For most vegetarians, the last holdout that keeps them from going vegan is cheese. There is a simple evolutionary reason for this: cheese contains huge amounts of fat and salt, which are brains are hardwired to love. Our brains tell us to love fat because it is such a good source of energy. We love salt because it is required for balancing fluid levels in our bodies. Remember, until recently in human history, it wasn’t that easy to find salt. Our brains light up with pleasure chemicals when we taste salt. When you combine fat and salt, the pleasure reaction is even greater.
Food
Chitin: The Reason Mushrooms are So Meaty
Mushrooms are a true super food. They are chock full of B vitamins, potassium, copper, zinc, selenium, and a slew of other important nutrients. The real reason to love mushrooms so much though is because they have a fabulous texture — which is why a grilled portabella mushroom can rival a steak any day.
6 Reasons I Am Giving Up Coffee
It pains me to say it, but I am giving up coffee. As you read this and defend your love of coffee, keep in mind that I live in Eastern Europea place where people dont even bother asking you if you want a cup of coffee when you come over. They just assume you do and immediately start cooking it (we mostly drink Turkish coffee here). So, I am going to have to significantly change my social life and live like more of an outcast by giving up coffee.
Does Soaking Beans Affect Nutritional Value?
You probably know that you should soak dry beans before cooking them. The main reason for doing this is to reduce the amount of time it takes to cook the beans. However, there are also other implications of soaking beans.
Simplest Lacto-Fermentation Instructions Ever
Lacto fermented vegetable pickles are some of the healthiest things you can eat. I’m not talking about the pickles you find in the supermarket which are basically made by putting veggies into vinegar. Real pickles are made with an age-old process called lacto fermentation which not only allows you to preserve foods, but proliferate healthy bacteria.
5 Greatest Health Benefits of Pumpkin Seeds
Pumpkins, as well as other squashes, are native to North and Central America. They were an important part of Native American cuisine long before the conquistadors “discovered” the Americas.
Christopher Columbus is credited with bringing pumpkin seeds back to the Europe. The Europeans didn’t really know what to do with the strange foods from the new world though. They eyed crops like tomatoes and potatoes with suspicion, fearful that the foods were poisonous. Pumpkins fared slightly better but were held in low regard and only the poorest people ate them.
3 Reasons Flax Seeds Are the Duct Tape of Health
Three of the leading health issues in the United States are heart disease, depression and diabetes. Every year, trillions are spent to treat these diseases. According to the CDC, heart disease alone costs the USA nearly $1 billion per day in medical costs and lost productivity. The irony is that many of these conditions could be treated much more safely and affordably with flax seeds, along with a diet full of whole foods and exercise.
Kitchen Tips for People Who Hate to Cook
There are a lot of people out there who love to cook. These are the people who don’t mind putting in all of that effort to shop, chop, dice, and sauté because they get rewarded for their efforts with a nice meal. But, for a lot of us, the reward simply isn’t enough. Even though you know you should cook for your health and to save money, you still find yourself ordering a pizza. Cooking doesn’t have to be painful though. Follow these kitchen tips and you’ll find cooking a lot easier. Heck, you might even start to like it!
Healthiest Food “Scraps” You Are Throwing in the Trash
When we eat certain foods, we often chuck parts of them into the trash, like the core of an apple or the skin of kiwi. But it turns out that a lot of those food “scraps” which we routinely trash are actually edible and good for us. The next time you eat these foods, especially if you buy organic, make sure you don’t throw away the healthy parts you could be eating!
4 Ways to Make Winter Root Vegetables More Exciting
It is nice to follow an “eat local” diet but, for most of us, this means relegating ourselves to root vegetables in the wintertime. As much as I love turnips, potatoes, carrots, and all those other wintertime vegetarian fare, it can get incredibly boring! Follow these 4 quick tips for making root vegetables more exciting!