Bruce Fife - The Coconut Miracle Cookbook: Over 400 Recipes to Boost Your Health with Natures Elixir

Of particular interest is coconut oil, which has gained a reputation in recent years as a super health food. It is considered by nutritionists to be among the healthiest of all dietary oils. People who want to take advantage of the health benefits of coconut oil will find this book a blessing. It contains many creative ways to add the oil to the diet using a variety of delicious recipes. Many people who live in noncoconut-growing regions of the world mistakenly think of coconut as just an ingredient for making desserts and sweets. Coconut, however, is very versatile and can be used in a variety of ways other than desserts.

In this book there are recipes for creating savory main dishes, appetizing side dishes, satisfying snacks, and nutritious beverages. You will find a number of coconut oil and coconut milkbased salad dressings that go well with both fruit and vegetable salads. You will also find recipes for creamy soups and hearty chowders, delicious curries, stews, and casseroles. You could literally eat coconut with every meal without consuming a single dessert. Of course, if you like desserts, you will find plenty here to choose from, including cakes, pies, puddings, and ice cream. Every recipe in this book contains coconut in one form or another, whether its coconut meat, milk, or oil.

A large number of the recipes in this book, such as the . A Superior Health Food Coconut oil is a uniquely curative elixir that has been shown to have countless health benefits. As a certified nutritionist and naturopathic physician, Ive been recommending it to my clients for years. Ive seen it get rid of chronic psoriasis, eliminate dandruff, remove precancerous skin lesions, speed recovery from the flu, stop bladder infections, overcome chronic fatigue, and relieve hemorrhoids, among other things. Many people ask: Is coconut high in carbohydrate? If youre on a low-carbohydrate diet, youre in luck. Coconut contains very little effective (i.e., digestible) carbohydrate.

Although coconut meat is mildly sweet, it is composed primarily of indigestible fiber and, therefore, is a low-carbohydrate, high-fiber food. Coconut milk, likewise, has very little carbohydrate, and coconut oil has none. For this reason, coconut is great for low-carb diets or for those who need to restrict carbohydrate intake. Together, coconut meat and water contain a nearly balanced supply of nutrients, which are capable of sustaining a person with little additional food for extended periods of time. Coconut water, the juice in fresh coconut, has long been known for its healing powers and is recommended for those with digestive problems. For decades doctors in Asia have used fresh coconut water as IV solutions.

Athletes now consume it because it helps replenish electrolytes lost in perspiration and to rehydrate the body. Among island populations, coconut water, coconut meat, and coconut milk have been used as both food and medicine for generations. Coconut in one form or another is used to relieve digestive problems, ward off infections, speed recovery from injuries, and maintain good health. While the coconut is highly valued for its nutritional and curative properties, it is the oil in the coconut that makes it a truly superior health food. At one time, coconut oil had the misfortune of being labeled a dietary troublemaker because it is high in saturated fat. Many people avoided it for that reason.

What most people didnt know at the time was that the saturated fat in coconut oil was a unique type of fat composed predominately of medium-chain triglycerides. This fat is completely different from the saturated fat found in meats and other vegetable oils and has a number of health benefits. Ironically, one of the benefits of coconut oil is that it helps protect against heart disease and stroke. This fact is clearly evident in populations around the world who rely on coconut for food and eat it nearly every day of their lives. For thousands of years people in Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, India, and elsewhere have been consuming coconuts and coconut oil without any ill effect. In these countries heart disease is relatively rare.

In fact, those people who eat the most coconut have the lowest heart disease rates in the world. Even though people in the coconut-growing regions of the world consume large amounts of coconut oil, heart disease was completely unknown to them until just a few decades ago. Heart disease didnt show up until after they began replacing traditional foods, such as coconut, with Western foods. Coconut was one of the key ingredients in their diets that protected them from heart disease as well as a number of other illnesses. Coconut oil holds a high place of respect in traditional forms of medicine throughout the world. It is highly regarded in Ayurvedic medicine of India.