The Olive Oil Hunter, Author at Fresh-Pressed Olive Oil

Olive Oil Hunter News #271

Posted on June 26, 2026June 23, 2026 by The Olive Oil Hunter

Triple Berry Ice Cream Recipe, Spotlight on Ice Cream, Freezer Containers, Coffee for Brain Health, and How to Make Strength Your Superpower

Celebrate our country’s 250^th birthday with this red, white, and blue ice cream that’s big on flavor as well as nutrients (read about the surprising benefits of real ice cream below). Thinking about having another cup of coffee? New research may give you the green light. And find out why a firm handshake should be your new superpower.

Triple Berry Ice Cream

Triple Berry Ice Cream
Luscious and refreshing with chunks of frosty berries, this fruit- and EVOO-infused dessert is an ice cream lover’s dream. Ice cream isn’t complicated to make with a machine to churn it for you. If you have a KitchenAid stand mixer, buying its ice cream attachment is a cost-effective option; the bowl, as with other brands that don’t have a built-it compressor, needs 24 hours in the freezer before use.
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup half-and-half
- 3/4 cup sugar, divided use
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups mixed blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries, plus more for garnish if desired
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Directions

Step 1

Make the ice cream base. Heat the heavy cream and half-and-half in a saucepan over medium heat until it reaches a simmer and forms a skin on the surface. Off the heat, whisk in 1/2 cup sugar, the salt, and the vanilla, whisking until the sugar is fully incorporated. Let the base come to room temperature, then refrigerate until cold (it can be made up to 3 days in advance).

Step 2

Just before you’re ready to make the ice cream, hull the strawberries and cut them into 1/2-inch dice. Add them to a bowl with the rest of the berries and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Toss well, then use a potato masher or pestle to mash the fruit just a bit. Fold in the olive oil and set aside.

Step 3

Give the ice cream base a quick whisk, pour into your ice cream maker, and turn on the machine. Once the ice cream holds its shape, add in the berries with all their juices and finish churning. You can enjoy the ice cream as a soft serve after churning or, for a firmer consistency, transfer to a freezer-safe container and place in the freezer for 2 hours or more. Before serving, garnish portions with more berries if desired.
Yields 8 or more servings

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Ice Cream? Yes, Ice Cream!

t’s too soon to call it a superfood, but a number of studies have found positive health links among people who eat real ice cream a couple of times a week. Scientists were so confounded by the results that they tried, at first, to dispel them.

Long-term Harvard studies that analyzed data from nearly 190,000 people found a link between eating ice cream in moderation and a lower risk of diabetes along with better cardiovascular outcomes. One possible explanation is the metabolic effect of the milk fat globule membrane (MFGM), a complex, naturally occurring membrane that surrounds droplets of milk fat in real, whole dairy products. MFGM may help regulate cholesterol levels, reduce inflammation, and support healthy gut and metabolic function.

Most recently, a Swedish study published in the journal Neurology found that higher intake of high-fat cream (and high-fat cheese) was associated with a lower risk of all-cause dementia and that there were no such links between low-fat cheese, low-fat cream, and other dairy products. These results were based on the analysis of data from 27,670 participants in the Malmö Diet and Cancer cohort.

Experts are careful to say that there is no hard-and-fast proof that ice cream causes better health because these findings come from “observational” studies, so they show a link rather than a direct cause-and-effect. One important thing to keep in mind is that to confer any benefits, the ice cream must be made from full-fat cream. If you’re not making your own, read the fine print on supermarket brands and avoid products labeled “frozen dairy dessert.” They contain oils and other additives and can’t be called ice cream.

Quick Kitchen Nugget

Freezer Containers

If you’ve made the switch from plastic to glass containers for refrigerated items, you’ll be happy to know that many brands can be used in the freezer, too, including products from Pyrex and Glasslock. Freezer-safe glass must be specially tempered to withstand fluctuations in temperature. Some can even go from freezer to microwave. Typically, the lids are plastic, so look for BPA-free designs.

For Your Best Health

Coffee for Brain Health

Your morning coffee or tea could be quietly supporting brain function. A large, long-term study found that moderate consumption of caffeinated coffee or tea was linked to an 18% lower risk of dementia and better cognitive performance over time. The benefits appeared strongest with 2 to 3 cups of coffee or 1 or 2 cups of tea daily—and held true even for people genetically predisposed to dementia.

Conducted by researchers from Mass General Brigham, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, the study examined data from 131,821 participants in the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (HPFS).

“When searching for possible dementia prevention tools, we thought something as prevalent as coffee may be a promising dietary intervention—and our unique access to high quality data through studies going on for more than 40 years allowed us to follow through on that idea,” said senior author Daniel Wang, MD, ScD, associate scientist with the Channing Division of Network Medicine in the Mass General Brigham Department of Medicine, assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and in the Department of Nutrition at Harvard Chan School, and an associate member at the Broad Institute. “While our results are encouraging, it’s important to remember that the effect size is small and there are lots of important ways to protect cognitive function as we age. Our study suggests that caffeinated coffee or tea consumption can be one piece of that puzzle.”

Preventing dementia early is especially important because current treatments are limited and generally provide only modest benefits after symptoms begin. As a result, scientists are increasingly focusing on lifestyle factors, including diet, that may influence the development of cognitive decline. Coffee and tea contain compounds such as polyphenols and caffeine, which are thought to support brain health. These substances may help reduce inflammation and limit cellular damage, both of which are linked to cognitive decline.

Previous research on coffee and dementia produced mixed results, often due to shorter study periods or limited data on long-term consumption patterns and different types of beverages. The NHS and HPFS datasets helped address these gaps. Participants were tracked for up to 43 years, with repeated evaluations of diet, dementia diagnoses, subjective cognitive concerns, and objective cognitive performance. Researchers analyzed how consumption of caffeinated coffee, tea, and decaffeinated coffee related to long-term brain health outcomes.

Among the more than 130,000 participants, 11,033 developed dementia over the course of the study. Individuals who consumed higher amounts of caffeinated coffee had an 18% lower risk of developing dementia compared with those who rarely or never drank it. They also reported lower rates of subjective cognitive decline (7.8% versus 9.5%) and performed better on certain objective cognitive tests.

“We also compared people with different genetic predispositions to developing dementia and saw the same results—meaning coffee or caffeine is likely equally beneficial for people with high and low genetic risk of developing dementia,” said lead author Yu Zhang, MBBS, MS, PhD student at Harvard Chan School and a research trainee at Mass General Brigham.

Similar patterns were observed among tea drinkers, while decaffeinated coffee did not show the same associations. This suggests that caffeine may be an important factor behind the observed brain-related benefits, although more research is needed to confirm the underlying mechanisms.

Fitness Flash

Make Strength Your Superpower

Getting enough exercise is important for healthy aging. Now, new research suggests strength training plays a critical role. A large study led by researchers at the University at Buffalo (UB) found that older women with greater strength had a significantly lower risk of death, even after accounting for physical activity levels, cardiovascular fitness, and inflammation. The findings, published in JAMA Network Open, were based on more than 5,000 women between the ages of 63 and 99. Researchers tracked participants for eight years and discovered that women with stronger grip strength and faster sit-to-stand chair test times were more likely to live longer.

“If you don’t have enough muscle strength to get up, it is going to be hard to do aerobic activities, such as walking, which is the most commonly reported recreational activity in US adults ages 65 and older,” says study lead author Michael LaMonte, PhD, research professor of epidemiology and environmental health in UB’s School of Public Health and Health Professions.

“Muscular strength, in many ways, enables one to move their body from one point to another, particularly when moving against gravity,” Dr. LaMonte added. “Healthy aging probably is best pursued through adequate amounts of both aerobic and muscle-strengthening physical activities. When we no longer can get out of the chair and move around, we are in trouble.”

According to Dr. LaMonte, this is the largest study so far to examine how muscle strength relates to longevity in women over 60. Earlier large-scale studies often lacked detailed measures of physical activity, cardiovascular fitness, and inflammation, making it harder to isolate the role of muscular strength alone.

One of the study’s most notable findings was that women who did not meet current physical activity recommendations of at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity each week still benefited from having greater muscle strength. Dr. LaMonte said this provides strong evidence that muscle-strengthening activities deserve greater emphasis in public health recommendations, particularly for older adults. “Because women ages 80 and older are the fastest-growing US age group, the importance of monitoring and maintaining muscular strength will have huge public health implications in the coming decades,” he said.

Muscle-building activities do not necessarily require expensive gym equipment or intense workouts. Researchers note that free weights, dumbbells, weight machines, and bodyweight exercises such as modified push-ups, wall presses, and knee bends can all help improve strength.

Dr. LaMonte pointed out that everyday household items can work as resistance tools. “Even using soup cans or books as a form of resistance provides stimulus to skeletal muscles and could be used by individuals for whom other options are not feasible.”

He advised that people talk to their healthcare provider before beginning a strength training program and that newcomers may benefit from guidance from a physical therapist or exercise specialist to help ensure safety and appropriate progress.

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Triple Berry Ice Cream

Posted on June 23, 2026June 23, 2026 by The Olive Oil Hunter

Luscious and refreshing with chunks of frosty berries, this fruit- and EVOO-infused dessert is an ice cream lover’s dream. Ice cream isn’t complicated to make with a machine to churn it for you. If you have a KitchenAid stand mixer, buying its ice cream attachment is a cost-effective option; the bowl, as with other brands that don’t have a built-it compressor, needs 24 hours in the freezer before use.

Ingredients

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup half-and-half

3/4 cup sugar, divided use

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups mixed blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries, plus more for garnish if desired

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Step 1

Make the ice cream base. Heat the heavy cream and half-and-half in a saucepan over medium heat until it reaches a simmer and forms a skin on the surface. Off the heat, whisk in 1/2 cup sugar, the salt, and the vanilla, whisking until the sugar is fully incorporated. Let the base come to room temperature, then refrigerate until cold (it can be made up to 3 days in advance).

Step 2

Just before you’re ready to make the ice cream, hull the strawberries and cut them into 1/2-inch dice. Add them to a bowl with the rest of the berries and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Toss well, then use a potato masher or pestle to mash the fruit just a bit. Fold in the olive oil and set aside.

Step 3

Give the ice cream base a quick whisk, pour into your ice cream maker, and turn on the machine. Once the ice cream holds its shape, add in the berries with all their juices and finish churning. You can enjoy the ice cream as a soft serve after churning or, for a firmer consistency, transfer to a freezer-safe container and place in the freezer for 2 hours or more. Before serving, garnish portions with more berries if desired.

Yields 8 or more servings

Olive Oil Hunter News #270

Posted on June 19, 2026June 18, 2026 by The Olive Oil Hunter

Cheesy Onion Wraps Recipe, Spotlight on Vidalia Onions, Storing Onions, Are You Getting Enough B12 and The Benefits of 30 Minutes of Weekly Exercise

Sandwich wraps are handy alternatives to bread but can lack flavor. My cheesy onion wraps are so good you’ll be tempted to eat them right out of the pan (be sure to let them cool off first!). This issue of the newsletter looks at new research on the all-important vitamin B12 and why many people could be short. And for those who have a hard time fitting in exercise, I’m including details of a report that suggests 30 minutes per week rather than per day can still be helpful.

Olive Toast

Olive Toast
This makes a satisfying lunch and a great appetizer for your next get-together. I love the tangy, fruity taste of sumac, a spice that’s finally getting the attention it deserves. If you’ve got the grill on, drizzle olive oil on the bread and toast over the coals.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 medium garlic clove, grated
- 1/2 teaspoon sumac, such as Wild Sumac
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black peppercorns like Vine-Ripened Black Peppercorns
- 1/8 teaspoon peperoncino (Italian crushed red pepper flakes)
- 4 ounces each pitted Castelvetrano and Kalamata olives
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 8 baguette or crusty whole-grain bread slices
- 8 ounces goat cheese at room temperature
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Directions

Step 1

In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic, sumac, salt, pepper, and peperoncino. Coarsely chop the olives and add to the bowl along with the parsley; let marinate for 30 minutes.

Step 2

When ready to assemble, toast the bread. Spread each slice with equal amounts of goat cheese, then top with the walnuts and the olive mixture. Drizzle with olive oil and serve.
Yields 4 lunch or 8 appetizer servings

Healthy Ingredient Spotlight

Vidalia Onions

Grown in a limited area in Georgia, these onions are super sweet, thanks to their low sulfur content, which makes them less pungent and tear-inducing than other onion varieties. Their mild flavor profile means you can enjoy them raw, but they’re equally delicious cooked.

These onions are a good source of vitamin C, B6, and folate, potassium and manganese as well as quercetin, an antioxidant known for its anti-inflammatory properties, and fiber. They’re available from April to August; look for their trademark logo as well as their flatter shape.

Quick Kitchen Nugget

Storing Onions

Vidalias have a high moisture content, and some experts recommend wrapping each one in a paper towel and storing them in the crisper drawer of your fridge. If you’re going to be using them in a few days, you can keep them on a rack in a cool, dry cabinet. But always keep any onions far away from potatoes because the ethylene gas produced by onions will cause your spuds to spoil prematurely.

For Your Best Health

Are You Getting Enough B12?

Vitamin B12 is essential for helping your body make DNA, red blood cells, and healthy nerve tissue. While there are guidelines for daily intake, that amount may not actually be enough to protect the brain in later years. Researchers at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) found that older adults with “normal” but lower levels of active B12 showed signs of slower thinking, delayed visual processing, and more damage to the brain’s white matter — the communication highways that help different brain regions work together. The findings raise the possibility that some people may be told their B12 status is fine while their brains are already showing early signs of strain.

For the study, published in Annals of Neurology, researchers enrolled 231 healthy older adults through the Brain Aging Network for Cognitive Health (BrANCH) study at UCSF. The participants had an average age of 71, and none had dementia or mild cognitive impairment. Their average blood B12 level was 414.8 pmol/L, far above the US minimum cutoff of 148 pmol/L. Instead of relying only on total B12, the researchers focused on the biologically active form of the vitamin, which may better reflect how much B12 the body can actually use. The study focused on older adults, a group that may be especially sensitive to lower B12 because absorption can become less efficient with age. Some medications, digestive conditions, and diets low in animal-based foods can also increase the risk of low B12.

After adjusting for age, sex, education, and cardiovascular risk factors, the team found that participants with lower active B12 had slower processing speed on cognitive tests. The effect was stronger with older age. They also had delayed responses to visual stimuli, pointing to slower visual processing and reduced brain signaling efficiency.

MRI scans added another warning sign. Participants with lower active B12 had a higher volume of white matter lesions, which are areas of brain injury that have been linked to cognitive decline, dementia, and stroke risk. Even in this relatively healthy group, lower levels of active B12 were linked to slower thinking, slower visual processing, and more visible injury in the brain’s white matter.

The work was led by senior author Ari J. Green, MD, of the UCSF Departments of Neurology and Ophthalmology and the Weill Institute for Neurosciences. Dr. Green and his colleagues said the results call attention to a possible weakness in current B12 guidelines. The minimum threshold used to define deficiency may not capture early functional changes in the nervous system.

“Previous studies that defined healthy amounts of B12 may have missed subtle functional manifestations of high or low levels that can affect people without causing overt symptoms,” said Dr. Green, noting that clear deficiencies of the vitamin are commonly associated with a type of anemia. “Revisiting the definition of B12 deficiency to incorporate functional biomarkers could lead to earlier intervention and prevention of cognitive decline.”

The findings suggest that low but technically normal B12 could have broader effects than previously recognized. These levels could “impact cognition to a greater extent than what we previously thought and may affect a much larger proportion of the population than we realize,” said co-first author Alexandra Beaudry-Richard, MSc, who is currently completing her doctorate in research and medicine at the UCSF Department of Neurology and the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Ottawa.

“In addition to redefining B12 deficiency, clinicians should consider supplementation in older patients with neurological symptoms even if their levels are within normal limits,” she said. “Ultimately, we need to invest in more research about the underlying biology of B12 insufficiency, since it may be a preventable cause of cognitive decline.”

The UCSF findings do not prove that lower active B12 directly causes cognitive decline, and they do not mean every older adult should begin taking supplements without medical guidance. They do, however, suggest that the current definition of B12 deficiency may be too blunt for brain health.

Fitness Flash

The Benefits of 30 Minutes of Weekly Exercise

Current health recommendations suggest exercising for at least 2.5 hours each week, with 5 hours considered even better. For many people, that target can seem overwhelming. Here’s music to their ears: According to researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), you may not need hours at the gym to boost your health after all. Studies from the past two decades suggest that just 30 minutes of high-intensity exercise per week can improve health. That works out to roughly 4.3 minutes per day or about 10 minutes every other day.

The important part is intensity. The activity needs to be strenuous enough to leave you noticeably out of breath. If you use a heart rate monitor, researchers say your heart rate should reach about 85 percent of your maximum. However, special equipment is not necessary. A simple way to judge intensity is by how difficult it is to talk. You should still be able to speak in short sentences, but you should not be able to sing or carry on a continuous conversation comfortably.

“The biggest reported challenge regarding exercise is lack of time. But with intense, short workouts, this is no longer a valid excuse,” said Ulrik Wisløff, a professor at NTNU and head of CERG, a research group that studies the health effects of exercise. Researchers say even a small amount of high-intensity activity can improve cardiovascular fitness, which plays a major role in long-term health. “Cardiovascular fitness is the best indicator of current and future health. Good cardio fitness reduces the risk of over 30 lifestyle diseases as well as premature death by 40 to 50 percent,” explained Wisløff.

CERG first documented these effects in a 2006 study that analyzed health information from 60,000 people. Since then, additional large studies from Norway and other countries have reported similar findings.

Rather than doing one intense 30-minute workout each week, it’s best to spread out the sessions, said Wisløff. Blood pressure and blood sugar control improve for 24 to 48 hours after a workout that pushes you hard enough to become breathless for several minutes. Because of these short-term benefits, divide exercise across two to four days per week whenever possible.

That does not necessarily mean sprinting at full speed or using the highest resistance setting on an exercise bike. “Your own personal fitness level determines what gives you a high heart rate,” Wisløff said. “If you are not very fit, simply taking a brisk walk may be enough. Having said that, you need to walk fast enough that you get quite out of breath. You can then increase the intensity as your fitness improves. Short intervals are effective. For example, this could be bursts of 45 seconds with 15-second breaks. Or like in Tabata workouts, with intense 20-second intervals interspersed with 10-second breaks. Otherwise, 4×4 intervals are recognized as highly effective for increasing oxygen uptake.”

“Fitness is something you have to maintain. Cardio fitness and strength decline quickly when not maintained, especially as you get older,” said Atefe R. Tari, PhD, a researcher and head of CERG’s initiative on exercise and brain health. Strength training is also considered important, particularly for middle-aged and older adults. “We know that strength training is important, especially for middle-aged and older adults. There is limited research on how strength training affects lifespan, but a HUNT study exploring this is due to be published soon,” said Wisløff. “Physical health and brain health are closely linked, and cardio fitness is key here as well. Exercise leads to the formation of new brain cells,” added Dr. Tari.

Wisløff and Tari are now encouraging Norwegian health authorities to revise the country’s official exercise recommendations, arguing that exercise intensity should receive greater emphasis.

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Cheesy Onion Wraps

Posted on June 17, 2026June 17, 2026 by The Olive Oil Hunter

Looking for a grain-free wrap to replace pitas or tortillas? This sheet pan hack is so flavorful you may never go back! It gets its goodness from sweet onions and salty Parmigiano-Reggiano. You can also cut the cooked sheet into shapes to top burgers or enjoy on their own as snacks. Bookmark this one for next autumn: Cut into rounds to make delicious toppers for French onion soup (use any sweet onion when Vidalias are out of season).

Ingredients

8 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 large Vidalia onion, about 16 ounces
Extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons garlic powder

Directions

Step 1

Preheat your oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed sheet pan with heat-resistant parchment paper. Shred the cheese and the onion using the medium shredding blade of a food processor or the large hole side of a hand grater (there’s no need to rinse the grater between the cheese and the onion). Toss the cheese and onions well, then spread out in an even layer on the prepared pan. Drizzle generously with olive oil and sprinkle with the salt and garlic powder. Bake for 20 minutes or until the onions and cheese have browned. It will be bubbly when you take it out of the oven.

Step 2

Allow to cool to room temperature to crisp up, about 20 minutes. Then cut into thirds for sandwich wraps and fill as desired.

Makes 3 wraps