Tag: healthy

Coconut, Ginger and Lime biscuits

Today I’m sharing a biscuit recipe using coconut flour.

In my last post I wrote about the health benefits of using coconut flour in cooking. I had previously made a coconut flour shortbread using a paleo recipe I had.

Let’s just say the result was not great. So I went in search of a new recipe to play with.

Here it is.

 Coconut, Ginger and Lime biscuits.

Makes 12 to 15

You could swap out the ginger and lime for other dried fruits such as raisins or apricots, if ginger is not your thing.
 Ingredients

1/3 cup coconut flour

1 tbsp desiccated coconut

zest of ½ lime

30 gms chopped naked ginger (un-crystallised)

45 gms melted butter

¼ cup honey

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Method

Preheat the oven to 170’c

  • Mix together the coconut flour, lime zest, salt, coconut
  • Add the melted butter, vanilla and honey and mix well
  • Then add the eggs and continue to stir the mixture till it becomes thick.
  • Now add in the ginger, making sure the pieces are evenly distributed through the mix.
  • Using a spoon, portion out the mix onto a lined baking tray. (I used my ½ tbsp. scoop) and press into shape.
  • Place the tray in the center of your oven and bake for about 15 to 18 minutes until the biscuits start to turn a nice golden colour.
  • Place on a rack to cool.

I made this recipe twice to work out the best way to bake the biscuits. The first batch I made was a thicker cookie style and baked for 15 minutes at 180’c. The second batch I made thinner and cooked them at 170’c for 18 min. Both batches resulted in a soft textured biscuit.

If you like coconut and ginger, have a go at baking these. They are a healthy biscuit treat full of good fibre and beneficial ginger.

I hope you enjoy them.

Till the next post,

 Live clean n prosper

Passion fruit & a great recipe

Todays post is about Passion fruit. We have a very healthy passion fruit vine on a shared fence at the moment, so we have a good supply of fruit.

I really like passion fruit, though not always with the seeds. It is also a good source of nutrients, especially fibre, and vitamins C and A. So I decided to make some nectar.

After harvesting a dozen fruit off the vine, which were all ready to eat. I put the pulp from all of the fruit into the blender and pulsed it for a couple of seconds. To seperate the seeds, I then put the mixture in a sieve over a bowl and rubbed the nectar through the sieve to remove the seeds. This made approximately 250 ml of passion fruit nectar. The nectar is really versatile; you can mix it with soda water for a refreshing drink of pour it over ice cream.

I decided to make a really easy Chia Mousse. Something healthy enough to have for breakfast and yummy enough to eat for dessert.

 Passion fruit Coconut Chia Mousse

serves 1

  • 70 ml Coconut Cream
  • 60 ml milk or water (or non dairy milk)
  • 3 tablespoons Passion fruit nectar
  • ¼ cup Chia seeds

Just mix all of the ingredients together, pour into a glass and refrigerate till set. (approx. 1hr)

Top with the pulp of 1 passion fruit.

 The passion fruit health profile.

Passion fruit is a beneficial fruit. It contains high levels of vitamin A, vitamin C, Beta-carotene, Magnesium, Iron, Potassium, Phosphorus, Niacin, and approximately 2 grams of fibre.

It’s also rich in beneficial plant compounds, including antioxidants such as carotenoids and polyphenols. In fact, one analysis found that passion fruit was richer in polyphenols than many other tropical fruits.

Polyphenols are plant compounds that have a range of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. This means they may protect against chronic inflammation and diseases like heart disease and cancer.

Antioxidants play a vital role in keeping the body systems healthy. Scientists know that antioxidants improve blood flow, specifically to the brain and nervous system.

Beta-carotene is also an important antioxidant. In your body, it is converted to vitamin A, which is essential for preserving good eyesight.

Our body doesn’t usually absorb iron from plants very well. However, the iron in passion fruit comes with a lot of vitamin C, which is known to enhance iron’s absorption.

Vitamin C is an important antioxidant that you need to get from your diet. It helps support a healthy immune system and healthy ageing.

For such a small fruit, passion fruit is packed with nutrients that our body needs.

 The Chia seeds

I have written before that Chia can be considered a legitimate super food because of its nutrient content. The seeds are full of healthful omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids; they have high levels of protein, fibre, and no cholesterol. They also contain several minerals in significant amounts, including calcium, phosphorous, potassium, zinc, copper, and manganese.

 So for a super easy, very nutritious snack, give this recipe a try.

 Till the next post,

 Live clean n prosper.

Green Banana Flour

This week’s post is about Green Banana flour.

It’s relatively new to Australia, but it’s already getting a lot of attention due to its many health benefits.

What is it?

Banana flour is a powder made from un-ripe (green) bananas. Historically, banana flour has been used in Africa and Jamaica as early as the 1900’s, as a cheaper alternative to wheat flour. The flour is generally produced using green bananas that are peeled, chopped, dried, and then ground.

Is Banana flour healthy?

The flour is gluten free, high in potassium, magnesium, dietary fibre and vitamin E. It is now often used as a gluten-free replacement for wheat flours. It is also one of the richest sources of resistance starch in the world.

However, not all resistant starches are made equal. Of the handful of foods that contain resistant starch, the quantity is low and it can be destroyed through cooking or it comes from genetically modified sources. The cooking process does not destroy the resistant starch in the banana flour.

In 2013 Robert Watkins, a Queensland Banana Farmer, discovered the richest source of resistant starch in a variety of bananas known as Lady Fingers. While regular bananas (they must be green) consumed by the mass market such as Cavendish still contain resistant starch, they only contain approximately half the amount found in Lady Fingers.

The starchy unripe Lady Finger bananas are also low in sugar. As a result, the milled flour can help people better control their blood glucose. It also provides a range of digestive benefits, making it a powerful new gut health ingredient. Nutritional studies in the area of resistant starches have revealed enzyme-resistant starches produce important metabolites in the colon. These metabolites appear to have important biological effects, which can lead to improved physical and mental health.

Health benefits

The flour contains 3 different fibres

– Resistant starch, a fermentable fibre
– Inulin, soluble fibre and
– Dietary Fibre or insoluble fibre

These fibres work like a prebiotic. When the fibres enter your digestive system they encourage production of digestive enzymes that nourish the good gut bacteria and in turn heals your gut.

These fibres also increase the absorption and capacity of antioxidants and minerals. They improve colon health and aide in the prevention of colon cancer. Together the fibres also aide in the treatment of diabetes, lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels, a well as reduce the incidence of gallstones.
Resistant starch can also assist with weight loss, as you feel quite full after consuming a small amount. Resistant Starch in this form also increases metabolism and removes aflatoxins and inflammation. (Sources – www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov www.naturalevolutionfoods.com.au www.wikipedia.org   www.thesourcebulkfoods.com.au )

Repurposed “waste”

There is approximately 500 tonne of Lady Finger bananas going to waste every week in Australia. This is due to being considered ‘unsuitable’ according to supermarket guidelines. The fruit are perfectly good for eating and packed full of nutrients yet “unwanted” by the supermarket giants because they were too straight, too bendy, too big or too small.

Rather than disposing of the tonnes of “waste” bananas, Robert Watkins developed a manufacturing process to turn the bananas into flour.

What began as a purpose and use for tonnes of wasted bananas each week has evolved into a new market for all growers. Mr Watkins is continuing to research how the nutrient dense green bananas can be utilised in different ways.

It’s fantastic to see how one farmer can have such a positive impact on a whole industry.

Till the next post,

Live clean n prosper