The beautiful Dragon Fruit

Today, while my toddler Son and I were in the produce section of our local supermarket, my eye caught these beauties. I had no idea what they were, and when I read the accompanying sign Dragon Fruit, I still had no idea? But fascinated, I picked them up and took the home with me anyway. Lately, I have noticed a lot of fruits and vegetables available in stores that I am not familiar with, which has sparked a curiosity to develop my palette of healthy foods available. Not just for me, but for my 3-year-old Son too.

I follow a plant-based vegan diet, and my Son follows a mainly a vegetarian diet, with some fish at most twice a week. I’ll be honest, if I had my way, my Son would be, at the least, strictly vegetarian. But, as my husband eats meat, it was the compromise we made in bringing up our enlightened little spirit, together.

Not too sure

Little Munchkin and I were talking about the Dragon Fruit all the way back to our apartment. We talked about how we were going to eat them for the first time together, what we thought they would taste like and how healthy and pretty they were. You know, regular kind of chitter-chatter.

What happened once we arrived home was kind of funny!

Once I placed the fruit on the table, it became clear that my 3-year-old thought there was a real dragon inside the fruit! He has such an imagination, and it was so cute. Like too-much cute. He was very hesitant to go anywhere near the fruit or touch the fruit, so he opted to hide behind a chair and watch from a distance instead.

Dragon Fruit also known as Pitaya, is a tropical cactus plant which is very low in calories; love that! It offers many nutrients; high in Vitamin C, phosphorus, calcium, iron, fiber, vitamin B’s, antioxidants and healthy monounsaturated fats (found in the 1000’s of seeds). The fruit is made up of a majority of water so yes it is great for hydration of the whole body.

To me, it tasted like a crunchy kiwi-fruit or maybe a melon? It was juicy and refreshing, and really easy to prepare; another plus being a busy Stay At Home Mum. Never enough time in the day is there.

How To Prepare the Dragon Fruit

• Take the Dragon Fruit and cut right through it, halving it
• You will see the flesh, in this case white, with edible black seeds inside it, this is all in the form of a soft firm solid
• Scoop it out with a spoon, separating the flesh from the outer skin
• Place on cutting board and chop into bite size pieces
• Spoon back into shell and enjoy raw, noting that the outer skin is not edible

This is just one way to eat Dragon Fruit and probably the faster. However, if you are into smoothies, my girlfriend and fellow Mother of 2, Donna (who founded the awesome company that makes the Eco Bonk Toy) sent me this recipe which she swears by – The Dragon Fruit Shake

I also read that it is great as a face mask, but until I try it myself, I cannot really vouch for that experience. And, what about in a bento box with your child’s lunch or as an addition to a traditional fruit salad; this is a tricky way to introduce a new food to a picky little eater.

Not so sure about it… yet

What about you, do you have any other good recipes for Dragon Fruit, I would love for  you to leave details in a comment if so.

Otherwise, Peace Love and Plants Make the World Go Around! Thanks for stopping by Willy B Mum!