I must admit that until just a few months ago, I had not
tried beets since childhood. In my mind
they ranked right up there with brussel sprouts in their edibility. However, when my Polish boyfriend recently
requested Borscht for dinner one night I figured I would give them a shot. I am very glad I did because I discovered
that when paired with other fresh, flavorful ingredients they are very
palatable indeed.
From a nutritional standpoint, beets are a vegetable that
the majority of Americans should be including in their meal plans due to their
cardiovascular benefits. Emerging research
is suggesting that the pigments that give beets their robust color also reduce
inflammation in the body, as well as contributing antioxidant properties. Moreover, they contain a nutrient called betaine that is related to reduced homocysteine and C-reactive protein levels (two common markers for
cardiovascular disease). Beets (even
organic) are a much more cost-effective way of attempting to reduce your risk
of chronic disease.
As with most vegetables, beets contain a high nutrient
density overall compared to a low caloric density. In a cup of raw beets, for about 50 calories
you get a significant amount of folate
(important for pregnant women), in addition to vitamin C, manganese, potassium and fiber. The greens are also
edible and provide extra antioxidants, iron
and vitamin A.
While there are these numerous benefits to eating beets, the
research suggests that some of these nutrients start degrading if heated for an
extended period of time. You can eat
beets fresh to retain the highest percentage of nutrients, however as long as
you keep steaming times to no more than 20 minutes and roasting to less than an
hour you will still reap many benefits from adding these literal “jewels” to
your culinary arsenal.
No comments:
Post a Comment