Search Results for: grains

September 14, 2015 By Satish Kurapaty 3 Comments

10 Healthy snacks for your road trip

How often have you remembered to carry some food with you when you step out of your home? More often than not when we are away from home we seldom think of carrying any food along with us. You could blame this on laziness or to the fact that easily available food on the go. Fast food joints have made our life so simple and comfortable that we don’t bother to carry a lunchbox or snack box if we are going away.

Ideally, it is very important that we plan our trip before leaving our house. Here are few healthy and yummy snacking options that you can choose from:-

Nuts

Nuts are packed with protein, fibre and essential fats. Handful of nuts makes a vitality-boosting snack and unlike most other options contributes a mix of valuable vitamins and minerals. The fiber content in the nuts helps us feel satiated for a longer period of time.

All nuts have different nutritional value and health benefits.

Cashew Nuts :-

Cashews contribute a good level of protein and are a useful source of minerals like iron and zinc; cashews make an excellent choice if you’re following a vegetarian diet. They are rich in the mineral magnesium, which is thought to improve recall and delay age-related memory loss.

Hazelnuts:-

If you are concerned about high levels of homocysteine, an amino acid which has been associated with heart problems as well as conditions like Parkinson’s disease, Hazelnuts are a good source of folate, which plays a key role in keeping homocysteine within normal levels.

Pistachios

Pistachios are rich in vitamin B6, which is important for keeping hormones balanced and healthy, Pistachios also contain good amount of potassium. This is the only nut that contains reasonable levels of lutein and zeaxanthin-two antioxidants that play an important role in protecting the eyes.

Dried fruits

Dried fruits like Raisins, cranberries, apricots, peaches, etc. Dry fruits are anti-cancer militant. These help us in beautiful and healthy skin. Dried fruits lack fats, are rich in fibre and help in increasing iron in the body. Dry fruits are packed with needed vitamins and minerals that are essential for healthy living.

Carrots :-

Carrots have antioxidant power in reducing free radicals in the body that works as Anti cancer. Helps in reducing lung cancer and has high amount of Vitamin A that helps is better vision.

Blueberries:–

Blueberries are low in Calories, high in nutrients. It is also known as King of Antioxidant Foods. Blueberries protect cholesterol in the blood from getting damaged and lower blood pressure. Blueberries can help maintain brain function and improve memory.

Bananas:-

Bananas help overcome depression due to high levels of tryptophan, which is converted into serotonin (happy-mood brain neurotransmitter). Have Banana before workout to pack an energy punch and sustain your blood sugar. It protects against muscle cramps during workouts and nighttime leg cramps. Bananas reduce swelling, protect against type II diabetes, aid weight loss, strengthen the nervous system, and help with the production of white blood cells. All these benefits are due to high levels of vitamin B-6.

Sandwich :-

Make a healthy sandwich by selecting healthy whole grain bread, peanut butter, Honey and add toppings as per taste. You can also add veggies to it.

Whole grain roasted snacks:

If you are buying something from a superstore, then opt for roasted snacks made of whole grains, pulses and seeds.

Whatever you choose, always keep in mind that they must be whole foods, with good fiber content and probably also have good protein, vitamins and minerals. Avoid carrying too salty, spicy and oily snacks.

Eat healthy and enjoy your journey!

August 24, 2015 By Hetal Chheda Leave a Comment

The Power of food – the powerful immune system

The most dreaded cold and cough keeps visiting us often like our friends do. They are more prevalent in some seasons than the rest. Malaria, Typhoid, Influenza, flu are some more diseases that also play havoc in our child’s life.

Low or weak immunity is one big reason that most fall victim to such diseases. Immune-boosting nourishment can help a lot and increase your child’s resistance to fight the disease which no other medicine in the world can do. A sturdy immune system lets your child develop intellectually, physically and emotionally.

One doesn’t need to especially go purchase these foodstuffs but can be made accessible in your kitchen garden.

Why choosing food over medicine is so important.

Food has innumerable properties like antibacterial, anti-infective, analgesic and antibiotic. These properties in food will keep diseases at bay without harming your internal organs.

Your body identifies food and will accept it readily and provide you its benefits. Whereas drugs are foreign substances which your body takes time to identify and in turn harms your natural immunity. This affects your child’s body system negatively over a period of time.

Make your own cough, cold and fever syrup

COLD AND COUGH

2 tsp ginger juice + 2 tsp honey + 1 pinch turmeric + 1 pinch Salt + juice of 1 lemon + 1 tsp glycerin.

Mix them all together and give 1 tsp after every 2 hrs.

FEVER

25 raisins soaked in half a cup of water + juice of ½ lemon

Crush the raisins into the water and strain. Add the lemon juice to the water and drink twice a day.

Everyday foods that will increase immunity

Fruits and vegetables: All citrus fruits, strawberries, Grapefruit, watermelon, grapes, cauliflower, carrots, bell peppers, broccoli, spinach, sweet potatoes, Mushrooms and Methi leaves.

Milk and milk products: Yogurt.

Cereals and Pulses: Oats, barley and whole grains, sprouts.

Meat, Fish and Egg: Chicken soup, Egg yolk, fish and beef.

Others: Garlic, ginger, cinnamon, Tulsi leaves, Turmeric

Other things that help

Boost your child’s sleep time.

Breast feed your baby.

If your child gets sick discard the old tooth brush.

Engage your child in some outdoor activity daily.

Make sure your child washes hand before meals.

Health is imperative to one and all; be it a child or an adult. A powerful and sturdy immune system will lay the foundation for better future, growth and development.

July 27, 2015 By ASHWINI PRAKASH CHAUDHARI 5 Comments

5 Easy Ways to Cut Down on the Fat

During my college days, I was on the healthier side as compared to all my friends. And, I always felt I had to lose weight just to be like them. The first thing that crossed my mind was I should be skipping my meals. I did precisely that, started to skip my meals and lost weight. But, when is started back on my normal meals I realized I used to gain back the weight. After losing the weight, I also started feeling weak. Since I was into sports I needed to be fit too. I wondered why I am feeling weak. I have lost the extra weight but, yet not feeling energetic?

Slowly and gradually as time passed on, I started my dietetics studies and that’s when I realized the actual meaning of what is weight loss.

When we talk about losing weight, what does it actually mean? Does it mean losing weight or losing muscle weight??

I realized that, there is no shortcut or a magical pill for fat loss. There are several reasons and factors that are responsible for it. When I first lost weight, I started feeling weak because I lost muscle weight and not fat weight.

The key to real fat loss is combining the right foods together and eating right. When the right foods are combined there is a synergy affect resulting in double fat loss in almost half the time.

The way to successfully losing the fat weight is long-term healthy lifestyle change. I think this is a very clever way of informing people to stop trying to find a quick and easy way to lose fat. It just reaffirms that we need to mould ourselves in self created healthy environment and become a healthier individual naturally. Here, are some easy ways to cut down the fat weight rather than of yourself! So lets get started..

1)Healthy Eating Habits- When we talk about healthy eating habits what are the things that come to your mind?

Your major meals of the day which are breakfast, lunch and dinner. These meals are very important and we should not skip these meals. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Your body needs to know that it can start burning calories and breakfast is exactly that flag. One should have a king size breakfast. If you do not then you will end up eating unhealthy stuff. Lunch should be lighter than breakfast and well balanced with carbs and proteins. Same with dinner, it should be the lightest of the all meals, with more proteins and less carbohydrates.

Our meals should be load up on protein and fiber. To get rid of that stubborn fat, we need proteins. As proteins helps to repair and build muscles, intake should be up to the requirement. At the same time we should not forget fiber. Fiber helps to digest and lose weight by helping you feel full. So add beans, whole grains, brown rice, nuts, and berries on to the list which are awesome foods to get going.

Not only proteins and fibers but, also the fats are important to include in the daily diet. Not any sort of a no-fat or low-fat diet. Well, a low-fat diet is good but, only if you do it right. You need to stick to the good fats. The good kind (unsaturated; your omega-3s and 6s) can actually lead to fat burn, rising your metabolism.

To reduce calories, to get rid of body fat, you need not to cut out healthy fats completely. Include avocados, fatty fish, olives, nuts and seeds, and oils such as olive, flaxseed and canola in your diet.

2) Eat often- Getting rid of body fat is all about the metabolism, and to keep up the metabolism, you got to be eating constantly.

As we are talking about the major meals same time small frequent meals are important too. When you eat small meals all the time, your metabolic rate increases and the increase in metabolism helps to lose fat. If you eat six meals a day versus just the three regular meals (breakfast , lunch , dinner) with the same total calories, you can lose more fat because more meals burn more calories by increasing thermogenesis, the production of heat, in the body.

Let’s not forget portion control, while going through proper meals you need to have look on portion control as well.

Try to take a less portion when you are serving your plate. Mindful eating works well such as chewing the food thoroughly, eating slowly. Eating slowly helps because it is known that once you cross 20 minutes of eating, the satiety center in the brain gets stimulated which sends you a signal that you are full and you stop eating. This is how portion control helps.

3) Water-The body fuel! Water is the medium in which most cellular activities take place, including the transport and burning of fat. In addition, drinking plenty of calorie-free water makes you feel full. Drink at least 3 litres of water a day. This is going to help you in washing away the toxins from your body and also to lessen the load of liver and thereby helping the liver to focus on metabolizing fat and the metabolizing rate related with fat loss.

Set yourself to accomplish this goal and you are on. Drink loads of water. It’s practically the easiest detoxifying tactic there in.

Two glasses of cold water can actually spike up your metabolism for about half an hour.

4) Exercise with proper breathing- To be on a healthy path you need a proper exercise along with the diet! Try to be more active, Daily 30-45 mins of Interval walking/ Running can be beneficial. Your main focus when you exercise should be losing body fat, and you can’t lose body fat just by burning calories. When we exercise, our bodies start burning calories, but the calories that are burned are the calories from carbohydrates in our system. In order to burn calories from your stored fat, your body requires the presence of oxygen. There is a certain amount of oxygen that your body needs in order to start burning fat and the only way for you to measure the amount needed for your own body is to keep up with your target heart rate during exercise.

Fat burns in the presence of oxygen. There’s a phrase which says (When you eat more, breathe more). It means oxygen burns the extra calories we eat, which is not required by the body and also reduces the overall fat percentage in the body. Oxygen thins the blood a little which helps lower your blood pressure and speed up the flow of blood. This increases your metabolism and burns more calories. The more oxygen you have in your blood the faster your metabolism will be. Cool air causes an additional increase in your metabolic rate because you need to expend more energy to keep the body at a comfortable temperature.

5 ) Rest– as focusing on all activities to stay healthy, along with all that your body needs a crucial ingredient-“rest”!

The culprits are leptin and ghrelin. Leptin tells your body it’s full and ghrelin stimulates appetite. When you don’t sleep, leptin levels decrease and ghrelin levels increases. The result? You eat more unconsciously which can lead to fat gain. To avoid this scenario, make sure you rest. Try to take proper 7-8 hours of sleep. Also your body requires it to reduce stress levels and rejuvenate once again with fresh energy for the next day. You are like a powerhouse that just can’t be stopped, but your body needs to rest. Especially if you’re lifting weights like it’s your job; your muscles need time to repair themselves. And the muscle repairs and recovery happens when your body is at rest. So, take a day to take it easy. You don’t have to sit on the couch all day, but do allow your body to heal itself.
These are some fat burning food- Berries, grape fruit, Green tea, Eggs, Olive oil, Enova oils (Soy or canola) Almonds and other nuts, chilli peppers, whey protein, peanut butter, oat meal, spinach and other green vegetables, whole grains, beans and legumes, lean meat, fatty fish (salmon, tuna, etc), dairy products (low or no fat) etc.

For fat burning exercise you can check the following blog links written by my co-colleagues

https://goqii.com/blog/interval-training-to-put-your-fat-on-flame/

https://goqii.com/blog/10-tips-for-fat-burn-exercise/

July 21, 2015 By Hardika Vira 3 Comments

7 Healthy, Nutritious SWEETS

When you hear about the word sweets, one expects loads of sugar and fatty foods. Who ever said that sweets cannot be nutritious and healthy?

There are some healthy and nutritious sweets which will not only satisfy your sugar cravings but, sure will also help you improve your health and immunity. Let’s have a look at these 7 recipes that I have in store for you

1. Date Rolls

Ingredients	Amount
Dates	1 cup
Almonds	8-10 nos
Dry ginger powder	1 tbsp
Gum (gond/ dink)	1 tsp
Cow’s Ghee	1 tbsp

The gum exudes naturally from the roots of the plant and from incisions made in the stem. This is collected and when dried forms crystals of flakes or may be formed into blocks. It is also known as gondkatira, or Tragacanth gum. It is a coolant and at the same time is rich in soluble fiber. It is easily available in where grains and dry fruits are available.

METHOD:

Warm ghee in a pan, once it heats up, add gum to it. Stir until it swells. Remove it out in a plate
In the remaining ghee in the pan, sauté the dates for a few minutes. Turn the gas off and add chopped almonds, dry ginger powder and fried gums
Mix it well and make rolls
Garnish with almond slivers
Serve at room temperature

P.S: You can add little cocoa powder to give it a chocolaty taste. You can also add walnuts instead of almond

BENEFITS: Dates are rich source of iron, ginger powder is anti-inflammatory and almonds are rich source of omega 3 fats, gum is good for bones.

All in all a super immunity and health booster sweet

2. Sesame Chikki or Blocks

Ingredients	Amount
Roasted Sesame seeds/ Unsalted peanuts	1 cup
Jaggery	½ cup
Oil	For greasing

METHOD:

Take ½ cup of jaggery pieces in a pan. On a slow flame, melt the jaggery and stir continuously. Keep stirring it until it attains hard ball like consistency (check by adding the jaggery syrup in cold water. It should harden like candy)
Once the hard ball consistency is achieved, add the roasted sesame seeds/ unsalted peanuts to the jaggery syrup. Mix well.
Get the mixture off the flame and pour the mixture on a greased platform and roll the mixture into a thin film. (Roll when hot so that it can be rolled into a thin film. Once the mixture reaches room temperature, it is difficult to roll.)
It will harden when it cools down and you can make small pieces of it.

P.S.:- You can use almonds/ walnuts/ dalia (Roasted unsalted gram dal)/ rajgeera (Amaranth seeds) etc.

BENEFITS: Jaggery a rich source of iron and til/sesame seed is super source of Calcium. 2 spoonfuls of sesame seeds equals calcium equal to 1 glass of milk.

Jaggery- til/ sesame seed chikki is best for women during their menses. It eases the menstrual pain.

When peanuts or other nuts are used, it serves as an excellent energy bar, without any preservatives

3. Makhana (Foxnut) Kheer

Ingredients	Amount
Makahana/ foxnut	1 cup
Low fat milk	500 ml
Cardamom powder	1 tsp
Almonds	6-8 nos
Ghee	1 tsp
Jaggery/	Approx. 3-4 tbsp
Saffron	Optional

METHOD:

In a pan, take a tablespoon of ghee and roast the foxnuts or Makhana. You can powder the foxnuts too if you want a thick consistency in kheer
In another pan, heat the milk, when it comes to a boil, add foxnuts, stir well and simmer for 5 -10 mins stirring occasionally in between on a medium flame
Add cardamom powder, pinch of saffron, almond slivers to the above mixture.
Add jaggery and stir well.
If you want a thick consistency, simmer for a few minutes more stirring occasionally

PS:- You can replace Foxnuts with brown rice/ grated carrot/ grated bottlegourd/ Haleem seeds/ Ragi/too.

BENEFITS:Foxnut is rich source of calcium, high in fiber, antioxidant and proteins which when had along with milk increases its nutritional value further. Almonds again is a rich source of omega 3 and fiber.

It serves as the best food for toddlers and infants in their growing age. Even for pregnant and lactating females.

4. Mango Yoghurt Candies

Ingredients	Amount
Low fat fresh yoghurt	1 cup
Ripe Mango puree	1 cup

METHOD:

In a blender, mix well the low fat fresh yoghurt and the ripe mango puree. Do not add any sugar since fruit has its natural sweetness. If need be, add stevia leaves.
Add this blended puree in moulds. Deep freeze it for 6-8 hours. You can add wooden sticks while unmoulding to give an ice-cream effect
Unmould and serve immediately
S.:- Choose fruits which are fresh and ripe as it is sweet and does not require sugar substitute to make the dish sweet. You can use fruits like strawberries, litchi, kiwi, blueberry, custard apple

BENEFITS: Yoghurt is great source of probiotics which maintains gut health and fights bacteria and disease producing organisms in our body. It is also great source of vitamins and minerals available from fruits. It makes for excellent ice-cream that is sugarless and low fat + no added preservatives. You wouldn’t mind giving it to your kids for sure

5. Lapsi

Ingredients	Amount
Broken wheat/Dalia/ fada	1 cup
Jaggery	1 cup
Cardamom powder	½ tsp
Almonds	6-8 nos
Ghee	2 tbsp
Raisins	Optional

METHOD:

Heat a tablespoon of ghee in a wide pan on medium heat; stir in the broken wheat and roast the wheat until it gets a roasted aroma and the color changes to golden orange.
In another pan, dissolve the jaggery in 2 cups warm water. Strain if you see any impurities/residue. Pour in the jaggery mixture and cardamom powder in the broken wheat mixture stirring continuously until well combined. Reduce the heat to low and cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 10-15 minutes; stirring occasionally until the wheat is cooked to tender.
Allow the Lapsi to rest covered for five minutes. Stir in the cashew nuts and the raisins to the above mixture and serve
Stir in few of the almond slivers and the raisins to the Lapsi Recipe (Gujarati Broken Wheat Pudding). Garnish with remaining almond slivers. Serve hot

P.S. You can also use oats/ coarsely ground Moong dal flour instead of broken wheat

BENEFITS: Broken wheat is rich in fiber and manganese, magnesium, phosphorus. It contains all the nutrients present in whole wheat. When had with jiggery, it serves to be a nutrient dense sweet.

6. Puran Poli

Ingredients	Amount
Whole wheat flour	1 cup
Tur dal/ Chana dal/ lentil	1 cup
Jaggery	1/2 cup
Cardamom powder	½ tsp
Nutmeg powder	¼ tsp
Ghee	1 tbsp
Oil	1 tsp
Saffron	Optional
Salt	To taste

METHOD:

Take a large bowl; combine wheat flour with salt, water and knead to form a firm dough mixture. Add 1 teaspoon of oil to coat the dough and knead for a couple of more minutes until smooth and firm. Cover the dough and keep it aside for 10-15 minutes
Cook the lentil with 1-1/2 cups of water until soft and is well cooked. You can even pressure cook the lentil for one whistle and simmer on slow flame for a few minutes more. Drain any excess water from the lentil and keep aside.
Heat ghee in another pan on medium heat, add the jaggery and stir until the jiggery dissolves completely. Stir in the cooked lentils, saffron, cardamom and nutmeg to the jaggery mixture until well combined.
Continue stirring the mixture until the lentil mixture begins to thicken and leaves the sides of the pan. Turn off the flame and let the mixture cool completely.
Divide the dough and Puran mixture into 6-7 equal portions. Roll out rotis with the help of dry wheat flour. Place the puran mixture into the center, bring all the edges of the rolled roti towards the center and fold over to cover the filling, thereby sealing the puran mixture completely.
Flatten the stuffed dough; dust over a little flour and roll gently into medium sized rotis/ circle ensuring not to put too much pressure as the puran can come out of the dough.
Preheat an iron skillet on medium high; place the rolled puranpoli’s onto the skillet to cook until golden brown on both sides by applying minimal of ghee over it to give it a crispier texture.
Repeat the above process for all the remaining dough and puran portions.

BENEFITS: Excellent cereal pulse combination providing good quality proteins. Iron from jiggery. Good satiety value since high in proteins, fiber.

7 Dry fruit Barfi

Ingredients	Amount
Seedless Dates chopped	½ cup
Dry figs chopped	½ cup
Almonds finely chopped	½ cup
Walnuts finely chopped	½ cup
Cashew+ Pistachio mixture finely chopped	¼ cup
Milk	1-2 tablespoon
Cardamom powder	A pinch
Nutmeg powder	A pinch
Ghee	½ tbsp.

METHOD:

In a pan, heat ghee. Roast all the dryfruits except dried figs and dates until you get roasted aroma
Blend the finely chopped dates and figs with 1-2 tablespoon of milk until smooth.
In a nonstick pan, sauté the blend paste until golden brown. Keep stirring continuously till the mixture leaves sides of the pan. In this mixture, add the roasted dry fruits and mix well.
Pour and layer this dry fruit barfi mixture into a greased pan and smoothen it well. Allow it to rest until the mixture is cooled completely and it firms a little
Cut the Dry Fruit Barfi into equal squares. Your dryfruit barfi is ready to serve. You can garnish it with almond slivers

BENEFITS: Serves as an excellent nutrition bar. High in omega 3, iron, calcium, fiber , multivitamins and minerals. Great option for all.