Well, I guess it's about time that we all started eating our sprouts, broccoli sprouts to be precise. I noticed on a recent trip to Whole Foods that they were selling broccoli sprouts. Because I live with a Holistic Health Counselor I thought that I would try to impress her by bringing some of these sprouts home. Turns out this was a very good move, even though I had to listen to a lecture on the health benefits of sprouts.
Anyway, after listening to Mrs. Coffee Black lecture me on the numerous health benefits I decided to do a little research of my own. I searched "broccoli sprouts" on google and found 160,000 pages. Who knew these little sprouts were so popular?
Broccoli sprouts have been widely studied and the reported health benefits include: potential to detoxify carcinogens; inhibit the growth of cancer tumors, including breast, stomach, colon and bladder; the ability to lower blood pressure; lower overall cholesterol levels and help reverse some of the damage caused by diabetes. If that wasn't enough, a study by Johns Hopkins from October of 2007 found that topical application of broccoli sprouts extract helps fight against damage caused by UV radiation. See http://www.hopkinskimmelcancercenter.org/index.cfm/cID/1684/mpage/item.cfm/itemID/929
For those of you interested in the science, broccoli sprouts contain high concentrations of sulforaphane, a compound which has documented cancer prevention capabilities.
For those of you more interested in eating or growing sprouts, I suggest you check out http://www.sproutpeople.com/seed/broccoli.html. This site has instructions on how to grow your own sprouts and sprout recipes.
That's it for now.
Peace and Health
Coffee Black
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Canola what???
Very recently I received some emails warning of the dangers of canola oil and how pervasive the use of this oil has become in our society. For any of you who aren’t familiar with this particular oil, it is described by the Canola Council of Canada, which is where this oil comes from, as “…one of the healthiest and most versatile cooking oils available to home cooks and professional chefs alike. It is light, clear and mild, making it ideal for cooking, fondues, stir-frying, baking, salads and marinades. For great-tasting, healthy recipes, canola oil is the only oil you really need!” Hmmm, not so fast Canada. Let’s take a closer look.
According to the sources I read, and as described by the Weston A. Price Foundation, “the oil is removed by from the rapeseed, (no such thing as canola seed), by a combination of high temperature mechanical pressing and solvent extraction. Traces of the solvent (usually hexane) remain in the oil, even after considerable refining. Like all modern vegetable oils, canola oil goes through the process of caustic refining, bleaching and degumming--all of which involve high temperatures or chemicals of questionable safety. And because canola oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which easily become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures, it must be deodorized. The standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids by turning them into trans fatty acids. Although the Canadian government lists the trans content of canola at a minimal 0.2 percent, research at the University of Florida at Gainesville, found trans levels as high as 4.6 percent in commercial liquid oil. The consumer has no clue about the presence of trans fatty acids in canola oil because they are not listed on the label…” www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/conola.html
Wow, sounds great. Just what every chef should use to cook with.
Based upon what I have learned, I would never eat anything containing this oil. You will have to decide for yourself but do your own investigating before you make a decision. After all, The Canola Council of Canada went to so much trouble promoting this stuff, the least we can do is read about it before we stop using it.
By the way, Tast Eatery doesn’t use canola oil but I guess you already knew that…
Peace and health
Dave
According to the sources I read, and as described by the Weston A. Price Foundation, “the oil is removed by from the rapeseed, (no such thing as canola seed), by a combination of high temperature mechanical pressing and solvent extraction. Traces of the solvent (usually hexane) remain in the oil, even after considerable refining. Like all modern vegetable oils, canola oil goes through the process of caustic refining, bleaching and degumming--all of which involve high temperatures or chemicals of questionable safety. And because canola oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which easily become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures, it must be deodorized. The standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids by turning them into trans fatty acids. Although the Canadian government lists the trans content of canola at a minimal 0.2 percent, research at the University of Florida at Gainesville, found trans levels as high as 4.6 percent in commercial liquid oil. The consumer has no clue about the presence of trans fatty acids in canola oil because they are not listed on the label…” www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/conola.html
Wow, sounds great. Just what every chef should use to cook with.
Based upon what I have learned, I would never eat anything containing this oil. You will have to decide for yourself but do your own investigating before you make a decision. After all, The Canola Council of Canada went to so much trouble promoting this stuff, the least we can do is read about it before we stop using it.
By the way, Tast Eatery doesn’t use canola oil but I guess you already knew that…
Peace and health
Dave
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Time for some changes
Well, if you are anything like me you are constantly striving to make positive changes in your life. One of the best ways to start this process is to make a list. Yes, we've all heard it before, "write it down or it won't happen" but I really do believe that unless you take time to write things down, you will not be able to make the changes you are looking for.
So, what to do? Make a list of 10 things in your life that you would positively change. From that list take the one thing that if you were able to change would have the greatest positive impact on your life. Once you have identified that, you need a plan of action. This won't necessarily require another list but it will no doubt require quite a bit of thought.
If you are looking for help on this subject, I can recommend two very good books. Brian Tracy's book "Eat that Frog" and "The Power of 4" by Paula Owens both offer a number of suggestions on how to make positive changes in your life.
While we are on the subject of change, here's an easy way to start. Probably the single most important food missing from the American diet is green vegetables. So make a commitment to to include more green vegetables in your diet everyday. There are lots of leafy green vegetables to choose from. Right now, broccoli rabe is in season. You can also find kale, collard greens and spinach. Broccoli rabe and kale are two of my favorites and are really easy to prepare. They can be steamed, sauteed or boiled; tossed with a little garlic, salt and olive oil and you have a very tasty and healthy side dish.
Peace
Coffee Black
So, what to do? Make a list of 10 things in your life that you would positively change. From that list take the one thing that if you were able to change would have the greatest positive impact on your life. Once you have identified that, you need a plan of action. This won't necessarily require another list but it will no doubt require quite a bit of thought.
If you are looking for help on this subject, I can recommend two very good books. Brian Tracy's book "Eat that Frog" and "The Power of 4" by Paula Owens both offer a number of suggestions on how to make positive changes in your life.
While we are on the subject of change, here's an easy way to start. Probably the single most important food missing from the American diet is green vegetables. So make a commitment to to include more green vegetables in your diet everyday. There are lots of leafy green vegetables to choose from. Right now, broccoli rabe is in season. You can also find kale, collard greens and spinach. Broccoli rabe and kale are two of my favorites and are really easy to prepare. They can be steamed, sauteed or boiled; tossed with a little garlic, salt and olive oil and you have a very tasty and healthy side dish.
Peace
Coffee Black
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Got goals?
Who needs milk when you’ve got SMART goals? Not there is anything wrong with milk, especially if it comes from grass-fed, organic cows and isn’t homogenized. But that’s another story.
What I’m talking about now are SMART goals. Let’s face it, unless you set goals for yourself it’s very difficult to track your progress or even to make progress in the first place. When we speak of goals that are related to health and fitness, we are speaking of goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based. For example, “I want to tone up” while a worthy notion is not nearly specific enough to be SMART.
“I want to lose 5 inches in 5 weeks”, now that’s a SMART goal. It’s specific and measurable– 5 inches; it’s most certainly attainable (assuming you have 5 inches to lose); it’s relevant to your fitness; and it’s time based. Once your goal is in place you still need a plan. That’s when you need to draw on any number of available resources such as a personal trainer, exercise videos, health counseling, internet-based training, etc. Finally, the hard part: you actually have to execute your plan! That takes commitment and dedication. No magic pills or frozen entrees delivered to your door. Hard work in the gym and clean eating everyday are what it takes.
So be SMART. Set your goals, develop a plan and get to work.
Health and peace,
Coffee Black
What I’m talking about now are SMART goals. Let’s face it, unless you set goals for yourself it’s very difficult to track your progress or even to make progress in the first place. When we speak of goals that are related to health and fitness, we are speaking of goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based. For example, “I want to tone up” while a worthy notion is not nearly specific enough to be SMART.
“I want to lose 5 inches in 5 weeks”, now that’s a SMART goal. It’s specific and measurable– 5 inches; it’s most certainly attainable (assuming you have 5 inches to lose); it’s relevant to your fitness; and it’s time based. Once your goal is in place you still need a plan. That’s when you need to draw on any number of available resources such as a personal trainer, exercise videos, health counseling, internet-based training, etc. Finally, the hard part: you actually have to execute your plan! That takes commitment and dedication. No magic pills or frozen entrees delivered to your door. Hard work in the gym and clean eating everyday are what it takes.
So be SMART. Set your goals, develop a plan and get to work.
Health and peace,
Coffee Black
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Please allow me to introduce myself...
Well, since this is my first blog entry for Tast Eatery I thought that I should take the opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Dave Coffee, although my friend’s call me Coffee Black, which is perfectly fine with me. I am a co-founder of Rebalance Health and Fitness, Inc., a company devoted to holistic health through physical training and nutrition. I am a certified personal trainer; a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist; a Titleist Golf Fitness Instructor; and a Certified Kettlebell instructor. I am also an avid runner, weightlifter and golfer.
I am currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Exercise Science and Physical Education at Montclair State University, while working as a personal trainer at several area gyms, and training people in their homes and outdoors.
My sincere hope for this blog is to help all of you to achieve balance in your lives through physical fitness and nutrition. Only through education and understanding can we strive to better ourselves and find happiness within ourselves.
This blog will bring you invaluable information on food and exercise to feed your body and soul and to bring your life into balance. There are no limits to what we can achieve when we follow a healthy lifestyle.
Check-in after the holiday weekend when we will start to explore the impact of food and exercise on our bodies and our lives.
That’s it for now. Have a great holiday and I look forward to discussing the amazing benefits of a healthy lifestyle with all of you.
Thanks for reading,
Coffee Black
I am currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Exercise Science and Physical Education at Montclair State University, while working as a personal trainer at several area gyms, and training people in their homes and outdoors.
My sincere hope for this blog is to help all of you to achieve balance in your lives through physical fitness and nutrition. Only through education and understanding can we strive to better ourselves and find happiness within ourselves.
This blog will bring you invaluable information on food and exercise to feed your body and soul and to bring your life into balance. There are no limits to what we can achieve when we follow a healthy lifestyle.
Check-in after the holiday weekend when we will start to explore the impact of food and exercise on our bodies and our lives.
That’s it for now. Have a great holiday and I look forward to discussing the amazing benefits of a healthy lifestyle with all of you.
Thanks for reading,
Coffee Black
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