Eat To Live: A health-promoting Mideast grenade

It may not be quite the season yet for pomegranates to drop from their trees, but now you won't have to wait to ping out the red seeds of this wonder fruit that almost counts as a medicine for their ruby liquid.

This week a US company announced the launch of a frozen concentrate of the "premium functional juice."

Why would you be interested one way or the other? Well, scientists fall over themselves to praise its healing properties.

While the Persians believed that a pomegranate was the more likely apple to have led Eve to her fall from grace in the Garden of Eden (it certainly beats the dickens out of a Golden Delicious for seductiveness), doctors and scientists point to its remarkable health benefits.

No other fruit or vegetable, surely, can promise as much.

A single leathery red globe delivers 40 percent of an adult's recommended daily dose of vitamin C. It's packed with folic acid, vitamins A and E, polyphenolics, tannins, and anthocyanins - all good-for-you-stuff.

It is believed to work in the treatment of prostate cancer and osteoarthritis. And heart disease: just a glass a day will increase blood flow to the heart by over a third by attacking the artery-clogging formation of bad cholesterol.

Studies on its effects on preventing osteoarthritis found that it can deter the formation of the enzyme that damages cartilage.

Oh, and it could be an anti-aging miracle. Whatever you've heard about the sterling antioxidant properties of red wine or green tea, a pomegranate contains three times more.

In the Middle East, where the fruit originally comes from, folk medicine prescribes every bit of it for some kind of cure. Its skin, its rind, the bark, and leaves from its tree are all sworn by to heal everything from baldness and hemorrhoids to sore throat and conjunctivitis.

How much of any of this is true doesn't diminish the fact that it's a juice with a thirst-quenching skill and a wonderful tool to have in the kitchen. Its blend of tart and sweet adds a refreshing zing to stews. Sprinkled over fresh berries or fruit, it opens up their flavor. A little shower over the top provides a counterpoint to the rich creaminess of hummus.

In Greece, a handful of its seeds is mixed with a few fresh walnuts - which are ready to pick at the same time - and munched down right there in the orchard as a snack that makes the most of the contrast between milky and sour.

A renowned Iranian dish is Fesenjan, a rich stew of ground walnuts, fried onions, and chicken invigorated with pomegranate juice, not unlike a Chicken Tsatsivi from the Republic of Georgia.

Sprinkle a handful of seeds over a salad of mixed leaves, torn strips of Parma ham, and ripped chunks of mozzarella. It's easy to get them out: cut the grenade (this is where the word comes from) across the middle, turn it cut side down above a bowl and beat it over its dome with a wooden spoon. The seeds will tumble out.

As a change from hummus, try this dip.

- 3 ounces dried white beans, soaked overnight and cooked till soft
- 6 teaspoons pomegranate juice
- 5 tablespoons olive oil
- handful of chopped parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
- In a blender, puree all the ingredients except the pomegranate juice.
- Pour into a bowl and stir in the pomegranate juice thoroughly, then sprinkle with parsley.