Healthy
Candies
By Lars Jensen
Most people
have a sweet tooth. Some satisfy it without
reserve, others try to curb it to special occasions.
Few are those who can conquer it completely.
There
can be no doubt that the quantity of candy eaten
is closely related to tooth decay. A British
professor traveled all the way to Ghana to
find a group of people who had a low sugar diet.
This low income group who never ate sweets had
only a 10% incidence of dental caries, whereas
severe caries occur in 42% of those eating sweets.
The
biggest enemy in the tempting little packets of
taffy, fudge, chocolate and gum is, of course, white
sugar. In those countries where the children
chew on whole sugar cane for candy, the teeth
are beautiful. Even when white sugar is replaced
by the less refined raw sugar for sweetening,
we have a much more wholesome product. The
health way of eating includes natural sugars
of all kinds--honey, pure maple sugar and
syrup, mo- lasses, date sugar, dried fruits,
juice concentrates, fresh fruits and juices,
and sweet vegetables. These dispersed through
the normal diet really supply all our bodily
requirements for energy and warmth from sugar.
However, if you still long for a little treat,
you can satisfy your craving for sweetness by
making candies from natural ingredients and
enjoy such delights occasionally without harm.
But, be it remembered, any concentrated sweet
is usually acid-forming, which overtaxes the body.
Keepingthe
acid-alkaline balance just right at 20%/80%is the basis of health, and
that means theacid-forming foods must be kept to a minimum.
Very
wise are the parents who encourage their children
to eat dates and figs rather than candies
and ice cream as unnatural sugars, especially
during the growing years, bring a toll of
soft, malformed bones, decayed teeth, and general
structural weaknesses. And, of course, it is
much easier to form a good habit in the beginning than to break a well
establishedcraving later on.
There
are ever so many delicious things you can offer
too. Not even a child, free to indulge in stuffed
dates and prunes, fruit bars, carob-made chocolate,
orange flavored jubes, nut balls and natural
marzipan should feel cheated by the inveterate
candy nibbler with his gum drops, divinity;
and all-day suckers.
Once you start into making natural
healthy candy, you will find there is no end to the combinations you can
create. Our recipe section should give you a start on the road. We make
free use of such nutritious foods as sunflower seeds, rice polishings,
flaxseeds, powdered whey and wheat germ. These make excellent "fillers"
along with fruit and nuts, but are also good on their own. Other wonderful
supplements which can be used in small quantities to vitalize your candy
are brewer's yeast, rosehip powder, bone meal powder, and dulse. Though
honey is the natural choice of binder, vary this
sometimes by using pure maple syrup,
molasses and fruit concentrates. Gelatin gives a cohesion to some candies
which would otherwise be too soft and sticky. Instead of the proverbial
"sugar coating", we use fresh-grated coconut, chopped or ground nuts, sesame
seeds, sunflower seed meal even powdered whey.
To the newcomer, many of these healthy
candies will not be sweet enough. This can be remedied by using more honey,
date sugar or fruit concentrates until the unnatural desire for exaggerated
sweet- ness wears off.
There
is much in presentation. Make your fruit candies neatly, keep the sizes
uniform and decorate enticingly. They can even be attractively wrapped
and done up like the commercial candies. This is an especially good idea
at festive occasions, when candies feature more prominently.
These candies are made from '"live"
ingredients. Any food which is stable, which will keep indefinitely, lacks
the properties the body needs for health. Commercial white sugar candies
have an almost everlasting life. Health candies, on the whole, must be
stored in the refrigerator and eaten quickly. Like any other genuine health
product, they will not keep. For this reason, our recipes are for relatively
small quantities. However, they are quick and simple. Try our recipes,
then experiment with your own. You'll have lots of enjoyment, and the satisfaction
of knowing your candies are not detracting from your family's good health.
Article by: http://www.eclecticcooking.com/.
Do you know how to cook a juicy salmon? How to avoid crying when cutting
onions? How to prevent avocados from turning black? Visit The Eclectic
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Healthy
Candies
All
these healthy candies are taken from our free Ebook.
Fruit
Candy
1-1/4 cups Ground Nuts
3/4 cup Sunflower Seed Meal
1/2 cup Seedless Raisins, chopped
1/2 cup Pitted Dates, chopped
1/4 cup Orange Juice
Mix to soften dates, then mash well.
1
Egg White, slightly beaten
Mix ingredients very well, blending
to a paste. Add Honey if extra sweetening is desired. Add wheat germ if
not firm enough. Chill.
Roll into balls in Coconut or sesame
seeds.
Fruit
Bars
1/2 cup Raisins, chopped
1/2 cup Dates, chopped
1/2 cup Prunes, chopped
1/2 cup Nuts, chopped
3/4 cup melted Carob Chocolate
(Melt over hot water. )
Mix together well. Line a shallow
pan with Sunflower Seed Meal, finely chopped Nuts, or Coconut and spread
candy in. Dust top with more of the lining material and chill. When set,
cut into bars and wrap in wax paper.
Apple
Nut Candy
1/4 cup Chopped Nuts
1/4 cup Grated Apple
1/4 cup fresh Grated Coconut
1/4 cup ground Nuts
1/4 cup Rice Polishings
1/4 cup Sunflower Seed Meal
2 tsps. Apple Concentrate
Honey to bind
Mix to a stiff consistency and roll
into balls in sesame seeds.
Fruit
Candy Squares
1 cup ground Dried Apricots or Peaches
1 cup whole Seedless Raisins
1 cup ground Dried Figs or Pitted
Dates
1/2 cup Pure Maple Syrup or Honey
1/2 cup Chopped Nuts
1/2 cup Shredded Coconut*, if desired
Do not use tough or over-dry fruit.
If too dry, "revive". Grind on coarse blade (leave raisins whole).
Press firmly into cup when measuring.
Mix
ingredients thoroughly. Place in double boiler with
syrup or honey. Warm gently until
soft, mixing -well.
Pour
into greased pan or on to waxed paper to harden. If too soft, add more
fruit. Chill. Cut into squares and dust with coconut.
Date
marbles
1
cup dates
1
cup Pecans
Grind
in food processor and add orange rind to flavor. Roll into balls
in freshly grated coconut and chill.
Stuffed
Figs
1/2
cup coconut
1/2
cup sesame seed meal
1/2
cup date sugar
almond
butter to make a stiff paste.
Blend
smooth. Cut a slit lengthwise in soft dried figs; open and stuff generously.
Top each with a pine nut.
Nut
butter candy
1/4
cup nut butter
1/2
cup ground nuts
1/4
cup apple concentrate or honey
Mix
to a stiff consistency, shape into balls and roll in chopped nuts, coconut
or sesame seeds.
Variations:
Vary your nut butters always using raw unsalted kinds. Try sunflower seed
butter or coconut butter for different flavor treats.
Use
to stuff dates, prunes, etc.
Date
nut balls
1
cup chopped dates
1
Tbsp. health cream cheese
3
Tbsp. honey
cream
to taste
Dash
of grated orange rind
Finely
chopped nuts or graham crackers crumbs to make stiff
Chill
until firm.
Shape
into balls in buttered hands, and roll in more chopped nuts, sesame seeds
or coconut.
Article by: http://www.eclecticcooking.com/.
Do you know how to cook a juicy salmon? How to avoid crying when cutting
onions? How to prevent avocados from turning black? Visit The Eclectic
Cooking Ezine, portal to cooking and nutrition featuring freelance writers,
doctors, and authors. Free weekly newsletter subscription: update@eclecticcooking.com
