Recipes from the Collection of Mark and Danielle Hughes |
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Flax power The tiny brown seeds smell like paint, taste kind of bitter and turn slimy when you mix them with water. Home cooks are befuddled by them, chefs have no interest. But make no mistake, if you're not already eating flax, you will be soon. Why? Because flax is a bargain-priced nutritional powerhouse that trumps fish on the omega front - it's a safe, mercury-free source of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3's protect the heart, improve the immune system, ward off cancer, reduce inflammation, balance hormones, control stress and promote healthy bones. Flax is so good for you that it's turning up in foods throughout the supermarket. Quaker adds it to oatmeal. R.W. Garcia toasts it into tortilla chips. Barilla folds it into pasta. Smart Balance squeezes it into butter substitute. Jamba Juice adds it to smoothies. And earlier this year, the National Association of Specialty Foods Trade gave top awards to a line of flax-seed spreads developed by San Ramon's Laxmi Hiremath. "This is the right time for flax," Hiremath says, admitting that turning the brown, nutty-flavored seeds into a good-tasting product is a little tricky. "Flax is not very delicious plain. But when you combine the flax with spices and garlic, it is very satisfying," she says. "I want to make flax America's new peanut butter." Hiremath's goal of spreading flax from coast to coast seems entirely possible when you consider the flax facts: Launches of flax-laced products have tripled "For us, flax is at the top of the heap. Every product we sell that has flax (in it) is selling like crazy," says Maria Emmer-Annes, director of marketing at Nature's Path. "In fact, people are kind of cuckoo about it." Her company, based in the heart of Canada's flax-growing region, sells volumes of cereal, including granola, muesli and flakes; plus hot cereal, pasta, nutrition bars, even crackers - all made with whole grains and a touch of flax. In cereal, she says, the odd aroma and slight bitterness of the seed turn nutty and pleasant. "Everyone loves flax - even Hollywood," she says. "We got a call from someone at the Vail Film Festival asking if we would donate 200 bags of Heritage Flakes cereal. We asked how they discovered us, and they said Nelly Furtado raves about it." Robert Garcia, whose San Jose company makes tortilla chips speckled with whole flax seeds, reports a similar response. "We've been making traditional chips for 30 years," he says. "We added flax to the recipe five years ago, and now flax chips are the larger portion of our business." Garcia says he's not sure why so many customers opt for R.W. Garcia's flax chips over the traditional all-corn chips, but he suspects it's because the chips taste good, and also happen to be better for you. "The flax adds a nice nutty taste that people really like. Taste is a big factor for us. We know that people will not buy a second bag if the flavor isn't there." Other mainstream companies taking a new crack at flax include Jamba Juice, which is rolling out a new line of breakfast smoothies that are topped with flax-granola. The company is adding an omega-3 boost to its boost menu - consisting of ground flax seed. "We are adding the boost mainly in response to consumer demand," says Kristel Cerna of Jamba Juice. "We have had lots of requests from consumers, and we've had recommendations from nutritionists." Interest is overdue Nutritionist and online health columnist Elaine Magee sees the country's growing interest in flax as long overdue. "Ground flax seed is one of the most powerful plant foods on the planet," she says. Magee is the author of "The Flax Cookbook," ($14.95, Marlowe & Co.) the first book to feature recipes and information on flax seed. Which is not to say flax is a new food. Flax has been grown in the United States for nearly 300 years. In the 1700s, it was grown primarily for the stems, which were turned into linen. In the 1900s, flax seed was used to make linseed oil, used to condition wood furniture. But in the late 1900s, flax was discovered to be not just edible, but also surprisingly nutritious. As early as 1990, scientists were aware that the seed was extremely high in omega-3's - so high that farmers feed it to their chickens to produce eggs with extra-high omegas. Flax seed is 40 percent oil, 55 percent of which is omega-3. Since then, interest in flax has grown slowly, especially among health-conscious people. Magee, who started incorporating flax into her daily diet decades ago, believes interest in flax will keep pace with research - the more people learn about its health benefits, the more they will seek to add it to their diet. "New facts about flax are being researched all the time,"' she says. "For example, a preliminary study was just published that found that hot flashes were cut in half and the intensity was cut in half when women supplemented their diet with 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed twice a day. They noticed improvements within a week but had the maximum improvements within two weeks of starting the flax seed regimen." Although most people who eat flax grind it on top of their cereal, casserole, yogurt or other food, Steven Petusevsky, author of "The Whole Foods Market Cookbook" and a corporate chef, considers it to be a valuable and interesting ingredient in baking and cooking. "I use flax seed at home in a lot of different ways," he says. "I like to use it in vinaigrette. I use it in pilaf. I put it in shakes." The most important thing to remember when using flax seed - and when buying flax seed-enriched products, for that matter - is to realize that the benefits of the seeds are not released until they are crushed or ground. (A clean coffee grinder is a handy tool to use.) "If you don't crush them, it's like two ships passing each other at night. The nutrients are there, but the body can't access them," Petusevsky says. Although a lot of flaxseed advocates will tell you not to heat or cook flax, Petusevsky believes that rule is a little extreme. "You are not going to lose all of the nutritional benefits," he maintains. The other critical thing to know about flax seed, adds online vegetarian expert Zel Allen, is that it should be eaten in moderation. One to two tablespoons a day is the most someone should eat, she says. "I sprinkle it on my cereal in the morning and use it like Parmesan at night," says Allen, author of "The Nut Gourmet," and co-publisher of the online magazine Vegetarians in Paradise. She also suggests people work up to those amounts, starting with as little as a teaspoon, just to make sure their system is ready for the added fiber. Don't expect miracles "The other thing about flax that people need to understand is this: There is no one miracle food out there," she says. "Flax is a great food that needs promoting, but it can't do much for you by itself. It needs to be part of an overall healthy diet." For as long as she can remember, flax has been the answer for Hiremath's aches and ailments. "When I was growing up, we always had a little bowl of flax on the table," she says. "We sprinkled it on everything. Grandmother told us that it would help us grow tall, that it would make us happier, that it would take care of a cold." As a kid, Hiremath had no idea that one day she would become a pioneer in turning that nutritious little seed into a delicious spread. "This all happened by accident," she says of her new line of Laxmi's Delights Indian-spiced flax seed spreads, which received an Outstanding New Product award at the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade last year. Hiremath says she developed her spreads primarily as a substitute for peanut butter and mayonnaise for her own children. Her spreads have only 30 calories per tablespoon. "I want them to eat healthy foods and I didn't like the peanut butter. I enjoy cooking, so I started playing around with it." Hiremath started by grinding up flax as you would peanuts, turning it into a smooth butter. "The butter did not taste good with just flax," she says. Hiremath began experimenting and within months, she developed three spreads that were so popular with her children and their young adult friends that she was bottling them to give away. "It surprised me so much that people liked this. I knew that flax is a food for athletes and that it is very healthy, but I did not realize how popular this would be." The sweetest of the three is one made with dates and orange. Another incorporates ginger and honey. The third is entirely savory, made with sun dried tomatoes and garlic. Hiremath's spreads are available at specialty markets, for about $9 to $13 a jar.
Finding a place for flax in your diet If you would like to add flax to your diet but simply don't know where to start, here is a flax seed primer of sorts, courtesy of registered dietitian Elaine Magee, author of "The Flax Cookbook," ($14.95, Marlowe, 192 pp.). • There are two colors of flax seed: brown and golden. They have basically the same nutritional content. Brown flax costs about $1 per pound in most stores. Golden flax seed looks better in foods and costs about twice as much. Look for flax in larger supermarkets and natural foods stores. Flax meal is sold at Trader Joe's for about $2 per pound. • No matter which form or color of flax you buy, be sure to store it in the freezer or refrigerator so that the oil in the seed does not turn rancid. Whole seed lasts about a year on the shelf at room temperature. Ground flax should not be left at room temperature for longer than a week. Store both seed and meal away from light to inhibit oxidation. • Always grind flax seed before eating, since the benefits of flax are only realized when the seed is ground. The most popular tool for grinding seed is an electric coffee grinder. • Since some of the benefits of flax are destroyed through the cooking process, for maximum benefit, incorporate both cooked and raw flax into your diet. • Flax is not something you want to eat in bulk. Since flax has 2.3 grams fiber per tablespoon, moderate consumption is advisable. Magee suggests eating about 1 tablespoon daily for women, no more than 2 for men. • Flax can be sprinkled on a range of foods, including yogurt, smoothies, casseroles, sandwiches, hot cereal or fruit. • To bake with flax, use as you would wheat germ. Substituting ground flax seed for up to a fourth of the total amount of flour is fine; more could affect baking results. Keep in mind that the flax has a higher percentage of oil than flour, so it's best to use it in lower-fat recipes. • You can substitute flax for eggs in recipes when the eggs are not used as leavening. Grind 1 tablespoon seeds with 1/4 cup water. Allow to sit until the mixture gels. Use as a substitute for 1 whole raw egg. • Women who are pregnant or lactating should check with their physician before taking flax regularly. THE BENEFITS OF FLAX Just in case you're not convinced you should add flax to your diet, here are a few flax facts to chew on: • Heart disease: Flax contains dietary fiber and omega-3 fat in the form of ALA, which is known to reduce risk of heart disease by lowering cholesterol and preventing the buildup of harmful deposits in arteries. Studies show that flax binds with cholesterol in the gut, which reduces total cholesterol, and lowers LDL (the bad cholesterol) levels. Flax has also been found to reduce clotting time, thereby reducing chances of heart attacks and strokes. • Cancer prevention: The omega-3 fats in flax also get credit for slowing inflammation that can lead to cancer cell growth. A study on women newly diagnosed with breast cancer showed a slowing of tumor growth with the addition of flax to their diets. Flax seed is also high in lignans, up to 800 times the amount as in any tested plant food. Lignans (a phytoestrogen) are natural cancer-protective compounds. • Immune issues: Research shows that both the lignans and the ALA in flax help the body defend itself against bacteria and viruses. It also helps prevent inflammation that affects the body's immune system. Flax may also be useful in the treatment of such immune disorders as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and lupus. • Diabetes: Studies show flax lowers blood glucose in healthy, young adults and may be of benefit to people with Type 2 diabetes. In one study at the University of Toronto, participants who ate flax-seed bread had blood sugar levels 28 percent lower an hour after eating than their counterparts who ate bread made with wheat flour. • Digestive issues: Flax is a good source of soluble fiber, which is terrific for the digestive system. One tablespoon of flax provides 10 percent of the USDA's recommended daily intake of fiber. • Hormone balancing: Flax is the richest known plant source of phytoestrogens, estrogen-like substances that are found in plants. Phytoestrogens act as a natural hormone therapy and help to stabilize hormonal levels. This stabilization of hormonal levels helps to alleviate some symptoms of menopause. • Alzheimer's: There is some evidence that eating a diet high in omega-3's can decrease the risk of Alzheimer's. Flax is the richest plant source of omega-3's. |