Here’s the thing: Peels are packed with valuable nutrition. When you peel, you toss out so much of what naturally benefits your body—only to add them back in when you feel the need to take expensive supplements.

The Appeal of Peels: Antioxidants and Fiber

In addition to reducing prep time by removing one step from your cooking process, the peels of many fruits and vegetables provide abundant antioxidants, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Medical studies prove that eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables (packed with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals) is associated with lowering the risk of almost all chronic diseases.

Your unpeeled plant-based diet also provides a rich source of insoluble fiber, which helps you feel full longer, digest better and regulates blood sugar, so that you avoid the “spikes” that mobilize insulin and tell the body to store excess calories as fat. So eating the peels can help you maintain healthy body weight as well as deliver health benefits  Some peels, like apple, provide soluble fiber to help reduce cholesterol and lower your blood sugar.

Which peels in particular

I learned to cook plant-based from Annemarie Colbin at her Natural Gourmet Cookery School, and she taught me not to peel. Her philosophy of whole foods dates back to her childhood in Argentina where food is eaten in it’s most fresh form for the fullest impact of health and taste.

While there are some foods that definitely do need to be peeled, such as coconuts or pineapples, for obvious reasons,  here are some that don’t require it, and provide nutritional benefits when you keep them dressed.

• Apple
• Apricot
• Asparagus
• Berries
• Broccoli stalks
• Carrots
• Citrus fruits (grated or cooked)
• Cherries
• Cucumber (remove any wax first)
• Eggplant
• Grape
• Kiwi
• Mushroom
• Parsnip
• Peach
• Pear
• Pea
• Pepper
• Plum
• Potato
• Squash (cooked)
• Turnip
• Zucchini

In addition, ginger is hard to peel for a reason: You don’t have to. I discovered that when I cook ginger for the Indian lentil dish, dal, the skin just seems to disappear. When you roast or cook butternut squash for soup, the skin also disappears in the cooking process.

You will probably discover other whole foods that you don’t need to peel. I say: Follow your instincts and experiment. Just smashing a clove of garlic for a stock you’ll later strain is enough to release its flavor. You can also leave the tomato skin on when you’re making a sauce. You can later strain it with a food mill if you want to. Same goes for apple sauce.

Prepping the Peels for Eating

Carefully wash your bounty to remove surface dirt or pesticides. If you’re buying organic–which I hope you do– you are getting fewer pesticides. Still, your box of CSA root vegetables or potatoes can probably do with a good wash. Use a vegetable brush to remove any soil and grit. Unpeeled delights made great homemade beet chips, potato chips, and sweet potato fries. In addition to fiber, potato skins provide more essential minerals –like potassium, iron, and niacin– than the starchy insdie. Iron supports your body’s red blood cell function, delivering energy to your muscles, so eat the peels to have more energy all day long. Meanwhile, your body needs potassium and niacin (vitamin B-3) to help convert nutrients into useable fuel. So peels are truly super-foods.

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What is a Complete Protein?

In case you don’t already know, a complete protein contains a full lineup of nine essential amino acids our bodies can’t create—so we must get them from what we eat. In addition to whole grain and bean combos, you can also get protein from plant sources like nuts, lentils, and seeds, however, most of those protein sources alone are “incomplete” proteins. For more on the importance of consuming complete proteins, click here.

Basically here is what you need to know about proteins: Each protein in our body is made up of 20 amino acids, and 11 of those we can create in our systems, but the other nine we need to get in our food. So that is where the word “essential” comes from since it’s essential that we eat them on a regular basis.

Brown Rice Is Half the Equation

Cultures all over our planet consume rice as a staple of their diet, and with good reason: it’s cheap to grow, easy to cook and filling to eat.  Most opt for white rice. But since we have the luxury to choose, brown or wild rice has more fiber and nutrients than white rice, so I
recommend brown rice with your ride and beans. It’s unprocessed and contains both the bran and germ that makes it a complex carbohydrate, so it takes your body longer to break it down,  and keeps your insulin response lower. This is just the kind of nutrient-dense food you want to add to your plate. I also enjoy brown rice’s nutty taste and chewy texture.

Black Beans Are the Other Half

We still live in a democracy, last I checked, so you can choose any beans you like. My preference is black beans. I enjoy the flavor, the bittersweet chocolate color, the cooked consistency, and the way they look piled on brown rice, topped with green things like cilantro, parsley or even avocado slices (eater’s choice).

For a little kick, add pickled jalapenos or coriander chutney, (which fell in love with in India) but chopped scallions and/or a spritz of lemon or lime also brighten up the dish. There are different schools of thought regarding how to cook beans. I lean heavily on the soaking side. This means soaking grains and beans in a large mixing bowl, cover with hot water and let sit for eight to 48 hours.

Most people suggest soaking overnight (about eight to 12 hours) before cooking. Then rinse your beans thoroughly before cooking.  To learn more, check out The Beet’s Ultimate Guide to Soaking and Sprouting Beans and Grains Yup; it does take time, but one of the good things about having them night after night is to just always keep a bowl soaking!

Want to Use Canned Beans? Totally Fine

No worries if you’re not a soaker or if you haven’t planned ahead: You can make Good Ole Rice n’ Beans with canned beans in about half an hour, which is how long it will take to cook your rice. If you do use canned beans try adding:

• One thinly sliced shallot, since they pack a lot of flavor
• One or two grated garlic cloves
• A generous amount of cumin, a miserly pinch of cayenne
• Salt– depending on how much your canned beans contain—taste first

These ingredients will also add lovely home-made flavor to your soaked and cooked beans. Add in when most of the water has cooked out.

Good Ole Rice n’ Beans is a complete protein and also a comfort food that may be eaten from a bowl with a spoon while you stand over the kitchen sink. For a
more formal meal, pair with avocado slices splashed with hot sauce and/or a
refreshing salad. A simple orange always makes a nice dessert.
Plate. Dig in. Rejoice.

The post For a Complete Protein Meal, Make This Rice n’ Beans Recipe on Repeat appeared first on The Beet.

There are two types of farro: Einkorn, German for “one kernel,” or farro piccolo (Triticum monococcum), which means “small farro.” There is also Emmer, its Hebrew name, also known as “farro medio,” ((Triticum dicoccum), which was first grown 17,000 years ago by ancient Babylonians.

Mayo Clinic dietician, Anya Guy, cites a few of farro’s praises: “Farro is a great source of fiber, iron, protein and magnesium. With all of those nutrients in this little grain, it can provide a lot of health benefits for your diabetes or for heart health or for brain health.”

Ancient History

Farro can be traced back thousands of years to ancient Egypt, which is why it sometimes goes by the name of Pharoah’s wheat. It was also an ancient Roman staple and, according to the Whole Grains Council, it may have originated in the Central Mediterranean.

Eat Farro for Fiber and Nutrients

With about 6 grams of fiber per (uncooked) quarter cup, farro has got four times as much of the nutrient as brown rice. Farro is a complex carb so it breaks down slowly, which helps keep your blood sugar at a steady level. Complex carbs like those in whole grains also contain cyanogenic glucosides, which improve cholesterol levels and stimulate the immune system. For more fiber in your plant-based diet read our article breaking down all the benefits fiber has to offer the body.

Farro contains niacin, (vitamin B3), which your body needs to metabolize protein, carbohydrates and fats. It’s also a good source of minerals like magnesium, iron and zinc. Researchers from Tufts University link higher magnesium levels in diets to reduced coronary-artery calcification, and lower risk of progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes. Studies show that as you age, more magnesium may support your mobility. Farro also contains more phytonutrients than modern wheat varieties, so it’s a great grain to reach for in lieu of others.

In addition to 7 grams of protein and 3 grams of fiber, here’s what you get from one quarter-cup of uncooked farro according to the USDA Nutrient Database:

• 170 calories
• 1g fat
• 8g saturated fat
• 32g carbohydrates
• 1g sugar
• 20mg (2% DV) calcium

Make sure to buy whole-grain farro. Farro that is hulled or pearled is not a whole grain since the brain has been removed. Remember, farro is a form of wheat and therefore does contain gluten, so it’s not an option for those with gluten intolerances.

Fast and Forgiving

Farro has a chewy, nutty flavor and tends to hold its texture without getting soggy. It makes a satisfying warm breakfast cereal, and it makes a delicious addition to summer salads, as well as soups. You can also feast on ‘farrotto’ by replacing the arborio rice used in risotto. Farro cooks twice as fast as brown rice and is far less finicky to prepare. Basically, the grain is more nutrient-dense than brown rice, has a delicious, earthy flavor, and is super simple to cook, which is why you should reach for it to cook your next recipe.

The post This Whole Grain Superfood Packs More Protein than Quinoa appeared first on The Beet.

Spring for fresh fruits and vegetables

Fruits and vegetables that are picked before they’re ripe, stored in a warehouse, then shipped thousands of miles do not taste anything like what’s grown locally, and they lose vital nutrients in the process of being transported. They also cost more, tax our planet and lose nutrients every hour they are off the vine.

Food left to fully ripen on the vine contains a higher nutrient content than produce picked before it’s ripe, nutritionist Kathleen Frith reports in her study for The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, “Is Local Food More Nutritious?”

The amount of vitamin C in broccoli decreased by 50 percent when imported rather than locally harvested, according to a research study at Montclair State University. Besides vitamin C, the transportation process has been shown to reduce vitamins like E, A and B. Additionally, when you buy locally, some farmers grow cover crops, which are planted alongside main crops and help nourish the soil and add nutrients to it. This, in turn, ups the percentage of nutrients in the produce when harvested.

Find a CSA or Farmer’s Market Near You

Fruits and vegetables start losing nutrients within 24 hours of being harvested, so the ones grown closest to your house will also be the ripest and most nutritious. Once produce is picked, their enzymes start decomposing and they begin to feed on their own nutrients, leaving radically less for the benefit of your body. So, despite the temptation, resist those pricey out-of-season raspberries shipped from Chile, and wait until the summer when they are ripening on a farm near you, within a day’s drive, but the closer the better.

If you don’t know where to source local produce from, you can use the USDA’s online guide to find a local CSA (which stands for Community Supported Agriculture in case you were wondering). A handy tool to help you identify what is perfectly in season in your local area is a website called Seasonal Food Guide, which allows users to plug in their home state and desired time of the year for shopping to find an array of produce that is currently at the pinnacle of freshness and nutrient density.

For example, we tried it out and searched for New Jersey right now and found out that what’s in season now are asparagus, mushrooms, parsnips, fiddleheads, mint, chives, spinach, sprouts, watercress, and a host of other early-season greens.

Choosing what is in season in your region is also a great way to grow your appreciation for something so many of us take for granted: our ability to purchase from our supermarket cartons of strawberries from Mexico and watermelons from Guatemala even in the winter when the only crops in our local fields are squash and parsnips. Purchasing local produce also forces you to get more creative in the kitchen, and may lead to the discovery of recipes you otherwise would never have tried, had it not been for the three pounds of radishes you received in your monthly CSA box.

The post Shop This Way to Get More Nutrients in Your Fruits and Vegetables appeared first on The Beet.