This post was sponsored by POM Wonderful. All views and opinions are mine.
With Christmas planning upon us and the rest of the holidays right around the corner, there's a lot of pressure to cook, bake, and show up to events bearing delicious food and drinks.
So when POM Wonderful reached out to me to check out their delicious, convenient, and easy to devour POM POMS Fresh Arils, I was extra thrilled! First, I'm always excited for this special time of year. Second, I'm happy to share with you all things POM! And lastly, I want to make your Christmas planning just a bit easier by featuring some of the easy, delicious recipes from POM Wonderful here!
So first, let's talk a bit about pomegranates. Like everyone else, I agree this is an often misunderstood fruit yet, it's delicious and packed with innumerable health benefits. Pomegranates provide a high level of antioxidants that are said to help prevent cancer and heart disease and are loaded with fiber, vitamins, nutrients, flavonoids (known to be anti-inflammatory) and phytochemicals.
The POM Wonderful variety pomegranate is known for its sweet taste and plentiful juice and has the beautiful ruby red arils. And since pomegranates are currently in season (from October to January), it's a great time to dream up a variety of sweet or savory dishes to show off this fabulous fruit!
But before we go on and talk about recipes with pomegranates, I know that this fruit can be intimidating. So I want to cover a few things that I know most of you are curious about! So.. here we go..
How to Select Pomegranates:
- Select pomegranates by weight, not by color. Keep in mind that the heavier the pomegranate, the more juice it contains.
- Pomegranates are only picked when they are perfectly ripe on the inside. The outside of a ripe pomegranate can vary from pink to a deep ruby red.
- For decorating, select pomegranates by color, size and general appearance.
How to Open Pomegranates:
Pomegranates may seem intimidating, but they are easy to open. This efficient procedure for opening a pomegranate has six simple steps:
1 Cut: With a sharp paring knife, cut off the top about a one inch below the crown.
2 Score: Once the top has been removed, four to six sections of the pomegranate divided by white membrane will be visible. With the knife's point, score the skin along each section.
3 Open: Using both hands, carefully pull the pomegranate apart in a bowl of water, breaking it into smaller sections.
How to Enjoy Pomegranates:
Inside each fresh pomegranate are hundreds of arils. They're fun to eat fresh from the fruit, and also easy to add to your favorite dishes.
- Stir into yogurt, cereal or oatmeal.
- Toss in salads for color and texture.
- Add sweet, tart pomegranate arils to a savory entreé or holiday dessert.
- Enjoy as a crunchy, healthy snack straight from the fruit.
- Garnish festive holiday cocktails
POM POMS Fresh Arils are delicious, convenient, and are the perfect ruby red ingredient for all of your upcoming holiday creations to add a sweet burst of flavor into any dish or cocktail. I'm happy to share that POM Wonderful has created a variety of recipes this year to help inspire us all to get creative using POM POMS in new and unique ways!
My top favorite recipes with POM POMS Fresh Arils!
Shrimp Pan Roast With Fennel, Onions And Pomegranate Arils
Grilled Carrots With POM-Curry Barbecue Sauce, Yogurt And Avocado
Grilled Fruit Salad With Pomegranate Arils
And this cocktail is just perfect for the holidays!
Holiday Pomtini
POM POMS do all the hard work for you in a convenient package of ready-to-eat pomegranate arils straight from their California orchards. POM POMS are offered in two sizes including a 100 calorie 4.3oz single serving for easy snacking and an 8oz size for cooking that the whole family can enjoy!
To learn more about POM POMS Fresh Arils and other fresh fruit, juice, juice blends and POM tea products from POM Wonderful, go visit PomWonderful.com
*Giveaway!
Giveaway details coming soon.
Omg I just love Pomnegranattes!!! They are so yummy. I especially like to use them for mixers for cocktails
Wow. Love this. Looks like a magic potion to immortality. Power packed with nutrition, it does deserve to be called one 🙂
I recently tried a real pomegranate for the first time. I've had the juice before so I knew I'd like it but wow. It was super good! I've been putting it in a ton of recipes! I'll have to try these!
Ooh I really should incorporate more pomegranate into my diet! They're so yummy and good for you and I love these recipes you listed!!
Pomegranates are my favorite! I remember the first time I ever had a taste of one. My mom bought one when I was a child, and cut it open on the counter top. I thought it was crazy to eat the "seeds". lol
I'm kind of obsessed with Pomegranate seeds. I love putting them in tea!
Pomegranates are one of my favourites fruits! I've never tried POM though
I've actually always avoided buying pomegranates because I had no idea how to open them!
I LOVE pomegranates and everything about the POM Wonderful company! So I love your post! Those recipes all look amazing. They're so colorful and delicious! I can eat a whole pomegranate just sitting there eating the seeds.
I do not eat pomegranates ever for some strange reason! and I LOVE the seeds!!! I need to start buying them more!
Pomegranates are some of my favorite fruits! I love all the recipes you posted I would have never thought to make use them in with different foods!
Oh my goodness, these are my new favorite fruit right now. I love to peel them and I love to eat them!! They are amazing.
We love pomegranates in our house! The pom-tini looks delicious and the perfect addition to a holiday party!
Okay I love all your tips! I am totally trying slicing it open the way you've suggested, sounds so much easier than what I have been doing! I also didn't know that you should pick them based on weight, that's really good to know.
Pomnegranattes are delicious and they are definitely what I would class as a super fruit. I love it in juice and in a nice juicy and refreshing salad. Yum!
A holiday pomtini sounds fantastic! I love the idea of using such a fresh and delicious fruit in a mixed drink.
I grew up in SoCal where our neighbor had a pomegranate tree. I shudder at the mess we made eating them and the stains my mom had to try and get out, lol. I love that the seeds come already "shucked" and in a convenient cup! One way where modern technology is truly saving time and effort (and stainremover..) for a delicious treat!
Once I learned how to correctly peel a pom, there was no turning back! I love the little seeds (I didn't know they were called arils) in salads and cocktails the best.
Honestly I don't think I have ever tried a pomegranate. I think I would like them, so I need to try one 🙂