Food For Brains: The Earth Bowl by Mira Manek
These warming colours and all the natural hues of mellow pastel green, light brown, and cream – are amalgamated in this highly nutritious bowl of brain food goodness and go hand in hand with a rainy day in November.
Makes 2 small bowls
Ingredients:
For the bowl
1 courgette
1 carrot
30-40g alfafa sprouts
100g chickpeas (around half a tin)
1 medium beetroot, grated
For the sauce
50g cashews
80ml coconut milk
1 tablespoon natural yoghurt
¼ teaspoon salt
10g coriander leaves
¼ teaspoon turmeric
2 tablespoons tahini
½ green chilli,
optional juice of half lime
For the topping
8-10 walnuts
1 teaspoon maple syrup
½ teaspoon coconut oil
A small handful of almonds
Method:
Start by placing all the ingredients for the sauce in a bowl, so that the cashews can soak for a while. The longer you can soak the cashews, the better, anything from 30 minutes to leaving the mixture overnight in the fridge. Now use a spiraliser for the courgette and carrot. Arrange the courgette, carrot, beetroot, sprouts, and chickpeas in two bowls. You can now make the walnuts by letting the coconut oil melt on low heat in a flat pan, then add the walnuts and maple syrup, turning them and letting them cook until slightly brown on both sides. Blend together all the ingredients for the sauce and pour over both bowls, top with the maple walnuts, and serve.
Notes: for a vegan alternative, don’t add yoghurt to the sauce
Cubex Brain Energy Tip:
Beetroot. A recent study using beetroot juice, performed on 40 healthy participants showed that they performed better on cognitive tests 90 minutes after drinking 450 ml beetroot juice compared with placebo apple/blackcurrant juice, which is lower in nitrates.
Cashews are packed of iron, magnesium, Vitamin B6, protein and important amino acids, and even omega 3 fats. All of these nutrients directly ward off mild depression and anxiety naturally.
Carrots are known to be the go-to food for good eyesight. However, they provide great benefits for the brain too. According to a study published in 2010 in the journal Nutrition, the high levels of luteolin found in carrots could reduce age-related memory impairment and inflammation in the brain.
Coconut oil has gone from bad food status to superfood status and for a variety of good reasons including its great potential to delay brain aging and to help with treating memory loss and other neurological diseases including dementia. Researchers also found that coconut oil can be as effective for depression as prescription antidepressant medications, without the side effects. This success was attributed to coconut oil’s unique combination of medium-chain fatty acids and antioxidants.
Almonds have a good a source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fatty acids, the same as those found in Avocado and Olive Oil. They also contain many minerals including manganese, copper, magnesium, and B vitamins which activate energy production in the body, helping you to keep active and busy.