Paleo Fruit

What about fruit and Paleo? Fruit technically is Paleo. However, the problem is, of course, our fruit. As fruit growers over the last decades we've selected for appearance, sweetness and storage capacity. We haven't bred our fruit to be more nutritious or have less sugar in it. In short, we haven't created fruit that is healthier. We've created fruit that is less beneficial. Look at the apples in my son's hand. He is a tiny 7 yr old. He holds multiple apples in his hands. These are locally grown, organic, heirloom varieties of apples. Even 150 yrs ago, when every small homestead or farm had a few apples trees, these would be your apples. The flavors are exquisite, even now at the end of the apples' season. Go to the farmer's market (Sunday AM at St. Philips plaza) and the orchard owner will give you a tasting. As with everything the answer to the question, "What about fruit?" is more complex than you might imagine. But, as always, if we look back in time we see part of the answer. Remember though, when you see these apples at the Farmer's Market, it is moving to the end of the apples' storage capacity. They are getting a little bit smaller, dehydrated and wrinkled. Does that mean you should pass them up for those Roid Rage apples or the imported New Zealand ones? NOOO. It means you should use them to make a pie. In my next post, I'll talk about the sticky pie issue when dealing with nature's fruit.