the rest of the ingredients are natural and wholesome. To make this jam even healthier you can opt for coconut sugar which has a lower GI level than regular white sugar.
Apricots are naturally rich in fibre, which is helpful in preventing gastrointestinal disorders by helping to keep the bowels sparkly clean inside. Fibre also plays another often overlooked role which is it helps to absorb nutrients from the food we eat.
Recipe @ keepingupwithmrssmith
3. Fresh Apricot Bars
This recipe demonstrates nicely how to use up your apricots should you have quite a few left over or even a small amount about to turn.
To really up the health factor use almond or coconut flour not just because it is gluten free and gentler on the digestive system, but because we all need to rotate the grains we consume weekly to ensure we are getting in a good variety of vitamins and minerals.
Relying on the same grains week after week could be leaving you open to a multitude of nutrient deficiencies.
Recipe @ whiteonricecouple
4. Mango & Apricot Smoothie
Not familiar with smoothies? Normally emphasis is placed on adding in something like spinach as vegetables are more nutritious than fruits, but there is nothing wrong with getting accustomed to their texture by starting out with a pleasant sweet one.
You can also use this smoothie as a healthy dessert at a dinner party or as a mocktail option for those who don’t like to drink alcohol.
Recipe @ desifiesta
5. Apricot & Pecan Lentil Salad
Recipes like this offer so many health benefits because they not only provide a delicious taste for those who aren’t fans of greens, especially children, but they are packed with fibre which is good for your heart.
Lentils also provide a good dose of magnesium which is so often lacking in our diets and this can help improve blood flow, oxygen and nutrients throughout the body.
People that don’t take in enough magnesium are at an increased risk for heart disease.
Recipe @ earthyfeast