Cornucopia

Plum Good Eating

They range
in color from green and yellow to red, blue, purple, and almost black.  Grown on every continent except Antarctica, plums have been around for thousands of
years.  The ancient Chinese were the
first to cultivate the plum, with much success.
Early European explorers, upon tasting the sweet, juicy Asian plum,
triumphantly brought it back home, where it has been enjoyed ever since.

Plum pits
traveled to the New World with Europe’s first
settlers.  Until the pits were planted
and the trees bore fruit, the settlers were forced to turn to the wild, native
American plum.  With anticipation, they
incorporated the plums into a feast that was to be the first American
Thanksgiving meal.  Unfortunately, this
untamed plum proved to be a disappointment.
Rather than eat the inferior fruit, the pilgrims simply did without  until their prized European plums became
established.  Luckily for us, today’s
plums are plentiful and delicious.  A
splash of color in any salad or dessert, the juicy plum is just plum good
eating.

Origin and History

            The plum is native to ancient China and western Asia.  The story of the plum is thousands of years
old.  Grown in ancient Egypt, they
were devoured as fresh fruit.  Dried as
prunes, plums were also found in the tombs of many important Egyptian citizens.

Plums were
also appreciated by the Romans, who lauded their sweet flavor and gratefully
acknowledged their laxative virtues, which are located in the skin of the
plum.  At the height of the Roman Empire, the populace could pick from no less that
300 varieties of plums.

In the
Middle Ages, the word plum was used to mean any dried fruit, including
raisins.  Hence traditional English plum
pudding contains raisins and dried currants and even suet.  It did not, however, contain any actual plums
at all.  To this day, traditional plum
pudding is made with out any trace of a plum.

Health Claims

            Plums:

• Are high in antioxidant content (phenols,
  specifically neochlorogenic and chlorogenic acid
• Are rich in vitamins A and C
• Contain a respectable amount of heart-healthy
  potassium
• Are a good source of Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)
• Are  high
  in insoluble fiber
• Promote intestinal and digestive health
• Help reduce the risk of colon cancer
• Are a good source of copper, needed for energy
  production

During 2010, the Isle of Iowa was
able to donate $8619.68 to charities.
Our monthly raffles provided $100 for the Ronald McDonald House, $55 to
the Community Free Medical Clinic, $196 to the Johnson County
Crisis Center, and $291
for HACAP, for a total of $642.

Our major events provided $3427.46
for the Community Free Medical Clinic from the Chili Challenge and $4550.22 to
Waypoint from the Phlocking, for a total of $7977.68.

During the last club fiscal year
(June 2010-May 2011), we donated $5300.33 to charities.  The monthly 50/50’s provided $196 to the Johnson County Crisis Center,
$291 to HACAP, $159 to the Alzheimer’s Association, and $150 to the Iowa City
Animal Shelter, for a total of $796.

Our major events provided $3427.46
for the Community Free Medical Clinic from the Chili Challenge and $4550.22 to
Waypoint from the Phlocking, for a total of $7977.68.

Thanks to everyone for your
continued help and support of our charities.
They are the purpose for our parties!

Steve

Cornucopia

Lemon Zest

With the
dog days of summer upon us, there is nothing more refreshing than an icy glass
of fresh-squeezed lemonade.  Packed with
a full day’s supply of Vitamin C, this sunny fruit is too tart for most of us
to eat on its own.  Still, the lemon
deserves to be appreciated as more than the wedge in your iced tea and the
juice on your grilled fish.

The word
“ascorbic”, as in ascorbic acid (the name for Vitamin C), means “no
scurvy”.  Hundreds of years ago, people
suffered from a “spring disease” whose symptoms were bleeding gums, loose
teeth, aching joints, red spots on the skin, and decayed flesh.  The disease, of course, was scurvy.

Sailors
traveling long periods at sea without fresh fruit and vegetables were
particularly susceptible to scurvy.  Not
until the last part of the eighteenth century, when the holds of English ships
carried barrels of lemons on their voyages, did the sailors’ disease
miraculously “disappear”.

Join us as
we learn more about this summery citrus wonder fruit.

Origin 

            Although the exact origin of the
lemon is unknown, it is believed to have been first cultivated in the Indus Valley,
judging from an earring found there in the shape of a lemon dating to 2500 B.C.

History

            Lemons first arrived in Europe
in the 11^th century, brought by Arab traders from Spain.  Returning Crusaders, having found lemons
growing in Palestine, are credited with
spreading lemons across the rest of Europe.  Before that time, lemons coming from Spain
were so expensive only the very rich could afford them.

Christopher
Columbus is responsible for bringing lemons to the new world on his voyage to Haiti
in 1493.  In 1565, Spanish explorers
established a colony is St. Agostino,
Florida and planted many lemon
trees there.  Early Spanish missionaries
planted the first lemon trees in California
in the 1730’s.  The popularity of lemons
in California
exploded with the influx of people settling there during the 1849 gold
Rush.  Since 1950, California
has produced more lemons than all of Europe
combined.

Health Claims

• Lemons are an excellent source of Vitamin C.
• Lemons contain limonoids, which have been shown
  to help fight cancers of the mouth, skin, lung, breast, stomach, and
  colon.  Scientists from the US
  Agricultural Research Service (ARS) have shown that our bodies can readily
  absorb and utilize a very long-acting limonoid called limonoid that is in
  citrus fruits like lemons.
• Because of their high vitamin C content, lemons
  may provide protection against a form of rheumatoid arthritis called
  polyarthritis.
• Lemons contain unique flavonoid compounds that
  have antioxidant and anti-cancer properties.
• Are  high
  in insoluble fiber

Charity Corner

Our charity for the quarter just
ended (June, July, August) was the Cedar Valley Humane Society.

Thanks to you r generosity in
purchasing 50/50 tickets, we were able to donate $229 to them!

Cedar Valley Humane Society-A part
of the Cedar Rapids community for over 100 years, the Cedar Valley Humane
Society is dedicated to creating a quality and humane environment for all
animals.

Upcoming events:

Drives for Lives Golf Outing

Location:
Hunters Ridge Golf Course, Marion

Starts: September 09 2011 @ 12:00 PM

The
fee for a foursome is $300, which includes 18 holes of golf, cart rental, and
dinner. Don’t have a foursome? Register as an individual for $75, and we’ll
pair you up. Don’t forget to bring extra green to purchase raffle tickets and
those all-important mulligans! We’ll have top team prizes and lots of friendly
competitions throughout the course. Register
today!

For
more information, contact Jan Clarke at (319) 362-6288 or jan.clarke@cvhumane.org.

Adoption Event at Old Navy

Location:
Old Navy, 345 Collins Road NE,
Cedar Rapids

Starts: September 10 2011 @ 10:00 AM

Ends: September 10 2011 @ 01:00 PM

Adoption
Event at PetSmart

Location:
PetSmart, 4810 First Ave NE,
Marion

Starts: September 24 2011 @ 11:00 AM

Ends: September 24 2011 @ 02:00 PM

Thanks to everyone for your
continued help and support of our charities.
They are the purpose for our parties!

Steve