How to Create Healthy Homemade Snacks with Lemons?

 

Click HERE to Get These Super Healthy Sweet Treats & Dessert Recipes

Improve Your Health and Your Disposition with Lemons

The lovely little yellow lemon is packed with flavor but thankfully not with calories.

One whole lemon is only 12 to 20 calories, yet provides our bodies with nearly all of our daily vitamin C requirements.

Vitamin C among other things, builds collagen in the body. Collagen is essential for smoothing out wrinkles and lines in the face.

But, lemons are way more than flavor and vitamin C. They are a real powerhouse of antioxidants known as flavonoids that help reduce the risk of heart disease, inflammation and even have the ability to fight certain cancers.

Flavonoids help to locate and eliminate potentially harmful particles called free radicals that could otherwise damage the body’s cells and DNA. Additionally, lemons help to improve cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure and relieve heartburn. They provide both antioxidant and antibacterial properties.

This small but powerful superfood not only provides us with Vitamin C, but also provides many B vitamins, iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium and fiber. When enjoyed with foods high in iron (such as leafy greens) they can help the body to absorb it.

Even though lemons themselves (before you eat them) are acidic in nature, they actually work to keep your body alkaline – a healthy pH level. They also boost the immune system and benefit the digestive system and are known to help with weight loss because the fiber they provide is pectin and studies have shown that pectin reduces hunger cravings (because it helps us to feel fuller longer.)

Like most fruits and vegetables, the whole fruit is what provides full health benefits…so don’t be afraid of using the peel (where most of the vitamin C is found.)

Although the big punch of vitamin C is located in the peel of the lemon, all of it can and should be used…juice it, zest the peel, or use the lemony flesh in any dish that requires a bit of brightening up. Citrus enhances both savory and sweet dishes.

Don’t be duped into buying pre-squeezed lemon juice. Go for the real thing if you really want to benefit from this little yellow jewel. When buying fresh lemons choose the ones that are fully yellow and if possible go organic. Any green left on the lemon means that it has not yet ripened fully.

Avoid lemons that are wrinkled, dull in appearance or excessively hard. Most people are not aware that you can even freeze citrus whole…including lemons. So, there really is no reason to not have fresh lemons at your fingertips. It’s always best to go fresh but this works in a pinch.

Although drinking lemon water has been a mild trend for a while now, this trend is growing rapidly as more and more people discover the exceptional benefits that lemon water provides. Best when used in warm water and perfect as your morning “stimulant.” It’s great for flushing out toxins and preventing constipation.

In a recent study published by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, “regularly consuming vitamin C led to younger-looking skin with less wrinkles.” How’s that for a benefit?

Even the scent of lemons is pleasant to most people and has been found to improve moods as well as decrease stress levels.

Want to create healthy homemade snacks with lemons? Watch this video – Easy Healthy Lemon Bars (5 ingredients!)

So, what are you waiting for? The next time life hands you lemons, make lemon juice!

Looking for some exciting dessert and treat recipes using lemons that actually contribute to your health? Are ready to take your traditional desserts and turn them into “life giving” desserts?  “50 Desserts with Hidden Veggies” is your answser. In it you will discover no bake, Paleo friendly, no sugar, gluten free healthy sweet treat and dessert recipes… It’s time to make every bit count!

Author Bio:

Carolyn Hansen is the author of The Blended Bites Healthy Snack and Dessert Recipe Collection. This is a one-stop resource for delicious, healthy, guilt-free snacks that you can eat every day. And even better, EVERY ONE of these recipes are RAW healthy snack foods that taste as good as their fattening counterparts.

You can NOW satisfy your snack urge without any negative impact on your weight loss and fitness goals, and without sweating over a hot stove. These easy-to-prepare snacks contain no sugar, no flour or butter and are paleo friendly.

So, if you want to get your hands on recipes for desserts and snacks that you will not need to feel guilty about eating the next time you have a craving for something delicious, be sure to check out Carolyn Hansen’s books at Blended Bites, where she will show you how to take control of your blender and churn out mouth-watering desserts and snacks that will have the kids in your neighborhood lined up around the block for a sample.

Why Raw Cacao is a Super Ingredient Choice for Creating Healthy Snacks?

 

Click HERE to Get These Super Healthy Sweet Treats & Dessert Recipes

Raw Cacao – A Rich Source of Nutrients and a Powerhouse of Antioxidants

The cacao bean is the source of both cacao powder and cocoa powder. However, if you are looking for the purest form of chocolate you can consume packed with the most nutrients, raw cacao is your answer.

Cacao powder has been enjoyed for centuries in the kitchen and as a health aide. It is believed to be the highest source of antioxidants of all foods and the highest source of magnesium of all foods – it even trumps dark chocolate when it comes to antioxidants provided offering 300 different chemical compounds with nearly 4 times the antioxidant power of dark chocolate.

Cacao powder is also considered brain food because it contributes to cognitive function and the flow of blood to the brain – it improves heart health, stress and cholesterol levels and reduces inflammation. It is perfect for desserts, smoothies and even makes the cross-over easily to savory dishes.

Cacao beans grow in cacao pods on the fruit tree known as “Theobroma Cacao.” When the pods are cracked open the cacao bean is released. The bean is then harvested, fermented (not always) and dried.

Cacao and cocoa powder are not the same

In cacao powder the bean is still in its raw state – uncooked, unprocessed and additive free. It is unadulterated and is not as processed as traditional cocoa powder. It is processed by cold-pressing (pressing the oil/cocoa butter out) unroasted cocoa beans which removes the fat but keeps the living enzymes active.

Cocoa powder on the other hand has been roasted at high temperatures which changes the molecular structure of the bean and reduces the enzyme activity lowering the nutritional value.

The fattest part of the cacao fruit is the cacao butter that lines the inside of the cacao bean. Offering a rich, buttery texture similar in taste and texture to white chocolate.

Cacao powder is what remains of the fruit once the cacao butter is cold-pressed removed. It is the most important ingredient for making chocolate. An excellent source of nutrients, offering monounsaturated fats and cholesterol-free saturated fats. It also offers a wealth of vitamins, minerals, fiber, natural carbohydrates and protein.

Cacao nibs are cacao beans that have been chopped into edible pieces similar to chocolate chips but with no added sugars or fats. They do contain the same wealth of nutrients, fiber and fat you find in cacao beans. Nibs are just small bits of fermented, roasted, dried and crushed cacao bean. Offering an intense, non-sweet, chocolaty taste, they are very good for your health.

Cacao nibs and cacao powder are becoming a healthy cook’s best friend and are showing up everywhere.

The versatility of cacao nibs is one reason for their recent popularity. Similar to a macadamia nut in texture, cacao nibs are crunchy yet tender. If chocolate is already a favorite treat of yours, then you’ll likely fall in love with cacao nibs – even if their somewhat “bitter” taste takes a bit of getting used to.

They are perfect as is just sprinkled on your favorite gluten and sugar free cupcakes or mixed into your favorite homemade granola.

Consider creating healthy snacks using raw cacao? Watch this video – Deliciously Ella – Cacao & Almond Energy Balls

Ready to take your traditional desserts and turn them into “life giving” desserts? “50 Desserts with Hidden Veggies” was written with you in mind.  In it you will discover no bake, Paleo friendly, no sugar, gluten free healthy sweet treat and dessert recipes…

Isn’t it time to make every bite you take count!

Author Bio:

Carolyn Hansen is the author of The Blended Bites Healthy Snack and Dessert Recipe Collection. This is a one-stop resource for delicious, healthy, guilt-free snacks that you can eat every day. And even better, EVERY ONE of these recipes are RAW healthy snack foods that taste as good as their fattening counterparts.

You can NOW satisfy your snack urge without any negative impact on your weight loss and fitness goals, and without sweating over a hot stove. These easy-to-prepare snacks contain no sugar, no flour or butter and are paleo friendly.

So, if you want to get your hands on recipes for desserts and snacks that you will not need to feel guilty about eating the next time you have a craving for something delicious, be sure to check out Carolyn Hansen’s books at Blended Bites, where she will show you how to take control of your blender and churn out mouth-watering desserts and snacks that will have the kids in your neighborhood lined up around the block for a sample.

What are the Good Fats You Can Use for Preparing Healthy No Bake Desserts?

 

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Choosing Healthy Fats – Good Fats vs. Bad Fats

Although nutritionists and doctors alike have been preaching the benefits of a low-fat diet as one of the keys to managing cholesterol, losing weight and preventing future health issues, it’s really more about what types of fat you eat…not the amount.

Bad fats such as trans-fats and saturated fats have given a bad name to all fats but fat isn’t always the bad guy when it comes to disease and weight gain.

Truth is, eating fat can be heart-healthy when you pick the right fat. In fact, in order for your body to function at peak performance, your body needs some fat…the healthy kind. If you try and avoid all fat you risk not getting enough fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids.

To truly understand the difference between good and bad fats it’s important to know the major types of fats we’re dealing with.

Bad Fats include:

Trans-fats

Trans-fats and some saturated fats are bad because they increase the risk of disease and elevate cholesterol levels and play havoc with your weight. Good fats on the other hand protect your heart and your overall health.

In fact, good fats like omega-3 fats (fish is by far the best source of omega-3 fatty acids) are essential to your body physically, mentally and emotionally. Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fat and are proving to be especially beneficial. Getting more omega-3’s in your diet can help to sharpen memory, protect against dementia, balance mood and battle fatigue.

Healthy fats are far more satiating than refined and processed carbohydrates and a healthy diet should include at least 50-70 percent healthy fats.

Healthy fats do not include things like vegetable oils that are often marketed as being “healthy.” These man-made, refined and processed vegetable oils they want to label as “healthy” are actually loaded with unhealthy omega 6-fats that mess with your fat storing-fat burning hormones.

Fructose along with the wrong types of carbohydrates such as grains (that break down into sugar once in the body) lead to weight gain and eventually obesity. Other conditions such as weight-loss resistance are also the result of eating the wrong types of carbohydrates. The key is to begin replacing grains, sugars and lost carbohydrates with healthy fats.

Healthy Fats

Healthier dietary fat includes:

• Monounsaturated fats
• Polyunsaturated fats
• Omega-3 fatty acids (a type of polyunsaturated fat)
• Some saturated fats (like those found in coconut oil)

There are many readily available sources of healthy fats that you can include in your diet, here’s a few examples:

• Olives and olive oil – Not for high temperature cooking but perfect for cold dishes
• Coconuts – All forms of coconut…shredded, dried, fresh and flour for cooking and baking. Coconut oil or butter is good for high temperature cooking
• Avocados
• Butter – From grass fed cows
• Raw nuts – All raw nuts not roasted
• Seeds – Chia, flaxseed, sunflower, sesame and pumpkin seeds
• Eggs – Free range
• Meat – Grass fed

When focusing on replacing bad fats with healthy ones, a good place to start is to eliminate the trans-fats in your diet because no amount of trans-fats is healthy. They all contribute to major health issues ranging from heart disease to cancer.

The answer is not cutting fat out of our diets…it’s learning to make wise healthy choices in regards to which fats we eat as we begin replacing bad damaging fats that are currently in our diets with ones that promote health and well-being.

It’s time to take your traditional desserts and turn them into “life giving” desserts.

Watch this video to learn how to create healthy no bake desserts using good fats – Chia Seed Energy Bars: No-bake power packs for pre/post-workout

Grab my “50 Desserts with Hidden Veggies. “  In it you will discover no bake, Paleo friendly, no sugar, gluten free healthy sweet treat and dessert recipes that use only healthy life giving fats.

Author Bio:

Carolyn Hansen is the author of The Blended Bites Healthy Snack and Dessert Recipe Collection. This is a one-stop resource for delicious, healthy, guilt-free snacks that you can eat every day. And even better, EVERY ONE of these recipes are RAW healthy snack foods that taste as good as their fattening counterparts.

You can NOW satisfy your snack urge without any negative impact on your weight loss and fitness goals, and without sweating over a hot stove. These easy-to-prepare snacks contain no sugar, no flour or butter and are paleo friendly.

So, if you want to get your hands on recipes for desserts and snacks that you will not need to feel guilty about eating the next time you have a craving for something delicious, be sure to check out Carolyn Hansen’s books at Blended Bites, where she will show you how to take control of your blender and churn out mouth-watering desserts and snacks that will have the kids in your neighborhood lined up around the block for a sample.

How to Create Exciting Healthy Tasty Desserts with Raw Unprocessed Honey?

 

Click HERE to Get These Super Healthy Sweet Treats & Dessert Recipes

Raw Honey is a Super-Food Favorite

Anyone that is truly seeking health pays attention to what goes into their bodies in regards to nutrients.

White sugar quickly becomes a no-no and satisfying their sweet tooth can be a challenge.

However, there are a few great sugar substitutes available and raw honey is one of those – it’s a long time family favorite.

Humans have enjoyed and indulged in honey for thousands of years. Its consumption dates back to prehistoric cave paintings found in Spain over 8,000 years ago. Recorded in Egyptian, Chinese and Biblical texts, honey was also enjoyed and used medicinally by Native Americans.

Used in beverages and foods of all types for its nutritional value, honey has been used as a remedy for everything from burns to intestinal problems.

Of course, like other foods, honey comes in differing grades. If you’re really after the super-food nutrient value of honey, steer clear of the processed “heated” kind.

Choose high quality raw honey that still retains all of its nutrients, enzymes and medicinal properties. When honey is in this state, it is still a living food offering enzymes that can boost the immune system and digestive functions.

Honey contains a wide variety of trace minerals. Iron, calcium, zinc, potassium, phosphorous, magnesium, chromium, copper, manganese, and selenium are critical for insulin sensitivity and, blood sugar balance. Because it is easily digestible, it offers a huge energy boost for the body.

Raw honey is a perfect alternative sweetener but should be used in moderation because of its high glycemic sugar content. Often prescribed at bedtime, raw honey helps promote the release of melatonin, the hormone responsible for the recover and rebuilding of tissue when the body is at rest.

Benefits you’ll derive from honey include:

• Boost in energy
• Relieving arthritic discomfort
• Promoting healthy gastro-intestinal/digestive systems
• Helps with calcium absorption
• Prevents heart disease and cancer
• Prevents plaque build-up
• Heals burns
• Slows aging

In order for honey to be considered real honey by the Food and Drug Administration, it must contain pollen.  Unfortunately, in the U.S. has a lot of honey being sold that is not real honey. For the most part, honey is not checked so many people buy and consume nutrient-depleted honey. 

The best thing to do is to buy organic, raw honey from your favorite health food store or health food aisle in your grocers. If there is a local beekeeper in your area that would be the best place by far to purchase your honey.

Raw unprocessed honey comes straight from the beehive. It is a potent superfood that provide us with healing enzymes that make us mentally alert and sharpen our IQ. 

Raw honey or real honey is usually labeled according to the flowers it was obtained from – each offering their own array of nutrients. Flower sources can include wildflowers, clover, buckwheat, alfalfa and or other specialty types.

Want to create exciting healthy tasty desserts with raw unprocessed honey? Watch this video – No Bake Honey Cheesecake

Isn’t it time you began introducing much ignored nutrient-dense super-star ingredients into all your dishes…including your desserts?

For more delicious, nutritious desserts and treats – “50 Desserts with Hidden Veggies.” Inside  you will discover no bake, Paleo friendly, no sugar, gluten free healthy sweet treat and dessert recipes…

Author Bio:

Carolyn Hansen is the author of The Blended Bites Healthy Snack and Dessert Recipe Collection. This is a one-stop resource for delicious, healthy, guilt-free snacks that you can eat every day. And even better, EVERY ONE of these recipes are RAW healthy snack foods that taste as good as their fattening counterparts.

You can NOW satisfy your snack urge without any negative impact on your weight loss and fitness goals, and without sweating over a hot stove. These easy-to-prepare snacks contain no sugar, no flour or butter and are paleo friendly.

So, if you want to get your hands on recipes for desserts and snacks that you will not need to feel guilty about eating the next time you have a craving for something delicious, be sure to check out Carolyn Hansen’s books at Blended Bites, where she will show you how to take control of your blender and churn out mouth-watering desserts and snacks that will have the kids in your neighborhood lined up around the block for a sample.

What Can Happen If You Can’t Curb Your Addiction for Sugary Foods?

 

Click HERE to Get These Super Healthy Sweet Treats & Dessert Recipes

Sugar Turns on Your Fat-Storing Switch

Nutrigenomics is a blossoming new field that studies the genes associated with health and disease as well as obesity.

It is the study of how nutrients interact with our human genes.

We’re already aware that certain foods contain information and instructions for cells and hormones along with nutrients and calories. Now they are trying to find out how this information can turn on or off the expression of certain genes.

For example –

When you eat sugary types of foods a cascade of chemical and hormonal reactions are set off in the body. One of the side effects of this is it turns up the dial on your hunger thermostat which reprograms your level of hunger upwards. You not only experience increased hunger, you now experience increased cravings as well.

It’s a known fact that fructose (sugar) stimulates and turns on a gene-mediated “fat-storing switch.”

The results are…

A cascade of chemical reactions that play havoc with our bodies and health. Decreased HDL (good cholesterol) levels and increased LDL (bad cholesterol) levels, elevated blood fats (triglycerides), higher blood sugar levels and high blood pressure – all thing that lead to the condition known as metabolic syndrome.

Dietary carbohydrates, especially fructose, are also the primary source of a substance called glycerol-3-posphate (g-3-p), which causes fat to become fixed in fat tissue. At the same time, high carbohydrates raise insulin levels, which prevent fat from being released from the body’s cells.

Fructose further tricks your body, turning off your body’s appetite control/regulation system which results in feeling hungry all the time, even though you have eaten. You continue to overeat which causes you to not only gain excess body fat and weight but now you’ve opened the door to developing insulin resistance which is the precursor to not only diabetes, heart disease and cancer, but a long list of other chronic disease.

When we eat the wrong foods, particularly the wrong carbohydrates and turn on this “fat storing switch” it leads to weight gain, especially in the abdominal area. But the damage doesn’t stop there. It goes on to affect your health in other negative ways and can eventually lead to serious disease. Unfortunately, no amount of exercise or physical activity alone can compensate for this type of damage to the body cells and systems.

Fructose and the wrong types of carbohydrates, for example grains that break down into sugar in the body, lead to weight gain, obesity, weight loss resistance and on to other more serious health issues.

Becoming and staying overweight is not necessarily the result of eating too much food and calories but rather eating the wrong types of foods and getting calories from the wrong sources.

The truth is, the foods that are now making us unhealthy and overweight were not part of the diets of our ancient ancestors. These are modern varieties. They activate and program our bodies to continue to store fat rather than burn it and the only way off the merry-go-round is to get them out of our diets.

Isn’t it time you began introducing much ignored nutrient-dense super-star ingredients into all your dishes…including desserts?

Want to curb your addiction for sugary foods? Watch this video – 3 Easy No Bake Low Carb Dessert Recipes | Quick Sugar Free Desserts

To enjoy delicious, nutritious desserts and treats that contribute to your health – “50 Desserts with Hidden Veggies.” Inside  you will discover no bake, Paleo friendly, no sugar, gluten free healthy sweet treat and dessert recipes…

Author Bio:

Carolyn Hansen is the author of The Blended Bites Healthy Snack and Dessert Recipe Collection. This is a one-stop resource for delicious, healthy, guilt-free snacks that you can eat every day. And even better, EVERY ONE of these recipes are RAW healthy snack foods that taste as good as their fattening counterparts.

You can NOW satisfy your snack urge without any negative impact on your weight loss and fitness goals, and without sweating over a hot stove. These easy-to-prepare snacks contain no sugar, no flour or butter and are paleo friendly.

So, if you want to get your hands on recipes for desserts and snacks that you will not need to feel guilty about eating the next time you have a craving for something delicious, be sure to check out Carolyn Hansen’s books at Blended Bites, where she will show you how to take control of your blender and churn out mouth-watering desserts and snacks that will have the kids in your neighborhood lined up around the block for a sample.