The Perfect Wheat Flour

I love to bake. With the holiday season around the corner, I'm itching to try a few new recipes. When the weather turned cool for a few brief days, I broke in my pie pans with homemade apple and pumpkin pies. Part of my excitement for the baking season is my new found love: Wheat Montana Flour. (And, no I'm not being paid to say that.)

Cookies can be made from wheat flour.
Photo by Snowbear, Morguefile.

I've searched for the past few months for a perfect baking flour. My criteria is strict: it can't be bleached or bromated, it must be grown in the United States and minimal processing is a bonus. I've tried organic rice flour, too many wheat flours to count and garbanzo bean flour (don't laugh).

Rice flour made my cookies too crumbly. One whole wheat flour made my rolls into hockey pucks. And flour made from beans, well, tasted like beans. I love beans, but not bean-flavored bread. It was just plain weird.

Over the past several months I've given the Wheat Montana Hard White Spring a good work out. Pie crusts. Oatmeal molasses cookies. Chocolate chip cookies. Chocolate birthday cake. Lemon bars. Honey wheat rolls.

I did mention I love to bake, right?

Every recipe made with this flour turned out great. Here are a few details straight from the company's website:

• Wheat Montana is family owned and operated.
• The flour is Certified Chemical Free and Certified Organic.
• The flour is milled at a low 94 degrees to maintain the nutrient value of the wheat.

Do you have a flour or baking ingredient that you can't live without? Tell me about it. I'm always up for trying a new product. It gives me an excuse to spend a little more time in the kitchen!

Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy,
Angela

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Tiger Woods Endorses Fuse Science Sports Nutrition Supplements

It's not uncommon for pro athletes to endorse products. Nobody bat an eye when David Beckham promoted Adidas sneakers, or when Maria Sharapova showed off her photography skills behind the Canon Powershot Digital Camera Series.

Tiger Woods
Photo by Molly A. Burgess,
Wikimedia Commons

Last week Tiger Woods announced he will endorse Fuse Science sports nutrition products. The nutritional supplements aid in vitamin and electrolyte levels and absorption. The oral drops absorb directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestion process.

Tiger Woods says the products will "enhance every athlete's ability to perform at their natural best" and increase energy levels.

But, isn't that the role of a healthy diet?

Athletes who consume fresh fruits, vitamin-packed vegetables and lean proteins have more energy and endurance on the field than their fast-food eating counterparts.

For example, adding protein to your breakfast staves off the mid-morning munchies and helps muscles build and repair themselves after a sunrise run or pre-practice yoga session.

Will Tiger Woods' endorsement of nutritional supplements lead athletes to believe supplements are healthier than absorbing vitamins naturally from fresh foods?

Whether you're an on-the-go high school athlete or squeeze workouts into a busy work schedule, time-saving nutritional options are appealing and an excellent boost to a healthy diet. But, supplements don't cure a growling stomach or satiate a post-workout appetite.

Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!
Angela

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Raspberry-Banana Smoothie



Fresh Raspberries
Photo from Wikimedia Commons

After I exercise, I like to indulge in a fruit smoothie. The natural sugars prolong my post-workout energy high. Plus, it's an easy way to get part of my daily fruit intake without lots of chopping, juicing or peeling.

Today I created a banana-raspberry smoothie. It's sweeter than most of the morning drinks I create, but it makes my sweet tooth happy!

Here's the recipe:

1 cup milk (use any kind you like: cow, almond, soy, etc.)
1 peeled banana, chunks
1/2 cup fresh raspberries, washed and whole
1 Tbs. raw honey
1 Tbs. milled flax seed
5-6 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a blender and pulse until smooth and creamy. Enjoy!

Now, while you sip, here's how you're fueling your body. The banana serves up a healthy dose of vitamin B6, potassium and fiber. Plus, one banana only has 1 gram of sodium and helps prevent high blood pressure. The raspberries are full of skin-clearing antioxidants, vitamin C and dietary fiber. And, the Omega-3 fatty acids in the flaxseed reduces inflammation and blood pressure.
Drink up!
　

Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!

Angela
Whole Foods Living

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All About Pumpkin!

Colorful maple leaves blanket my yard, the evenings beg for a roaring fire in the fireplace and fall produce abounds at the farmer's market. It's pumpkin season!

Fresh Pumpkins
Photo by Ladyheart, Morguefile.com

I truly love everything about autumn including the availability of local squash. From acorn and butternut to spaghetti, I really enjoy them all. But, the best known player in the bunch is probably the pumpkin.

Nutritional Information About Pumpkins

One cup of fresh mashed pumpkin contains 49 calories and 2 grams of protein. Pumpkin is cholesterol and fat free. If you're looking to increase your vitamin C, E or riboflavin levels, pumpkin is a good source of these nutrients.

The number one vitamin found in pumpkin is vitamin A. One mashed cup contains 245 percent of your daily requirements!

Pumpkin is even good for your skin. Check out my article about pumpkin seed oil on Daily Glow.

Cooking and Baking with Pumpkin

Once you've sparked your curiosity about baking with pumpkin and gobbled up a homemade pumpkin pie, get ready to experiment. In addition to pumpkin bars, pumpkin muffins and pumpkin cookies, the squash also works as an ingredient in a few healthy dishes.

Mashed Pumpkin
Photo by Maxstraeten, Morguefile.com

Australians serve pumpkin soup as often as Americans enjoy a bowl of chicken noodle soup. During my time in Melbourne, Australia I sampled many versions of pumpkin soup. One of my favorite cooks, Alton Brown, offers his recipe for Squash Soup here.

Cubes of pumpkin caramelize beautifully under a drizzle of olive oil in a hot oven. Add a few sliced onions and green peppers to the pan to create a colorful autumn side dish.

If you're looking to skim a few calories from your dinner tonight, whip up mashed pumpkin in lieu of mashed potatoes. Boil and mash the squash the same way you prepare potatoes, then season with sea salt, fresh cracked pepper and sweet cream butter.


Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!
Angela