Stop Eating Eggs!

 

Freelee the Banana Girl on YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTfvdypnAgg

Low Carb Diets & Cononary Blood Flow - Dr Michael Greger

 

Blood flow within the hearts of those eating low carb diets was compared to those eating plant-based diets.

 

RECIPE: Mango & Mixed Berry Smoothie

I was recently looking through my favourited tweets and came across this smoothie recipe from UFC fighter Mac Danzig. Now, I don't have the first clue about UFC but came across Mac (as I do with a lot of folk) on the Rich Roll podcast, and he seems a real good dude. Check him out, he's cool and so is this recipe inspired by him.

Ingredients

3 bananas
10 dates
4 cups frozen mango
2 cups frozen mixed berries (or any berry of choice)
1 litre water

Optional: Add 4 cups of chopped kale or spinach

1. Add ingredients to the blender and fire away!

RECIPE: Millet & Chickpea Salad

Millet, grown in Asia and Africa for thousands of years was one of the first cereals to be cultivated by mankind. A highly nutritious grain that is high in protein, containing all eight amino acids and one of only a few alkaline-forming grains, helping counteract over-acidity in the stomach and joints. Also, it's anti-fungal and anti-mucus properties aid to prevent ailments such as candida and premenstrual discomfort. 

Chickpeas aid the absorption of nutrients and are good for digestive health. They also support the functions of nerves and muscles in the body as well as helping to stabilise blood sugar.

Carrots help you see in the dark!

Serves 2 (or 1 if you're super hungry)

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked millet
1 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup corn kernels, thawed
Handful of cherry tomatoes, quartered
2 medium carrots, grated
1 tsp. agave nector
Juice of half a lemon
1 tbsp. chopped chilli (or to preference)

1. Cook millet according to instructions on packet. Meanwhile, prepare all the other ingredients.

2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Done!

Foods I Buy On A Plant-Based Diet #1

A couple of weeks ago I made a video to show a few of the food items I buy but it was taking an age to load onto youtube so I thought I'd just do a blog post to start with (videos may follow in the future).

Here's a list and prices of some items I purchased today at the market in Wakefield, Holland & Barrentt, and Sainsbury's.

Wakefield Market

Box of fair trade bananas (18kg): £12
2 bunches of spinach: £1
Box of clementines (2.3kg): £2.50
Unknown fruit (can't remember what they said it was!) :50p

Total = £16

Holland & Barrett

Pitted dried dates (1kg): £4.49
Californian seedless raisins (500g): £2.69
Whole tahini (340g): £2.99
Millet Grain (500g): £1.45
(It was buy one get one half price on all goods, I did buy some other stuff as well so I paid less than the prices stated)

Total (without offer) = £11.62

Sainsbury's

Mixed Pulses (240g drained weight): £1.10
Green Lentils: £1.10
Aduki beans: 70p
Mixed beans: £1.10
(These were on offer - 4 cans for £2)
Frozen chopped spinach (1kg): £1.50
Frozen mixed berries (400g): £1.30

Total = £4.80

Grand total = £32.42

Coconut Oil: Panacea or Artery Clogger? By Rich Roll

This post was orginally blogged by Rich Roll, Febuary 2013 so is not my writings. Check out the post link here: Coconut Oil: Panacea or Artery Clogger? As always I highly recommend all Rich's podcasts and book Finding Ultra. I'm sure you'll find this post informative.

Earlier today, I tweeted the above video from Dr. Michael Greger’s NutritionFacts.org website in which he poses the question: “Does Coconut Oil Clog Arteries?”. Based upon peer reviewed research, Dr. Greger went on to address the saturated fat content of this oil and the health hazards posed.

Then I got slammed with e-mails and tweets. ”So no good on coconut oil?” ”I thought you liked it!” ”Isn’t it a cure-all superfood?” ”The paleo people tell me there’s no issue!” “Now, I’m confused…” and on and on.

So I thought I would expound a bit on where I stand. Disclaimer: this is my personal perspective. Nothing more, nothing less.

First, let me just say (admit?) that I do use coconut oil – sparingly. Yes, it is a saturated fat. But — as I explained in my book Finding Ultra — a significant degree of the saturated fat component of coconut oil is composted of lauric acid, which is (comparatively) quickly and easily metabolized as a very good energy source (and has also shown to be immunity boosting). This means you are likely to burn it for fuel rather than pack it on the waist, provided you are sufficiently active and it isn’t digested along with something high in sugar to supersede & hijack your metabolism first. So yes, paleo folks, I do agree that sugar is a culprit here.

Although I can’t say I use it in coffee as a vegan version of Dave Asprey’s paleo-popular “Bulletproof” coffee (he advises something like a 1/2 stick of grass-fed butter in your morning blend – wait, really? yes, really), I do include coconut oil (again, sparingly) in some of my (vegetable based) Vitamix blends. It’s anti-inflammatory when compared to the saturated fats found in animal foods. It’s the optimal oil to cook with — if you are going to cook with oil — due to the fact that it holds up (does not oxidize) better than other oils at high temperatures (translation – less free radicals). It’s anti-infection and some studies suggest it aids with the absorption of certain vitamins and other nutrients like beta-carotene and some amino acids.

That said, I use it — again, and wait for it — quite sparingly. Then again, I’m probably training more than you are.

Then why sparingly?

Well people, it’s still a saturated fat, one of the few found in the plant kingdom sure, but still a saturated fat — and one that lacks any of those Omega-3′s we’re always trying to get. In my (supported) opinion – hotly debated by the paleo / low carb folks – there is indeed more than a link between dietary saturated fat intake and deleterious health effects, including atherosclerosis. Now the paleo people will likely tell you it’s fine to enjoy your bacon, butter and other foods high in saturated fat like coconut oil. Provided you strictly adhere to their regimen, they will tell you there is no link between such saturated fats and heightened (bad) cholesterol levels or the hardening of the arteries. Then as support, they will refer you to certain isolated indigenous populations like the Inuit, who eat a relatively high degree of saturated fat yet somehow remain healthy. Finally, they will tell you that because coconut oil is comprised (in part) of medium chain triglycerides (MCT’s), this renders it heart-safe, (all points Jeff Novick tackles in the below linked article). Why is paleo so popular right now? One reason just might be that people love to have their bad habits co-signed.

I cannot rubberstamp this perspective. Nor can most of the doctors & nutritional experts I most respect. People like Dr. Greger, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Dr. Dean Ornish, Dr. John McDougall and others all of whom advocate (as Greger does in this video) that the link between dietary saturated fats and such ill effects is more than legit. For certain, you can find medical research debate ongoing here. But I think to completely dismiss this saturated fat / heart disease connection as some kind of quackery, or “a complete joke” — as some in the paleo / low-carb camp would have you believe — is at best misleading and at worst irresponsible. 
 
Particularly when we are in a health care crisis where obesity rates are absurdly high and climbing. According to the CDC, right now 935,000 Americans suffer a heart attack annually, 600,000 of which are fatal. Coronary disease costs $108.9 billion a year in health care costs and lost productivity. Simply put, that is insane.

Certainly, sugar and processed foods are a huge contributory cause. I don’t dispute that. But you cannot reasonably submit that a diet high in saturated fat — in many ways the defining characteristic of the standard American diet — is not also to blame.

In addition, coconut oil as a food is incredibly calorie dense (4 tbsps exceeds the American Heart Association’s RDA for staurated fat), yet poor in nutrient density – a critical variable in calculating the net benefits or detriments of the foods we eat. My friend Jeff Novick, RD goes so far as to say it’s nutritional deficiencies render it the ultimate junk food. Read the hyperlinked piece – it’s a compelling take on this issue.
Remember – we begin working on heart disease when we are very young. Those arteries don’t clog overnight – it’s years in the making and many of us are walking around like ticking time bombs, totally unaware until it has progressed to critical levels.
Healthy, active, fit & trim? Eat a very clean diet already? Cholesterol & blood tests all good? Then fine — some coconut oil in your diet may not be problematic for you and may be a source of some health benefits (beyond the weight & cholesterol debate) such as those I illustrated above. No doubt it’s good for your skin. But opt to lather rather than eat (too much).

The point is that coconut oil is not some kind of miracle cure panacea or a green light to go overboard.

if you are overweight, a candidate for heart disease or in poor health, think twice and consider foregoing the coconut oil. Actually, forget oil altogether.

I hope this helps clarify my personal opinion on this issue.

Peace + Plants,

Rich

Gary Yourofsky: The Best Speech You Will Ever Hear!

 

Gary Yourofsky is an American animal rights activist, and someone who clearly wears his heart on his sleeve when it comes to fighting for the rights of the animals and the planet. Yourofsky is currently banned from entering the UK and Canada, catergorised and an 'international terrorist'! I can see why he may 'ruffle some feathers', and may offend some people, but the fact of the matter is, he's telling the truth.

Please watch the speech above. Gary crams an incredible amount of information into 70 minutes, his delivery is clear, concise and ultimately, empowering.

Aspartame: The Toxic Truth

A short video on the history of aspartame and how it made it's way into over 6,000 of our food products. A must watch.

 

 

 

List of popular food items that contain aspartame. http://supersweetblog.wordpress.com/list-of-products-containing-aspartame/

Product Name	Category
Diet Coca Cola (all varieties) Coca Cola Zero (all varieties) Diet Pepsi (all varieties) Pepsi Max (all varieties) Diet Irn Bru (all varieties) Lilt Zero (all varieties) Sprite Zero (all varieties) Tango (all varieties) Tango no added sugar (all varieties) 7up Free (all varieties) Lucozade Sport (all varieties) Schweppes Slimline Drinks (all varieties) Fanta Zero (all varieties) Fanta Orange Dr Pepper Zero Oasis Summer Fruits Extra Light Oasis Citrus Punch	Soft Drink
Ribena Really light (all varieties) Robinsons Orange Squash Robinson’s No added sugar range	Cordial
Muller Light Cherry Muller Light Blueberry Muller Light Raspberry Muller Light Banana and Custard Danone Activia Cherry Weight Watchers Fromage Frais Weight Watchers Toffee and Vanilla	Yoghurt
Wrigleys Airwaves (all varieties) Wrigleys Orbit (all varieties) Wrigleys Extra (all varieties)	Chewing Gum
Uncle Ben’s Sweet and Sour Light	Cooking Sauce
Walkers Sensations Sweet Thai Chilli Walkers Sensations Lime and Thai Spices Walkers Prawn Cocktail	Crisps
Canderel Silver Spoon Sweetness and Light Silver Spoon Light Granulated Sugar	Tabletop Sweeteners
Cadburys Highlights (all varieties) Options Hot Chocolate Drink (all varieties)	Drink powders



Macronutrients: Carbs, Fat & Protein with Dr. Garth Davis

Dr. Garth Davis on macronutrients (posted 11/02/2014 on Facebook):

"People just can't get away from the concept of macro nutrients. We are so wedded to the terms protein, fat, carbs and this may be one of the essential reasons we keep getting sicker.

Even physicians, who have very little training in nutrition in general, talk about macronutrients. I had a physician see me the other day because he has the first signs of diabetes on his lab tests and is concerned that "despite cutting out carbs and increasing protein" his lab numbers are getting worse!" When I explained the diet I wanted him to try he exclaimed that it was too many carbs and not enough protein. I asked him point blank how great the "High Protein" diet was working, not just for him, but the whole country.

You cannot divide food into protein, carbs, fat. All food is a combination. Take for instance, an avocado. It is a combination of fat, protein, carb and fiber! The problem is that when we start classifying our diet by macronutrient break down we then begin to choose foods that are higher in certain categories. We will choose meat for protein and label bread as carbs. Unfortunately this leads to mislabelling certain foods as bad because they have a certain macronutrient considered, wrongly, bad.

Furthermore, the macronutrients can be broken down even further. Saturated fat is bad but stearic acid, which is one type of saturated fat, may not be that bad. Carbs are labelled evil, but they are the true fuel source of the body. Fruits and veggies, high in carbs, have been shown to extend life, prevent cancer, and prevent heart disease. Fruits are lumped in with candy in this ridiculous nutrition philosophy we have developed.

The answer is to throw out the terms, carbs, protein, fat. EAT WHOLE FOOD. Favour plant sources of food which have a nice variety of nutrients.

I NEVER think about how much protein or carbs I am eating. NEVER. Not even when I am training for Ironman or a Marathon. I would NEVER drink a protein shake to get more protein.

At the end of the day I try to make sure I have eaten some whole grains, some dark leafy vegetables, something orange or red, berries, whole fruit, beans, nuts/seeds. WHOLE FOODS. I have no use for this modern day lexicon of protein vs carb. Okinawans don't think that way and they are doing just fine, and so am I."

Dr. Garth Davis is a veteran weight loss surgeon who found himself running into a number of health problems, and ultimately becoming his own patient. A few years back he was suffering from high cholesterol, high blood pressure and a fatty liver, not good news for the ol' doc. 

Not satisfied with the high protein, low carb approach pushed by many of his peers he decided to finally study nutrition properly. Unbelievably, it wasn't even on the medical school curriculum.

For more information on how Dr. Garth became plant-based listen to the podcast he did with Rich Roll posted below. 

 

RECIPE: Mixed Vegetable Chilli & Rice Bowl

 

Serves 4

 

Ingredients

 

300ml vegetable stock

2 red chilli, finely diced

Thumb-sized piece of ginger, finely diced

1 celery stalk, diced

2 carrots, diced

1 yellow pepper, diced

1 green pepper, diced

2 courgettes, diced

2 medium potatoes, diced

100g dried red lentils

2 400g cans chopped tomatoes

1 400g can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup frozen corn

 

1. Heat 50ml of the stock on a medium heat. Add chillies, ginger, celery, carrots, peppers and courgettes. Cook for 5-8 minutes of soften.

 

2. Add remaining stock, potatoes, lentils and chopped tomatoes. Mix well and bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20-25 minutes. Then add beans, peas and corn, and cook for a further 10 minutes.

 

3. Serve over a bed of brown rice. 

 



The Mediterranean Diet: Healthy Or Complete Myth?

 

The content in this post relies on information from Rip Esseltyn's book, My Beef With Meat.

The Mediterranean diet, packed with platters of fish, tons of cheese salads,  fancy yogurts, lashings of olive oil, all washed down with bottles of red wine is the pinnacle of healthy living and longevity. Think again.

The fact of the matter is, there's no real Mediterranean diet! More than 20 countries border the Mediterranean sea, and they all adopt a completely different diet. Some consume olive oil, fish, feta cheese, drink alcohol, many don't.

Rami Zuraykt (an agriculture professor at the American University in Beirut) suggests, "There is no such thing called the Mediterranean diet; there are Mediterranean diets". most of these diets he continues are rich in fruits and vegetables with lots of fresh produce in them, and there is less meat in them.

Dr Ricardo Gomez-Huelgas (Internal Medicine Department at Hospital Carlos Haya in Malaga) states that, "The prevalence of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol in Spain have all risen at an alarming rate over the past twenty years and this is likely to cause future increases in bad health and death due to cardiovascular disease".

The Mediterranean diet myth is actually based on data post World War II in the 1940s and 1950s where people ate lentils instead of meat because they had no choice. "A lot of it has t do with poverty, not geography says Sami Zubaida, a leading scholar on food and culture.

A study from the 1950s found low rates of heart disease among people living on the island of Crete. These folk did consume fats such as olives, avocadoes and olive oil but their diet was predominately plant-based. Fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, with a small amount of fish. At the time the island was economically depressed recovering from the war. They couldn't afford butter, cheese and meat, but as soon as they could, they got fat. The people of Crete today consume a completely different diet to that of 1950s post-war. Obesity and heart disease has risen steadily since the original study.

We've been lead to believe that the Mediterranean diet is super healthy through clever marketing and advertising pushed down our throats by the food industry. More than half the populations of Italy, Portugal, and Spain are overweight. Greece is now the sixteenth-fattest country in the world, with more than two-thirds of its citizens overweight. Super healthy!

A quick word on our beloved, "heart healthy", Mediterranean diet approved olive oil. It takes about 1,375 squeezed olives to fill a litre bottle of olive oil. It's 100% fat, and almost 120 calories per tablespoon, making it more calorically dense than any other food on the planet. It is 14.5% saturated fat, and contains almost no vitamins and minerals. To get your daily supply of omega-3 fatty acids from the oil used have to drink about a half-pound bottle, around 2,000 calories! 

So, along with the olive oil, ditch the Mediterranean diet myth and go plant-strong! 

RECIPE: Shepherd's Pie

 

Classic British dish and not a "moo" or baa" in ear shot!

 

You can still cook traditional homemade foods on a plant-based/vegan diet. Super simple to make, and free from the artery clogging saturated animal fat. Everyone's a winner!

 

Ingredients

 

125ml vegetable stock

4 medium-large sweet potatoes (boiled and mashed)

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

1-2 tbsp. fresh rosemary, diced

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. ground coriander

400g can chopped tomatoes, juices drained

400g can green lentils, drained and rinsed

400g can cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup frozen peas

1/2 cup frozen corn

 

Gravy Recipe (one portion)

1 tbsp. corn flour

1 tsp. veg stock

1 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. soy sauce

1 cup water

• Blend ingredients, apart from soy sauce. Heat until gravy starts to simmer and thicken up, add soy sauce.

 

1. Heat 50ml of the vegetable stock over a medium heat. Add the celery and carrots, and cook for 5-8 minutes, until softened.

 

2. Add fresh rosemary, onion powder and ground coriander, cook for 1 minute. Then add remaining stock, chopped tomatoes, lentils, beans, peas and corn and cook for a further 10 minutes.

 

3. Transfer the mixture into a oven-proof baking dish, then spoon the mashed sweet potatoes over the top. Add to a pre-heated grill for 5-10 minutes to lightly crisp the topping.

 

4. Serve with your favourite greens, and drizzle with gravy.

 

 

 

 

Milk is Murder: The Dairy Industry

 

I recently listened to a Rich Roll podcast with Gene Baur (episode 35). If you've never heard of Rich's podcasts I highly recommend you to do so, they're amazing (I'm planning on dedicating a post to Rich). Gene Baur is president and co-founder of Farm Sanctuary, started in 1986 it's the first animal rescue organisation dedicated to farmed animals. Gene seems like a real down to earth guy, and I'm sure you'll enjoy the podcast if you wish to listen (see below).

 

 So want to know how milk gets on our shelves? Here's the truth.

 

Just like a human, cows don't lactate for the heck of it, they lactate to feed their new born babies. Once the baby calf is born within hours it's taken away from the mother so that she can produce milk for humans to drink. Sound messed up? It is, and it does stop there. The cows are then hooked up to a milk machine 2 to 3 times a day and pushed to produce 10 times more milk than they would normally do in nature. This obviously puts an immense amount of stress on the cow. In a healthy environment a cow can live up to 20 years, compared to a modern dairy where they live to 3 to 4 years, less than a quarter of their potential. Many cows can are pushed that hard to produce milk unnaturally the can't stand, these are called downed animals. At this point they're then slaughtered and become your beef.

 

What happens to the baby calves?

 

If a calf is female, they take the path of their mother by becoming milking cows. If male, they become veal. The veal industry was born out of the dairy industry. These male calves typically only live up to 20 weeks before slaughtering, and are kept in pretty horrific conditions. Many are feed a diet deficient in iron and fibre so they're borderline anaemic, their flesh becomes pale in colour to be sold as milk fed veal.

 

Extremely ugly industry. Next time you're at the store why not try the wide variety of non-dairy milks available; rice, almond, hemp, soy, just to name a few are all excellent alternatives. Much healthier and guilt free.

 

 





Are Humans Designed To Eat Meat?

 

Balancing The pH In Your Body: Acid Vs Alkaline

 

Why is the western world so fat and sick? This video describes the bodies constant fight to balance out the pH. Our blood is needs to be between 7.35-7.45 pH, slightly alkaline. The body draws nutrients from the food it digests, which either acidify or alkalise the blood. When there is not enough nutrients to keep the blood slightly alkaline, the body leaches minerals from the bones and other places. For example, calcium is drawn from the bones to counteract all the calcium rich dairy consumed!

 

Stomach acid is 1 on the scale. Soft drinks, 2.5. Coffee, 3. Blood, 7.35-.45. Sea water, 8.5. Baking soda, 12.  

 

Diets high in animal products and caffeinated drinks are very acid forming, opposed to fruits and vegetables which alkalise. The high water content, vitamins and minerals in fruit and vegetables help to alkalise and balance the pH in the body. They take roughly and hour to digest, compared to a piece of meat which can take days!

RECIPE: Easy Peasy Potato Cakes

 

These easy peasy potato cakes are based on the traditional English peasant dish Bubble and Squeak, usually made from leftover vegetables from a Sunday roast! 

 

Makes 8-10 cakes

 

Ingredients

 

8 boiled potatoes

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp chilli flakes

1/4 cup frozen corn

1/4 cup frozen peas

1 handful spinach, chopped

 

1. Pre boil the potatoes. Once the potatoes are boiled mash them up. Add pepper, onion powder, salt, chilli flakes, corn, peas, and spinach. Mix well.

 

2. Create palm-sized cakes out of the mixture.

 

3. In a non-stick frying pan on medium-low heat, place a cakes and press down in the pan until it is about 3/4 inch thick. Cook until brown on the bottom, then flip over and repeat.

 

Serve with your favourite sauce, along side a big salad, or with soup.

 

TIPS

- Use whatever spices you like! Add some curry powder, chilli, paprika, cumin, etc. Make them your own.  

 



Protein Kills - Save Your Kids!

Kevin W. Reese - Protein Kills!

 

In the video above Kevin W. Reese talks about the negative effects of protein on the body, I advise you spend 10 minutes and watch it.

 

A few points Kevin makes about protein:

•  Protein is on the acid side of chemistry. When we consume protein our bodies have to break that protein down into amino acids. For this to occur the body has the produce more pepsin and hydrochloric acid, more acids! This causes inflammation and as Kevin puts it, causes your body to be, "on fire".

• We need amino acids not protein. You get amino acids from fruit and vegetables.

• Extremely harsh on the kidneys. Too much protein in the diet can lead to the kidneys leaking protein.

• We're a protein driven society. Protein basically sells products; protein powders, amounts added to labels, etc. In America the 'GOT MILK' campaign is pretty big, adverts on TV highlight the benefits of drinking milk, and how it does the body good!

Eat a plant-based diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, and you'll cover your protein needs, easy peasy!

RECIPE: Good Morning Green Smoothie

Good morning green smoothie

 

A perfect blend of fruit, berries and greens to start your day.

 

Ingredients

 

200ml water

4 ripe bananas

Large handful of spinach

1 celery stalk

1/2 cup frozen or fresh blueberries

1 tbsp hemp seeds (optional)

 

1. Toss in the blender and whizz it up!

 

RECIPE: Datorade

Datorade!

 

Forget the expensive and nasty sports drinks available on the market today, get some natural liquid energy from this banana and date concoction! Inspired by Tim Shieff's recent FoodTube video.

 

Tim (aka Livewire) is a freerunner, and in terms of competitions won, he is the most successful in the world! Tim is also a vegan, and I highly recommend you watch his video, Why I Stopped Eating Meat (posted below recipe). I've also posted his version of the Datorade. 

 

Post-Workout High Carb Smoothie-Tim Shieff 

Ingredients

 

4-5 ripe bananas

8-10 dried dates (soaked in warm water to soften)

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1 litre water

 

1. Add all ingredients into the blender and press go!

 

TIPS

- Use more cinnamon and ginger if you please, or don't use at all.



 Tim Shieff: Why I stopped eating meat.

The Most Powerful 1 Minute Video You'll See All Year

 

Everything you're about to see is considered standard and acceptable by the factory farming industry.

 

I'll admit it, I didn't start eating a plant-based vegan diet for ethical reasons, we humans are selfish, and I'm no different. I'll do a post on why I went plant-based in the future. But for now, watch this video on the standard practices in the farming industry.

RECIPE: Polenta Pizza

Pizza Time!

 

Polenta is golden-yellow cornmeal made from ground maize which only takes a few minutes to cream up to make an easy pizza base. This was my first attempt at making a base from polenta and it was remarkably simple. Whip up a quick tomato sauce, throw some veggies on top and 'wah-lah', a pizza is born!

 

Makes 1 large pizza

 

Ingredients

 

2 cups water (may vary depending on polenta used)

1 cup polenta

1 cup homemade tomato sauce*

2 cups fresh spinach

handful cherry tomatoes

1 yellow pepper, sliced

1/2 courgette, sliced

1/2 red chilli, finely diced

Any other of your favourite veggie toppings

 

*homemade tomato sauce recipe (makes around 4-5 cups worth)

500g carton tomato passata

2x 400g can chopped tomatoes, drained

2 tsp dried basil

2 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp chilli flakes

1 tbsp agave nectar

- Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer on medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes.

- Decrease heat to low and simmer for further 5-10 minutes.

- Use 1 cup worth for the pizza and refrigerate/freeze the rest for a later date.

 

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius. Line a pizza tray with parchment paper.

 

2. Bring water to a boil. Add the polenta and whisk constantly until the mixture thickens and there are no lumps (instructions may vary).

 

3. Pour polenta onto the parchment paper and flatten out with a rolling pin into desired crust. Pre bake the crust for 10 minutes.

 

4. Remove the crust, add tomato sauce and your toppings of choice. Return to the oven and bake for a further 10-15 minutes.

 

5. Slice the pizza into healthy portions and enjoy! Serve with a big leafy salad.

 

TIPS

- You may need to heat up the tomato sauce to thicken it up a bit before using it on the pizza.

 



PROTEIN: My Beef With Meat

"Where do you get your protein?"

 "You can't get enough protein from eating plants"

What is PROTEIN?

 

Proteins are nutrients made up of one or more chains of amino acids. These are essential to the structure, function and regulation of every cell in the human body.

 

Each protein chain contains 20 amino acids, 8 of which are called "essential amino acids" that can only be obtained through food. These are known as "complete proteins" and are found in meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk, dairy, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds.

 

The World Health Organisation recommends that we get around 10% of our total calories from protein. They suggest following this formula to calculate your daily protein requirements:

(0.8 grams) x (your ideal body weight in kilo grams) = protein in grams

So, using this formula a 65kg guy like me should be getting 52 grams of protein per day.

TIM VAN ORDEN ON THE PROTEIN MYTH

So, you can only get high quality protein from animal products right? WRONG.

 

Animal Protein

 

Most people in the western world consume way too much animal protein. We've been lead to believe that this source of protein is the 'mecca' of good health and nutrition and we can't thrive without it. Animal protein is bad for your bones, creates inflammation, raises cholesterol levels and is extremely harsh on the liver and kidneys. Not to mention the high amounts of saturated fat is most meats which can lead to heart disease, obesity and diabetes.

The meat and dairy industries are big business, and through canny marketing we've been brainwashed to believe that consuming animal protein will keep your bones strong and muscles lean. Not the case. Animal protein is very acidic to the body. In order to neutralise the acidity in the bloodstream the body needs to balance out our pH, alkalise. The most effective alkalising agencies is the calcium stored in our bones! So by eating meat and dairy you dump acids into the bloodstream, therefore to alkalise this your body leaches essential calcium from your bones, which can lead to osteoporosis! "But you need to drink milk for calcium don't you?" Doesn't sound like it to me! In fact the countries that consume the most dairy products and eat the most meat - America, Northern Europe, Australia and New Zealand actually have the highest bones fracture rates! The regions that consume the lowest amount - eastern Asia and Africa have 50-70% lower rates! 

 

Plant Protein

 

Plant proteins are complete proteins, just like animal proteins.

 

"So why are plant proteins healthier?" Well, they have a much healthier composition and balance of the essential amino acids which protect us from inflammation and tumour growth. Also, plants contain fibre, phytonutrients and antioxidants, none of which are found in meat!

Where to get your PROTEIN!

 

By eating a whole food plant-based diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds you're more than covered. A medium banana is 5% protein and lemons as much as 15%! Leafy green vegetables such as kale or spinach boast as much as 50%! Quinoa is 18% protein.

 

All you have to do is consume enough calories of these wonderful foods and you're sorted. EASY PEASY!