DABAI Canarium odontophyllum from Sarawak, Borneo is a fruit that is best prepared before eating by soaking in warm water until it becomes softer before seasoning it with soy sauce. The yellowish flesh is creamy.

DAMSON PLUM, SATIN LEAF Chrysophyllum oliviforme  small plum like fruits with blue black skins with bloom. The flavour is strong and tart. Grows wild in hedgerows and also commercially availableas it is popularly used as a stewed fruit and as ‘damson cheese’ or wine in England and Europe.

DATES Phoenix dactylifera is possibly the oldest cultivated fruit crop. It grew in Babylonian times 8000 years ago and found in Egyptian tombs also. Date wine is believed excluded from prohibition in Islamic custom. Date palms are male and female – like a harem – with one male to about 50 females. Palms are said to continue to produce for about 80 years. There are plantations now in cultivation in U.S. and Australia for production of dessert fruit.

DATE PLUM, AMLOK, Diospyros lotus from southwest Asia and southeast Europe known to the ancient Greeks as “the fruit of the gods”. Its taste is not surprisingly, a combination of plums and dates. Legend has it that the temptation of the classical heroes to remain with ‘the lotus eaters’ may be reference to this divinely flavoured small fruit that inspires further investigation !

DEWBERRY is of the Rubus genus and similar to blackberries but the fruits are much smaller and sweeter, particularly the mature darker red fruits to black. Properties are similar to blackberry from which it and dozens of other berry varieties are derived. The bush has a trailing habit.  Wild Dewberries are only to be found in the US where they are often considered a nuisance plant and likely to have been sprayed by farmers. Care is needed.

DRAGON FRUIT, PITHAYAS Hylocereus spp There are Yellow and Pink varieties but the large fuschia pink fruit is most common,  covered with pointed green tipped scales like artichoke. Beautifully filled with pearly white flesh dotted with masses of edible black seeds. Flesh is sweet and refreshing, slightly acidic with texture of kiwi fruit.

DUKU Lansium domesticum  is a medium-sized, single-trunked tree that produces long racemes of fleshy flowers and ovoid fruits along the branches and trunk. Each has a thick skin and the internal flesh is segmented into 5-6. The fruits are sweet when really ripe.

DURIAN, DURIO, Durio zibethicus from Borneo and Indonesia This fruit is infamous for its foul aroma but enjoyed raw for its delicious flavour.  It is well known that the fruit that tastes like heaven and stinks like hell. When tasting it is advised to refrain from inhaling. The skin of the large fruit is covered with stubby sharp spikes turning yellow as they ripen. Flesh is white with a texture of rich custard, and a sweet flavour compared with strawberries and cream.

ELDERBERRIES Sambucus nigra The flowers and berries having provided a simple ‘poor man’s food’ because of prolific nature of its habit in Europe. It has been used for food as well as other purposes since prehistoric times.  Buds are pickled. Flowers are used in wine, drinks, and the heads are made into fritters. Tiny blackish berries form under suitable climatic conditions, in clusters after flower head has matured. These have unusual sweetish taste and popularly used in pies and cooked dishes.

ELEPHANT APPLE Dillenia indica from tropical India, Malaysia and commonly grown in northern Queensland as an ornamental shade tree. Round fleshy fruit is mainly used in curries. The acid sepals eaten also.

ENGKABANG Shorea macrophylla  from Borneo, Indonesia and SE Asian countries.Fruit is about the size of a ping pong ball, brownish in colour and has about four to five wings protecting its fruits. Another interesting feature of the fruit is that a matured fruit will rotate before dropping to the ground similar to a landing helicopter. It is mainly used as cooking oil or massage oil after a considerable processing method. It is little known outside its native areas where it is highly valued.

ENGKALA Litsea garciae CHECK from Indonesia. The tree has leaves somewhat like avocado and produces small pink to purplish fruits. The flesh is well liked by the people who have sampled them raw or in dishes used in similar ways as the avocado. The fruit is rounded and flattened slightly with edible pink skins. Creamy flesh surrounds the single seed which has traditional uses for candle and soap making.

FEIJOA Pineapple Guava Feijoa sellowiana from Sth America is of the guava family.Oval fruits are green skinned when unripe and mature a lighter green with the skin thinning slightly. When ripe the flesh is perfumed with an unusual and attractive flavour. Cultivated commercially in N.Z. Rich in vitamin C and iodine.

FIGS  Ficus spp. represent one of the most ancient fruits with fossil figs found in France and Italy dating from the Tertiary period – 65 million years. Cultivation was known as early as 3000 BC in Western Asia where it is still revered and valued as it was in classical times by the Greeks and Romans. An ancient fig tree specimen is still growing in Smyrna believed to be 2000 years old. The entire fig is edible eaten fresh or dried and is highly nutritious. Many varieties exist but is neglected in commercial exploitation for western consumers because of associated harvesting and marketing problems. Many edible species are native to Australia.

FUCHSIA Fuchsia spp originated in South America. Following their beautiful ornamental pendulous flowers the plants produce small fruits. There is little official information of any species except Fuchsia boliviana fruit being edible. However there are those who have trialled them personally and claim that F. regia fruits are sweet. Others report that other species produce fruit that taste like peppery grapes. It is wise to pause before thinking of introducing these into one’s diet.

Of the hundreds of varieties chosen as a food source, it must be said that one of the most attractive, as well as nourishing, is fresh fruit. Many of us may have our choice restricted to local fruits in season but we will naturally yearn to taste some of the other fresh fruit delights of the world.

The following is an ABC listing of some of the fruit varieties on offer in markets of the various countries of the world.

ABIU Pouteria caimita from Brazil and Peru. Known also as Caimo and Cauje.

ACEROLA Malpighia glabra has small, cherry-like fruit with somewhat apple flavour and high vitamin C content.

AMBARELLA Sondias cytherea from Polynesia

APPLE  Malus spp. The world’s favourite fruit – oranges come second. Origin S.W. Asia to Europe. 7,000 varieties of apples are found in modern cultivation, and offering a wide range of flavours.

APRICOT Prunus armeniaca. The sun ripened fruits are delicious and the apricot kernels contain amygdalin, that is considered by many to have a positive effect in reducing cancer.

ASIAN PEAR Pyrus pyrifolia from Asia

ATEMOYA  Annona atemoya from Central America

AVOCADO Persea americana from Mexico.  Fruit is eaten usually as a vegetable –savoury but others in Brazil and other countries eat it served as a sweet food.

BABACO  Carica pentagona from Ecuador produces a large 5 sided fruit with soft watery flesh. Skin pale green to yellow and flesh a pinkish orange. Delicate taste used in sorbets and fruit salads.

BAEL FRUIT  Aegle marmelos from Bengal

BAKUPARI Rheedia brasiliensis from Brazil

BANANAS  Musa sp. Bananas are nutritious, containing high carbohydrate content when green,converting to sugar when ripe. There are dozens of varieties found in tropical markets.

BANANA PASSION FRUIT OR  CURUBA  Tacsonia mollissima Is like an elongated passion fruit with soft yellow skin when ripe. Flavour similar to a passionfruit.

BELL FRUIT  Syzygium aqueum India

BILBERRIES – BLAEBERRIES, WHORTLEBERRIES, WHINBERRIES Vaccinium spp.from Europe found in wartime to improve night vision, along with carrots. Contain vitamin C and iron.

BILIMBI Averrhoa bilimbi Malaysia

BLACKBERRY Rubus spp grows wild and also is cultivated. A large thorny bush with shiny purplish black berries rich in vitamin C, calcium, phosphorus and potassium.

BLACKCURRANTS, REDCURRANTS AND WHITECURRANTS Ribes spp.

Native European berries hang in tiny bunches like grapes on the bushes. Each berry contains many small seeds. Eaten whole, but highly acidic so usually cooked.  Rich in vitamin C and pectin.

BLACK PERSIMMON – Diospyros digyna from Mexico

BLUEBERRY Vaccinium sp. similar to Bilberries but larger, with silvery bloom. Wild fruits are more flavoursome. American blueberries larger and sweeter than bilberries. Popular health food.

BOYSENBERRY – hybrid x between youngberry and a raspberry resembles a large red/purple blackberry, sweet fruit eaten raw and often into jam.

BRAZILIAN CHERRY – Eugenia uniflora

BREADFRUIT Artocarpus spp.from the tropical Pacific Islands is sometimes eaten raw when really ripe but otherwise is cooked as a vegetable.

CAIMIITO OR STAR APPLE, GOLDEN  Chrysophyllum cainito from West Indies

CAMU CAMU  Myricaria paraensis Amazon fruit

CANISTEL   Pouteria campechiana found in Central America

CAPE GOOSEBERRY Physalis sp.small orange berries encased in papers husks similar to chinese lantern with a unique and delicious flavour. Native to Sth Africa and Sth America.

CAPULIN  Prunus serotina var. salicifolia Central America

CARAMBOLA , STARFRUIT  Averrhoa carambola from Malaysia and Indonesia is a yellow ribbed 5 star shaped fruit. Refreshing eaten raw. Contain potassium, niacin, phosphorus and vitamin C.  CAROB, ST JOHN”S BREAD  Ceratonia siliqua Mediterranean sweet tasting bean eaten dried.

CASIMIROA Casimiroa edulis from Mexico and Central America

CHERIMOYA Annona cherimola from Ecuador. The skin is smooth but clearly segmented to indicate pine cone type of segments. Flesh is creamy like custard and very sweet when ripe.

CHERRY Prunus spp. orginated in China some 4000 years ago. Introduced to Asia Minor then to Rome and England. Henry 8th planted first cherries in Kent and first seeds were taken to America on the Mayflower. There are now hundreds of varieties in cultivation.

CLOUDBERRIES are orangey coloured relatives of the raspberry found in boggy lands in cold climates in Scandinavia, Siberia and even the Arctic. The berries ripen therefore very slowly allowing intense flavour to develop and sweet, like honey.

COCONUT  Cocos nucifera gives man provision for many utilities as well as food. Fruit may be eaten when unripe when flesh is creamy substance and the milk is sweet. When mature, the brown skin should be eaten together with the white flesh as it has nutritional value.

CRABAPPLE Malus spp. grown in the wild and once eaten in prehistoric time.Very small fruit, yellow, green, orange or red self seeded ones usually larger and more edible. Pectin content is high.

CRANBERRY- BOUNCEBERRIES Vaccinium macrocarpon wild fruits used by the native American Indians before settlement for their medicinal value and as well as a food. Common name derived because they were bounced 7 times as a test for firmness before sending to market.

CURRENT GRAPES Vitis spp.are small sweet grapes from Turkey and Greece which are marketed dried as ‘currants”.

CURRANTS Ribes spp are native and found throughout Europe with fruits white, red or black are used in liqueur call Cassis see also ‘Blackcurrants’.

CUMQUAT “MARUMI”, KUMQUAT Fortunella japonica with small, ornamental bright orange citrus fruit having sour flesh and sweet tasting skin – quite a taste sensation when eaten whole.

CUSTARD APPLE  Annona sp. is heart shaped, heavy and very large tropical fruit maturing to a lumpy looking irregular shape. Its delicious flesh is sweet and smooth, living up to its custard name.

Do you want to know more?  Then watch for the Fresh Fruits List – D-F

Yoga students are confronted with a traditional method of nutrition directly associated with the classical philosophy and with the health practices of Hatha Yoga.

These must be considered and a personal decision made as to whether you will include the natural diet provided in the main by fruits, vegetables, nuts and grain or abstain from meat eating for health reasons, or for philosophic reasons. Usually a decision is necessary, if not immediately, then later, if you seriously wish to study and apply all that the age-old wisdom offers through the Vedic and Yogic teachings.

When first, we are introduced to the yamas/niyamas or the classical ethic stipulations that precede spiritual practice, we read of ahimsa – the yogic ethic of non violence. We are encouraged to contemplate all that is embraced in the practical application of this principle.

In regard to nutrition and the food we eat, however,  many come to realise that they would not eat lamb if they had to kill the lamb for food, nor eat veal if they were directly involved in the unsavoury methods of its production. In our system of living, very different from the natural instincts of animals, the responsibility for killing is passed off onto others.

An intelligent reappraisal of the eating of flesh foods illustrates the fact that there are many questionable points to raise regarding the wisdom of our choices. Any new perspective will motivate us to make changes that we believe are right.

Avoiding all the complex health issues, or even the moral issues in explaining to others why we are vegetarian is that we love animals!

If you are just beginning to consider flowers in your food and extending your interest, you will feel most confident in using the well known traditional ones. However there is quite an explosion of interest in flowers in modern cuisine and you will be assured that the list of suitable flowers will grow as science confirms their safe use in your kitchen.

Flowers are often presented whole in garnishing for their colour and aesthetic pleasure but if they are served to be eaten, great care must be made in their quality and preparation to minimize any of the bitter parts of the flower. Buying flowers are only safe for eating if they are guaranteed to be grown organically for obvious reasons. The safest way is to use them straight from your own garden where no sprays or chemical residues will threaten the quality and flavor of the blooms.

Although each flower is unique, the general rule is to reduce the base of the petal (near the flower centre) or the centre in flowers that have bitter properties.

Perhaps you’ll choose to try only the flower petals for starters. This is a list of popular choices -

	Apple and plum blossoms – sprinkled last to a salad preparation or in garnishing savouries
	Borage – remove the dark part to enjoy the appearance and taste of this blue flowered herb
	Calendulas (English or pot marigolds) – sometimes called ‘poor man’s saffron’ adding colour to rice dishes and soups or used fresh in salads
	Carnations – these vary according to species but often a spicy flavour
	Chrysanthemum – popular in Chinese foods and drinks
	Cornflowers – another delightful blue coloured flower- also offers a pink form

Culinary Herbs of all kinds produce tasty and safe to eat flowers or sprays of tiny blooms such as thyme, rocket, basil and others…..

	English  Daisy – an old cottage limited use ofthe petals in various dishes
	Geraniums (Pelargoniums)   – these petals are tops for colouring as well as flavouring salads
	Gladiolus – popular as a flower prepared by stuffing as a sweet dish (I have no personal experience of this one)
	Lavender – there are many ways this lovely flower can be used including in ice-cream
	Nasturtiums – a fine salad ingredient with typical cress type flavor and lots of vitamin C
	Pansies – velvety affect in presentation of attractive dishes and snacks

When viewed from a materialistic standpoint it would seem that substance is our first need in the form of food. Viewed from the spiritual, the first requisites would be the subtler forms of nourishment gained by breathing fresh air, bathing in sunshine, and drinking pure water. The priorities alter with one’s perception but certainly the argument that food is top priority is flawed when we can exist in good health for weeks without food, only days without water, only minutes without air. However, although it may reasonably lose its place as top priority, nourishment through food is certainly top of the list for many of us and assumes a very important part of daily life and often daily indulgences.

The yogi chooses food which is fresh and natural as he sees the natural product is his measure of quality. He judges for himself the degree of prana which foods contain, calling the most vital of them the sattwic, or highest grade food. Consequently he is vegetarian in his eating habits. Manufactured commercial foods are avoided as much as possible as most of them contain little life or prana – and seen as dead food by comparison with vital fresh foods. In addition, commercial foods often contain chemical additives and stimulants and this classes them as tamasic or rajasic foods. Commercial and carbonated soft drinks, coca cola and others, along with alcoholic drinks are either avoided altogether, as in the diet of children, or very limited in their consumption.

It is because of their love of animals as well as their judgement of food quality, that meats and flesh foods are considered devoid of life breath and prana so that the yogi rejects them completely. By comparison, plants are still able to breathe, and have the capacity to revive or to propagate through their seeds – they still have a flow of prana. Although in India raw milk is considered of great value, dairy products in our country are made from pasteurised milk and are advised only in limited quantity, particularly as these products involve the deprivation or suffering of infant animals.

In our country we are fortunate to have an abundance of healthy foods and a wide range to choose from, including -fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, sprouted seeds, nuts, seeds, grains, honey, golden syrup, maple syrup, wholegrain breads, seaweeds, sprouted seeds, herbs and spices. Fungi and mushrooms are considered of great food value in limited quantities providing they are eaten when very fresh.  Herbs, beans, and other vegetables and fruits are of course included in their dried form, as are seaweeds. As far as possible, the diet should be eaten raw. Foods that require cooking should be only lightly cooked as overcooking destroys much of its nutritional value.

A last reminder about food is to consider the importance of chewing food well. It is in the mouth that the pranas are first released at the first stage of digestion. The stomach has no teeth, and relies upon the food being broken down through mastication as much as possible. We are reminded of the cottage wisdom with its advice to take 32 chews to the bite. Not only does it help digestion, it allows us increased enjoyment of flavour!