Goji berries, tigernuts flour, wild brown millet flour, chia  and coconut sweetener each have unique health benefits. Combining all these ingredeients into one cookie makes for a exceptionally healthy cookie. This particular cookie is also gluten free, vegan-friendly and very delicious.

Thanksgiving is a great time to introduce more whole grains and whole sweeteners.

Pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, turkey stuffing and even mashed potatoes can be
adjusted to provide more nutrition and keep all the delicious flavour.

Those who eat whole grains and whole sweeteners on a regular basis will find
they eat less at the traditional food fest as the body will be satisfied sooner.

Thankgiving is here and there is no better time to dreate a whole grain/whole sweetener version of this tradtional holiday treat.
This is the version served to my family for years and it's always a big hit.

A recent study published in the UK caused a big kafuffle in the organic industry when it claimed there was no nutritional benefit to organic produce over conventional. The researchers looked at studies conducted over the last 40 years, and while the organic foods often did contain a higher amount of vitamins and minerals, they decide the difference was not “nutritionally” significant. In a single piece of produce, a 17 % difference in beta carotene, as one study found, may not be significant, just as they said. But what if that 17% were missing from everything you ate, day after day, year after year?  Would that make a difference? Probably, but that is the holistic nutrition perspective, not the conventional.

I put that concept out there because it needs to be said. Good health is easier to achieve if all the food consumed has the maximum amount of nutrients possible. However, the important aspect of the study to note, is that the studies they looked at examined vitamin and mineral content. Unfortunately, they did not look at the phyto-nutrient content, the new superstars in the health world, linked to prevention of many diseases prevalent today. As part of the plant’s defense system, phyto-nutrient content goes up in food when the plants are attacked by bugs or fungus.

Pendrago Apple

Pendragon Apple 800 year old variety - complete with mottled skin for hight phytonutrient content

A recent study published in the UK caused a big kafuffle in the organic industry when it claimed there was no nutritional benefit to organic produce over conventional. The researchers looked at studies conducted over the last 40 years, and while the organic foods often did contain a higher amount of vitamins and minerals, they decide the difference was not “nutritionally” significant. In a single piece of produce, a 17 % difference in beta carotene as one study found, may not be significant, just as they said. But what if that 17% were missing from everything you ate, day after day, year after year?  Would that make a difference? Probably, but that is the holistic nutrition perspective, not the conventional.

I put that concept out there because it needs to be said. Good health is easier to achieve if all the food consumed has the maximum amount of nutrients possible. However, the important aspect of the study to note is that the studies they looked at examined vitamin and mineral content. Unfortunately, they did not look at the phyto-nutrient content, the new superstars in the health world, linked to prevention of many diseases prevalent today.

Sour Red Cherries

Cultivation of the cherry, along with its cousin, the apricot,  dates back to 300 B.C. It is part of the traditional food culture of the Chinese, Romans, Egyptians and Europeans. In the 1600’s, Europeans brought cherries to North America but evidence indicates there were already several varieties here.

Studies show that cherries, whether consumed dried, frozen or as juice, have among the highest levels of disease-fighting antioxidants, when compared to other fruits. They are also a good source of nutrients such as beta carotene, potassium, magnesium, iron, fiber, folate and have 19 times more vitamin C than blueberries or strawberries.

Beautiful Peach with Scab

Peaches originate from China, dating back to 10 century BC. Transported from China by the Persians, it was passed onto the Romans and gradually peaches made their way around world. They are good sources of lutein and lycopene, two members of the phytonutrient carotenoid family. Just looking at the skin colour of a peach will tell you if it has more lutein, which is yellow in colour, or lycopene, represented by the red colour.  Both are major antioxidants and anti-inflammatories and studies have shown they help prevent a number of common diseases like cancer and heart disease. High concentrations of lutein are found in the macula of the eye so consuming significant amounts in the diet can help protect vision, especially from macular degeneration. Studies of lycopene have shown high levels in the blood correlate with fewer incidences of several types of cancer including breast cancer and prostate cancer.

 

 

Sour Cherries are best known for as the pie cherries. Black cherries tend to be too sweet to mix with sugar or other types of sweeteners, which is essential to the thickening of the filling. I have only seen them twice fresh and both times, despite the fact they were not organic, I snapped them up since they were fresh, local and their flavour is perfect for baking. I am not sure why they are so hard to find fresh since in the baking industry, they can be purchased so easily frozen, which means they are being produced in large quantities. I am going to assume it is matter of demand and the public does not understand the benefits these tasty cherries. This coffeecake is perfect for treat for tea or a snack as it is moist, not too sweet and has the sour cherries flavor for a bit of contrast.

Summer is an odd time for dessert lovers. While we, normally, would never turn down a delicious pastry and gooey cake, our appetite for such things seems to disappear when the hot whether arrive. This is actually a normal response. Our attraction to rich foods in the cooler months is natural as our body like to burn fat for fuel to keep us warm. However in the summer, light and simple is a better way to go, especially with all the fresh delicious local fruit available

Sesame Pecan Lace Cookies

A Lesson in Substitution

Lace cookies are a traditional fancy cookie, so thin and delicate that they bubble in the oven, giving them a lacey look. This is a conversion of a traditional recipe that used a combination of white flour and ground blanched almonds.  It is important to understand that both ingredients will tend to dry the mixture and this makes the cookie a little stronger. Most people would buy the almonds, already ground, which, most of the time, are stale and extremely dry. I did not want to use almonds for this recipe (mainly, because I didn’t have any the time) but I understood that the substitution had to match the power to bind. Sesame seeds are a great option.