Summer is a ripe time to enjoy fresh fruits. One jewel that is as packed with nutrients as with taste is the kiwi. It contains more Vitamin C than oranges do when compared ounce for ounce and is just as good a source as bananas for potassium, not to mention its benefits in beta-carotene.

Kiwis are a great complement to light summer salads, work well in smoothies or as a yogurt topper, and taste superb on their own. If you're up to eating the skin after washing and lightly rubbing the fuzz off, you'll also gain the added benefits of the extra fiber content in that outer layer. Kiwis are ripe when they give slightly under a gentle squeeze.