Blueberry is food for thought

September 11th, 2009 flowercarole

Blueberries

A blueberry smoothie at breakfast can stop your powers of concentration waning in the afternoon – and even help fight dementia in the long term, new research suggests.

Scientists have found that the food can increase your attention span in the short term and can maintain a healthy mind in the long term.

The found that just one 200g blueberry smoothie was enough to increase power of concentration by as much as 20 per cent over the day.

Regular consumption of the fruit could lead to a rewiring of a part of the brain that is linked to memory.

The findings of the study, reported at the British Science Festival, add to the growing reputation of blueberries as the super-food of super-foods.

To read the full article by Richard Alleyne visit: Telegraph.co.uk

How to Freeze Blackberries

August 29th, 2008 flowercarole

Some people ask if it is ok to freeze blackberries once picked and the answer is yes you can!

When freezing blackberries it’s best not to wash the fruit beforehand as they are prone to going mushy once defrosted.

Place the blackberries on a flat tray (one that is small enough to go in your freezer), arrange the blackberries on the tray ensuring that they don’t touch. Place gently into the freezer and allow to freeze for a few hours.

Once the blackberries are completely frozen, remove from the tray and place in either a sealed container with a lid on or a freezer bag with a tie.

Depending on what you want to do with the blackberries, you can either throw them in a smoothie (defrosted or frozen) or bake in a pie.

A quick free tasty smoothie recipe is blackberry and honeydew melon. Click here for the recipe.