Make no mistake about it, I’ve always loved pineapple. But now that I’ve found some new recipes for it that are so easy to do in my Air Cooker, it’s back close to the top of my list of those yellow fruits and vegetables that are so good for the eyes, help fight cataracts and aging macular degeneration and are available year round.
Pineapples can be prepared in all kinds of ways, making them an easy fruit to include in any menu for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Try them in yogurt or salad, slice them on top of a burger instead of tomato, or, better, with lettuce and tomato. Bake your ham with pineapple on top or slice and serve with pork.
They’ve been in the United States a long time, this fruit that Columbus first discovered in South America on one of his trips, and brought back to Portugal. It’s a South American fruit that grew wild, is now broadly cultivated, and available in our markets year round. There are several different versions of how it got its name, but if you think Columbus might have been responsible, then it’s because he referred to it as the Pine of the Indians.
It benefits all manner of health from helping to keep cholesterol low, to possibly increasing antibodies that fight virus infections. Many people say it gives great temporary relief for arthritis; others say it helps speed up post-surgery recovery. All I really know is it is simply full of Vitamin C, has lots of zinc, manganese and potassium, and a lot of vitamins B6 and K, along with copper and folates, all great for eye health. It’s of course low in calories, and the latest theories are it is also great in minimizing floaters for those who experience them. While some of these theories may or may not be so, there isn’t any harm caused by eating pineapples, except for the occasional and rare allergic person, so it’s worth a try if you have floaters or arthritic pain. By the way, most people who are allergic to pineapple are also allergic to bananas.
Here are a couple of fun recipes for the air cooker.
CINNAMON GRILLED PINEAPPLES
Mix 1 tsp. cinnamon with ½ Cup brown sugar. Drizzle over 8 slices of canned or fresh pineapple and lightly spritz the frying basket with oil. Bake for 5 minutes, flip and cook for another 4 minutes or so. Drizzle with 1 T. honey, and if you have any mint, chop some and add that as well.
PINEAPPLE FRITTERS
Mix 3 T sesame seeds, 1 ½ Cups flour, 1 t. baking powder, 2 beaten eggs, ½ t. sugar and 1 Cup water. Dip slices in the mix, arrange on slightly greased frying basket and air fry about 15 minutes, flipping halfway through. That’s it other than to enjoy!
