Prickly Pear Yummy but

If you live anywhere in the South, you've side stepped this beauty en route to the beach many times. Opuntia, commonly called the prickly pear cactus, is a genus of flowering plants in the cactus family Cactaceae, many known for their flavorful fruit and showy flowers.

In Mexican folk medicine, its pulp and juice are considered treatments for wounds and inflammation of the digestive and urinary tracts, although there is no 'high-quality evidence' for any clinical benefit of using opuntia for these purposes.

Prior to modern medicine, Native Americans and Mexicans primarily used Opuntia as a coagulant for open wounds, using the pulp of the stem either by splitting the stem or scraping out the pulp.

In one recent study, it was found that Opuntia aided in the prevention or slow down of diabetes, obesity, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers. The results of the group that was taking Opuntia showed a reduction in BMI, body composition, and waist circumference when compared to the placebo group.

By Rya Hastings

How to Cut & Prepare Prickly Pears

1. Slice off both ends: Use a sharp knife to slice off both ends of the prickly pear. Discard them.

2. Slice down the slide: Make one long vertical slice down the entire prickly pear.

3. Grab the peel: Slip your finger into the slice you just made and grab ahold of the peel from the inside.

6. Peel back the skin: Begin to peel back the thick fleshy skin that is wrapped around the flesh of the prickly pear. Discard the skin. You'll be left with the prickly pear itself.

The flesh is studded with tons of little edible seeds. If you like them, feel free to just chop the prickly pear up and eat, seeds and all.

Enjoy!

Use Prickly Pear Juice in your cocktails, jellies and jams and desserts.

For as long as I have been concocting my own meals in the kitchen, I have loved to experiment with turning traditional comfort foods into healthy, non guilt-inducing