Wizard Recipes

Now let’s take a small break from all these informative articles which I have been writing for some time now, and just share some very interesting recipes for more exotic… sweets, so to say… Let’s focus a little bit on different cultures and their eating habits, focusing on sweets, of course…

I mentioned in one of my previous post that sugar and alcohol are the only things that do not offer our body any nutrients. So, with or without them, it pretty much the same thing. More than that, sugar and alcohol contain lots of calories and can harm your body, if consumed in excess, without offering it any nutrients. But cakes, pies, cookies, ice cream and so on taste so gooood!!! How can you live without enjoying an ice cream on a hot summer day or without eating a freshly out-of-the-oven cinnamon apple  pie in wintertime?

Maybe you`re surprised, but some people can live without these goodies all their life, without even feeling deprived! And all because sugar creates addiction! You know why! Once you’ve tried it once, hard to let it go!

And because we’re all so different all around the Globe! We think differently, we dress differently, we EAT differently and we consider normal all sorts of different stuff. It is just normal for our sugar cravings to be completely the opposite!

In Europe, let’s say… Sweets are different from country to country! Every country has its own traditional pie or cake! First thing that comes to my mind is Kurtos Kalacs from Hungary… uuu yummy! A sort of sweet made from  sweet baked bread doe rolled in a cylinder form covered with sugar syrup which caramelizes in the heat. After cooking, the Kurtos Kalac gets covered with grated nuts, grated coconut powder, almonds, plain sugar or all sorts of other goodies. France has its crepes, some crunchy yummy pancakes, Britain with her  custard, and so many other countries with many other traditional sweets… And as we travel South, Greece Turkey and reach Asia, the sweets become even sweeter:)) ! Sugar or honey  syrup is the king, right? But also the cookies become smaller and more concentrated.

The discussion is long, may take all day… But to cut things short, let me offer you the recipe for BAKLAVA, a sweet found in many Asian and even European countries, which I consider to be most relevant. So, just start cooking, it’s just another easy recipes which turns out to be something spectacular!

Separate the very thin doe strips into 3;

Mix nuts with cinnamon;

Take first 3 pie doe strips and put them in the baking tray, sticking them together with melted butter.

Put half of the nuts and cinnamon mixture onto the strips;

Put other 3 strips of pie doe, repeating the procedure;

Add the rest of the cinnamon and nuts mixture and the other 3 strips of doe;

Put the tray in the fridge for about 40 minutes;

Heat the oven;

Take out the tray from the fridge, cut small portions horizontally and vertically and then put it in the oven for about 30 minutes;

When it’s golden brown, take it out of the oven;

Mean time, boil the water with the sugar;

After they boiled, add the honey and leave it to simmer at small flame;

Add the rum essence and leave it to rest;

Add uniformly the syrup to the freshly baked Baklava;

Leave it to rest and soak up, ans save a little bit of syrup for serving;

Put it into the fridge until it’s cooled down;

Serve the baklava when cold, adding the syrup;

Also add on each portion some coconut powder, or, even better some grated fresh pistachio.

I continue my post by telling you more about the disadvantages for consuming sugars:

-first of all, refined sugar contains sugars that get rapidly absorbed by the organism, leading to hyperglycemia and increasing insulin production.  Fructose, fruits and honey’s sugar doesn’t have the same effect on insulin production, so it is recommended for diabetes, even though it contains calories.

- honey still raises your glicemia!

- sweets and chocolate represent very high on sugar products (obviously), and also high on calories (aprox. 400-500 cal/100g)

-honey shouldn’t be consumed by infants smaller than 1 year of age, because it can lead to botulism

-refined sugar and fructose lead to increased blood pressure and cholesterol

-regulate sugar consumption ALWAYS leads to OBESITY, but doesn’t necessarily lead to diabetes, if there’s no genetic condition for this

- 1 tbsp honey= 65 cal;

1 tbsp sugar= 15 cal;

- after digestion, sugar and honey become identical in chemical composition

- glucose has 100 glycemic index, maximum for comparing with other aliments

Sugar… hm… sweet isn’t it?… and… that’s all that it is! :)… besides the energy it offers you, it has no other nutritious element! Like alcohol, sugar contains ‘empty calories’, making our body to function perfectly without an ounce of sugar consumed! EVER!

Sweets and chocolate contain, amongst sugars, high quantities of fats (butter or margarine, milk, cocoa, fruits, flour), which transform them into complex foods very high in calories and that must be consumed OCCASIONALLY- just for a treat!

Advantages:

- honey is used in gastric ulcer treatment, due to its antibacterial effect against pylori helicobacter and also against salmonella and escherichia coli, which cause diarrhea, especially in infants

- consumed moderately, chocolate represents a very efficient toner, being rich in magnesium, phosphor, calcium, iron, most of these coming from cocoa powder

- chocolate also diminishes constipation risks

- chocolate has aphrodisiac properties and it is the best alimentary anti depressive

- dark chocolate(70 % cocoa) contains twice as many antioxidants than milk chocolate and offers protection against cardiovascular diseases and high blood pressure

***100 g of dark chocolate contains:

• 1/4 daily dose of Magnesium
• 1/2 daily dose of Potassium
• 0,5 mg of Iron, Phosphor and Calcium

Because we must focus our attention on these aliments due to their important role in our eating habits,  let me tell you more about cereals, muesli and grains, some tips and tricks that are worth sharing.

When consuming cereals, we must take into consideration the following:

- when consuming fats with grains or cereals, the absorption and carbon hydrate digestion decrease.

- the acidity from citric fruits, vegetables and vinegar increases iron absorption, so please do consume rice or pasta, for instance, with vegetables and sauces.

- muesli and breakfast cereals may contain large amounts of sugar, so consume them moderately and choose minerals and vitamins enriched ones.

- fats can be contained in small quantities in breakfast cereals. So do not fall into the FITNESS type of cereals, because all types contain pretty much the same amount of calories. Just choose the ones that taste better :p.

-rice and corn do not contain gluten, so these cereals can be consumed by gluten intolerance sufferers

- basmati rice is considered to be the easiest to digest

- popcorn without oil added is very low on calories

- cook pasta ‘ al dente’ to make it easier for your organism to digest. Pasta cooked with tomato sauce contains less fats

- focaccia and ciabatta are bread assortments with spices and olive oil and their energetic value increase from 215 cal/100 g to 280 cal/100 g.

Given the fact that carbohydrates and fibers from grains and cereals represent a very important part in one’s healthy diet, it is mandatory to continue our journey through the advantages and disadvantages of consuming these aliments.

So, here are some disadvantages for cereals and grains (advantages were discussed previous post):

- cereals are being cultivated only for the last 10000 years and some studies say that the human body cannot yet digest them completely. Gluten from wheat is one of the most spread allergen, irritating the intestine walls (gluten intolerance).

- proteins from cereals do not contain all essential amino acids, so, when goin’ vegan, you must be careful with the excess of cereals and grains consumption in the diet. Also consume vegetables, greens and SOYBEANS (for proper proteins)

- be careful with cereals for breakfast, because they contain a lot of sugar that transforms them from slow carbohydrates to fast sugars.

- bread contains, along with flour, water, salt, also yeast, and its fermentation process lasts for 24 hours. So if you don’t want to have indigestion problems , bloating and gastric burns, try and consume 1-day-old bread, or pastry without yeast.

- calories in cereals have some calories (250 cal )so beware when on a diet.

Cereals are the most important part in an adult’s diet due to a substance known as starch, a complex carbohydrate with slow absorption that offers the organism the energy needed for best functioning. Cereals also contain fibers, proteins, minerals (calcium, iron, zinc), vitamins (B and E) and antioxidants.

Advantages:

- it is mandatory to consume daily these types of carbohydrates, but in small quantities. With a small amount of starch in our body, we have the needed glucose that helps us maintain satiety till the next meal

- lipids are eliminated when carbohydrates are consumed, so, to lose weight we need carbohydrates in every meal.

- a healthy diet contains bread, rice, pasta and cereals but in a moderate amount, because only the EXCESS of starch can be transformed into lipids.

-cereals contain fibers which accelerate intestinal transit and prevent constipation. Colon cancer risk is also diminished.

- the fibers from cereals have an antioxidant and noninflammatory effect; with vitamin E, these fibers prevent risk for developing arterial diseases. Wheat germs increase vitamin E absorption and decrease cholesterol level

- oil extracted from the wheat grain is called oryzanol and influences cholesterol absorption

- corn flakes assure the daily dose of B vitamin for pregnant women

- carbohydrates increase serotonin level

- cereals are low in fat

- white bread contains cellulose which does not affect cholesterol level and cereal bread contains hemicellulose which decreases cholesterol level

Continuing our discussion regarding milk and dairies, here are some advantages and disadvantages when consuming these products

Disadvantages

-lactose intolerance represents the impossibility to digest carbohydrates from milk due to the lack of an enzyme called lactose.

- during the proccess of milk transformation into yogurt lactose is degraded so persons with lactose intolerance may consume any dairy, except for milk

- proteins from milk may give allergies and, in this case, dairies have to be eliminated from your diet

- if you have high cholesterol and trigliceride levels, you shouldn’t consume dairies due to their high lipid content

- fruit or muesli yogurt has a very high sugar content, so if you’ re on a diet, be careful when consuming these products…

Recommended associations:

- try dairies and yogurt with bread, pasta or rice

-dairies don’t contain vitamin C or fibers, so add cereals, muesli of fruits to your fresh milk, yogurt or cream

Culinary secrets

-use milk enriched with D vitamin to increase Calcium absorption and fixation

- vitamin B2 from milk is sun sensitive so keep it away from sunlight

- the yellow color in butter is given by the amount of carotene in the caw’s food

Continuing the information about dairies, I considered that the subject of yogurt, which has become more and more popular nowadays shouldn’t be left behind… So even if you are on a diet, or you’re just interested about its pros and cons, continue reading, because it might change your eating habits.

So yogurt represents a coagulated milk through fermentation. Each gram of yogurt contains milions of germs, so always respect the valability term written on the can.

150 g of yogurt contains 50% of the daily need of Phosphor and 40% of Calcium.

1 yogurt/ day diminishes blood cholesterol by 3% and LDL-Cholesterol by 4 %.

Lactobacilus bacteria destroys the “bad’ bacteria from our intestine which causes diarrhea.

I am sure you’ve heard of  “bifidus”, right? So do these types of yogurts work? Well Bifidobacteria are usually present in our intestinal flora, having an essential role due to their participation at the final part of the digestion. These are predominant at birth, when breastfed, their number getting smaller by age.

Chaotic eating habits, stress, antibiotics can harm our intestinal flora and can lead to constipation, bloating, discomfort and diarrhea.

Bifidus assures a good equilibrium for the intestinal flora, it reduces digestion time on colon level preventing constipation.

So Bifidus yogurts have the same effect on our organism like fibers, being a great alternative for people who suffer of chronic constipation and don’t consume enough fibers.

Read more… tomorrow!

We start drinking milk from the first day of our life ’till our last, right? And that’s great, because milk is the only complete nutrient: it contains all 3 main nutriments categories (proteins, glucids/carbohydrates and lipids), along with vitamins (A,D,E and B group) and minerals (Calcium, Phosphor, Zinc and Iron)

Advantages:

-Through its high Calcium content it prevents rickets. 1 liter milk per day offers the Calcium needed for perfect bone solidity and development.

-Helps prevent cancer (colon cancer) due to Omega 6 content. Studies have shown a 50 % decrease in cancer incidence on dairy consumers

-Milk contains high quality proteins with essential amino acids which assure best development of tissues and whole organism

-prevents and treats high blood pressure due to high Calcium content

-cheese prevents cavity problems by increasing saliva Ph.

-Calcium from dairies burns fat!

-cheeses contain triptophan, precursory of serotonin, which gives us the good mood we desire so much