Tired? Eat figs!

My food guru, Dr. Michael Greger says this about fig consumption for fatique:

In search of some of the most nutrient-dense foods in existence, chemists at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania started looking at dried fruit. Since 90% of a fruit's weight is water, they figured that dried fruit might be ten times more nutritious by weight than fresh. Well, it didn't quite work out that way. The drying process destroyed about 80% of the chief antioxidant compounds, but, given that the nutrition in dried fruit is ten times more concentrated, dried fruits did still come out ahead, finishing out with about 10% more antioxidant content than fresh (by weight). And with all the fiber and minerals intact, dried fruit did test out to be little nutrition powerhouses.

A new study out of Korea just found that the antioxidant boost provided by fruit consumption only seems to last about 2 hours.[13] So carrying around some trail mix is a convenient way to make sure your body is constantly flooded with antioxidants throughout the day. Which dried fruits are the best? Of the six fruits tested--apricots, cranberries, dates, figs, raisins and plums--shooting to a surprise finish at number one was... figs! (OK, OK, the study was paid for in part by the California Fig Advisory Board, but still...).

Aren't dried fruits packed with concentrated sugars though? And isn't sugar a pro-oxidant? Well, yes, but dried (and fresh) fruits are so packed with antioxidants that not only do they successfully counter the potential detriment of their own sugar, they are powerful enough to take on a can of Coke, too. When you drink a dozen spoonfuls of sugar in a soft drink (aka "liquid candy"), the antioxidant capacity of your blood drops dramatically as your body starts using up its antioxidant stores to deal with the oxidant stress caused by all that sugar. Well what if you doubled the amount of sugar you ingested by drinking a cup of soda with a serving of dried figs on top? Even the high fructose corn syrup in the soda is no match for the antioxidant power of fruit. Despite the double sugar load, subjects washing down their figs with soda still experienced an overall rise in antioxidant levels in their bloodstream.[14] No, that doesn't mean you can eat or drink all the candy you want as long as you pop a few raisins. Stick with the fruit.

In addition to having the highest antioxidant content among the six fruits tested, of the thousands of whole foods in the USDA nutrient database, figs make the top ten for fiber content.

(For the curious, the top five are #1. Cloud ear mushrooms (the number one fiber-containing whole food on the planet and I've never even heard of it?), #2. Flax seeds (I've heard of those), #3. Sesame seeds, #4. Dried unsweetened coconut, and #5. Air-popped popcorn).

And fiber consumption, according a new review, may help boost energy levels.[15] Half the fiber we swallow is eaten by the good bacteria in our colon. Our colonic comrades ferment the fiber we eat into short-chain fatty acids, which our body then absorbs and sends straight to our muscles to be used as a ready fuel source. Of course, another byproduct of this fermentation product is gas, some of which is absorbed by other bacteria to produce even more fuel for us, but the rest of which is indeed excreted. Maybe a more appropriate title would be Fight Fatigue with Fig Farts.

The Latest Food Deception

You've seen all the bruhaha of late..."Chocolate is beneficial to our diet"....right? Food gurus all over the place are now espousing claims that it has become now a magical treat because of its health and wellness benefits which can affect our body and mood in the most profound ways. We heard in the news that dark chocolate has super antioxidant powers and that cacao, the source of chocolate has also antibacterial agents that may reduce tooth decay. Reports go further to say that the smell of chocolate can actually increase brain waves and help relax the body, and maybe those were some of the reasons why cacao and chocolates are now being used in the upscale spas and beauty salons for body scrubs....blah...blah....blah.....

What these news reports are NOT telling you is that the main health benefits come from the raw cocoa powder BEFORE it is infused with all that refined white sugar.

Dark chocolate -- not white chocolate and not milk chocolate -- lowers high blood pressure, say Dirk Taubert, MD, PhD, and colleagues at the University of Cologne, Germany. Their report appears in the Aug. 27 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association.

But that's no license to go on a chocolate binge. Eating more dark chocolate can help lower blood pressure -- if you've reached a certain age and have mild high blood pressure, say the researchers. But you have to balance the extra calories by eating less of other things.

Antioxidants in Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate -- but not milk chocolate or dark chocolate eaten with milk -- is a potent antioxidant, report Mauro Serafini, PhD, of Italy's National Institute for Food and Nutrition Research in Rome, and colleagues. Their report appears in the Aug. 28 issue of Nature. Antioxidants gobble up free radicals, destructive molecules that are implicated in heart disease and other ailments.

"Our findings indicate that milk may interfere with the absorption of antioxidants from chocolate ... and may therefore negate the potential health benefits that can be derived from eating moderate amounts of dark chocolate."

Translation: Say "Dark, please," when ordering at the chocolate counter. Don't even think of washing it down with milk. And if health is your excuse for eating chocolate, remember the word "moderate" as you nibble.

Stacy Alexander's Spring Garden Puree

This Spring Garden Puree is a nice twist on pesto. It can be added to pizza as a base ingredient or used in any kind of pasta dish for a fresh, bright spring garden flavor:

Here is what you'll need:

1 lb organic asparagus, ends discarded, and chopped into 3-inch lengths

1 lb organic green beans, halved, ends removed and discarded

1 cup frozen English peas (the smaller the better)

1 cup slivered pecans, walnuts or almonds

3 garlic cloves(or more)

1 cup loosely packed Italian parsley

4 scallions, green parts only, coarsely chopped

2.5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 juice of 1/2 large lemon + 1 tsp lemon zest

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1 lb extra firm tofu drained and pressed

1 cup chopped basil leaves

Here's how to make it!

1. Have ready a large bowl of ice water.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

3. Add the asparagus and green beans; boil for 2-3 minutes. Add the frozen peas and boil for 2-3 more minutes.

4. Drain vegetables and submerge in the ice water to stop the cooking.

5. Pulse the nuts to a fine powder in coffee grinder or blender
   

6. Add the vegetables, garlic, parsley, scallions, olive oil, lemon juice, and nutmeg; puree until smooth, adding small amounts of water as needed to thin.
   

7. In a large bowl, mash the tofu with a potato masher or hand held immersion blender until it has a ricotta cheese-like consistency.
   

8. Add the puree and mix well.

9. Fold in the basil.

10. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

My take on flax seed and a Pina Colada Smoothie recipe!

When my husband and I took a vegan nutrition course a few years ago, the benefits of flax seeds couldn't have been emphasized more. What a lot of people don't realize, according to our instructor, is how quickly the flax seed oil deteriorates. She recommended that rather than purchase expensive flax seed oil in liquid or capsule form, we should simply buy the inexpensive raw flax seeds that are sold in the bulk produce section of most natural foods stores. Using a coffee grinder, we were told to grind a week's worth (according to recommended dosages for our body weight and height) and to keep these in an airtight container in the freezer.

The flax seed has its own protective coating and if you fail to grind it up prior to ingestion, it will simply pass through your body without bestowing any of its many health benefits. The nutrients in flax seeds also weaken when they're heated, so buying hot cereal that has flax seed in it is kind of a moot point. Sprinkle them on your cold cereal or stir them into your yoghurt. You can also put them in smoothies or juice.

The seeds can be stored in a plastic bag at room temperature or in a glass jar or other airtight container for up to several months as long as they are not ground. After they are ground, into the freezer they should go.

Flax seeds are most sought after because of their high content of alpha linolenic acids. Alpha linolenic acid is a type of plant-derived omega 3 fatty acid, similar to those found in fish such as salmon. Benefits of flax seed as shown in many studies include lowering total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol (the Bad cholesterol) levels. Other benefits show that flax seed may also help lower blood triglyceride and blood pressure. It may also keep platelets from becoming sticky therefore reducing the risk of a heart attack. I found that an added benefit is that my hair gets nice and shiny when I take flax seeds on a regular basis, and that my nails are strong and skin clearer.


Aside from alpha linolenic acid, flax seed is rich in lignan. Lignan is a type phytoestrogen (antioxidant) and also provides fiber. Researches reveal that lignan in flax seed shows a lot of promise in fighting disease -- including a possible role in cancer prevention especially breast cancer. It is thought that lignan metabolites can bind to estrogen receptors, hence inhibiting the onset of estrogen-stimulated breast cancer.

Recent studies also showed positive benefits of flax seed oil in IBD (Crohn's Disease and Colitis). Flax seed oil seems to be able to heal the inner lining of the inflamed intestines.

Nothing in this blog is medical advice, ok? If you're sick...see a doc.


Stacy Alexander's Pina Colada Smoothie

Toss these ingredients in a blender with some ice:

1 banana
2 C. almond milk
1 T. ground flax seed (fresh)
1/2 C. coconut milk
1/8 C. almonds
1/2 C. fresh pineapple

Blend until ice is slush-like. Add more almond milk if mixture is too thick.

Pour into chilled glass and enjoy! Ahhhhhh!

Cooookies!!!

Who doesn't love cookies? I do...but most store bought varieties are filled with partially hydrogenated oils and other ingredients that I don't want to put into my body. I have a tasty little cookie recipe for you here, however, that doesn't do so much damage. They have olive oil in them as well as other wholesome additions like chopped almonds and they taste really good!

Stacy Alexander's Almond Sesame Drops

Ingredients:
3/4 cup whole-grain pastry flour (wheat, spelt, brown rice...any flour you want)

3/4 cup unbleached white flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup organic sesame seeds, toasted

3/4 cup raw almonds, coarsely chopped

4 ounces soft Silken-brand or Trader Joe's brand tofu

1/2 cup light olive oil

3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed (I like the sugar from Madagascar)

1 tablespoon almond extract

seeds from 1 vanilla bean

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a bowl, stir together the flours, baking powder, and salt. Mix in the sesame seeds and chopped almonds.

3. In another bowl, mash the tofu and combine with the olive oil, sugar, vanilla bean seeds, cinnamon, and almond extract. Mix well.

4. Using a rubber spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the flour mixture. Roll the mixture into one-inch balls, flatten between your palms, and place them on ungreased baking sheets. Bake the cookies about 10 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Remove from the cookie sheet and cool on a rack.

Nutritional Information:

Per serving:
86 calories
6 g total fat (1 g sat)
0 mg cholesterol
7 g carbohydrate
1 g protein
1 g fiber

Living on the edge of veganism

Fact is, I'd love to be a vegan...but I'm not. This means that despite my efforts, I will occasionally eat cheese or yogurt or cottage cheese. ...not every day...but sometimes. So shoot me. Most of the time, I don't. I substitute almond or soy milk for cow's milk. I eat soy yogurt most of the time.....so I say I live on the edge of veganism but am not quite there.

I don't eat meat.

Most of the recipes published herein will be vegan. I will try to list nutritional content when I have it.

There will be some product and restaurant reviews, cooking tips.....You get the picture.

Welcome!