Salt is made of sodium chloride, a compound mineral of sodium and chloride. Salt is gathered from the ocean, rock salt deposits from ancient dried up seas, or from brine, a concentrated salt water. To gather the salt you evaporate the water and are left with all the minerals, sodium chloride. 

Depending on where you gather your salt it will also contain traces of other beneficial minerals such as, iron, zinc, iodine, magnesium, calcium, potassium and selenium. All essential nutrient to the function of our bodies. 

The ancient sea salt deposits have the most beneficial minerals, sea salt from the ocean is second and salt made from brine has the fewest beneficial minerals. Table salt is made from a brine. When they make salt from brine the purposely strip our other minerals such as magnesium and calcium to produce the purest from of sodium chloride. In the 1920s there was a iodine deficiency among the people in the USA and they started adding iodine to the salt and there is where we get our iodized table salt from.

Different Types of Salt

We categorize salt in three different ways, sea salt, rock salt and table salt. 

Sea Salts are derived from the ocean. You can buy Mortans Sea Salt, Azure Sea Salt, Kirkland Sea Salt… etc. There are many different brands of sea salt harvested from different parts of the world. 

Rock Salts are gathered from salt mines. These mines are from salt deposits from old salt lakes and seas that have evaporated years ago and our found under the rocky layers of earths surface. Salts like Redmond Real Salts, Pink Himalayan Salt, Celtic Sea Salt and more are all gathered from rock salt mines. 

Brine Salts are also gathered from salt mines but extracted in a different way. Rock salt is extracted by drilling, crushing and braking down the salt floor and salt walls. Brine salt is extracted through hydraulic methods. They flood the salt floors with water then pump the new salt water brine to the surface and evaporate the water to get the salt again. After that they process the salt getting it to as pure of a form of sodium chloride as they can. This salt is commonly known as Table Salt or Iodized Salts.

Health benefits of Real Salt

Here is one of the many benefits of salt in our diets. 

Our bodies are in need of many minerals to function properly. Hydration is extremely important to our bodies but did you know that drinking water will not hydrate your body alone? In order for out body to absorb the water we drink we need to have a good balance of vitamins and minerals in our bodies.  

Electrolyte are the most needed minerals for the hydration of our bodies. The primary key electrolytes the body needs are sodium, chloride, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphate, and bicarbonate. 

Celtic salt is mostly sodium chloride. It also includes 90 other trace minerals including potassium, calcium and 3 different types of magnesium. That’s 5 out of 7 of the primary electrolytes. Table salt has little to no trace minerals and is simply sodium chloride.

Don’t forget fresh fruits and vegetables are going to be the best way to add more vitamins and minerals to your diet. Electrolyte powders and drinks are a supplement if needed. 

By using a Pink Himalayan Salt, Celtic Salt or Redmond Salt you will be adding many other minerals to your daily diet than if you simply used table salt.

The Health Risks of Too Much Salt

Too much sodium chloride (salt) can have its down side for sure. There are studies that show how salt can raise you blood pressure causing a multitude of issues. There also studies that connect high sodium levels with stomach cancer and cardiovascular disease, heart attack and other health conditions. 

Now before you take salt out of your diet completely we must understand how we get high sodium levels. 

Our cells contain pumps that help keep the balance of sodium and potassium within the cell. We get most of our potassium intake from the vegetables we eat. If you don’t eat your vegetables and are putting lots of table salt (Sodium Chloride, no other minerals) on your food, sodium will raise and potassium will drop. When the sodium levels are too high the cell swells causing high blood pressure.

The solution is not to simply take out sodium from your diet but to create a balance with sodium and potassium and all your other minerals. Using a rock salt with other trace minerals in them will help create that balance, sometimes evening keeping a low blood pressure.  

Did you know that the too much salt can mess with your taste buds? Salty foods can dull your taste buds temporarily. And often with dull taste buds we end up adding more salt.

The Health Risks of Too Little Salt

Less salt or not enough salt can be just as dangerous as too much. After oxygen and water the next element that we need to survive is sodium, after that potassium. 

If you google “benefits of sodium” you will find it plays a role in keeping our fluids balance, balanced blood pressure, transporting nerve impulses, blood flow and circulation, glucose absorption and more.

Taking sodium out of your diet completely will harm you in the end. But overdoing sodium without the presence of other minerals and vitamins will also harm you. The trick is a well balanced diet with whole foods and real salt, not regular table salt. 

Prepackaged Foods VS Whole Foods

To create a well balanced diet full of good nutrition we need to be eating whole unprocessed foods. What are whole foods? Whole foods are foods that are not processed or refined but whole in nutrient. Whole fruits and vegetables, meat off the bone, fresh baked breads and goods rather than prepackaged foods. Most breakfast cereals is not a whole food, oatmeal is a whole food. Mashed potatoes from a mix is not a whole food, mashed potatoes from fresh potatoes is a whole food. 

There are a lot of prepackaged or frozen meals out there that add sodium to make it taste good and is also used as a preservative. In these prepackaged meal there is a high amount of sodium but little potassium, magnesium or other vitamins and minerals. Its also not uncommon for people to add table salt to these meals. This can lead to high sodium intake causing high blood pressure amongst other problems.

Eating whole foods and meals from scratch will help you keep a balanced diet with all your nutritional needs being met. Choosing high quality whole foods enhances your vitamin and mineral intake helping your body function properly. Cooking with real salt and knowing exactly how much is in your meal will help you balance you salt intake avoiding the risk of too much or too little salt.

I highly recommend you stay away from fast food and ready-made foods if you are trying to stay away from a high-salt diet. Here in the united states we make ready-made foods with excess salt. When shopping for quick meals check your food labels and nutrition labels. Buy more fresh foods for a healthy diet.

Salt Substitutes

If you are trying to lower your sodium intake with less salt then here are a few salt substitutes you can use to lower the amount of salt you use on your everyday foods. 

• Lemon juice and Vinegar –  both acidic in nature, enhancing the flavor of your foods without the use of sodium. 
• Nutritional Yeast – Is full of vitamins and minerals and is beneficial to your diet. Sprinkling a little on your food to replace salt and adds a cheesy – nutty flavor. 
• Herbs, Spices and Peppers, Onions and Garlic – We often us salt to draw out the flavor of our food. Adding more flavor cuts down the need to add as much salt to make it flavorful. 
• Soy sauce – Although known to be high in sodium you might be surprised to the difference between soy sauce and table salt. Soy sauce is a good source for sodium, magnesium, potassium, iron and more. When sodium is paired with these other vitamins and minerals our body is about to absorb and use them properly.

Real Redmond Salt

Enhance the flavor with good real salt like Redmond Real Salt. If you are looking for a unrefined natural salt with multiple minerals and key electrolytes harvested in the USA, then look no further. Redmond Real Salt is full of flavor and nutrients and harvested out of the ancient seabed deep beneath Central Utah.

The post Is Salt Healthy? What You Need to Know About Salt. appeared first on Embracing The Home.

Ingredients for Cinnamon Apple Baked Oatmeal

Oatmeal

I like to use rolled oats for breakfast bake but any type of oatmeal will work. Steel cut, quick oats, rolled oats which ever type you like best. Depending on the type of oats you use will play a part in how long you baked the oats for.

Wheat Bran

Bran is a the outermost layer of wheat. This part of the wheat is typically left out of your flours. It has a nutty and slightly sweet flavor and is full of nutrients that your flour is now lacking. By adding it back in you are getting more nutrition such as magnesium, fiber, copper, iron, manganese and selenium.

Chia Seeds

Chia Seeds are extremely nutritious, in just 2 tablespoons of chia seeds are full of magnesium (23% DV), iron (12% DV), phosphorus (20% DV), zinc (12% DV), thiamine (15% DV), niacin (16% DV), calcium (14% DV), fiber, protein, omega 3 fatty acids, and antioxidants. They are also a great source for Essential Amino Acids. Chia seeds are beneficial to your heart, bones, and nervous system. They are also knows for the reducing appetite and food intake and can be effective for loosing and maintaining weight.

Baking Powder & Salt

Baking powder is a raising agent. Now you might think this is a strange ingredient to add to oatmeal and it might be but I have found it adds just enough of a fluff to our oatmeal making keep it from becoming dense and thick.

Apples

Apples are sweet and full of flavor, fiber, vitamin C and potassium. They are a great addition to our healthy, hearty breakfast.

Raisins

Raisins are probably the most classic and my favorite addition to my oatmeal. They are sweet and full of fiber, iron, calcium and antioxidants.

Honey/Sugar

Honey’s sweetness makes life so much better. Not only that but its full of antioxidants, antibacterial and anti-fungal. Honey helps build up your immune system and aids in fighting off colds and other viruses. Antioxidants protect cell’s from damage and in doing so protect you from cancer and heart disease.

You can also sweeten your oatmeal with brown sugar or maple syrup or monk fruit sweetener. Most any sweet thing will substitute.

Milk & Water

You can add milk (cows or plant based) or water for this recipe. Sometimes I only use water other times I do 50/50 milk and water. The best is when its mostly milk with a little water. I have yet to try all milk but I’m sure that would be juts as good.

How To Make Cinnamon Apple Baked Oatmeal

Step 1: Mix Dry Ingredients

In a bowl or straight in your 9×9 inch pan mix together all the dry ingredients.

Step 2: Add Wet Ingredients

Mix together the milk and honey, if you honey is more solid or crystalized like mine is most of the time, heat it on the stove top or in the microwave just till it mixes with the milk better. Then add the milk, honey and water to the oatmeal mixture.

Step 3: Bake

Cover the oatmeal with some foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Once its done baking, let cool for a couple minutes before scooping into a bowl. Serve with a little more milk and enjoy!

Baked Oatmeal Apple Cinnamon

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

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Ingredients

• 1 Cup Oats
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup wheat bran
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1 Apple
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup water

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. In a bowl or your 9x9 baking pan, mix together all the dry ingredients, oats, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, wheat bran, chia seeds, chopped apple and raisins.
3. Mix together the milk, water and honey and pour into the dry mixture.
4. Cover the pan with foil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
5. Let cool for a few minutes before eating, serve with a little more milk and enjoy!

Shop This Recipe

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Azure Market Organics Wheat Bran, Dark, Organic

Amazon Bob’s Red Mill Wheat Bran, 16 Oz

Monk Fruit In The Raw Sweetener Baker’s Bag, 16 oz., Keto Certified Monk Fruit Sweetener, Zero Calories, Zero Net Carbs, Non-GMO Project Verified

The post How To Make Baked Oatmeal – Cinnamon Apple appeared first on Embracing The Home.

Healthy Benefits of Bran

Bran is an excellent source of fiber, iron, copper, magnesium and more! Just one cup of Organic Wheat Bran contains,

• Total Carbohydrate 27.4g (12% DV)
  • Dietary Fiber 24.8g (99% DV)
  • Total Sugars 0.2g
  • Includes 0g Added Sugars (0% DV)
• Protein 9g (18% DV)
• Iron 6.1mg (34% DV)
• Potassium 686mg (20% DV)
• Copper 0.59mg (64% DV)
• Magnesium 354.38 mg (84% DV)
• Manganese 6.670 mg (290% DV)
• Phosphorus 587.54 mg (47% DV)
• Selenium 45.01 mcg (82% DV)
• Zinc 4.22 mg (38% DV)

So adding a 1/2 cup or 1 cup to your favorite breads and baked treats is an easy way to add more nutrition to your diet.

Ingredients For Banana Bran Muffins

Banana

Because banana’s are sweet and moist the natural sugars from a banana are a great substitute for sugar. Refined sugars are “empty calories” calories that don’t produce any other nutritional value. Unlike sugar, 1 bananas has potassium (9% DV), copper (10% DV) (Manganese (14% DV), Vitamin B6 (25%), and Vitamin C (11% DV). Banana’s add moisture, creating a soft, moist muffin without the added fats from oils and butter.

Greek Yogurt

Yogurt is also a great way to add moisture and nutrients, along with some fat (unless you use fat free) to your recipe. Butter or oil is the typical way to add the moisture we need in a muffin recipe. Because butter is made from the fatty cream we get from milk it is not whole, so it will not contain all the beneficial nutrients that whole raw milk contains. Now, Yogurt is made from milk, whole or low fat will still have more vitamins and minerals than butter. Yogurt contains lots of vitamin B, selenium, phosphorus, and calcium where butter only contains trace amounts.

Oil or Applesauce

Melted coconut oil, olive oil, or avocado oil, any oil will work. You don’t need much and if you want to leave oil out completely you can either add more yogurt or, I recommend, applesauce. Applesauce is another great substitute for oil in baking.

Eggs

Eggs are a bonding ingredient, they are very important to the texture of baked goods. We want our muffins to be soft with a little springy but not crumbly. Eggs also help with the raise, keeping the muffins from becoming dense.

Flour

I use 1/2 all purpose and 1/2 whole wheat for this recipe. All purpose flour separates the germ and bran from the flour where whole wheat is the whole grain. This makes whole wheat flour full of great nutrition but it also keeps the gluten strands shorter where as all purpose flour has longer gluten strands. The difference in this gluten strands makes a difference in the rise and the texture of your breads and pastries.

Wheat Bran

Bran is a the outermost layer of wheat. This part of the wheat is typically left out of your flours. It has a nutty and slightly sweet flavor and is full of nutrients that your flour is now lacking. By adding it back in you are getting more nutrition such as magnesium, fiber, copper, iron, manganese and selenium.

Sugar or Honey

Sugar or honey is our sweetener! Yes, bananas are also sweetening these muffins helping us keep the refined sugars low. If you want to keep this recipe refined sugar free substitute the sugar with honey or maple syrup.

Baking Soda

Baking soda is a leavening agent for quick rises, you may remember your science experiments with vinegar (acidic) and your baking soda (alkaline) when mix together create carbon dioxide bubbling all about. Instead of vinegar in our muffins we us yogurt as our acidic ingredient. When the two are mixed the carbon dioxide is released and therefore imprints air pockets while baking.

Salt

Don’t forget salt, just a the right amount of salt makes everything better. It brings out the flavor in the blandest of ingredients and makes the simplest of foods feel rich.

Cinnamon

As well as adding some wonderful deep flavor, cinnamon has some great health benefits! From reducing blood sugar to protecting from heart disease, anti-inflammatory and a great source of antioxidants. This spice has power and is so delicious.

How to Make Banana Bran Muffins

Step One: Mix Wet Ingredients

• In a medium/large bowl mash banana’s with a fork or potato masher.
• Once mashed well, add yogurt, eggs, and oil
• Mix together.

Step Two: Mix Dry Ingredients

• In a separate bowl mix all the dry ingredients, Flour, bran, sugar, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

Step Three: Mix Wet and Dry Together

• Mix all ingredients together. You don’t want the consistency to be too thick or too runny. When I make this recipe its a little more on the thick side. Its not pour-able but its not so thick that it holding form on a spoon. It still falls off the spoon easily.
• If its too thick when baked it will be dense muffin. You can add a little more oil or yogurt. If you feel like its still not enough add a little milk or water. Just a little at a time.
• If its too runny it will take longer to bake in the middle and you risk burning the outside of the muffin. If your muffin is runny, first let it set for 5-10 minutes. The bran and whole wheat take time to absorb moisture. After that time if it hasn’t changed add more flour 1/4 cup at a time.

Step Four: Spoon Into Muffin Tin or Cups

• I use silicone muffin cups, me and the kids love them. You can either place these cup in your muffin tin or just stand alone on a baking sheet.
• Spoon the batter into the cup 3/4 of the way full.
• Bake for 18-20 minutes. Because of the bran and whole wheat these muffins are darker and a little harder to tell when they are done. They may look done on the outside but still need a few minutes on the inside. With a tooth pick or small thin paring knife check to see if the inside is cooked through. When the muffin is done the tooth pick will come out clean.

Step Five: Let Cool and Enjoy!

• Let cool for 10 or so minutes and enjoy!
• You can store for about 3 days covered on countertop
  • 5-7 days in refrigerator in zip-lock or air tight container
  • 3-6 month in freezer in zip-lock or air tight container

Banana Bran Muffins

Yield: 24 Muffins

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 18 minutes

Total Time: 28 minutes

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Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

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• 6 bananas
• 1 cup greek yogurt
• 1/3 cup oil or applesauce
• 3 tablespoons molasses
• 3 eggs

Dry Ingredients

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• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup wheat bran
• 1/2 cup sugar or honey
• 3 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mash banana with fork or potato masher
3. Mix all wet ingredients together
4. Mix together dry ingredients in a separate bowl
5. Combine the wet and dry ingredients
6. Spoon into greased muffin tins or liners
7. Bake for 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees

The post The Best Banana Bran Muffins appeared first on Embracing The Home.