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Dark Chocolate May Improve Blood Flow and Lower Blood Pressure

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Consuming dark chocolate can improve several important risk factors for heart disease. In a controlled trial, cocoa powder was found to significantly decrease oxidized LDL cholesterol in men. It also increased HDL and lowered total LDL in men with elevated cholesterol (9). Oxidized LDL means that the LDL (“bad” cholesterol) has reacted with free radicals. This makes the LDL particle itself reactive and capable of damaging other tissues… such as the lining of the arteries in your heart. It makes perfect sense that cocoa lowers oxidized LDL. It contains an abundance of powerful antioxidants that do make it into the bloodstream and protect lipoproteins against oxidative damage (10, 11, 12, 13). Dark chocolate can also reduce insulin resistance, which is another common risk factor for many diseases like heart disease and diabetes (14, 15). The flavanols in dark chocolate can stimulate the endothelium, the lining of arteries, to produce Nitric Oxide (NO), which is a ga...
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Dark chocolate is boon

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Dark chocolate is loaded with nutrients that can positively affect your health. Made from the seed of the cocoa tree, it is one of the best sources of antioxidants on the planet. Studies show that dark chocolate (not the sugary crap) can improve health and lower the risk of heart disease. 1. Dark Chocolate is Very Nutritious If you buy quality dark chocolate with a high cocoa content, then it is actually quite nutritious. It contains a decent amount of soluble fiber and is loaded with minerals. A 100 gram bar of dark chocolate with 70-85% cocoa contains (1): 11 grams of fiber. 67% of the RDA for Iron. 58% of the RDA for Magnesium. 89% of the RDA for Copper. 98% of the RDA for Manganese. It also has plenty of potassium, phosphorus, zinc and selenium. Of course, 100 grams (3.5 ounces) is a fairly large amount and not something you should be consuming daily. All these nutrients also come with 600 calories and moderate amounts of sugar. For this reason, dark choc...
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Chocolate Is Good for Your Health

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It turns out that chocolate, especially dark chocolate, reduces body mass, prevents blood clots, improves numeracy, may prevent cancer, and doesn’t ruin your complexion. A new study suggests that eating chocolate can help you stay thin. Researchers at the University of California-San Diego found that people who frequently eat chocolate have lower body-mass indexes than people who don’t. Other evidence indicates that chocolate can also ward off strokes, heart attacks, and diabetes. 1. Chocolate decreases stroke risk A Swedish study found that eating more than 45 grams of chocolate per week—about two bars worth—led to a 20 percent decrease in stroke risk among women. Chocolate contains flavonoids, whose antioxidant properties help fight strokes, the study’s author, Susanna Larsson, told HealthDay. 2. Chocolate reduces the likelihood of a heart attack Other studies show that eating chocolate prevents blood clots, which in turn reduces the risk of heart attacks. Blood plat...
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Masala Toast-Veg Masala Toast Sandwich

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This is a very popular Mumbai Style Masala Sandwich with green chutney, potato filling and vegetables. I make this often at home as it is not only delicious but also very simple and easy to prepare. It makes a filling and healthy breakfast.    Ingredients needed    Brown Bread or White bread - 8    Butter as needed    Green Chutney as needed    For the Potato Filling    Potato - 2    Onion - 1 medium size    Green chillies - 1-2 finely chopped    Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp    Salt needed    For the Seasoning    Oil - 3 tsp    Cumin seeds -1 tsp    Curry leaves - 1 sprig    For Garnishing    Finely chopped coriander leaves- 1 tbsp   For the Topping    Onion slices    Tomato slices    Cucumber slices    Chaat Masala - as needed Preparation First prepar...
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Carrot payasam

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Carrot Kheer or payasam is so easy to prepare and tastes so delicious hot or chilled.The only work is grating the carrots. You can make this kheer for small parties and get togethers. You can prepare this a day ahead and serve chilled. Both adults and kids will love this kheer.    Ingredients needed    Carrots – 2 medium sizes or 1 cup grated    Milk -1/2 liter or 2 1/2 cup    Sugar – 3-4 tbsp    Ghee -1 tsp    Cashews – 6-7    Almonds/badam – 6-7    Cardamom powder – a generous pinch    Saffron – 5-6 strands Preparation  Soak cashew nuts and almonds in warm water for 1/2 an hour. Remove the skin of almonds. Grind both almonds and cashew nuts together coarsely. Grate carrots finely. (use the blade with small holes) Soak saffron in a tbsp of milk for 5 minutes. Method  Heat a tsp of ghee and fry the carrots until the raw smell goes. ...
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Sheer Khurma

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   Ingredients needed    Whole milk - 4 cups    Cardamom -1 crushed (optional)    Sugar -1/3 cup or as needed    Fine Vermicelli/sevaiyon -1 cup    Ghee/clarified butter -2 tbsp    Nuts and dry fruits    Pistachios - 2 tbsp    Almonds - 2 tbsp    Cashew nuts - 2 tbsp    Raisins - 2-3 tbsp    Dates - 4    Cardamom powder -1/4 tsp    Saffron-5-6 strands    Kewra essence or rose water -1/4 tsp Preparation Soak saffron strands in 2 tbsp of warm milk. Chop dates and soak it in half cup of  hot milk (you can take from the 4 cups of milk mentioned). Soak almonds and pistachio in hot water for 15-20 minutes. Remove the skin and cut it thinly or into small pieces. Pat it dry. Heat a tbsp of ghee and fry the nuts including cashew nuts for a few minutes on low flame. This is to give a nice flavor to the sheer khur...
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Murmura ladoo recipe

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Ingredients 3 cups murmura/puffed rice, 60 grams (i have used puffed rice murmura here and not puffed flattened rice) ½ cup packed grated/powdered jaggery, 120 grams ¼ cup roasted gram/bhuna hua chana, 25 grams ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder 4 tablespoons of water Instructions first grate/powder the jaggery, powder the cardamom and keep them ready. keep your pans ready. this will make the process super simple. i used one pot to melt the jaggery, drained the cleaned jaggery into another pot. two separate pans - one to dry roast the murmura/puffed rice, another to heat the cleaned jaggery and making ladoos. (instead you can use the same pan to roast and later to heat jaggery) keep a small bowl of water ready. this is for checking the thickness of the syrup. now, on medium heat dry roast 3 cups of murmura/puffed rice for 1 to 2 minutes, so that it crisps up. keep this aside or transfer to another bowl. to a separate pot, add ½ cup of grated/powdered jaggery and 4 tablespoons of wa...
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