Category Archives: Quick Healthy Recipes

Nut Milk, Quick Healthy Recipes

Nut Milk – Healthy Alternative to Dairy

How To Make Nut Milk At Home

Looking for a healthy alternative to using milk for your morning cereal or add to your coffee?

Nut “milk” is super healthy, dairy-free and easy to make.

Almond is commonly used for making nut milk as it tastes great and it is alkalizing.

I take any nuts that I have at hand (almonds, brazil nuts, cashews, pistachios, brazil nuts, pecans, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts etc.)IMG_5908

Soaking nuts is important as it starts the sprouting process and make their full nutritional potential available.  Soaking also releases enzyme inhibitors making the nuts digestible.

Most nuts generally require 8 to 12 hours of soaking (see below for exact timing).

Nut milks usually keep in the refrigerator for 2 to 4 days. You can experiment by adding cacao, cinnamon, vanilla extract (all optional).

Nut Milk Recipe

  • 1 cup of soaked almonds or mixture of any nuts that you have at hand
  • Pinch of salt
  • 3 cups of filtered water
  • 3-4 dates or honey (optional)
  • 1 tsp natural vanilla extract or powder (optional)

Steps

  1. Combine nuts, dates, salt and water in a blender and blend for few minutes.
  2. Strain through a cheesecloth or fine sieve into a large bowl.

Use it as you would use the “normal” milk: in your cereal, coffee, tea or drink it plain. Store in a glass jar in the refrigerator for up to four days.

Soaking Time for Raw Nuts

    • 2 hours (sunflower, cashews)
    • 8 hours (almonds, sesame, pumpkin, flax)
    • 4-6 hours (pecans, walnuts and all other nuts)
    • no soaking required (brazil, macadamia, pine and pistachio)
Coconut Oil, Ghee, Healthy Food Essentials, Healthy Oils and Fats

Healthy Oils/Fats

Oils and Fats Explained

Omega-3 vs. Omega-6 

Butter 800Modern Western diets typically have ratios of omega−6 to omega−3 in excess of 10 to 1, some as high as 30 to 1. The imbalance in the omega-3 and 6 ratio is associated with many health issues.  

We need omega-3 fatty acids for numerous body functions, such as controlling blood clotting and building cell membranes in the brain.  Note that omega-3 fats are necessary for the complete development of the human brain during pregnancy.

On the other hand, vegetable oils like corn, soy, sunflower, canola are rich in omega-6 oils and shouldn’t  be used for cooking.

How Best To Ensure Omega-3 Intake?

Since our bodies cannot make omega-3 fats, we must obtain them through food.

Many nutrition experts believe we need at least 4% of the total calories (approximately 4 grams) as omega-3 fats.

Flaxseeds and walnuts would be at the top of the omega-3 rich foods list. 40 grams of flaxseeds (1/4 cup) contain about 6 grams of omega-3 fatty acids. 40 of walnuts contain around 4 grams (1/4 cup of walnuts is around 3 grams)

Beans, fish, winter squash and olive oil are other important sources.

Frying Oxidizes the Oils and Damages Omega-3

Frying destroys the antioxidants and oxidizes the oils.

As the oil is heated and mixed with oxygen, it becomes rancid (oxidized) and should not be consumed as it leads directly to heart disease.

The best is to stay away from frying. Even frying fish and frying with olive oil will damage the omega-3s.

Olive Oil – Great for Salads, Not Great For Cooking

Olive oil is one of those miraculous  gifts of nature.  Extra virgin olive oil is considered by many as one of the healthiest fats on Earth. Real “extra virgin” olive oil is 100% natural and very high in antioxidants. Many of the lower quality olive oils have been processed and adulterated with cheaper oils.

However,  olive oil is extremely “fragile” and need to be carefully stored and handled with care.

Olive oil is best to be consumed in when not heated. Olive oil is not the best oil to cook with as cooking makes it prone to oxidative damage.  Also the olive oil go rancid quickly.

Tip: To help protect extra virgin olive oil from oxidation, you may add one drop of astaxanthin or lutein (by piercing and squeezing the gellule). Astaxanthin or lutein cause oil to turn red or orange so once when the color fades, the oil should be thrown away.

Another good strategy is to keep olive oil at the dark place and buy smaller quantities.

Butter is Healthy!

Butter is a great source of vitamin A, (D, E and K2), which are often lacking in the urban diet. It also contains minerals like selenium, it is good source of iodine, fatty acids, contains a perfect balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fats and many other benefits.

However, not all butter is created equal, and you need to take care to buy the butter made from raw, unpasteurized, organic milk.  

Avoid Margarine, Butter-Mimicking Products and “Cholesterol-Free” Cooking Fats

Margarine and all other butter-mimicking foods including “cholesterol-free” advertised cooking fats should be avoided at any cost.

There is a myriad of unhealthy components in margarine and the likes including trans fats (unnatural fats that contribute to heart disease, cancer), free radicals (linked to cancer), emulsifiers, preservatives, bleach, additives and many, many others.

Key Things to Remember

  • Take care of your omega-3 fatty acid intake.  Adding some flaxseed and walnuts would be the easiest way to go about it. ghee 4
  • For cooking and baking the best is to use exclusively coconut oil or ghee.
  • Consume, but do not heat other healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil and butter (from raw, organic milk). Avocados,  egg yolks are additional sources of healthy fats.
  • Stay away from margarine and “butter-mimicking” foods including “cholesterol-free” advertised cooking fats.

Sources and Credits

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/12/07/why-is-butter-better.aspx

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=75

Father Zago's Aloe Detox, Natural Remedies & Cures, Quick Healthy Recipes

Father Zago’s Aloe Detox Syrup For Reversing Cancer

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father zagoFather Romano Zago is a Franciscan friar, born in Brasil in 1932. In 1991 he was sent to Israel where he discovered the healing power of the aloe plant, used by poor people to treat cancer and other diseases.

The recipe (blended mixture of aloe, raw honey and grappa) is designed to detoxify the body and support the immune system. It nourishes and rejuvenates the body and cleanses away toxins.

Father Zago explain variations and details on the preparation and use of the syrup in his book Cancer Can Be Cured.

    • 300-400 grams of fresh Aloe arborescens leaves (4 to 5 years old)
    • 500 grams of pure raw organic honey (acacia)
    • 5-6 tablespoons of grappa, rum, whisky or similar alcohol

Wash the Aloe leaves, remove the thorns and cut into pieces. Put everything in the blender and mix for 2 to 3 minutes.

Keep the syrup refrigerated and in the dark. Shake before use. The dosage is of a tablespoon of the mixture half an hour before the three main meals.

Some side effects reported are skin rashes, diarrhea and sometimes vomiting; however these effects, according to Father Romano, indicate the road to recovery.

In case you can’t find Aloe arborescens, Aloe vera can be used as a substitute however Aloe arborescens is much more effective.

Aloe