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Fruit: Kiwi

Courtesy of guest contributor (and fruit aficionado) Allison from Nimoy! Creations.



Kiwifruit is amazingly yummy! & packed with nutrients. It is packed with Vitamin C & has a little less than the potassium of a banana. Not to mention the Vitamin E & Vitamin A! According to one study, it is the most nutrient dense fruit out there, followed by papaya & a third-place tie between mango & orange.

Kiwi also has a lot of actinidin, which is often used commerically as a meat tenderizer. But, it can be an allergen - people who have allergies to latex, pineapples, or papayas are often allergic to kiwi as well. This enzyme also breaks down dairy products & that’s why when it’s combined, it’s recommended to enjoy it right away.

Often my preferred method of eating a kiwi fruit is just to slice in half (as seen above) & dig in with a spoon. But if you’re slicing or are looking for something with a bit of class, check out this instructional video that shows how to painlessly remove the peel without harming the juicy insides.

So, next time you’re produce shopping, don’t be afraid of this slightly fuzzy little brown fruit. Eat as a snack, mix with other fruits, or use it as an interesting alternative in a salad!

Sidebar Updates

I've been doing a little spring cleaning with my layout. Since I'm moving to San Francisco in (eep!) eleven days to start a Masters in Traditional Chinese Medicine, I've weeded through my Philly links and removed a few of the restaurants. I did, however, add The Great Cheese Quest, which is a wonderful cheese blog by a Philly-based cheese aficionado, as well as McDuff's Food and Wine Trail, a highly informative site created by David McDuff of Moore Brothers wine importers. I had the opportunity to work a natural wines class with David, and the synopsis is still lingering as an unfinished draft, to be published someday relatively soon! I also added Phoodie Info since it's one of the top online foodie communities in Philadelphia.

I've bumped Philly down a spot, and added categories for Toronto and Down Under, since I seem to have affinities for bloggers in both parts of the world, and both geographical locations hold a special place in my heart. My best friend from high school is an Orange County native who just immigrated to Toronto, and I added a link to her craft blog, Nimoy! Creations. She does her fair share of awesome food posts, so one of these days I'm hoping to wrangle her into being a guest contributor for By Product. I lived in New Zealand for six months while I was studying massage therapy, and it's so exciting for me to find wonderful food blogs from down under, including Lucy's beautiful chronicle, Nourish Me.

I also added a category for "Eating Responsibly", which for me both entails sites that emphasize ethical eating as well as sites that discourage disordered eating. These include The Story of Stuff, which focuses on a 20 minute video that each and every one of you ought to go watch right this instant, and The F-Word, which is one of the best sites on disordered eating and cultural dysfunction that I have ever read (longer post on this coming up).

Moving down, I added Tom Cizauskas's awesome vegetarian-beer-blog, Yours for Good Fermentables, and the artisan cheese wonderland, Cheese by Hand. I also added the ever-popular Delicious Days and the dormant yet fabulous Ladies United for the Preservation of Endangered Cocktails (what a great idea!).

Finally, on the vegan front, I added Boston-based VeganYumYum, whose blog is always beautiful and whose recipes are always tasty, as well as Southern wonder Vegangelical, whose recipe for vegan pulled pork was nothing short of life-altering (another future post I've only begun to draft).

So there you have it! My next post will probably outline our itinerary (driving cross-country) and culinary aspirations for the trip and move. Have a great weekend everyone.

Cherry Grove Farm Toma (Lawrenceville, New Jersey)

Served with apricot mustard

They say: "Cherry Grove is a 400-acre certified organic farm in central New Jersey (Lawrenceville is just north of Trenton). Harvest Toma is made with raw Jersey cow's milk. It is aged for two months, during which time the paste is brushed with olive oil. Their products are available at Reading Terminal Market."

Cmoore says: Luxuriously smooth, with a mild flavor cascading to a nutty, salty finish. Slightly bitter at the rind, but overall highly snackable.

Serving suggestions: Fruity light-bodied reds, like Pinot Noir or Gamay, will complement this cheese without overpowering it. It could tolerate a little bitterness, but no strong tannins or heavy hop; a Belgian IPA like De Raanke might work well.

Tomme Crayeuse (Savoie, France)

Served with strawberry pesto

They say: "A relatively new creation, Tomme Crayeuse was created by Max Schmidhauser (one of France's top affineurs) to resemble Tomme de Savoie, but with more personality. It is covered in gray, white, and yellow molds. The yellow mold is cellulose mold -- a type of mold generally found in the Savoie region and nowhere else; the while mold is a small amount of P. Candidum, and the gray mold is a result of the two molds growing together. This is one rind you may not want to taste, but the paste inside is buttery, mushroomy, and unique. 'Crayeuse' is chalky in French, and refers to the texture of the very center of the cheese."

Cmoore says: "Tomme" refers to the format of the cheese, which is a 3.5 lb. wheel. This is a smooth, soft cheese with a sweetly fruity profile grounded by a pungent, earthy rind.

Serving suggestions: Light-bodied reds with a little spice: Pinot Noir, Syrah, Beaujolais. I would even try it with a flavorful rose. On the beer side, something fruity, even as fruity as a fruited lambic.

Gres de Vosges (Lorraine, France)

Served with mushroom pate

They say: "Gres des Vosges hails from Alsace, the land of Munster, where the rich soil is perfect for growing cherry trees. Many of those cherries are used locally to make Kirsch, a crucial ingredient in the production of Gres des Vosges. The cheese is matured in three steps. For the first three weeks, it is bathed in a light brine. Then, for three more weeks, it is washed with diluted Kirsch. Then, for another week, it is brushed with undiluted Kirsch, enhancing its fruity finish. The rind is pinkish-orange from the repeated washings, with a slight granular texture from the salt crystals, and the paste is soft and oozy, with a strong aroma. The cheeses is always decorated with a small fern sprig (it adds nothing to the flavor)."

Cmoore says: Smoothly pungent with a strong aroma and notes of onion. Spreadable paste with a crunch from the rind. Pretty.

Serving suggestions: Sweeter whites pair nicely with stinky cheeses; try a Gewurztraminer for some sweet spice, or a Riesling for notes of honey. Kirsch seems like another no-brainer option. If you want to go beer, maybe a Flemish red ale if you're feeling adventurous, or any other vibrant ale with enough punch to stand up to the assertive cheese.