Better Living for Texans: Mandarin Oranges
Welcome back to the Better Living for Texans blog post! I hope everyone has been staying safe and healthy during this hectic time. This month I want to highlight a fruit that is helpful in improving the maintenance of your immune system because of its Vitamin A and C components. Can anyone guess what this fruit could be? If you guessed oranges, you are correct! We are however, going to be focusing on a certain type of oranges this month – mandarin oranges!
Mandarin oranges grow on trees in many climates, but thrive in sunnier climates. They are harvested in the late winter, which makes them a great spring fruit. If you have been to the grocery store lately, they are stocked in a few different places. You can find raw mandarins, usually in bags, in the fresh produce area of your local grocery store. Other places that you might find mandarins include, canned good aisle and the frozen fruit section.
When looking for these delicious mandarins, I have a few helpful tips! When choosing mandarins to bring home to your family look for a glossy skin and avoid bruising or other visible damages. In the canned good isle look for mandarins with no sugar added labels because mandarins already have natural sugars in them. Some grocery stores don’t carry frozen mandarins on the regular so if you would like to add this in a smoothie, a great alternative to this is to freeze your own mandarins. They can be frozen whole or peeled but the best results for taste and texture after being thawed is keeping the mandarins whole. Mandarins can last up to 10 months while being frozen.
It is recommended by the USDA that adults should consume 1 ½ – 2 cups of fruits daily. According to https://fruitsandveggies.org/expert-advice/size-tangerine-will-yeild-12-cup-serving-fruit/ , two small mandarins or one large mandarin is equivalent to one half cup serving of fruit. This can be a fun and easy way to incorporate more fruits into your diet by grabbing a mandarin on the go! This peel and eat fruit is great for all ages! Want to add more mandarins into your diet? Below are a few recipes to try!
Recipes
Sierra French is a senior Public Health major at Baylor University. She is from Burnet, Texas. She loves to spend time on the lake or hiking around the Hill Country with my Australian Shepherd pup, Levi. After graduation she hopes to find herself working in a career that helps people better understand how to enjoy a healthy lifestyle.