Prickly Pear is very high in Magnesium...

  
   
 
 


The prickly pear's flavour is like a tart raspberry. The blossoms of the bud make a good wine. Pick the fruit with heavy leather gloves using a sharp knife to cut the pear from the cactus. Wash them and burn the spines  off. Then peel them for the soft red fruit flesh inside. It can be eaten raw or cooked.

 
 
   
 
 
 
   
 


Compared to other fruits and vegetables the prickly pear is very high in Magnesium at 85mg/100g. The seeds are very hard and can break your teeth. The sap of the same plant can be used as a rennet to make the solids in the milk separate from the liquids so it can be made into cheese. The sap can also be mixed with clay for plastering in natural homes.

Just as the asparagus can give a strange odour to your urine, eating ripe prickly pear fruits can turn urine slightly red. Juice from the fruit can made into jelly. You can find a comprehensive introduction to the prickly pear at Eat the Weeds and watch this video from Tony Nester at Ancient Pathways about harvesting and cooking prickly pears.