/By AzerNews/

By Aynur Jafarova

If you have a problem with iodine shortage in your body, suffer from the blood pressure gastritis deceases and depraved metabolism, don't hurry to take medicine. Try to treat yourself in a natural way, by flora-fruits and vegetables. The simple way-include a feijoa to your daily diet!

The green egg-shaped feijoa is an exotic fruit. Usually, it is harvested in mid-November and end of January. The smell of the ripe fruit is a little medicinal, with candy notes. You can recognize a feijoa fruit by its oval shape and blue/green skin that varies in texture from smooth to coarse. The flesh tastes of passion fruit and guava, or banana and strawberry.

The mingling of all these flavors belies the feijoa's origins: the hometown of this amazing fruit is South America-Brazil, Columbia, Uruguay and North Argentine. Feijoa, a green fruit similar to guavas, was discovered in XIX century by naturalist, mineralogist and Portuguese soldier João da Silva Feijó, and is named after him.

Feijoa in Azerbaijan

Feijoa was first brought to Azerbaijan in 1928 and planted in the country's southern regions-in Masalli and Lankaran. This fruit can be called the fastest growing field of Azerbaijan's economy, and the industrially important plant of the Masalli-Lankaran zone.

In 2010, there are 1,062 hectares of feijoa gardens in Azerbaijan's southern regions. Feijoa is among the products that can be successfully exported abroad. In recent years, the demand for this fruit has significantly increased in Russia and the European countries.

However, lack of packaging that meets the international standards on one hand and lack of transport infrastructure on the other hand reduce the export potential of the fruit. Only a small part of Azerbaijani feijoa is exported to foreign countries. In 2010, Azerbaijan exported 740 tons of feijoa to the Russian and Ukrainian markets.

Be creative and enjoy!

Feijoa with a fragrant and long-lasting aroma can be eaten raw or cooked. The fruit has a unique taste, and it is usually used in fruit salads. Feijoa is also used as an ingredient in puddings, pies, and teas and is an excellent ingredient for juices and jams.

The wonderful feijoa is an only fruit that can be compared with seafood for being rich with iodine. The fruit is able to strengthen the person's memory, to develop their ability to think and to prevent psychological disorders.

Also, feijoa contains about 93 minerals, rich macro and micro elements, high level of vitamin C, as well as apple acid, which gives a special brightness and beauty to a person's face and skin.

If you have a skin problem, you can positively use feijoa oil to make away this problem. Be sure of bright result!

Feijoa also treats various deceases, including thyroid gland, atherosclerosis, pyelonephritis, gastro-intestinal problems, and even angina pectoris.

People, who suffer from goiter decease, can drink feijoa juice. If you want to prepare this delicious and useful juice, just take 1 kilogram of feijoa, mince them in a meat grinder and mix with 1 kilogram of sugar. Then put the mixture in jars and keep in a dark and cold place till the juice is separated from the pulp. Then eat one spoon of this mixture two times a day for 10 days. You will see how your goiter becomes better day-by-day.

Feijoa can be eaten directly when they are ripe. There are several ways to enjoy eating this amazing fruit: you can just eat them fresh from the tree or simply pick them and eat them by cutting the fruit in half and scooping out the flesh with a small spoon.

Also, add feijoa to cereals for breakfast or use the pulp to add to muffins. You can also make feijoa jam or jelly, use it in alcoholic preparations, such as a feijoa cocktail.

Poach feijoa for dessert, add its slices to fruit salad, or put the soft center part of several feijoas in a blender, add milk or soymilk, maybe some sour cream, and blend. You can add whatever you like, including ice-cream, cocoa powder, raspberries, and banana. Be creative and enjoy this wonderful fruit!