Wednesday, November 3, 2010

The Forgotten Bean

Carbohydrates are our bodies fuel. We cannot operate properly without them. The problem is that most of us view a carbohydrate as a bowl full of spaghetti noodles, sandwich bread or a rice cake. The fact is that there are very nutritious and much tastier carbohydrates available to us. One of which is the bean. The word bean conjures images of artery clogging tex-mex and super bowl party beanie weenies. I would like to change your perspective of the common bean.

Weight Management: Don't reject the 227 calories in 1 cup of cooked black turtle beans. These little suckers are filling. Kudos to you if you can eat a whole cup! And where else are you going to get 15 grams of protein with less than 1 gram of fat? Last time I checked a protein snack bar, it was about $2 per serving for similar nutrition stats and not nearly as filling. I think it's safe to say that these little beans will help trim your waistline and fatten your wallet. Oh and 15 grams of fiber, that's 60% of your daily value!

Diabetes: Black turtle beans are high carbohydrate but the protein in them should keep your blood sugar balanced. There are 41g of carbohydrates but less than 1 gram of actual sugar. I'm all for the slow release of body fuel from this complex carb.

Heart Health: This bean has less than 1 gram of fat, 0 cholesterol and the sodium is up to you. Did I mention 15 grams of fiber! Watch out if you buy canned beans. Sometimes the manufacturers load them up with salt but there is usually a no salt added variety available.

Hormone Health: Beans and legumes are high in phytoestrogens. This means that they will bind to your estrogen receptors and block the animal estrogens that are too prevalent in the average American diet. A more comfortable cycle and cancer prevention are just two more reasons I stand behind this little black bean. There is no need for black cohash supplements if you eat enough beans. And for those of you considering a baby, this bean has 64 %DV of folate.

 I challenge you to eat black beans at least twice this week. I buy them canned with no salt to save time. I rinse them, bring them to a boil. Then I mash them so they are more like refried beans. Then sprinkle a little shredded mozzarella on top. I love them and so does my very picky 6 year old. I have also included a couple recipe links below that you may want to try.

*You can save even more money and be eco-friendly by buying beans dry in bulk
*Beans have natural toxins and should always be thoroughly rinsed and brought to a boil. This will also help to avoid gas.


Black Bean & Sweet Potato Chili
http://www.goodlifeeats.com/2010/08/black-bean-and-sweet-potato-chili.html


Black Bean Salad *you can easily get away with less salt in this recipe*
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/black-bean-salad-recipe/index.html