Stuffed Apricots with Sunflower Seed Butter

Name: Stuffed Apricots with Sunflower Seed Butter
Ingredients: 6-10 dried apricots; 1 teaspoon of Once Again Sunflower Seed Butter - Peanut Free, No salt, No sugar; unsweetened shredded coconut

by Carolina Jantac, MS, RD, LD • Jump to Recipe

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Today’s recipe: Stuffed Dried Apricots.

Looking to increase your fiber intake but not really looking forward to bulky fiber powders, tablets or eating a ton of grains? Well, besides increasing your fruit and vegetables daily servings, you can also count on dried fruit to deliver a nice dose of fiber. The best part is that they are delicious, and you can make dried fruit a dessert!

Prunes are first on the list: Many people rely on a prune a day for a healthy digestive system. Dried apricots are also an excellent source of fiber, and they are especially rich in the soluble type . Soluble fiber dissolves and binds to fatty acids when consumed, and this leads to an excretion of those fats. Therefore, soluble fibers have the ability to reduce high LDL and total cholesterol .

However, there is more to apricots than just fiber —they have more potassium than fresh apricots, and they are a good source of antioxidants. Among the potent antioxidant phytonutrients, dried apricots are particularly high in carotenoids. This combination of nutrients makes apricots efficient fighters against inflammation; they are also great for eyesight and fight heart disease.

Plain dried apricots are not very popular as a snack, but when diced and mixed with nuts for a trail mix they add a much needed sweet and tangy punch to the equation. Another great way to enjoy them is with a little Once Again Sunflower Seed Butter. What a match made in heaven that is! They not only taste great — dried apricots provide a veritable panorama of health benefits. They complement each other in nutrients and together bring vitamin E, unsaturated fat and magnesium to your daily routine.

These snacks are easy to prepare —just slice dried apricots lengthwise and add a dollop of sunflower seed butter; sprinkle some coconut, and they are ready to go. They make a beautiful arrangement on a plate for a dessert table, or they work as an appetizer, too. Look for more snack recipes on our website.