Eight Benefits Of Yogurt

Yogurt is one versatile nutrient rich, all-star food. Here’s the scoop on what it can do and how much you should eat:

Yogurt helps you lose weight. Have 18 ounces a day and you can drop a jeans size.

It is a great source of protein and fibre and provides for instant energy. It makes you feel full longer for long periods.

It boosts your stamina immensely since it is loaded with vitamins. Potassium, phosphorous, zinc and iodine are a few of the many nutrients that are present in yogurt.

It is rich in B12, which upholds red blood cells and keeps your nervous system running.

It doesn’t give birth to cavities, despite its sugar content. It contains lactic acid, which provides protection for your gums.

Active cells in it combat sickness and make your immune system much stronger therefore one serving of yogurt can do wonders.

It can be used as a hair conditioner, leaving hair radiant and gleaming. Apply to scalp and wash it off 30 minutes later. This simple treatment can help dodge multiple hair problems.

It is also a great exfoliator when mixed with ground nuts and applied to face. Helps banish dark spots and evens out skin tone.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 12^th, 2014.

Recipe: Honey and mustard prawns

In the mood for some fancy shrimp for dinner at home?

How about you try out this delicious recipe, suggested by united fisheries.co. 

Ingredients

•  750g prawn cutlets

•  2 tbsp lemon juice

•  2 tbsp honey, melted

•  2 tbsp Dijon mustard

•  1 tsp curry powder

•  2 tbsp sesame seeds

•  1 tbsp olive oil

•  1/2 tsp salt

•  Freshly ground black pepper

Method

Mix together the lemon juice, honey, mustard and curry powder to form a smooth sauce and then add the sesame seeds.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan.

Toss in the prawn cutlets and sprinkle with salt and add some grounded black pepper to it.

Cook the prawns until they turn pink, tossing them gently around the pan.

Add the honey-mustard sauce and stir constantly for another minute or two until all the prawns are coated.

Serve with wedges of lemon over a bed of rice if desired.

Serves: Four

Published in The Express Tribune, June 28^th, 2014.

Fro-yo dessert, anyone?

It is cool and nutritious and when nonfat yogurt and natural sweeteners are used, it is friendly for your waistline as well.

MARYLAND: 

Ice-cream-like yogurt desserts are bliss during Ramazan summers — be it your sehri eye-opener or your iftar fast-breaker. Let’s face it; we go overboard with hard-to-burn calories during Ramazan with the traditional, fried delicacies and confections. Therefore, it will be a pleasant change for you to try out this fun recipe. It is cool and nutritious and when nonfat yogurt and natural sweeteners are used, it is friendly for your waistline as well.

The basic idea is to prepare a smooth and creamy yogurt base and a thick paste of fruit pulp. Mix them together before setting in the freezer to turn to ice-cream. The strenuous Indian way is that of hanging the yogurt for hours (overnight) in a muslin cloth over a strainer. It is set in the fridge and excess water drops out of the yogurt. The remaining curd is thick and creamy when blended. This is how the Gujrati Shrikand is prepared. Why go through the hassle and lose all the hydrating water content when it can do you wonders during fierce summery Ramazan heat? Another way is to blend in cream with yogurt and ruin the healthiness by adding harmful calories. The best way is to add lemon juice which causes yogurt to curdle and curd and water to separate.

Using this technique, allow me to help you blend up a delicious frozen yogurt ice-cream dessert. The recipe serves four people.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt

3 ½ cups chopped fruit of choice (mango, peaches, strawberries, bananas, and pineapples work best)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Natural sweetener or fine sugar, according to taste

FRO-YO GRIND

In a food processor, add the chopped fruits of your choice and sprinkle sugar/sweetener.

In a separate mixing cup, add yogurt and lemon and mix to form a paste.

Begin grinding the fruits and start pouring in the yogurt paste slowly. This is similar to blending in ice-cream bases before they are transferred to an ice-cream maker.

Between intervals, scrape the sides of the food processor, so all ingredients are being crushed in smoothly. Once done with the entire yogurt, scoop out the mixture in serving bowls and set them in the freezer for a good two hours.

GET CREATIVE

You can become a fro-yo mixer this Ramazan and surprise your family with new flavours. Some great flavours can be infused by boiling the fruit with water and evaporating it completely to reduce the contents to a pulp. This could go into the food processor instead of chopped fruits. Save yourself the hassle of making this fruit puree and put in your favourite jam or marmalade to flavour the yogurt. Throw in a little bit of vanilla essence, add a couple of tablespoons of thick custard and only super smart ones will be able to tell the difference between yogurt and ice-cream. You can go chocolate and add melted chocolate to the mix. Nuts, grated coconut, and chocolate chips could go into the mix as well. Alternatively, these could also be used as toppings to garnish your fro-yo dessert.

THE ICE-CREAM LOOK!

To make your fro-yo look like ice-cream, you need to serve it creatively. Use a scoop, or piping bag to pipe out a swirl after the yogurt is frozen. Let it soften a bit if piping it, and re-freeze to set the swirl. Food colours can also be added.

Anum Ali is a US-based creative writer and home baker. She is an editor and staff writer for Muslim youth magazines and websites, and publishes her own food, travel, and photography blogs. 

9 Benefits of Honey Water You Never Knew

1. Watch Your Weight Melt Away

Yes, drinking water and honey can help you lose weight. Get the plaguing thoughts about the sugar aspect of honey out of your head, as that is one of its benefits. I know, I know, it sounds crazy and too good to be true, but it isn’t. The sugar in honey is a natural sugar (or read: good for you), which provides a healthy source of calories. Not only that, it can help to ward off any sugary sweet beverage cravings you may have. Soda pop is full of empty calories, and though everyone knows this they still reach for the bubbly refreshment. By cutting back on the amount of pop you drink, your calorie intake drops and with that so do the pounds. It may not be an overnight success story, but it is better for you all around in the long run.

2. Stay Regular

OK, I know talking about being ‘regular’ can sometimes be taboo, but if Jamie Lee Curtis can do it, so can I. Drinking a warm glass of water with honey first thing in the morning helps to improve your digestive system. The antiseptic benefits of honey help relieve the acidity in your stomach while increasing the production of intestinal mucus. It also helps to hydrate the colon and infuse water into your, excuse me for this, stool. All of this combines you passing much more easily and regularly. Which brings us back to watching your weight melt away, because… well, I think you can figure the rest of this one out without my help.

3. Gives Your Immune System A Helping Hand

Have I stressed just how good honey is for you yet? Honey has amazing bacteria-killing properties. If you go for raw, organic honey (you should) it is full of enzymes (hello again digestion), vitamins and minerals that lead the front line against protecting against bacteria. One study presented at the Society for General Microbiology’s Spring Conference in Harrogate, UK found that Manuka honey may even help reverse bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Honey is also an antioxidant, which helps fight those bad free radicals that reek havoc in our body and on our skin.

4. Reduce Your Allergies

And no, I’m not suggesting to take a Claritin or something like that with the glass of honey water. By using raw, local honey you help to acclimate your body to the pollens of your area. In turn, this helps to reduce your susceptibility to environmental allergies. If you really think about what bees do in the grand scheme of things, this makes perfect sense. Now I know the warm water isn’t necessarily crucial to helping with allergies, but being hydrated is never a bad thing.

5. Hello Energy, My Old Friend

Move over coffee  – honey and warm water are the new dream team for boosting energy.  The benefit to your energy levels by staying hydrated has all but been shouted from a rooftop. Think of your body as a houseplant. You know how droopy and sad it gets when you’ve forgotten to water it? Your body essentially does the same thing. Studies have shown that even mild dehydration can leave you feeling lethargic, drowsy and sluggish. So let’s add honey into this equation. Now you have a natural source of simple sugars and carbohydrates (energy-givers) to an all ready proven energy booster. The total? A refreshed outlook on life and energy that you didn’t know could come without a cup of coffee. Now, I’m not telling you to cut coffee out – I know I couldn’t function with out it – but next time you feel an afternoon crash, try reaching for some honey and warm water first and see if that does the trick.

6. Soothe That Sore Throat And Cut That Cough

According to the Mayo Clinic, hot water with honey can help reduce the soreness and irritation of a sore throat. Honey helps to coat the throat while the warm water soothes. This soothing and coating action also helps to reduce your cough, as coughing is sometimes caused by irritation from a sore throat.

7. Detox, Detox, Detox!

Honey and warm water helps to flush out the toxins from your body. By helping you to get regular, it helps you to regularly rid your body of toxins that can build up and cause disease. Adding lemon to the mix increases the benefits, as lemons help to increase urination, dispelling toxins more frequently and keeping your urinary tract healthy. Lemon contains citric acid, which helps to maximize enzyme function and in turn stimulate the liver and help with detoxification.

8. Gassy? It Helps With That.

Feeling a little uncomfortable and gassy? Drinking a glass of warm water and honey will help! Honey helps to neutralize gas.

9. Increase Your Health

Not only will drinking warm water and honey increase your hydration (plus everything else I’ve listed), it also helps to increase the levels of “good” cholesterol in your body and reduce cardiovascular strain. I call that a win, win.

10 Surprising Benefits Of Earl Grey Tea You Never Knew

 

I love Earl Grey tea. I enjoy it so much that I even wrote an article on the history of Earl Grey for my blog. I discovered Earl Grey doesn’t just have a unique and tasty flavor (although not everyone would agree with that), it also has a wide range of benefits.

1. Good for Your Teeth

Tea contains very high levels of catechin, an antioxidant that fights oral infections. Fluoride is also a natural component of Earl Grey tea, and it’s also found in tap water. Fluoride is good for your teeth because it protects them from cavities, as well as fighting decay. So if you’re not a fan of city water, Earl Grey can be another natural way to get your daily dose of fluoride.

2. Digestion

Earl Grey tea has been known to improve digestion. It aids in the digestive process and helps relieve painful indigestion, colic and nausea. It is also used to treat intestinal problems such as worms. Because it helps the digestive process, it can also help to keep you regular.

3. Fights Anxiety and Depression

The bergamot in Earl Grey tea has been known to have a calming effect on people, as well as to boost a person’s mood. This is due to bergamot’s natural aromatherapy qualities. In this way Earl Grey is a good natural solution for people suffering from depression, stress and anxiety.

4. Energy

It may not have as much as a kick as coffee, but it does contain enough caffeine to give you a nice little afternoon boost without keeping you up all night.

5. Cancer Prevention

Earl Grey contains high quantities of antioxidants, which help our bodies to fight off free radicals that cause diseases such as cancer. Therefore, drinking the tasty beverage can give you a greater chance of not developing such diseases.
On a slightly less serious note, antioxidants also help your skin to stay healthy and looking young. Again, this is due to fighting free radicals that can damage your skin.

6. Weight Loss

Unsurprisingly, one of the most popular effects of Earl Grey tea is weight loss. This is primarily due to its citrus extract. It’s because of this that many people believe that citrus fruits in general can induce weight loss. It’s thought that calories are either broken down into food for your muscles or released through the natural metabolic process. So instead of cream or sugar, try putting lemon in your future cups of tea instead.

7. Prevention of Heart Disease

Good news everyone! Apparently, drinking three cups of Earl Grey tea daily may help lower your risk for heart disease. A study published in 2012 in Preventative Medicine found that people who drank three cups of black tea daily dramatically lowered their blood triglyceride levels and increased the ‘good cholesterol’ HDL after three months. The participants also had increased levels of antioxidants, which, as we now know, fight against free radicals that damage your cells.
Further research conducted by the University of Cantanzaro in Italy has also yielded positive results. A study of over two hundred patients with high levels of blood fats found that LDL (also know as ‘bad cholesterol) ‘bad’ cholesterol (LDL) was reduced by 39 per cent after a month of taking Earl Grey extract. It also reduced blood sugars by 22 per cent and raised ‘good’ cholesterol by 41 per cent. The reduction in blood sugar also shows that Earl Grey may be highly beneficial for those suffering with diabetes.

8. Stress Relief

Unlike the effects of coffee, Earl Grey tea relaxes and soothes the body almost instantly. It also has a stress relief effect whilst simultaneously providing the same clarity and focus as coffee. This makes it the perfect alternative for those who don’t want to get overly wired from coffee.

9. Cold Relief

The bergamot found within Earl Grey is said to improve the immune system as well as cure fevers. As such, it’s considered to be a natural cold remedy.

10. It Keeps You Hydrated

And no, not just because you take it with water.
Unlike the dehydrating properties of coffee, tea helps you stay hydrated and maintains the body’s fluid balance because of its high potassium content.

15 Brilliant Benefits And Uses Of Lemon You Need To Know

 

15 Amazing Benefits of Lemon:

1. Cure for acne. Lemon contains antibacterial properties that can kill off the P. acne bacteria, fight infection and inflammation, and clear clogged pores.
2. Whiten your teeth.  Make your own teeth whitening treatment by mixing lemon juice and baking soda, applying to it your teeth, and leaving it on for 60 seconds. The acid and sodium bicarbonate break down the coating coloring your teeth.
3. Deal with dandruff. Lemon juice can kill off the bacteria causing dandruff, so apply it to your scalp with olive or coconut oil.
4. Balance your pH. Lemons are surprisingly alkalinic, and they can help to balance your body’s internal pH.
5. Flush your intestines. Lemons increase muscle contractions in your intestines, ensuring regular bowel movements that will flush the toxins and waste material. Just a glass of lemon water every morning can do the trick!
6. Provide vital nutrients. You’ll find that these tasty citrus fruits are loaded with potassium, calcium, phosphorus, citric acid, and magnesium–all vital minerals your body cannot live without.
7. Deal with inflammatory pain. Did you know that lemons can help to deal with the pain of swollen joints? It will fight off the uric acid that is causing gout, thereby reducing the presence of the crystals that makes gout such a painful problem.
8. Cleanse your organs. Lemon contains citric acid, which can dissolve calcium deposits, kidney stones, and even gallstones. Flush all these potentially painful build-ups from your organs to keep them running smoothly.
9. Detoxify your liver. Drinking warm lemon water is a good way to show your liver some love, as lemon helps to detoxify this vital organ. It will stimulate the production of bile, dissolve uric acid, and get rid of toxins and poisons in your body.
10. Protect your heart. Lemons are rich in Vitamin C, a nutrient that has been linked to improved heart health. Vitamin C can lower blood cholesterol levels, reduce the risk of atherosclerosis, lower blood pressure, increase the production of HDL (good) cholesterol, fight off free radicals, and lower blood lipoprotein levels. All in all, it’s a very useful, heart-friendly vitamin.
11. Improve brain health. Lemon peels contain a special phytonutrient called tangeretin. This potent nutrient has been proven useful at treating brain conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, as it protects the brain cells from decaying.
12. Boost your immune system. Lemon is one of the best immune boosting foods, as the Vitamin C will help to fight off bacteria, parasites, fungi, and viruses in your body. It can destroy intestinal worms and even fight off cancer thanks to the 22 anti-cancer nutrients and compounds it contains.
13. Soothe chapped lips. Applying a bit of lemon to your lips will help to prevent chapping, and can exfoliate the lips to remove dead skin cells. Rub lemon on at night and wash it off the next morning for the ultimate lip-healing remedy.
14. Strengthen your fingernails. If your fingernails are yellow and brittle, it’s time to apply a mixture of lemon juice and olive oil. The oil and acid mixture will harden your nails, preventing them from cracking or breaking easily. It can strengthen the nail beds, and will even whiten them when they have turned yellow.
15. Improve skin tone. Worried about those blemishes and dark spots on your skin? Rub a bit of lemon juice onto the dark patches, and rinse it off a few minutes later with warm water. With daily application of this remedy, you can lighten the skin and even out your skin tone.

Wow, lemons truly are some of the most useful fruits on the planet! Thanks to the Vitamin C, citric acid, and minerals it contains, you can improve your health drastically by using lemons.

Mermaid Mystery Jal Pari Ka Raz