Coconut Craze

When I was at the Green Living Show in April this year, I stopped at the Cocovie booth to check out their coconut sugar. I’ve been hearing lots about coconut water, which is has lots of vitamins, can aid in digestion, can boost metabolism and contains natural electrolytes, but I hadn’t seen coconut sugar before.

Coconut sugar, derived from the flowers of the coconut tree, is a sustainable natural sweetener that shows promising results for people who suffer from chronic illnesses or conditions such as diabetes, gallstones, cancer, heart disease and obesity. This sugar also has a low glycemic index, with a score of 35, so it’s diabetic and diet friendly!

Low glycemic index foods can help balance and control health conditions such as diabetes, high cholesterol and obesity. Eating low glycemic may also protect your body against cardiovascular disease and hypoglycemia. In a study published in the “American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,” researchers from the University of Sydney in Australia showed that eating a low glycemic index diet reduced the risk of chronic diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, gallbladder disease, coronary heart disease and breast cancer.

Coconut sugar is also a nutrient powerhouse, filled with lots of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. It contains calcium, magnesium, potassium, zinc, iron, copper, manganese, phosphorus and boron. Minerals are necessary for many body functions, such as muscle and bone growth, cell production, mental development and immune system and enzyme regulation. Because the body cannot produce minerals, it is imperative that you find them through food sources.  This sugar is also especially high in the amino acids glutamic acid, which makes glutamine, threonine, aspartic acid and serine. Glutamine is very important for metabolic function and can also be effective for healing of wounds and injuries, building up the immune system, treating inflammatory bowel syndrome, helping with HIV/AIDS patients and possibly aid in the treatment of cancer.

In addition to the health benefits, coconut sugar is minimally processed, unbleached and contains no preservatives. It has a taste and texture similar to brown sugar and can be substituted 1:1 for refined white sugar in coffee, baking, and other desserts! This is a really simple way to reduce your sugar and calorie intake while still enjoying your coffee and other foods sweetened to your liking using a natural product.

Cocovie has a number of other unique consumable coconut products including flour vinegar and jam. They even make laundry soap! I definitely suggest giving them a try; click for locations.

These are a few of my favourite things…

Sometimes you just have to have a big juicy burger, but some are definitely better than others! My personal favourite is South St. Burger Co. Their veggie burger is the best I’ve tried and is totally worth the trade for an extra helping of veggies and less fat. They also have or are opening many locations so you should be able to find one near you!

If you’re still really craving a beefy burger, there’s good news. They buy their beef from small co-op farms that operate responsibly and conscientiously. The beef is raised without the use of antibiotics or hormones and contains no preservatives or fillers. And, like the fries, these patties are fresh, not frozen. You can choose from white or whole wheat locally baked buns.  And with about 25 toppings you can make tons of unique variations! My favourite combo is goat cheese, mango chutney, honey mustard, banana peppers and lots of veggies!

If you’ve got any other burger recommendations be sure to reply to this post!