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 SuperFoods And
Healthy Kitchen Tips
by Susan Smith
Jones
Let food be your
medicine and medicine
be your food.
Hippocrates
• Quinoa. An ancient
grain-like product that has recently been “rediscovered” in this
country, quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) is not a true grain (neither is
buckwheat or amaranth), but it looks like one and has similar uses.
Centuries ago, high in the Peruvian mountains, the Incas dined on quinoa
– the name literally means the “mother grain.”
Quinoa cooks quickly into a fluffy,
delicately flavored dish that lends itself to many uses. It can be
served as a substitute for rice, potatoes and other starchy foods;
combined with vegetables to make a pilaf; and added to soups and stews.
While rice, wheat and other grains are all prepared in similar ways,
quinoa is smaller and more delicate and must be treated a little bit
differently. First, as quinoa grows it develops a natural, protective
coating called saponin, which sometimes has a bitter taste. To wash away
the residue, rinse quinoa well before cooking. Because of its small,
delicate texture, it cooks more quickly than other grains. To get the
proper consistency, bring 2 cups of water to a boil, add 1 cup of
well-rinsed quinoa, reduce the heat to low and cook, covered, for 10 to
15 minutes, until the grains are tender and all the liquid has been
absorbed. For variations, mix quinoa into your favorite rice pudding
recipe or cook it in fruit juice or with dried fruits, then offer it for
dessert or breakfast.
Quinoa is teeming with nutrients. One cup
(made from 1/4 cup of dry quinoa) of cooked quinoa delivers 10 grams of
protein with an essential amino acid balance close to the idea set by
the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). And the
National Academy of Science calls it “one of the best sources of protein
in the vegetable kingdom.” It’s particularly high in lysine, an amino
acid missing in corn, wheat and other grains. Lysine is important for
helping tissues grow and repair themselves. One cup also provides about
4 mg of iron, more than any unfortified grain product. You’ll also find
other essential minerals, including 90 mg of magnesium, 175 mg of
phosphorus, 315 mg of potassium and 1.5 mg of zinc, as well as numerous
B vitamins, especially B-6, folate, niacin and thiamine. Oh yes, let’s
not forget that you receive this panoply of nutritional wealth in one
cup which has only 160 calories in the form of complex carbohydrates.
• Raspberries. Raspberries – both
wild and cultivated – are low in calories (one cup contains only 60
calories) and high in vitamin C (30 mg in a cup). This same amount also
provides 30 mcg of folate, 190 mg of potassium and some iron. The
vitamin C content increases the iron’s absorption. There are even 7 g of
fiber in 1 cup of raw raspberries which is double the fiber of
strawberries – in fact, more than most other fruits. The seeds in these
little gems provide insoluble fiber that helps prevent constipation.
Each raspberry is actually a small cluster of 75 to 125 fiber-rich
seeds, with every seed encased in a tiny, juicy lobe of its own. The
fruit is also high in pectin, a form of soluble fiber that helps control
blood cholesterol levels.
Raspberries are one of the top antioxidant
foods. They contain the same cancer-fighting ellagic acid as
strawberries – except they have 50 percent more of it. In addition,
raspberries contain anthocyanins, antioxidant plant pigments that have
been shown to prevent cancer and heart disease.
Raspberries spoil faster than most berries
because of their delicate structure and hollow core. Once picked, they
should be eaten as soon as possible. Before buying raspberries, check
that all of them, not just the ones on top, are in good condition; even
then, they mold quickly and should be used within 24 hours. Freezing,
however, will preserve them for up to a year. Most cultivated
raspberries are red, but there are also varieties in yellow, apricot,
amber and purple (or “black”) – all similar in flavor and texture. When
in season, I buy raspberries in all of these colors at local farmers’
markets. Berries, when in season and organically grown, are a great food
to eat as a mono-diet all day long (and nothing else) to cleanse and
rejuvenate your body.
• Squash. Based on the ancient
remains found in Mexican caves, we have been eating squash for at least
7,000 years. Squash was one of the nourishing “three sisters” in early
Native American diets. (The other two were corn and beans.) And they
were considered so important that they were often buried with the dead
in order to provide them with nourishment on their final journey.
After a few thousand years of relishing
squash, we now can praise their nutritional content, too. When
researchers talk about the healing powers of squash, what they’re
usually referring to is winter squash which are distinguished by their
deep yellow and orange flesh. Pale summer squash, by contrast, while low
in calories and a decent source of fiber, is generally regarded as a
nutritional lightweight, as least unless future research proves
otherwise.
Members of the same family as melons and
cucumbers, all type of squash are gourds – fleshy fruits protected by a
rind. In a nutshell, nutritionally speaking, summer varieties provides
some folate and vitamins A and C. Winter varieties are extremely rich in
beta-carotene and are a good source of potassium and fiber. The summer
squashes include the chayote, patty pan, yellow crooknecks and
straightnecks and zucchini varieties. The winter squashes include acorn,
banana, buttercup, delicata (one of my favorites), dumpling, hubbard,
spaghetti and turban varieties. The flowers, immature and mature fruits
and seeds are all edible. The seeds can be dried and baked for a snack;
they are an excellent source of iron, potassium, zinc and other
minerals. They also provide some protein, beta-carotene and B vitamins.
Since butternut squash is one of the most
popular and most nutritious winter squashes, here’s a brief nutritional
analysis. In 3 1/2 ounces or one cup cubes (raw), you’ll find only 45
calories, 1 g of protein, 12 g carbohydrate, < 1 g fat, < 1 g saturated
fat, 0 cholesterol and 4 mg sodium, along with the following: 7,800 IU
of vitamin A, 0.2 mg of vitamin B-6, 5 mg of beta-carotene, 21 mg of
vitamin C, 27 mcg of folate and 34 mg of magnesium.
• Watermelon. A classic picnic
food, enjoyed out-of-doors, especially by children and participants of
seed-spitting contests, watermelon is about 90 percent water and comes
in red or yellow flesh, with or without seeds. It’s one of the most
cleansing foods you can eat – because of its high water content – and is
also one of the finest diuretics in the plant kingdom. The zinc content
of watermelons make them an important kidney and bladder cleanser and,
in fact, contributes to overall urogenital and prostate health.
Watermelon lowers blood pressure in hypertension patients and eliminates
toxins. According to Steve Meyerowitz, in his book Power Juices Super
Drinks, when you juice the rind and seeds (it’s always best to select
organic melons when juicing the rind and seeds), you release a veritable
“fountain of youth” of therapeutic plant compounds. It becomes a
free-radical scavenger that re-oxygenates cells and acts effectively as
an anti-aging agent.
Surprisingly, watermelon has only half the
sugar (5 percent) of an apple. It tastes much sweeter, though, because
sugar is its main taste-producing element – the rest is primarily water.
This makes it a popular diet food and an unexcelled cooling food; it’s
even more cooling than cantaloupe. Watermelon relieves thirst, mental
depression and edema. It’s a good source of vitamins C and A and the
mineral potassium. It is low in sodium and calories and has no fat.
Watermelon also contains some powerful
antioxidants. This delectable summer fruit is rich in beta-cryptoxanthin,
a carotenoid that’s associated with reduced heart disease risk. And it’s
one of the few good source of lycopene, a free-radical scavenger that
may lower cancer and heart disease risk (lycopene is also found in
tomatoes). Unlike tomatoes, however, watermelons don’t need to be cooked
to provide the most absorbable form of lycopene. Watermelons also
provides high amounts of the anticancer, antioxidant and anti-aging
phytonutrient – glutathione.
If purchasing a cut watermelon, avoid one
with immature white seeds, pale flesh or white streaks. If overmature,
its flesh is mealy and either dry or watery. If purchasing whole, the
rind should look dull, not shiny. The melon should feel heavy for its
size. It will store at room temperature up to 7 days whole and up to 3
days in the refrigerator, cut.
To this list of superfoods, next time
we’ll learn about the healing and nutritional properties of bananas,
grapes, raisins and peppermint.
© Susan Smith Jones, Ph.D.
Susan Smith Jones, MS, PhD is an
internationally renowned motivational speaker, frequent radio/TV talk
show guest, culinary instructor, author of hundreds of magazine articles
and 15 books, including her latest, Unleash the Power of NATUREFOODS: 50
Revitalizing Foods that Heal Your Body, Promote Radiant Health &
Rejuvenate Your Life. In the past 35 years, Susan has assisted thousands
of people in becoming more aware of how their food and lifestyle
choices affect their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual
well-being. To order autographed copies of NATUREFOODS, please call
(800) 253-6383 (MT) or visit
www.susansmithjones.com |
