Archive for the 'Cinnamon' Category
Can’t Control Those Sweet Cravings? Cinnamon to the Rescue; It’s True!
Satisfy your cravings for sugar and turn off that sweet tooth by eating a baked apple with cinnamon. It is healthy because it only contains 190 calories and five grams of fat. The “American Journal of Clinical Nutrition” reports that cinnamon 
helps to stabilize blood sugar and prevent future spikes, causing fewer sugar cravings.
Plus, apples provide soluble fiber, which is slowly digested, keeping you feeling full for hours! The pectin found in apples help the digestive tract and prevents heartburn and GERD (Gastro Esophogeal Reflux Disease, which is painful and chronic. Research studies have shown that those who eat apples regularly have much higher levels of HDL (the good cholesterol) in their blood. It is true that an apple a day keeps the doctor away. Apples enrich and support our immune systems.
I always ate an apple everyday for lunch during the school day. My mother made sure that she put one apple in my lunch bag for me to take to school. In high school, we had a vending machine that furnished fresh, cold apples. When I got hungry, after my gym class, I would be sure to choose an apple out of that machine for refreshment. I always purchase apples, especially when they”re in season. My daughter got so used to seeing me eat an apple a day that now she reminds me to bring apples home from the super market. She eats her apple everyday and I don’t even need to remind her. We are extremely healthy, by the way. Our actions speak louder than our words do; oh how I know that to be so true!
Cinnamon is an herb or spice which is derived from the bark of the Cinnamomum Zeylanicum tree. The bark is ground up and dried. It tastes warm, sweet and slightly smoky.
It is so good for you! Renowned for lowering blood glucose and LDL or “bad” cholesterol levels, cinnamon’s diabetes-managing prowess was further explored in a 2009 research study that linked it to lower levels of hemoglobin A1c in patients with type II diabetes. Since hemoglobin levels are a good indicator of long-term blood-glucose control, the study suggests that cinnamon may help treat type II diabetes. An effective dose for cardiovascular health is about one-half teaspoon everyday.
To cook with this popular spice, just add a teaspoon or two into pancake batter or into steel-cut oats. Add this spice early in the cooking process to allow the flavor to blend completely. Cinnamon is also an ingredient of Indian garam massala (mixed with cardamom, cloves, coriander and black pepper). You can make your own organic tea by letting the bark soak in a pot of hot, (but not boiling) water. It makes for a soothing tea. Caution: Take a break from eating or drinking it by taking one week off every 5 -6 weeks. Remember, that even too much of a good thing can be potentially dangerous.
Yes, cinnamon helps to regulate blood sugars and it speeds up our metabolic rate to help us burn more calories at a faster rate, so that is all the more reason why we should use cinnamon in our foods and in our baked goods as well. My grandmother used to bake with nutmeg and cinnamon all the time, but she had no idea that cinnamon 
was so healthy! Now, research shows that this wonderful spice can help to heal sore throats when mixed with warm water when gargled. It has many other healthy uses too. But right now, I want to share this great recipe for Cinnamon Raisin Peanut Butter Cookies with all my readers. This puts a new twist on an old-fashioned recipe:
Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
one-half tsp. kosher salt
1 cup natural peanut butter (creamy)
three-fourth’s cup maple syrup (natural)
one-half cup carrot puree
one-half cup canola oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
one-half cup raisins
non stick cooking spray
To make carrot puree: Peel and chop 3 carrots, about 6 oz. each. Place in a pot with small amount of water and cook, covered, until very soft, 10-15 minutes. Drain and puree in food processor or blender.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, Farenheit. In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside. In large bowl, mix together peanut butter, maple syrup, carrot puree, oil and vanilla. Stir until combined.
- Pour flour mixture over peanut butter mixture. Turn batter over with spatula about 7 times. Do not over mix! There will be dry spots. That’s OK. Stir in raisins.
- While batter is resting, coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray. Using a 2-oz. ice cream scoop, drop tablespoonfuls of dough onto baking sheets 1 inch apart. Fill small bowl with water and, using fork, press down on dough, making criss cross on each cookie; wet fork each time. Bake 8 – 10 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire rack; cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to four days.