Bermuda Bound for Taste and Health
By Carolyn O’Neil, M.S., R.D.N.
The island of Bermuda is set like a jewel about 800 miles off the coast of North Carolina. It’s easy to be on the beach by afternoon via a three-hour direct flight from Atlanta.
Long loved for its tropical, yet traditional feel (hello, Bermuda shorts), this British isle is blooming with brilliant new reasons to visit.
The Hamilton Princess Hotel
One shining example is Fairmont’s Hamilton Princess & Beach Club. For over 130 years, the Hamilton Princess hotel has welcomed guests to its tony in-town location planted perfectly next to the marina sparkling with yachts and harbor views.
The hotel’s Exhale spa offers treatments and fitness classes such as Core Fusion Barre, and Yoga. Or, jump in the hotel’s private transport to the Princess Beach Club to enjoy watersports and loll the day away on the pink sand with beach drinks in hand.
Details: thehamiltonprincess.com, gotobermuda.com
Taste of Bermuda
Bermuda’s mix of cuisines from the Caribbean, West Africa, Portugal, and jolly old England is deliciously diverse. When out on the island, look for local specialties such as Bermudian fish chowder and codfish cakes. The star of the show is certainly fresh seafood including spiny lobsters, black grouper and yellowfin tuna.
To bring the light and tropical taste of Bermuda to home cooking, slice lemons, limes or oranges in half and grill cut-side down. Grilling citrus mellows the acidic flavor and caramelizes the natural sugars in the fruit. Also, the citrus juice squeezes out more easily on top of grilled fish, chicken or vegetables and is a low-calorie, salt-free addition with a big flavor bonus. You could even grill fresh limes to add to Bermuda-inspired Dark ‘n Stormy® cocktails.
Sorbets Simplified
A cool and creamy frozen dessert can be summer’s best friend. Sorbet, also known as sorbetto in Italian, is simply frozen fruit with the addition of sugar. You can’t make a sorbet without sugar, which gives these icy fruit desserts their spoonable smoothness. But, look for sorbet brands with fewer than 30 grams of sugar per half serving. In 2018, new nutrition facts labels will add a separate line to reveal the amount of added sugar per serving. That way you know how much sugar is coming from the mango in a mango sorbet and how much is cane sugar added to the recipe.
Nutrition plus: Fruit sorbets can be a source of vitamin A and vitamin C. Both nutrients are important for the health of our skin, certainly key with summertime’s revealing fashions!
Carolyn O’Neil, M.S., R.D.N. is the author of “The Slim Down South Cookbook: Eating Well and Living Healthy in the Land of Biscuits and Bacon.” Her blog is oneiloneating.com.
