Thursday, May 24, 2012

Meet our new favourite super-herbs!


These four potent little herbs are all in our winter menu. They have some pretty noteworthy health benefits. Check them out:

Mint


• Digestive aid: relieves bloating, nausea, indigestion, cramps, spasms, IBS
• Antispasmodic: relaxes smooth muscle in the GIT
• Anti-microbial: wages war on germs and nasties
• Anti-allergic: helps prevent histamine release
• Analgesic: helps reduce pain – great for tension headaches!
• Respiratory aid: clears and soothes the respiratory tract
• Stimulant and cognitive aid: mint tea is a good alternative to caffeine when you need your brain cells to get their busy on in the evening but still want to fall asleep afterwards!
• Antioxidant (oh yes, we all love a bit of anti-ageing, cell-protecting goodness)

Parsley


• Digestive aid: it… um, helps you go to the loo more often
• Astringent and purifier: cleanses the liver, kidneys, intestines and blood
• Anti-microbial: helps ward off infection
• Immune booster: repairs and strengthens
• Cardiovascular aid: prevents hardening of the arteries and helps eliminate blood clots
• Anti-inflammatory: supports joint health and relieves arthritis
• Anti-carcinogenic: helps inhibit tumor formation and neutralizes carcinogens
• Antioxidant (bye bye free radicals)


Rosemary


• Anti-bacterial: less bugs, more goodness
• Antispasmodic: reduces cramps and spasms in the gut
• Hepatoprotective: loves your liver (someone has to)
• Anti-inflammatory: reduces inflammation throughout the body
• Anti-mutagenic: doesn’t stop you from turning into a mutant but does reduce the effect of toxins on cells (we like)
• Improves cognitive function: making you all alert and perky and stuff
• Mood booster: popular remedy for depression
• Antioxidant (yep, this super-herb keeps your cells young too)

Thyme


• Respiratory aid: your new super-weapon against colds, flus and the like
• Anti-tussive and expectorant: calms coughing and helps produce um… mucus
• Antimicrobial: less of the nasty stuff
• Astringent: it’s a great disinfectant for skin conditions
• Digestive aid: useful in treating gastritis, dyspepsia and other stomach complaints
• Antispasmodic: reduces cramps and spasms in the gut
• Antihelmintic: fights off parasites (particularly of the wormy kind, ew)
• Antioxidant: (herbs really are your new anti-ageing friends)

And there you have it. Who would have thought these weed-like creatures could be so darn useful... Is it us or do herb gardens suddenly seem less pretentious master-chef, more medicinal genius?

Sources: 
1. Herbs & Natural Supplements, An evidence-based guide, 2nd edition, Lesley Braun and Marc Cohen, Churchill Livingstone (Elsevier), Australia, 2007
2. The Juice Fasting Bible, Sandra Cabot M.D., Ulysses Press, USA, 2007





Thursday, May 17, 2012

Will the real superfoods please stand up?


When we think superfoods, we generally conjure up images of exotic berries, green and blue algae, weirdly-shaped mushrooms, and above all expensive price tags. Sadly, we get so caught up in the hype surrounding these unusual food items (not to deny their place, their health benefits are proven) that we forget some of the simpler superfoods that lie right in front of us.

Given that winter is fast approaching, and our seasonal menu is in full swing (we can’t get enough of the lentil and green soups at the UR HQ), we thought we’d share some of these everyday superfoods with you. Sounds like a contradiction in terms doesn’t it? It’s not. They may be all around us but these everyday superfoods hide a veritable plethora of nutrients and health benefits.

Check out these bad boys:

Asparagus

High in vitamins A, C and K, as well as folate and chlorophyll. The fibre in asparagus has a very mild laxative effect, and can benefit the gastrointestinal tract and colon when consumed regularly. This little green shoot also contains glutathione, a clever phytochemical that helps reduce the risk of cancer.

Broccoli

A member of the brassica family, broccoli is closely related to cabbage and cauliflower. It's high in vitamin C, folic acid, potassium, chlorophyll and fibre. Broccoli and the entire brassica family are also beneficial in preventing cancer.

Lentils

Containing eight of the nine essential amino acids, lentils are an excellent source of protein. These little legumes are high in vitamins A and C, folate, phosphorous, calcium, iron and fibre. They also help balance blood sugar and lower cholesterol.

And the good news is all of these little beauties are in our winter soups. Enjoy!




Thursday, May 10, 2012

Coconut & almond bliss balls!


We sat down with the lovely Lee Holmes (foodie, chef and author of Supercharged Food) the other day over a chai in Bondi and listened eagerly as she shared some of the delicious recipes in her book. We haven’t been able to get this one off our minds and we thought you might like it too!

Ingredients


For 14-16 balls of yumminess…

50 g almond meal
30 g coconut flakes
40 g sesame seeds
125 g chopped mixed nuts*
7 tbsp almond or cashew butter, softened
3 tbsp tahini
½ tsp natural vanilla extract
8 drops liquid stevia
Extra sesame seeds, for coating
Extra chopped mixed nuts, for coating
*Such as walnuts, cashews, pistachios

Preparation


1. Put the almond meal, coconut flakes, sesame seeds, nuts, nut butter, tahini, vanilla and stevia in a bowl  and mix with a wooden spoon until combined.
2. Using your hands, take scant tablespoonfuls of the mixture and roll each one into a ball. Roll half the balls in the sesame seeds and the other half in the chopped nuts, coating them all over.
3. Place the balls on a flat tray and refrigerate until party time.

Tips from the Chef


 You can easily make these bliss balls the day before you need them.
 They will harden when you refrigerate them, so pull them out of the fridge about 30min before you plan to serve them.

And there you have it. Hard to believe how easy these are to make. Not to mention that, like all of Lee’s recipes, they are gluten, wheat, dairy, yeast and sugar free. Enjoy!

For more recipes and info on supercharging your food, check out Lee’s website and blog.


Thursday, May 3, 2012

Get your share on!


At the UR headquarters, we like to share. We share ideas, we share breakfast, we share recipes. We basically share everything… OK not everything but if it’s interesting, or funny, or yummy, we figure the more people who know about it, the better.





So, in the spirit of sharing, we’d like to encourage you to follow suit. If you’re currently cleansing, or just have a detox story to tell, get your Facebook share on. 

All you have to do is click on the link below and have your say... oh, and we give you a lovely $20 off your next cleanse! What are you waiting for?


Happy sharing!
x UR x