Summer is here! Our days are filled with warm sunshine and the desire to spend more time outdoors. Our local markets offer us a succulent variety of colorful, tasty bounties. But what's the healthiest, best fruit to buy?

“Fruit has the most value fresh and ripe,” says Schall Adams, LLC, a raw and living food certified teacher of the Alissa Cohen Living On Live Food program (www.whatisrawfood.com). “If the fruit is not in season, that means it comes from far away – even other countries.”

Buy organic
Adams recommends choosing organic produce if possible. “Not only is it less toxic, it can have as much as 90 percent more nutrients,” she says.
Be careful of buying non-domestic fruit even when it’s labeled organic. Though it’s grown without pesticides, it must be sprayed before entering the United States. This one–time spraying is not as harmful as regular, continued spraying throughout the growth of the fruit, says Adams, but it still adds chemicals to the produce.


Touch and feel
Get up close and personal before you buy. “With citrus, you want the fruit to feel heavy for its size and the skin to feel smooth and fine–pored. Melons should give off a nice melon smell. If the melon has a netted rind, the netting should be raised. Berries should be plump and smell ripe. With peaches, plums and apricots, buy them when they are mature with no trace of green and just starting to soften.”

Go for ripeness
The most common mistake people make when choosing fresh fruit in the market: “They don’t buy ripe fruit or they don’t let it ripen enough at home,” says Adams.
“People think of many fruits as acidic. However, when eaten fresh and ripe, they are alkalizing to your system. If you eat them not ripe enough or over–ripe, they can be acidic," she adds. And a pH balance of alkaline to acidic plays an important part in health.
How do we know when fruit is over–ripe?
“When fruit starts to go bad, it gives a number of signs – bruising, too soft, a smell almost like alcohol and, yuck, mold!” says Adams.

Store dry
Most fruits can be stored for at least a short time. Bananas may be peeled and frozen. “Now you have a nice base to make a fruit smoothie in the blender!”
A food dehydrator offers a way to enjoy some fruits year–round and adds variety to many recipes. A dehydrator won’t destroy the enzymes and nutrients of the fruit. The purpose of the dehydrator is not to enhance the fruit’s nutritional value but to make it a storable product. However, eating too much dehydrated fruit is not healthy. “Its sugar content is higher and it lacks the water the fruit was designed to be eaten with,” says Adams.

Combine gingerly
“The healthiest way to eat fruit is one type at a time, for digestive reasons. That said,” Adams adds, “let’s have some fun with it! I am happy to see people eating more fruit. If they do a little poor food–combining, it’s still better than eating fast food.”
Many fruits are not commonly considered to be fruits, such as tomato, zucchini and avocado. Adams recommends not mixing these types with regular tree fruits.

Keep it looking fresh
Citrus helps keep that tantalizing fresh fruit salad from turning brown while it sits on the table.
“Squirting fresh citrus juice over sliced fruits helps to keep their color from turning,” says Adams. “Usually lemon or lime is best. Fresh lime juice mixed with guacamole keeps it looking fresh and tastes good, too!”
For breakfast, lunch or dinner, fresh fruit is truly nature’s guilt–free treat. Eat to your heart’s content and your body’s better health!
Susan M. Botich is a Minden–based freelance writer
with a new appreciation for fruit.

Beforehand: Peel and freeze banana
(may be broken into sections for faster freezing).
In food processor, blend two–thirds of the berries.

Mix remaining berries into the mixture and sweeten
to taste with raw agave nectar.

Chop walnuts into preferred size.

In a high–powered blender, combine one–half cup
water with enough macadamia nuts to make a very
thick cream (use medium speed, not high).

Sweeten to taste with raw agave nectar.

Add sea salt (to taste).

Put frozen banana into food processor and blend
until creamed.

Assemble all ingredients: In a large dessert cup,
place banana mixture on bottom, then blueberries,
then macadamia mix. Top with chopped walnuts.

Enjoy this treat while still chilled!