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Healthy Snacks Recipes
From
Thom's Recipe File
Many people think snacks are junk food, though it doesn't
have to be that way. Snacking can be part of a balanced diet.
Eating small portions between meals provides your body with energy to keep
you going throughout the day.
Some other benefits of snacking:
- Healthy snacks provide fiber and nutrients your body needs.
- You can curb the feeling of hunger or starvation right before a
meal, which prevents overeating. Snacking may help you eat smaller
portions and reduce your calorie intake.
- Though individual calorie needs vary, your body needs fewer calories
as you age.
- Eating smaller meals more often may help you stay on track.
Try to keep your snack portions small and less than 250
calories. Spacing out meals and snacks can help prevent weight gain.
You still want to be careful about what kinds of food you choose to snack
on!
Sugary and fattening sweets like cookies and candy lack
nutrients. Many salty foods – like chips – can dehydrate you.
These foods should be eaten in moderation.
For healthy and filling snacks, try:
- Fresh or frozen fruit, or a handful of dried fruit, such as raisins
- Raw vegetables – carrots, celery, red and green pepper – cut and
portioned in small plastic bags. Try filling celery with peanut
butter or low-fat cottage cheese, or dipping your vegetables in low-fat
dressing.
- A whole wheat English muffin with apple butter and a cup of herbal
tea
- A slice of angel food cake with non-fat whipped topping
- Whole-grain crackers (could be topped with cheese or peanut butter)
- Non-fat cottage cheese or yogurt with honey
- A handful of nuts, dried fruit or trail-mix (or make your own mix by
buying the ingredients you like
- Hummus on whole-wheat pita-bread
- A smoothie (blend nonfat milk and/or yogurt with fruit)
So forget the bag of chips or candy bar and reach for a
handful of nuts and raisins. You'll get extra fiber, vitamins, and
minerals, all for about 50 calories.
With proper portions and healthy food choices, snacking
can enhance, rather than hurt your diet.
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| Lactic
Fermentation? |
Lactic fermentation is a proven traditional
of preserving foods. This kind of preservation is the only
one that preserves all the natural substances of the vegetable.
By lactic fermentation you preserve the food and at the same
time improve its quality. It allows the flavors to fully
develop.
Nutritionists recommend this kind of fermented vegetable.
Thanks to fermentation it cannot only be preserved for a long
time and has a delicious taste, but it also prevents a number of
illnesses typical of an industrialized society.
Fermented vegetables are essential for a healthy diet.
Natural fermentation is one of the oldest known preservation
methods. Lactic acid bacteria ferment the vegetables and
they preserve longer, have a pleasant acidic taste and a rich
contents of vitamins and minerals.
Sauerkraut is probably one of the healthiest foods, "writes
vicar Sebastian Kneipp. James Cook introduced sauerkraut
for ship crews. Thanks to its high contents of vitamin C,
this fermented vegetable protected quite a number of sailors
against the plague of the seas--scurvy.
The latest scientific studies confirm the age-old experience of
natural and popular medicine fibers keep a healthy digestion
going and lower the cholesterol level. Lactic bacteria are
important for the build-up and maintenance of a healthy
intestinal flora. Secondary plant substances prevent
cancer, protect the body against infection and inhibit the
growth and reproduction of fungi. The anti-ulcer factor
protects the digestive system against stomach and intestinal
ulcers. And then there is also a natural anti-depressant
named acetylcholine. |
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