miracle berry

Food

Trick Your Palate Into Eating More Veggies

Eat your fruits and veggies is a catchphrase we always hear.

eating saladEat your fruits and veggies is a catchphrase we always hear. But if you had to choose between fruits or vegetables, what would you pick? When I think of fruit I think of it as more of a treat rather than an important food group, whereas with vegetables, I eat them because I have to, not because I particularly want to. Fortunately, I've managed to marry the two into my diet quite successfully.

Thankfully, I'm not deviating that far from the norm with my preference of fruit over veggies; as Newsweek reports, the desire for sweetness is actually hardwired into humans. Steven Munger, an associate professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology at the University of Maryland who is quoted in the article says that if we look back to the days of primal survival when humans were required to make quick decisions about what to eat out in the wild, something sweet usually proved to be a safe food option — not to mention lots of calories to be later burned off as energy. I guess you could say our sweet tooth cravings date way back before the invention of chocolate sundaes, M&M's, and cotton candy.

As important as fruits are in our diet, it's important to make sure we're eating lots of veggies because their health benefits are endless. Aside from providing us with vital nutrients and minerals for our health, they also reduce the risk of some chronic diseases.

Here are a few fun ways to trick your taste buds into liking veggies.

Food News

How the Miracle Berry Could Aid World Hunger

You may have heard of the miracle berry, the flavor-tripping fruit that changes the tongue's taste bud molecules, allowing foods that are sour or bitter to taste deceptively sweet.

You may have heard of the miracle berry, the flavor-tripping fruit that changes the tongue's taste bud molecules, allowing foods that are sour or bitter to taste deceptively sweet. Well, one prominent chef's hoping to give the fruit a purpose that supersedes its trippy reputation: alleviating world hunger.

At the TED2011 conference, chef Homaro Cantu (who is known for pushing boundaries in molecular cuisine at his Chicago restaurant, Moto), suggested the berry could help broaden the world's dwindling food supply by making items like tree branches and edible grasses more palatable.

"This miracle berry tricks your tongue into thinking all these [edible] bitter and disgusting things taste great. We've eliminated all food miles, all herbicides, pesticides, fungicides; we've made food more healthy," Cantu explained. What do you think? Could you foresee this being a viable solution to the world food crisis that we're facing today?

taste test

Taste Test: Miracle Berry Tablet

Since the New York Times piece on flavor tripping came out last May, the culinary world has been obsessed with the miracle berry.

Since the New York Times piece on flavor tripping came out last May, the culinary world has been obsessed with the miracle berry. When consumed, the berry changes the tongue's tastebud molecules, making sour and bitter foods taste sweet. While there has been controversy surrounding the company who sells the fresh berries, the miracle fruit can easily be enjoyed in tablet form. Recently I went to a party where guests were invited to taste these tablets. Everyone was given a pill and a sampler plate of intensely flavored ingredients. To find out what happened when I popped the miracle berry pill, read more

News

Meet The Miracle Berry

Have you ever heard of the miracle berry?

Have you ever heard of the miracle berry? This exotic West African fruit, has the astonishing ability to make bitter and sour foods taste sweet. The berry contains an active molecule that binds to the tongue's taste buds causing certain foods — like limes or lemons — to seem sweet. Although the fruit is not a sweetener, it does have the ability to turn non sweet foods into sweet foods without any additives! In the 1970s, an American entrepreneur, realized the potential the miracle berry could have on the food industry and went to great lengths to mass produce the plant. However, his plan was suspiciously and abruptly ended. A recent article from BBC News states:

In 1974, the FDA changed its mind about the Miracle Berry product on the very eve of the product launch in drug stores across the whole of the Eastern seaboard. In the most brutal way, the FDA ordered all the products to be withdrawn at once.

Thus, the sweetening powers of the miracle berry were never fully realized. I find the story incredibly interesting and would love to get my hands on the berries. Have you ever tasted the miracle berry? What would today's world be like if junk food without the junk existed?

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