If we vegans get tired of talking protein, we can always switch the subject to iron. One of my favourite ways to ensure I get a good amount of iron is by drinking blackstrap molasses (stir a teaspoon or two into a cup of warm water).
This by-product of sugar cane processing is also packed full of other nutrients that are beneficial, no matter your diet of choice.
Check out some of these health-boosting benefits:
• As many a meat eater may tell you, animal meat is loaded with iron. What they likely won’t mention is that blackstrap molasses provides more iron for less calories and is totally fat-free.
• When you’re pregnant or menstruating your need for iron increases. Two teaspoons a day gives about 15 per cent of the daily recommended iron intake. Add raw green to your diet to really pump up your iron.
• Blackstrap molasses is a great source of calcium. Calcium is essential to life (and doesn’t come from cows milk as the marketing hype suggests). I recently heard that, besides strengthening bones, calcium binds and removes toxins from the colon and helps with prevention of migraine attacks.
• It’s also an excellent source of copper and manganese and a great source of potassium and magnesium.
My blackstrap molasses of choice is from Wholesome Sweeteners. It’s fair trade, organic and of course, vegan.
If drinking molasses isn’t your thing, check out these delish-looking gingerbread cakes from fab recipe site Vegan Yum Yum, just in time for Christmas. When I make my batch, I’m going to substitute crushed flax instead of the egg replacer. I’m also not into margarine, so will check out some more natural vegan alternatives.
Gingerbread Cakes
Makes 9 small layer cakes
2 Cups Flour
2 tsp Ginger
2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1 Cup Molasses (unsulphured, like Grandma’s brand)
2/3 Cup Hot Water
1/2 Cup Earth Balance Margarine
1/2 Cup Sugar
1 Ener-g Egg, optional
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
8 oz Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
1/4 Cup Earth Balance Margarine
1 lb Confectioner’s Sugar
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Zest from 1 Lemon
Preheat oven to 350º F.
Mix the flour, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl until well combined.
Prepare two 8×8 baking pans as follows: grease the pans with margarine. Lay a square of parchment paper down in the inside of the pans, cut to fit the bottoms. Grease the paper as well. Use some of the try mixture you just made to flour the pans, shaking/tapping out any extra.
Whisk molasses and hot water together.
Cream the margarine and sugar. Whip the mixture with the optional Ener-g egg until light and fluffy.
If heaven was a food, it would be a young coconut. This heavenly gift of nature is top of my favourite foods/drinks list, not only because it tastes godly, but because it’s so darn good for you.
It took some detective work to find them in Auckland, but now I have, I’m one happy girl.
Toss aside your man made energy drinks folks, because this nut from nature is one of the highest sources of electrolytes known to man. It also works as a natural filter, taking nine months to produce each litre of water. The water is identical to human blood plasma, which makes up more than 50 per cent of your blood. How’s that for an instant blood transfusion?
The meat is soft and can be scooped out after you’ve finished the water. I love to throw both in blender for an instant coconut smoothie. So. Good.
Intrigued? Find out more right here.
Photo courtesy of Nadyala.com
Remember the food pyramid we were taught to memorise to ensure we got the right amounts of the right foods for good health? Well, as you may or may not know, that popular pin-up was influenced heavily by the dairy and meat industries. The goal of the chart was to generate big business, not optimal health.
But it’s not all bad news. Health Ranger Mike Adams has developed a guide that’s free from food industry corruption. It lists all the foods that will do a body good, and all those that will cause disease. It’s simple to navigate and it’s free to download.
One point worth mentioning is that the chart does list soy as a “good food”, which it’s not unless it’s fermented. You heard it right, tofu isn’t good for you, nor is soy milk. Most soy is genetically modified and, according to Dr Mercola, it stops the body from digesting protein. It also impairs thyroid function. Find out more about the evils of soy in the video below:
I recently discovered Dr Michael Klapper, a doc who really knows his stuff when it comes to nutrition — and what the body does and doesn’t need to survive (and thrive).
He believes strongly that proper nutrition and a balanced lifestyle are essential for health, rather than merely treating the symptoms when someone becomes ill.
Check out this video, from the doctor himself, that’s packed with information, insights and the truth about foods we eat that are killing us. You can also find out more about him here.
