Day Twenty-eight of #30dayscleansingchallenge
If you had followed my #30dayscleansingchallenge, you would have noticed that I sometimes post about just one single ingredient (fruit or veggie). That is because that one thing has amazing properties and should be given more importance, and also I might be bored to create a recipe :P Well in that context, today is one such amazing speciality for Indian summers! Everyone can find it easily and its cheaper too. They make a mash up or juice of it and sell even on street carts for us to beat the heat. I am talking about watermelon’s often forgotten cousin ‘Muskmelon’.
Muskmelon is an ancient fruit, with the roots of its family extending across the world having main season in the summer months from April to July. Scent is one of the most important determinants of ripeness, particularly for a fruit that derives its name—musk melon—from its hallmark fragrance. As a saying goes, if one can’t smell the melon, they can’t taste it, either. Hold the melon and smell near the green, indented groove known as the “stem scar”: if aromatic, it’s a likely ripe. When the fruit ripens fully, the whole house smells of it!
Squash it!
The best way to enjoy this summer delight is to mash it by hand. Blenders do work fine but the texture is smooth in that case. We are looking for small chunks and grainy plasma.
Cut open in half and remove the seeds in the middle. dry them in sun and eat or feed to birds.
Scoop out the soft flesh into a big container using a ladle or heavy spoon.
Mash it using the ladle and make a slurry.
Add in palm jaggery for added benefits and taste.
Keep in fridge for a while and relish!
Why is it good?
In Ayurveda, muskmelons have a cool energy best for all doshas.
Chinese medicine practitioners prescribe muskmelon for constipation, in addition to abdominal distention.
Contain citrulline, a compound that may hold the key to curing sickle cell related deficiencies due to its ability to remove nitrogen from the blood and urine.
Vitamin A is a powerful antioxidant and is essential for healthy vision. It is also required for maintaining healthy mucus membranes and skin.
Rich in antioxidant flavonoids such as beta-carotene, lutein, zea-xanthin and cryptoxanthin that have the ability to help protect cells and other structures in the body from oxygen-free radicals and hence; offer protection against colon, prostate, breast, endometrial, lung, and pancreatic cancers.
Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids and helps control heart rate and blood pressure. It thus offers protection against stroke, and coronary heart diseases.
Consumption of foods rich in vitamin-C helps the human body develop resistance against infectious agents and scavenge harmful oxygen-free radicals.
Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Commercially, muskmelons are being used to extract an enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD), which plays a vital role as strong first-line antioxidant defences inside the human body.
Fruits/Veggies like these are nature’s gifts to us to relish and protect ourselves from each season. Muskmelons are summer fruits and help us be hydrated and give energy constantly. So don’t miss out on a glass of quashed mashed melon everyday to keep fit naturally.
