What is Ximenia and why is it amazing for our gut?
Ximenia is also known as: American plum, blue sour plum, monkey plum, mountain plum, seaside plum, Spanish plum, wild plum, hog plum, and yellow plum. In taste, the ximenia fruit is very unique and varied, anywhere between almondy-bitter to super sweet.
The Ximenia plum, vibrant in its orange-red color, grows in parts of Central and South America, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. However, it is native to the tropical eastern coast of Africa. This fruit has been used in traditional forms of medicine due to its various healing properties, including but not limited to treatment of stomach aches, colic, and intestinal inflammatory disorder– though there has not been a great deal of peer-reviewed research on these claims. This medicinal tropical fruit – like plenty of other fruits– can be made into a juice, jelly, or jam; some parts of the world even use the flower petals in soups!
The Ximena contains antioxidants that relieve oxidative/ inflammatory stress and can reduce bloating. Medicinally, it has been used in parts of the world for colic and inflammatory diseases, most likely because it contains polyphenols that reduce inflammation and suppress the growth of harmful bacteria. This fruit also contains essential amino acids that are the major source of fuel for intestinal mucosa– the mucus lining of your intestines. Ximenia fruit is a great source of amino acids, polyphenols (e.g. tannins, flavonoids, anthraquinones), and vitamins (Vitamin C- 20% content), which contribute to the various health benefits associated with its consumption. For example, Ximenia is full of vitamin C, which is an antioxidant, and is important for the immune system and digestion.
More than just plenty of micronutrients and essential compounds, 1 Ximenia contains 3 grams of fiber, which is important for maintaining regular bowel movements and the health of the intestinal microbiome!
Unfortunately, this fruit cannot be bought in stores domestically, so the closest bet is finding them in the wild or purchasing seeds to plant in your garden. However, if you do manage to get some ximenia fruit, it goes wonderful into jams and juices.
Ways to eat it
Ximenia is usually eaten raw, but it can be cooked into a jam or a paste using just boiling water and a blender or food processor! Make sure not to eat the seed!
Can be made into preserves, jam, jelly, juice, pickles or even kombucha!
Recipe: Teff Waffles with Ximenia Syrup
Ingredients (Makes 4 Servings):
1/2 cup maskal ivory teff flour
1/2 cup gluten-free baking flour (cassava or oat)
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamom
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 pinch Himalayan pink salt
1 banana, ripened
2 flax eggs (2 Tbsp flax meal + 5 Tbsp water)
2 dates, pitted
2 Tbsp ximenia paste (made from boiled, blended, and pitted ximenia fruits)
2 cups unsweetened coconut milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
Directions:
Preheat the waffle iron.
In a medium bowl, mix together the flours, cinnamon, cardamom, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Make your flax eggs and set them aside. To make each 'egg', mix 2 Tbsp of flax meal with 5 Tbsp of water. Mix well and set aside.
In a blender cup or food processor add the flax egg, milk, Ximenia paste, dates, banana, and vanilla, and blend until smooth.
Add wet ingredients to dry and whisk together until incorporated.
Let the mix rest for at least 5-10 minutes before spooning into a hot waffle iron.
Serve with nut butter, fruit compote and/or unsweetened coconut yogurt!
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Baudouin, G., & Paris, R. R. (1976). [Polyphenols (acid-phenols, flavonoids, anthraquinones)
from Digitalis grandiflora Mill. ( = D. ambigua Murr.)]. Comptes Rendus Hebdomadaires Des Seances De l’Academie Des Sciences. Serie D: Sciences Naturelles, 283(10), 1177–1180.
Satoto, G., Fernandes, A. S., Saraiva, N., Santos, F., Neng, N., Nogueira, J. M., Santos De
Almeida, T., & Araujo, M. E. (2019). An Overview on the Properties of Ximenia Oil Used as Cosmetic in Angola. Biomolecules, 10(1), 18. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom10010018
Ximenia Americana Herb Uses, Benefits, Cures, Side Effects, Nutrients. (n.d.). Herbpathy.
Retrieved May 4, 2021, from https://herbpathy.com/Uses-and-Benefits-of-Ximenia-Americana-Cid7219
Ximenia caffra. (2021, March 17). Wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ximenia_caffra&oldid=1012684391
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