The Many Forms And Uses of Garlic

Garlic has been used as both a medicine and a spice for thousands of years starting as early as 3,000 b.c. Garlic flesh consists of sulfur compounds, amino acids, minerals, such as germanium, selenium, and zinc, and vitamins A, B, and C.

The active chemical in garlic is Allicin. Allicin is also responsible for garlic's odor. The cloves can be eaten raw, cooked, dried, in aromatic oils and vinegars - or in tablets and capsules. Expert herbalists agree that garlic does not have to be eaten raw to be effective. Cooked garlic or various aged extracts and oils can in some cases can provide even more effective.

Garlic's most common uses as a dietary supplement are: to inhibit and kill bacteria, fungi, and parasites, for high cholesterol, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Some studies suggest consuming garlic as a regular part of the diet may lower the risk of certain cancers. However, no clinical trials have examined this.

Preliminary research suggests that taking garlic may slow the development of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), a condition that can lead to heart disease or stroke.

Garlic can thin the blood the same way aspirin does. Use garlic with caution if you are planning to have surgery or dental work, or if you have a bleeding disorder.

Functional foods

Out of various vegetables, fruits, nuts, and whole grains, many are very good for you. But some are better than others and some are so good that not only feed you but can heal and prevent diseases.



When a food is researched well enough and recognized as providing health benefits beyond basic nutrition (being healing and protective) - it is officially put on list of functional foods.



Here's a sample list of official functional foods:



apples

beef

cheese

berries

broccoli

carrots

chocolate

cinnamon

citrus

cocoa

collards

corn

cranberries

cruciferous vegetables (like cabbage and lettuce)

eggs (especially yolk)

flax seeds

garlic

grapes

honey

leeks

fish oils - e.g., sardines for your snack

lamb - e.g., cold cuts

oat

onions

peanuts

pears

psyllium husk - add it to your snack shakes

red grapes

rolled oats - e.g., as oat bars

rye - e.g., as whole rye bread or crackers

salmon

scallions

soy - e.g., soy nuts for your snack

spinach

strawberries

tea

tomatoes

tuna

walnuts

wheat

wheat bran

whole grains

wine

yogurt

Black Peper Is Good For You

Black pepper (Piper nigrum in Latin) contains in large quantities manganese, potassium, fiber, iron, and vitamin C. However, its nutritional quality is not limited to just these four components.

Black pepper improves digestion, prevents heartburn, gas, diarrhea, and constipation. It also promotes sweating and acts as diuretic helping to get read of excessive water accumulated in body tissues.

Black pepper is a potent antioxidant with antibacterial properties and stimulates the breakdown of fat cells.

And don't forget that it's just so good in so many dishes!

The Health Benefits of Carrots

A medium carrot contains 6.19g total carbohydrates and 1.83g fiber making 4.36 effective carb grams. Is this too high for a low car diet? It's now being debated. Carrots is a no-no on Glycemic Index diet due to their fast influence on blood glucose levels.

It's not advised on Atkins induction phase, but can be OK if you stay within your individual carb daily allowance on later phases. It is encouraged on the Zone diet. With just 26.23 Callories of energy, a medium carrot has 343% of Daily Value for Vitamin A - a very potent phytonutrient.

The health benefits of carrots are outstanding. Carrots' antioxidants can protect against heart disease and cancer, promote healthy vision, and prevent night vision problems.

Cooking carrots not only keep the beneficial properties but actually raises them allowing the nutrients enter the bloodstream easier due to the softening of carrot's fiber.

Food Additives: Monoglycerides, Diglycerides, BHT

Food additives are considered safe otherwise they wouldn't be cleared for the use in the processed food industry. Whether or not they are good for you is a different question. Here are the three of most common additives:

Monoglycerides or monoacylglycerols are 'food surfactants' -- substances that are active on the surface -- that are used in food industry to increase product's shelf live and to prevent oils from separating out, like in margarines, low-calorie spreads, peanut butter, etc. They also help making bakery products taste smooth. There's no known indications of their health dangers other than mild individual sensitivity.

Diglycerides are not only safe but there's evidence of their dietary advantage: taken as part of calorie-restricted diet may increase your chances of weight loss, according to a study published in 2002 in the American journal of Clinical Nutrition.

BHT (stands for butylated hydro-toluene) prevents racidity of fats and may also have antiviral and antimicrobial activities. There's no conclusive FDA statements concerning BHT health dangers.

Balanced Reduced Calorie Breakfast Ideas

Counting calories? It's advised that you have about 20% daily calorie allowance for breakfast if you are not on a low carb diet, which can call for much less portion of daily calories for breakfast.

Here are several options for breakfasts. Choose lower-calorie breakfasts if you are going to have more substantial lunch and/or dinner.

-------------
371 Calories:
-------------
1. Puffed rice cereal, 2 cups, with 1 cup skim milk
2. Grapefruit
3. 1 cup Orange juice
4. Coffee with cream

-------------
396 Calories:
-------------
1. 2 Scrambled eggs
2. 4 rings Pineapple
3. 1 cup Orange juice
4. Coffee with cream

-------------
397 Calories:
-------------
1. 1 cup Raisin bran
2. 1/2 cup skim milk
3. Grapefruit
4. 1 cup Orange juice
5. Coffee with cream

-------------
408 Calories:
-------------
1. 2 cups Rice flake cereal
2. 1 cup Skim milk
3. Grapefruit
4. Coffee with cream

-------------
408 Calories:
-------------
1. Scone with 2 tablespoons applesauce
2. 2 slices Cantaloupe
3. 1 cup Orange juice
4. Coffee with cream and sugar, 1 cup

A Low Carb, No Fat Australian Dessert

Pavlova meringue is a very popular dessert in Australia and New Zealand, which was named after Anna Pavlova, the famous Russian ballerina. It's been invented in 1930's by a chef Herbert Sachse. This recipe is modified to reduce calories and carbohydrates. Makes 8 servings, 45 calories, 8 carb grams, zero fat each.

For the cake, take:

4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar substitute
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch

For the topping:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar substitute
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Fresh fruit

Instructions

Beat egg whites with a mixer until whites are firm. Continue beating, gradually adding sugar substitute. Add vanilla and continue beating until mixture is stiff.

Line a baking sheet with parchment. Scoop meringue onto the sheet creating a depression in the center; place in oven and reduce heat to . Bake at 250 F, without opening oven door, 45 minutes. Turn off oven, open door and let cool for 30 minutes. Remove from oven; cool completely. Fill centers of meringues with whipped topping and fruits.

Comfort Foods, Rewards, and Their Alternatives

In the late 50s, the classic experiments by Dr. Olds shook the world. He implanted electrodes into certain regions of rat brains and taught the rats how to press lever to stimulate these regions with weak electric currents. Rats stopped doing anything but pressing the lever till their death from complete starvation. The Positive Reward theory was born. It turned out that anything pleasurable in life did related to these "Centers of Pleasure" -- sex, alcohol, drugs of abuse -- all that mankind has invented in its hedonic journey, were but attempts to stimulate these brain regions. When stimulated, these brain centers cause the release of our body's own morphine-like chemicals, endorphins.

We know that eating will produce a pleasant sensation so often we eat even though all we need is comfort. The truth is, exercise, sauna, cold shower, massage, pleasant odors, and mental efforts - "workoholism "is real! - all increase Endorphin level while only eating, especially when your body does not need it, will cause extra pounds of fat to collect in your body's store.

The tricky thing with endorphins is that there are pairs of releasers resembling a thesaurus' antonyms: exercise does the same os its antonym sleep, pleasure goes together with pain, etc. The eating-fasting pair also exists. Many people reported elation when they skipped breakfasts. Religeous fasters experience euforia.

"Severe food restriction produces endorphin activity, which is reinforcing. Feeding interrupts the endorphin activity and, thus, produces withdrawal. Not-eating, therefore, is rewarding." (Appetite 19:1-13; 1992).

TIPS:

1. Ask yourself "What is it I really need? A glass of water? A walk? A hug?"

2. Try periodic fasts. After resuming eating, your taste buds will be satisfied with lesser taste intensity thus reducing the taste influence on the body weight set point.

3. Try other rewards. Buying fresh flowers can be a better answer than a bowl of Rocky Road. Exercise, go to sauna, take a cold shower, invest in a massage device, buy a vail of perfume, or enjoy reading a book.

The Benefits of Red Wine And Grapes

The phytonutrients in grapes protect our hearts and blood vessels from oxidative damage and atherosclerotic plagues; they also help our arteries stay elastic so that the blood pressure remains under control. These phytonutrients are active in fresh grapes and in wines, especially red wine. However, fresh grapes are very high in carbohydrates while in wine, friendly bacteria work hard to eat the excess sugar up, so dry wine is a low carb product containing only 1.75 carb grams in a wine glass. White grapes are less nutrient-dense than red grapes but still are very good for you. Research show that the beneficial nutrients can not be effectively extracted from grapes to create potent supplements so the broadly advertised grape seed supplements failed competing with real grapes.

European grapes are generally higher in carbohydrates (28.43g in 1 cup) and fiber (1.6g) than the American varieties (respectively 15.78 and 0.98 g) but they are much richer in Vitamin C: 1 cup of grapes contain about 29% of recommended daily volume versus 6% in American grapes.

Kirgizian Lamb Recipe: Beshbarmak

Beshbarmak is meant to be eaten with the hands hence the dish name: Besh is Kirgizian for five, barmak is for finger. Beshbarmak consists of home made noodles, boiled meat, and bouillon poured over the dish. Traditional meat is horse meat, which is now replaced by lamb.

Ingredients:
2 kg lamb with bones (about 4 pounds)
2.5 liter water + 250 ml (250 ml is about 8 ounces)
1 teaspoon salt
3 + 1 onions
1 cup chopped chives
3 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 carrot
3 tablespoons oil
Homemade noodles

Instructions:
Make a rich lamb broth cooking it until meat easily comes off the bones. Remove bones and cut the meat into slices. Cook noodle circles or squires in the broth.

In a heavy skillet, cook vegetables until tender, add the meat, and continue cooking until the onions are golden-brown.

In individual soup bowls, combine the noodles, vegetables and lamb, pour the broth over each serving. Serve very hot.

Italian Greens and Beans Dish

Try this easy but not plain Italian classic salad.



Take:



1 tsp olive oil

1 head escarole

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup chickpeas

2 tsp grated Parmesan cheese



Cook:



Tear escarole into medium pieces. Slightly heat the olive oil with garlic and chickpeas. Add the escarole and continue to heat until the escarole is just warm. Season with Parmesan cheese and dress with olive oil and any spices you like.

The Most Filling Foods and the Satiety Index

Dr. Susanna Holt of the University of Sydney developed a system measuring the duration of filling effects of different foods she called Satiety Index.

The participants were given breakfast, which consisted of 240 Cal. in the form of various foods and were asked to rank their feelings of hunger every 15 minutes for the next two hours.

The resulting list of the foodss rated for their filling effects was huge but to give you an idea, here are a few foods to compare. Note that potato is the absolute champion, not only in this example but among all the thousands of foods tested. The higher the Index, the more filling the food:


potatoes 323
oatmeal 209
oranges 202
apples 197
grapes 162
whole wheat bread 154
lentils 133
bananas 118
french fries 116
white bread 100
chocolate bar 70
croissant 47

The Many Benefits of Peppers

Spicy peppers are good in hot climate because they prevent harmful bacteria, inside the body or even in foods, from over-multiplying, aid in appetite management: can increase poor appetite but decrease unhealthily high one.

Unlike hot peppers, bell peppers are not too spicy because they contain no capsaicin, the chemical that makes other peppers hot. Whether they're green, red, purple, yellow, or orange, bell peppers are rich in vitamins C and A, two powerful antioxidants.

For example, red peppers have three times as much vitamin C as citrus fruit, and they're a great source of beta-carotene, fiber, and vitamin B6 and can help preventing heart and joint diseases and some kinds of tumors.

Embutidos, Low Carb Pork Rolls

Embutidos are Philippines meat (pork) rolls, somewhat similar to meat loaf. Due to this recipe's ingredient set, it is low in carbohydrates and rather high in fat. Here's how to prepare the dish.

2 lbs ground pork
2 eggs, beaten
2 hot dogs, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup sweet pickle relish
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 cup shredded bread
salt
pepper
soy sauce
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 tablespoons powdered milk

Combine all ingredients in a bowl; roll in foil. Steam for 1 hour; let cool. Slice diagonally.

Indian Recipes For People With Thyroid Problem

Thyroid sufferers and experts alike agree that the best way to manage thyroid weight gain is to limit carbohydrate intake. It can be tricky if you eat Indian foods that traditionally are plant-based, with a lot of rice. However, if you keep in mind that you have to cut down on flour and refined carbohydrates, it's possible to cook low carb Indian dishes.

Crispy Okra Salad

1/2 small red onion, sliced
2 small tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
About 8 cups canola oil for frying
1 pound fresh okra, cut lengthwise
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons chaat masala spices

In a heavy pot, heat on medium the oil. Fry okra until golden brown; drain on paper towels. In large mixing bowl, combine okra, onion-tomato mixture, lemon juice, salt, and chaat masala. Toss and serve immediately.

You can also find plenty of Indian recipes on the Net that are suitable for people with thyroid problems, for example:

• Chicken Tikka Masala
• Khatta Meetha Paneer
• Lazeez Bandh

If you use artificial sweeteners, you can cook desserts like Kesar Kulfi or Sandesh.

Which Foods Are Diet Foods?

To define what diet recipes is, we must define what we mean under the term "diet." It can be either a prescribed selection of foods or any type of eating plan -Â the food and drink regularly consumed. In the first case we deal with planning and in the second case we simply describe and in this case any recipe can be a diet recipe.

Of course, intuitively we usually mean the prescribed or chosen selection of foods to eat and avoid. In this case, diet recipe should stay within the outlined set of foods. For example, when following low fat diets, you can not use large amounts of oils, butter, fatty meats, etc. On the other hand, being on a low carb diet means that you cant eat sugar, sweets, white bread, pasta, etc.

There also are many diets that intend to correct certain health conditions like gastric ulcers, kidney or intestinal disorders, etc.

There are two rules common for any meaningful way of eating:

Don't eat calorie dense foods (empty calories) -- which, calorie per calorie, provide little bulk and are poor in nutrients. Example: refined carbohydrates - sugar, white flour, etc.

What's not on your plate matters more than what's on it! Start planning your meals with foods you must eat to insure balanced nutrition: fresh vegetables, good fats (e.g., olive oil and fatty fish) and biologically active "live" foods like yogurt, oatmeal, or berries.

Quinoa Salad: a Healthy Recipe

Quinoa is a high-fiber, high-protein grain. It's available at any grocery, plus it cooks in just minutes and blends nicely with tomatoes and green leafy veggies. Here's how the South Beach Diet advises to make a salad for its Phase 1.

Cook 1/2 cup quinoa in 3/4 cup salted boiling water, let cool, add salt and pepper. Chop the herbs, dice cucumbers, cube tomatoes. Toss.

For the veggie part:

3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 scallions
1 small cucumber
3 tablespoons fresh parsley
2 tablespoons mint
3 large beefsteak tomatoes
2 oz. low fat feta cheese

Lime Juice For Weight Loss?

It's a mystery why all dietitians and nutritionists are absolutely sure that drinking a lot of water is a must if you want to lose weight because there's absolutely no scientific publications supporting this claim. However, it seems to be working for many dieters. How? Perhaps it's not water itself that works but the volumes without calories that keeps your appetite down: it's surprising but the body can be fooled by calorie-free volumes put in its stomach.



Now, where does the lime come in? Maybe it improves the flavor of otherwise the plainest substance in the world making it more palatable: many dieters complain that it's a hard task to stand the recommended 8 tall glasses of water a day.



More interesting possibility is the glycemic index of foods. Studies show that a tablespoon of the juice lowers the glycemic index of the meal by up to 40% thus making a meal less harmful for the people with insulin sensitivity problem. It's not clear whether or not lowering glycemic index can help any people lose weight but it definitely is helpful for those whose excess body fat (mostly around the waistline) is due to impaired blood glucose control.

Spaghetti Squash - A Dieter's Dream

To get the most of spaghetti squash, you might want to choose the orange spaghetti squash also called "Orangetti". It is higher in beta carotene and is in fact a dieter's dream: one-cup serving of cubed spaghetti squash has only 31 calories and less than 5 grams of carbohydrates, is abundant in fibers and phytonutrients, part of them being acknowledged cancer-preventive phytonutrients: some lab studies have shown vegetable juices obtained from squash to be equal to juices made from leeks, pumpkin, and radish in their ability to prevent cancer-risky changes in our body tissue cells.

One of traditional uses of all winter squashs is aimed to promote prostate health. Preliminary research confirmed the benefits of this vegetable in treatment of benign prostatic enlargement.

Beta-carotene has powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and getting enough of beta-carotene with foods may help to prevent atherosclerosis as well as support blood sugar regulation. Research revealed that carotenoids may help with insulin resistance.

The potassium in winter squash may help to lower blood pressure, and the vitamin C may be able to relieve asthma, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

The folate in winter squash prevents some forms of birth defects and helps the body to break down homocysteine, which damage blood vessel walls.

Provence and Provencal Cuisine

Provencal cuisine is famous for using lot of olive oil, tomatoes, eggplant (aubergine) and garlic. A typical sauce is Aioli -- mayonnaise with freshly minced garlic.

Provence's most famous dish is bouillabaisse (a fish soup) made with at least three kinds of fresh fish cooked with onions, tomatoes, saffron, sage and thyme. The most renowned bouillabaisse is made in Marseilles.

For more tips please visit frenchcuisine.lifetips.com

Arugula Nutritional Facts And Health Benefits

Calorie for calorie, arugula (Rocket Greens, Roquette, Rucola) is a nutrient-rich vegetable. It belongs to the dark green leafy vegetables family known for its heart-protective and cancer-protective properties. Here's nutritional low down:

Amount Per 1 cup

Calories 5
Calories from Fat 1.19
Total Fat 0.132g
Sodium 5.4mg
Potassium 73.8mg
Total Carbohydrate 0.73g
Dietary Fiber 0.32g
Protein 0.516g

% of Recommended Daily Value

Vitamin A 9 %
Vitamin C 5 %
Calcium 3 %
Iron 2 %
Riboflavin 1 %
Folate 5 %
Vitamin B-6 1 %
Phosphorus 1 %
Magnesium 2 %
Zinc 1 %
Copper 1 %

Low calorie density foods

Lowering calories in your food can be done differently. One is to take any food you want and eat just a little of it. Another way is to choose foods that, ounce for ounce, contain fewer calories, it's called low calorie density of foods. Strangely as it is, these foods take less calories not only to fill in a bowl but to make you feel full.



A classical example: the same calorie are found in 10 grapes and 10 raisins but the grapes will satisfy your hunger sooner so you consume less calories.



Are lowering calories the best way of dieting? It depends. If you need to use all your willpower to stay on a reduced calorie diet, it most probably will fail. The matter is, feeling hunger makes your body resist your actions and get into the starvation mode where fat burning becomes very difficult and your metabolism goes down leaving you out of energy.



On the other hand, if you feel full faster on a diet of low calorie density foods or if your appetite is reduced to start with, as on a low carbohydrate diet, you most probably will succeed.

Soy Products As Protein Sources

There are many soy products on shelves. Here's a mini-guide for your soy protein shopping.



1. Ready Soy Foods are: soy burgers, hot dogs, sausages, hamburgers, soy cheeses, milk, and soy nuts.



2. Tofu is a kind of soy-milk cheese and goes in different degrees of firmness. Firm tofu is good for salads and stir-fries while soft tofu can be used instead of cream cheese for desserts.



3. Tempeh is made of fermented soy milk. Add it to soups or casseroles and add some exotic flavor to your common dishes.



4. Soy Protein Powder can be also added to practically any dish to increase it protein content.



4. Textured Soy is made of soybean flour and is used instead of ground beef and in ready soy foods.

Buckwheat Kasha and Pancakes. HIgh-iron, Low-gluten Recipes

Buckwheat is high in iron so traditionally, it's used by pregnant women to fight the pregnancy anemia. It's also low in gluten, which makes buckwheat flour especially good for those sensitive to gluten. The simplest recipe is buckwheat hot cereal or kasha. If you buy raw grain, you better dry-fry it on a heavy skillet until golden brown, this'll give your kasha brighter color and chewer texture. For every cup of grain, take 2 cups of hot water. Add salt and a little oil, stir, and bring to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until the grains take most of the water. Cover with pot lid and folded kitchen towel; let stay for 20 minutes.

You might want to use buckwheat flour to bake pancakes. The basic recipe is rather simple. Take:

1/4 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup whole-grain pastry flour
1 teaspoon granular sugar substitute
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt
1 large egg, beaten
1/8 cup Omega-3 or trans-fat-free margarine

Preheat oven to 200°F. Combine buckwheat flour, pastry flour, sugar substitute, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl. Combine yogurt, egg, and margarine. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir. Bake as you bake any pancakes.

Roasted Peppers, Goat Cheese, and Sauteed Broccoli

You can roast bell peppers over the grill turning them frequently with tongs to allow the skins to blister and blacken. Here's how.

When the peppers are charred, remove them from the fire, place for 15 minutes in a plastic bag and loosely tie. Remove from bag and peel off the skins. Remove the core and seeds and cut into strips.

Find an illustrated, step by step instruction on roasting the peppers at allrecipes.com

Roasted peppers are very good on their own or in recipes likes the following:

Roasted Red Peppers with Goat Cheese.

Ingredients

7 roasted red peppers
2 oz prosciutto, very thinly sliced
8 fresh basil leaves
3.5 oz mild, firm goat cheese
1 tsp dried Italian herbs


Instructions

Lay roasted peppers skin side down. Evenly crumble the goat cheese, basil leaves, and the prosciutto over the peppers. Sprinkle with Italian herbs. Serve with sauteed broccoli:

Sauteed Broccoli

1/4 c. olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 diced onion
2 pkgs. frozen broccoli spears
Pinch of basil and oregano
Parmesan cheese to taste

Saute garlic and onion in olive oil until lightly browned. Add frozen broccoli spears, basil and oregano. Stir occasionally on low heat until broccoli is tender. Add a dash more olive oil if needed. Season with Parmesan cheese.

Fruits Allowed On Atkins Diet

Dr. Atkins diet is based on counting carbohydrates and it is advised that you use your allowance wisely: not for sweets but for nutritious foods containing phytonutriens. Such are vegetables, berries, and fruits. The portions matters, of course, because of the carb grams in them.

However, what you eat your fruits with, matters, too! Fibers, protein, and fats (in the form of nuts or heavy cream) when eaten together with fruits, slow down and overall decrease carbohydrate absorption, up to 1.8 times!

From this standpoint, a cup of Raspberries is a worse choice than a cup of Raspberries with half a cup of heavy cream. Also, the more grams of fiber contains your fruit, the less effective carb grams in it.

For example, a halve of grapfruit has 9.5 carb grams but when you subtract 7 fiber grams, this food starts looking very low in carbs - just 2.5 grams! Raspberries have 8.6 effective carb grams in 1-cup serving and a small kivi almost the same amount: 8.4 grams.

The bottom line is: Any fruit is fine, as long as you count carb grams and combine them with nuts, heavy cream, or other fatty food like cheese.

Low Carb Recipes: Banana Bread and Chocolate Cake

You don't have to feel deprived even when you are cutting down on carbohydrates. Just about any recipe can be modified using artificial sweeteners, nut or soy flours, etc. Chocolate itself doesn't contain much carbohydrates and non-sweetened dark cocoa powder is low carb dieter's life saver. But how can one have the distinct flavor of banana without the many carb grams this fruit contain? Here's low carb "banana" nut bread recipe. Makes 12 servings. 6.1 effective carb grams per serving

Ingredients

3 just ripe avocados
1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
1 cup pourable sweetener (Splenda)
2-3 tsp banana extract
5 large eggs
2 cups almond flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Instructions

Cream butter, cream cheese and Splenda together, mixing well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each.

In a separate bowl, mix almond flour with baking powder. Add egg/butter mixture to flour a little at a time while beating.
Add mashed bananas and banana extract. Mix together with walnuts.

Pour into greased 9"-10" pan and bake at 350 F for 1 hour.

Eating Garlic and Onion Together

When you read about health effects of garlic and onions, which are all positive, the only reason imaginable to advise against eating them together can be their ability to irritate stomach and intestinal mucose's membranes. That is, each can be irritating separately but together, the effect can get worse.

Can this apply to hindering one's weight loss? There's no scientific data that proves it being true or being not true.

Healthy Dining in Italian Restaurants

Italian cuisine offer healthy choices because you can have lots of reduced-fat and vegetable-rich options, lots of grains, beans, peas and other legumes, which provide fiber and protein.



Order pasta rather than pizza. Choose red sauces - marinara, Bolognese, red clam, or puttanesca. Avoid Alfredo and primavera unless they serve cream-free varieties. Order antipasto with olives, kidney beans, lettuce, tomatoes, and other vegetables, with fewer cheeses and meats.



Ask to trim fat from poultry or meat and serve salad dressing on the side. Choose dishes that are steamed, broiled, baked, roasted, poached, or sauteed.



Healthy choices are chicken cacciatore, chicken Marsala, biscotti, steamed mussels, clams and other shellfish. Avoid most desserts in Italian restaurants because they usually are very rich.

Produce: fresh, frozen, canned

Of course the best vegetable or fruit is most nutritious when just picked up from the branch, vine, or dug out of soil. This is why natural health proponents insist on choosing local produce in season over transported from who knows where, harvested who know when, maybe even coming their long way from overseas.



Local brands of produce are selected rather for their taste than for their shelf life. In season, on your farmer's market, you can be sure they haven't treated with wax or sulfur for long transportation.



However, things tend to be not-so-perfect. What's next best to fresh local product in season?



Dr. Sears, author of the Zone Diet, prefers them frozen (over canned) which, he says, are "surprisingly nutritious." He explains that manufacturers pick the ripest fruits and veggies and freeze them as soon after harvesting as is possible. In this case, the looks indeed guarantees quality: vitamin, natural pigments, phytonutrients - all are preserved. You can be sure there's no salt and preservatives in your pack of frozen produce, unlike in canned ones.



However, some of the vitamins are being seriously reduced by freezing. For example, 394 % of daily value of Vitamin C in 1 cup of sliced fresh peach becomes 19 % in same amount of frozen peach. On the other hand, many vitamins and minerals content decreases only slightly so you can rely on frozen peach in getting them almost as much as from the fresh fruit. These are:



Calcium

Iron

Vitamin E

Thiamin

Riboflavin

Niacin

Folate

Vitamin

Phosphorus

Magnesium

Zinc

Copper

Juicing wild herbs

Let's see why and when juicing can get us something that whole food can not. The problem is that we don't eat enough fruits and vegetables to get all the benefits they can offer.



The National Cancer institute recommends five servings of vegetables and three of fruits each day, but an average American eats only 1 1/2 servings of vegetables and no fruit on most of the days. Possibly, juicing could provide the answer to fixing our fruit and vegetable deficient diets.



But how about wild plants? Is there any reason why should we get concerned about getting enough of those while we hardly get enough of regular veggies or their juices? Maybe there are some reasons. First, wild plants grow on un-depleted soils while cultivated ones don't. Farmers for already centuries get out of soil just about entire Periodic Table of the Elements but what's returned with fertilizers is hardly more than three of the elements - Nitrogen, Potassium, and Phosphorus.



Second reason is freshness. Most of the produce on shelves went a long way while harvesting wild plants gives you the control of the freshness. Of course, you can learn when to harvest wild plants to catch the pick of their nutritional value while even local farmers pick the fruits and vegetables well before their prime time of ripeness. Finally, you can be sure there's no such thing as genetic engineering or artificial selection not for nutrients but for shelf life.



Aloe vera juice contains numerous vitamins and minerals, enzymes, amino acids, natural sugars and agents which may be anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial.



Many of the benefits of Nettles are due to very high levels of calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorous, manganese, silica, iodine, silicon, sodium, and sulfur. Nettles also are a good source of vitamin C, beta-carotene, and B-vitamins. Nettles are very high in protein, more than any other herb or even vegetable - an amazing 10%!



Dandelion Greens' juice has a high iron content, quadruple the carotene content of lettuce plus rich supplies of calcium, potassium, and vitamins C and E.

Breakfast Muffins, the Zone Diet Recipe

Muffins are not on the list of foods that are good for the Zone dieters, which are instructed to cut out most carb-rich foods such as sweets, sugar, pastries, bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, noodles, etc.

However, if you bake, here is a good recipe. You'll have to have dry and wet ingredients:

= Dry

1 1/2 cups oat flour
1 cup whey protein
2 1/4 teaspoons apple pie spice
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon grated orange rind

= Wet

2 whole eggs
4 egg whites
5 1/3 teaspoons canola oil
8 teaspoons fructose
2/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce


Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl. In a blender, process the wet ingredients until smooth. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Fold in 1 1/3 cup frozen blueberries, mix. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean.

Non-vegetarian Mughlai Recipes

Chicken Hazaarvi is considered a classic non-vegetarian Mughlai dish.


Ingredients


8 pieces of chicken breasts (boneless)
2 tblspns of ginger paste
2 tblspns of garlic paste
1 tspn of white pepper powder
Salt as per taste
½ cup of cheese grated
4 green chillies
¼ tspn of mace powder
¼ tspn of nutmeg powder
2 tblspns of chopped coriander leaves
1 egg
¾ cup of fresh cream
Butter for basting


Cube chicken breasts. Add ginger paste, garlic paste, white pepper, and salt. Mash the cheese; add the chillies, mace, nutmegr, coriander, and salt.

Add egg and mix well. Add chicken to the cheese mixture. Then add fresh cream and mix delicately. Keep in the refrigerator for about two to three hours.

Put chicken onto the skewers and cook, better on tandoory, until it is slightly cbrowned.

Brush with melted butter and cook for another two minutes.

Other non-vegetarian Mughlai dishes can include:

• Chicken Shorba
• Tandoori Chicken
• Murgh Ke Shami
• Malai Meat
• Kheema Kofta
• Chicken Kandhari Kofta
• Kadhai Gosht

Classic Pasta Carbonara Recipe

Carbonara is not a dish but an Italian pasta sauce. Many believe the dish derives its name because it was popular among charcoal makers since carbone is Italian for coal. The most traditional dish is Pasta Carbonara.

PASTA WITH CARBONARA SAUCE

Ingredients
4 eggs
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. cream
1 lb. fettuccine (or spaghetti)
2 (3 1/2 oz.) pkgs. sliced pepperoni, cut in strips
1 c. grated Parmesan cheese
Parsley & pepper to taste

Instructions
Beat together eggs and cream. Cook pasta; drain. Toss pasta with butter and pepperoni, heat through. Pour egg mixture over and toss over a medium heat. Add cheese and parsley, toss to mix. Serve immediately.

Chili For Sonoma's Wave 1 Dieters

Sonoma Diet usually advises against animal fat so lean turkey burgers are preferable. Same is true for chili recipes (see the recipe below). Here's the ingredients to prepare a basic turkey burgers good for any "wave" of Sonoma diet:

2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
12 ounces ground raw turkey

White Chili For Sonoma's Wave 1 Dieters

12 ounces ground turkey
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 cups water
1 (15.5 ounce) can cannellini beans
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chile peppers
2 teaspoons instant chicken bouillon granules
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons whole wheat flour

Cook turkey, onion, and garlic in a large saucepan until turkey is no longer pink. Drain fat. Stir in water, beans, undrained chili peppers, bouillon, cumin, and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Cover; simmer 30 minutes. Stir together the 1/4 cup water and the flour in a small bowl; stir into chili mixture. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 1 minute more.

Soy and Your Thyroid

You will not find this in soy product promotions but soy indeed can be bad for you. For one thing, there are chemicals called isoflavones in soy that are dangerous to the hormone-sensitive parts of the thyroid gland.

The thyroid secretes thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyroxine (T3), which regulate the body's metabolic rate and these isoflavones can inhibit the thyroid's T3 and T4 poroduction resulting in goiter as well as oother thyroid problem including those caused by autoimmune reactions.

Cooking With Probiotics

Probiotics are truly live foods meaning they contain live friendly bacterial culture(s) and you don't want to kill the bacteria and all the health benefits along with them - so you better use them in dishes that don't require high temperature for preparation. Here's one recipe that calls for cold yogurt or kefir.

Russian Cold Soup: Okroshka

The name originates from the Russian "kroshit" which means to chop. The classic one is a mix of mostly raw vegetables with very special bread beverage - "kvas" but there's a recipe using yogurt.

For liquid:

2 cups of very fresh, "young" kefir or yogurt
2 cups of cold water
Salt to taste
Sugar to taste

For solid part:

I/2 bunch of redishes
1 small raw red beet, finely shredded (or boiled and julienned)
2 boiled eggs cut into cubes
1 medium cucumber, julienned
2 medium green onions, chopped
1/2 cup baby dill, chopped
1/2 cup flat parsley, chopped

Use all parts cooled well and mixed.

To get more idea of using yogurt in dishes, try the Have your yogurt, and eat it, too! tips: http://www.diet.lifetips.com/tip/114058/diet-recipes/diet-cooking-tips/have-your-yogurt-and-eat-it-too.html

Watermelon, Carbohydrates, and the Zone Diet

Watermelon is on the Zone Diet's list of 'bad' foods because of its high carbohydrate content. However, watermelons are good for you due to their antioxidant lycopene content, same as in tomatoes. The Zone diet suggests that enjoy watermelon in moderation:

Cut a watermelon in cubes, then use them for a fruit salad made of peaches and plums that are OK in the Zone.

Make watermelon juice by mashing it with a spoon or fork; add to your seltzer.

Arugula Health Benefits And a Salad Idea

Arugula (or rocket, roquette, and rucola) is peppery salad green with a pungent, somewhat bitter flavor but you can reduce the bitterness using a tip from this site: http://www.diet.lifetips.com/faq/113769/0/my-blood-type-a-food-list-include-escarole-as-beneficial-food-but-it-s-bitter-any-recipe-ideas/index.html.

It is commonly used like a lettuce but it is richer in nutrients while being very low in carbohydrates and calories. One cup of cut arugula contains 0.73g total carbohydrate including 0.32g fiber. In % of recomended daily valus, arugula is packed with vitamins:

Vitamin A 9 %
Vitamin C 5 %
Calcium 3 %
Iron 2 %

Increased intake of Vitamin A from food but not from supplements helps reduce the risk of some kinds of cancer and cataracts. You can use coarsely chopped arugula in salads like the following one (ingredients quantities by taste):

goat cheese, crumbled
arugula
cherry tomatoes
olive oil
minced garlic
ground black pepper
salt


Dr. Sears (the Zone Diet) suggest arugula salad ingredients that insure the correct combination of carbs, protein, and fat: "Chicken and Black Bean Salad With Feta, Artichoke Hearts, and Arugula"

Adjusting The Amount of Servings In Your Recipes

To reduce the number of servings in a recipe can be a problem. If you desire to decrease the number of servings from a recipe, decrease measurements proportionally but hold back on increasing salt content. Keep in your mind that the timing of the cooking decreases when you decrease the number of servings. You can keep the time same by slightly reducing temperature of the burner or oven.

"The formula is: 'New Yield'(how much you want) divided by 'Old Yield' (how much the recipe is for) Equals 'conversion factor,' advises Chef Smorgas of Borg.

Onion Soup For Low Carb or Low Fat Diet

Though there's no "official" onion soup diet, vegetable soups can be real dieter's dream because of their lower calorie content (bowl for bowl) so you eat less until feeling full. Onion soup can be on any low carbohydrate as well as low fat diet menu if you use the following recipe:

3 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped leeks
1 sprig parsley, root and greens, chopped
1 celery (with leaves), chopped
8 peppercorns
1 1/2 liters water
Salt (to taste)

Crush the onions and leeks with salt in a porcelain bowl. In a saucepan, bring the water to a boil, add the vegetables and peppercorns; boil 3 minutes. Remove from heat, cover with several towels and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Low Carb Recipes: Banana Bread and Chocolate Cake

You don't have to feel deprived even when you are cutting down on carbohydrates. Just about any recipe can be modified using artificial sweeteners, nut or soy flours, etc. Chocolate itself doesn't contain much carbohydrates and non-sweetened dark cocoa powder is low carb dieter's life saver. But how can one have the distinct flavor of banana without the many carb grams this fruit contain? Here's low carb "banana" nut bread recipe. Makes 12 servings. 6.1 effective carb grams per serving

Ingredients

3 just ripe avocados
1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
1 cup pourable sweetener (Splenda)
2-3 tsp banana extract
5 large eggs
2 cups almond flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Instructions

Cream butter, cream cheese and Splenda together, mixing well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each.

In a separate bowl, mix almond flour with baking powder. Add egg/butter mixture to flour a little at a time while beating.
Add mashed bananas and banana extract. Mix together with walnuts.

Pour into greased 9"-10" pan and bake at 350 F for 1 hour.

Click here for low carb chocolate cake recipe on Diet Tips site.

Comfort Foods, Rewards, and Their Alternatives

In the late 50s, the classic experiments by Dr. Olds shook the world. He implanted electrodes into certain regions of rat brains and taught the rats how to press lever to stimulate these regions with weak electric currents. Rats stopped doing anything but pressing the lever till their death from complete starvation. The Positive Reward theory was born. It turned out that anything pleasurable in life did related to these "Centers of Pleasure" -- sex, alcohol, drugs of abuse -- all that mankind has invented in its hedonic journey, were but attempts to stimulate these brain regions. When stimulated, these brain centers cause the release of our body's own morphine-like chemicals, endorphins.

We know that eating will produce a pleasant sensation so often we eat even though all we need is comfort. The truth is, exercise, sauna, cold shower, massage, pleasant odors, and mental efforts - "workoholism "is real! - all increase Endorphin level while only eating, especially when your body does not need it, will cause extra pounds of fat to collect in your body's store.

The tricky thing with endorphins is that there are pairs of releasers resembling a thesaurus' antonyms: exercise does the same os its antonym sleep, pleasure goes together with pain, etc. The eating-fasting pair also exists. Many people reported elation when they skipped breakfasts. Religeous fasters experience euforia.

"Severe food restriction produces endorphin activity, which is reinforcing. Feeding interrupts the endorphin activity and, thus, produces withdrawal. Not-eating, therefore, is rewarding." (Appetite 19:1-13; 1992).

TIPS:

1. Ask yourself "What is it I really need? A glass of water? A walk? A hug?"

2. Try periodic fasts. After resuming eating, your taste buds will be satisfied with lesser taste intensity thus reducing the taste influence on the body weight set point.

3. Try other rewards. Buying fresh flowers can be a better answer than a bowl of Rocky Road. Exercise, go to sauna, take a cold shower, invest in a massage device, buy a vail of perfume, or enjoy reading a book.