Fun Fact: By the year 2000, only about 4% of Americans had ever had a pomegranate. The California-based company POM changed that by aggressively marketing their juice, whole pomegranates, and containers packed with seeds or arils. This gave way to many more being familiar with the unique fruit.

Pomegranates are in season during the fall/winter and have exceptional antioxidant properties, highlighted by their beautiful red color. They are also a good source of Vitamin C, K, potassium, and folate. Most amazing is that one medium pomegranate provides around 11g of fiber! Pomegranates also have a good amount of protein for a fruit.

It is important to remember that the fiber and protein content comes from the arils, NOT the juice alone. When pomegranates are processed for juice, many vitamins are lost or reduced. This means the best way to consume pomegranates is to eat the whole aril. If you are looking for a more therapeutic dose of the phytonutrients in pomegranates, you can find pomegranate fruit extract in a supplement.

The downside to pomegranates is certainly not their nutrition, but that they are quite labor intensive and messy to remove the seeds. This is why pomegranate products can be expensive to purchase. Try filling a large bowl with water. Partially cut the pomegranate skin into slices. Submerge the pomegranate in the bowl of water and pull the slices apart. While submerging the slices, gently knock the arils out of their skin. The arils will sink to the bottom of the bowl while the skin of the pomegranate will float. Pour off the skin and strain the arils from the water.