18 NOVEMBER 15, 2018 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Deck the halls with cherry preserves!
Give your holidays a healthy twist
(BPT)
Bring the gift of nutrition to holiday
gatherings by incorporating
sweet cherries into your favorite
menu. It may not seem the season for
cherries, but this is the time to raid
the summer stash that has been
frozen, dried or canned. Adding a
bright, festive touch, sweet cherries
will provide a boost of fl avor and
nutrition to power you into the
new year.
"The holidays are a perfect time to
unleash the goodness locked into preserved
sweet cherries to help stay in
peak health during the busy season,"
said Mia Syn, a registered dietitian
nutritionist. "Change up traditional
cranberry sauce with a cherry-cranberry
version - it's low in sugar, quick,
easy and versatile. Add some ginger
or orange peel to complement your
menu, and you may have a new, nutritious
winter favorite."
Try your hand at cherry-cranberry
sauce, and make the holidays
brighter with these five hidden
health benefi ts:
1. REDUCE OXIDATIVE
STRESS
If there's a time to reduce stress,
the holidays are it. Oxidative stress
results when free radicals and antioxidants
are out of balance in your
body. Normally, free radicals help
fi ght off pathogens that can lead to
infection or disease, but too many can
attack the body's fatty tissue, protein
or even DNA, increasing susceptibility
to heart disease, diabetes and hypertension,
among other diseases.
Sweet cherries are rich in polyphenols
and vitamin C, which have potent
antioxidant properties. Adding them
to a diet can return the body to a
healthy balance by increasing antioxidant
capacity and reducing oxidative
stress.
2. EASE INFLAMMATION
Are cooler temperatures spurring
arthritic pain? Research has shown
that sweet cherries feature anti-infl
ammatory properties, introducing
a natural remedy for those suff ering
from rheumatic diseases such as
arthritis.
Cherries contain anthocyanins,
which work to shut down enzymes that
cause tissue infl ammation and behave
in much the same way as ibuprofen.
3. RELIEVE GOUT
Don't get caught sitting down. Gout,
a form of arthritis, causes severe pain,
redness and joint tenderness and is
linked to elevated levels of uric acid
in the blood - which has been shown
to decline with diets including sweet
cherries.
In studies of gout patients consuming
sweet cherry products, patients
had a 35 percent lower risk of an attack
aft er two days and a 75 percent lower
risk when cherries and the common
gout medication allopurinol were
combined.
4. IMPROVE SLEEP
Getting a good night's sleep is always
a challenge, but even more so during
the bustling holidays. Enhance sleep
quality and quantity, lift your mood
and ease anxiety with sweet cherries.
According to researchers, sleep cycles
benefi t when enjoying the fruit about
an hour before bedtime.
The reason? Sweet cherries pack
a compelling combination of tryptophan,
serotonin and melatonin.
Tryptophan helps produce serotonin,
which aids in regulating sleep, mood
and appetite. Meanwhile, melatonin
works on maintaining our internal
clocks, such as sleep and wakefulness
patterns.
5. LOWER BLOOD
PRESSURE
Give the gift of lower blood pressure
by serving up dishes featuring sweet
cherries. Studies have shown that
making a habit of eating sweet cherries
can reduce systolic and diastolic
measures of blood pressure.
Eating cherries is linked to decreasing
a powerful vasoconstrictor, a compound
that narrows blood vessels and
restricts blood fl ow. At the same time,
they increase the eff ectiveness of vasodilators,
compounds that help widen
blood vessels and reduce pressure.
This holiday, indulge for impact
Don't wait for warmer temperatures
to enjoy sweet cherries! Add them to
your favorite holiday foods to combat
common health complaints and celebrate
the season knowing you're taking
steps toward a better well-being.
CHERRY-CRANBERRY
SAUCE
The rich fruitiness of sweet cherries
helps blunt the sharp edge of fresh
cranberries. Cooked together, these
anthocyanin powerhouses make a
great holiday staple that can be used as
a base ingredient for cocktails, a glaze
for meats, a spread for sandwiches, a
topping for yogurt and more.
Ingredients
Equal portions fresh cranberries
and dried/frozen Northwest cherries
3/4 cup water or pomegranate juice
3/4 cup maple syrup, molasses, or
sugar to taste
Optional: 4 -2" peels fresh ginger, 3
tbsp citrus zest, black pepper, fresh
herbs, raspberries
Directions
In medium-sized sauce pot, add 3/4
cup water, preferred sweetener and
cranberries.
Bring to simmer, stirring occasionally
and more frequently as the sauce
begins to form.
Add sweet cherries, continue stirring.
Once reduced, remove from heat,
incorporate other fl avorings if desired.
Cool for 30 mins - 1 hour before
transferring to wider, shallow pan to
speed cooling.
Once cooled, refrigerate in air-tight
container for up to 2 weeks.
Courtesy BPT
THANKSGIVING