Good and Good for You -- Fennel

As part of the eating better plan, starting this month I thought I’d bring you Superfood Wednesdays. Give you some tids and bits about foods with a good and good for you appeal. Then on Sundays, I’ll follow up with a recipe using that Superfood so we can all feel better about doing something nice for our bodies. This week in the spotlight:

FENNEL

I was first exposed to fennel when I lived in Italy while growing up. You can use all parts of the plant – bulb, leaves and seeds.

If you haven’t had it before, the bulb is celery-like in color and texture, but in flavor it tastes like anise (though not as intense). The bulb can be sautéed, grilled, stewed, braised, or just eaten raw. My favorite way to eat it is raw because it’s cool, crispity, and crunchity (and I’ve always had a thing for crunchy foods). It’s used a lot in Mediterranean cooking and is especially good in fresh salads, in egg dishes, and cooked with fish.

Fennel is punched-packed with lots of great things for your body:

• It’s a good source of fiber and very low in calories, so ideal for dieting.
• It’s very high in potassium which means it has diuretic properties (good for eliminating surplus body fluids).
• It’s an anti-inflammatory as well as an anti-flatulent (and who doesn’t appreciate that).
• It’s rich in antioxidant compounds.

Fennel seeds, on the other hand, have a couple of additional benefits in their wheelhouse:

• When consumed as a tea, the seeds have an appetite-suppressing quality. To make a tea, simply steep a spoonful of seeds in boiling water for 5 minutes and then strain before serving.
• They are good for fighting halitosis, just chew on a couple.
• They can also help relieve menopausal symptoms.

Fennel seeds are used most often with pork but also in fish dishes as well.

Fennel is available nearly year round though you’ll most likely find it in your more market-like grocery stores.  Fennel seeds are commonly found in the spice isle of any grocery store.

If you haven’t tried it before, you should definitely take a No Thank You bite, I think you might be pleasantly surprised.