Sometimes I like to have fun with my guests and serve them something a little out of the ordinary. I enjoy seeing skepticism turn to pleasure on their faces when I introduce them to a new food they’d never imagine eating, but once they try it, they enjoy.

Prickly pears, also known as cactus pears, are one of those foods. It’s the fruit of the opuntia cactus, which is the one with the paddle-like leaves (also edible, but more on that later). Prickly pears are popular in Mexico, South and Central America, around the Mediterranean and South Africa. In this country they are at their best April through August and can be found fresh in Latin markets, or even mainstream markets in Hispanic neighborhoods. You can also use canned prickly pear cactus if you can’t find it fresh.

The fruit is about egg size and can be pale green to purplish. The taste and aroma of the flesh is melon-like and a little flowery, while the texture is a bit like a watermelon. It’s most often peeled and diced into a fruit salad or fruit pie, or pureed and used in drinks, sauces and jams.

What puts prickly pears into the FoodTrients category is that they are low in calories and high in fiber while rich in vitamin C, and contain calcium and antioxidant compounds. Consuming foods high in antioxidants may help decrease risk of cancer, heart disease, eye disorders such as cataracts and neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease. There is some preliminary evidence that indicates prickly pear cactus can decrease blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes.

According to Katherin Zaratsky, R.D., L.D. of the Mayo Clinic, “It’s too early to call prickly pear cactus a superfood and more research is needed to confirm these benefits, but it can be part of a healthy diet.”

The cactus paddles or nopales can be eaten, too. Remove the thorns (wear gloves!) with a vegetable peeler. Many markets sell them fresh with the thorns already removed. Nopales are usually cut into strips and simmered for about twenty minutes to make them tender. They can also be roasted or grilled, then cut into strips once cooled. The strips are delicious in scrambled eggs, soups, stews, salsas or in salads. I like to add them to ceviche right before I serve it to my guests.

Nopales are FoodTrient-worthy as well—one cup is a good source of vitamins A and C and provides significant amounts of manganese, magnesium, calcium and potassium. It’s also an excellent source of dietary fiber, while extremely low in calories and carbohydrates.

You could create a whole delicious meal around the cactus plant, from appetizer to dessert!

CHARRED TOMATO-NOPAL SALSA

Servings: 2 cups

Ingredients

Instructions:

1. Holding a paddle with a pair of tongs, trim off the edge that outlines the paddle, including the blunt end where the paddle was severed from the plant. Slice or scrape off the spiny nodes from both sides of the paddle.
2. Heat a gas grill to medium-high or light a charcoal fire and let it burn until the charcoal is covered with white ash.
3. Lay the nopales and onions on the grill and drizzle with oil.
4. Add the tomatoes and chiles to the grill and cook, turning everything at least once, until the vegetables are charred on all sides and very soft, about 10 minutes for the nopales and 15 minutes for the onions, tomatoes and chiles. Let cool.
5. Stem and seed the chiles, then cut them into 1/2-inch pieces and place in a bowl.
6. Chop the tomatoes and nopales the same size and add to the bowl.
7. Dice onions into 1/4-inch pieces and add to the bowl.
8. Sprinkle in the oregano and mix well. Taste and season with salt.
9. Serve with chips, grilled fish or chicken.