“Super foods” Native to the Americas are foods which have a significantly higher nutritional value than most others.  Five such foods, native to the Americas, appear on almost all these “super food” lists. If you want to eat a healthier diet, start including these delicious foods in your meals.

Blueberries

Blueberries are native to North America and were an important food source for the Native tribes for centuries. These Native Americas used the blueberries in something called pemmican, which was dried meat pounded with blueberries and fat. Since you may not have any dried bison meat around, I’ve linked an old fashion blueberry crisp recipe for you to try. Blueberries are full of flavor and nutritional goodness, yet at the same time are very low in calories.

They are very high in vitamin content, fiber and most importantly, antioxidants. In recent studies blueberries were found to be at the top of the list of fruits in their ability to destroy free radicals. Many consider this an important factor in preventing various types of cancer. Red wine has been touted for its antioxidant benefits, but blueberries have almost 40% more antioxidants than red wine. While the best way to enjoy blueberries is raw, they’re great used in all kinds of recipes. Besides fresh, they can be found frozen and dried, so you can enjoy them year round.

Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin seeds are another American “super food” that the Native tribes prized for its culinary and medicinal value. They probably didn’t make pumpkin seed pesto recipes out of them, which is the recipe I’ve linked for you here.
High in fiber and protein, these seeds are also a rich source of minerals including magnesium, manganese, iron, and zinc. Pumpkin seeds are believed to be beneficial for things like prostrate health, bones strength, and arthritis. Pumpkin seeds also contain compounds called phytosterols, which are believed to reduce levels of harmful cholesterol and also improve the body’s immune system.

Pumpkin seeds can now be readily found at health food stores, or higher-end grocery chains. They are sold, raw, roasted, shelled, and unshelled. Try them in this pumpkin seed pesto recipe, which uses the toasted seeds. It’s a delicious, and easy way use this nutritious food.

Avocado

The delicious and nutritious avocado has been cultivated in Central America for over 5,000 years. The Mayans believed the avocado had magical powers and was an aphrodisiac. What can be confirmed is that the avocado is clearly one of the world’s healthiest foods. Loaded with vitamins, minerals, and fiber, the avocado is also very high in oleic acid. Oleic acid is a type of monounsaturated fat that can lower cholesterol. It has also shown promise in offering protection against breast cancer. Studies have shown that another unique benefit of avocados is that when they are added to salads, the body absorbs more nutrients from the other vegetables and fruits than it would have if the avocado weren’t included.

Sweet Potatoes

One very simple way to eat healthier is by adding sweet potatoes to your diet to replace part of your regular potato intake. In fact, you may find sweet potatoes so delicious that they become your potato of choice. Now, there’s nothing wrong with the old baked russet potato. This is not meant to imply that they are unhealthy, but when compared to the nutrient-rich sweet potato, the winner is clear!

The sweet potato is one of the oldest known cultivated foods in the Americans, going back over 9,000 years, and is packed with vitamins, minerals and fiber. Its sweet flavor has been shown to satisfy the palette, while at the same time curbing ones appetite longer by stabilizing blood sugar levels. Sweet Potatoes are also rich in antioxidants and have anti-inflammatory properties.

Sweet potatoes can be used in just about every recipe that calls for regular potatoes.

Wild Pacific Northwest Salmon

The benefits of eating salmon have been well chronicled, and it’s included in almost every “foods you need to eat” list. But, while eating more salmon is a great idea, eating more wild salmon is an even better one. The majority of salmon sold at the grocery store is farmed. This farmed salmon doesn’t have the opportunity eat a natural diet and is instead given a “feed” which often contains grains and other foods not usually eaten by salmon in the wild. There is also a concern about contaminants and toxins in the farmed salmon. So far that debate has yet to be settled conclusively, but no one will argue with the great taste, and heath benefits, of wild salmon. Wild salmon is low in calories and very high in protein. But, the main reason for being on so many “must eat” lists is that it contains large amounts of the essential omega-3 fatty acids. Without getting too scientific, these fatty acids are essential for good health but they aren’t produced by the body, and have to be absorbed from the foods we eat. Wild salmon is a delicious, and bountiful source of these omega-3 fatty acids. These important fats are thought to be very beneficial in many areas including; cardiovascular function, cancer prevention, fighting high blood pressure, and improved brain function. The dish linked to this section is a delicious and easy salmon cakes recipe made using canned wild
salmon. While most grocery stores are now carrying frozen wild salmon (which in my opinion is a far better choice than fresh farmed salmon), you can always find canned salmon. This great, and underused product always contains wild salmon, it’s inexpensive, delicious, and you get all the health benefits described above!

Can Corn, Beans and Squash Really Be Interesting?

At first glance, a cuisine based around corn, beans and squash, doesn’t seem very impressive, or even interesting. But it goes way deeper than one might expect. Here’s what makes the story of the “three sisters” is so fascinating.

The Perfect Agricultural Sisterhood

The tribe’s very survival depended on a reliable food supply, which is why they developed something called “companion planting.” To get the highest yield of beans possible, the vines need tall poles to grow upon, which is why they were planted next to the corn. The corn’s tall straight stalks were perfect for the climbing vines of the bean plants. In turn, the beans roots captured nitrogen from the air, and enriched the soil which is ideal for the corn which needs nitrogen rich soil to produce a large crop. So those two crop thrived together, much more than they would have if planted apart. So, there were the two sisters, always together, always helping one another, but what about the squash? It was this third sister that really made the system so ingenious. The squash also sends out very long, winding vines, but likes to stay close to the ground. The plants also have very large leaves. So, these were planted in between the rows of corn and beans, and acted as an edible ground cover, which not only kept the weeds away, but also provided shade for the corn’s very shallow roots. They also helped keep the ground moist, which helped the beans grow, which helped the corn grow higher, which made for longer bean vines and yields, and so on, and so on. It was pure agricultural brilliance, and the reason these three humble plants play such a large part in so many Native American myths and legends. They believed that since they were so magical when grown together, that they should also be eaten together. They also believed that since they protected each other while growing, that they would protect whoever ate them together. When combined with the lean meats that the Native tribes hunted like deer, rabbit, and buffalo, this made for about as perfect a diet, as any culture has ever known.