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Black Coffee: What Makes the Drink Without Milk

Black coffee is better than its reputation. We explain what black coffee is and why it can also be good for your health.

What is black coffee?

Very simple: A coffee prepared without milk or milk alternative and without sugar is a black coffee.
It doesn’t matter whether you prepare the caffeinated drink in a French press, a fully automatic coffee machine, with a hand filter or in a conventional coffee machine.

How you drink the coffee is of course up to you, but some people say they don’t like black coffee. This may be because coffee tastes more bitter on its own than if you add milk, for example. This makes the drink milder. However, you only get the unadulterated taste of coffee if you drink the drink “black”. Black coffee also has many health benefits compared to the variant with milk. You can read exactly what these are in the next section.

Is black coffee healthy?

The effects of coffee on the body have already been investigated in numerous studies. The general tenor:

Regular consumption of coffee is healthy and can have positive effects on the body.
For example, black coffee contains antioxidants that can help prevent disease. How many antioxidant properties a coffee has depends, among other things, on the degree of roasting of the beans. It also has anti-fibrotic effects on human organs such as the liver.

What is also true are the following statements:

Coffee strengthens long-term memory: researchers at the University of Baltimore found out in a study that people were able to remember something better if they had consumed caffeine afterwards. However, the effect cannot be increased at will. There was a habituation effect among consumers.
Coffee promotes mental performance: According to a study by brain researcher Prof. Bernd Fischer, enjoying one to three cups of coffee should increase the speed of information processing by ten percent. In addition, coffee consumption increases sustained attention. Tip for employers: If you provide your employees with coffee, this has been scientifically proven to increase productivity.
Coffee lowers cancer risk: Four cups of coffee can reduce the risk of skin cancer by 20 percent. That’s what scientists at the Yale School of Public Health found. The researchers drew their findings from a study that proves that some coffee ingredients can protect against cell damage from UVB radiation.
Coffee drinkers live longer: From an American long-term study, a team from the Harvard School of Public Health drew data from which it can be seen that coffee drinkers live longer than people who avoid the caffeinated drink. Before they now increase their coffee consumption every day: Of course, this was not the only factor, the living conditions of the individual test subjects also have to be taken into account.
Black coffee detoxifies cells: According to a study by the University of Graz, black coffee in its original state promotes what is known as autophagy. This is a kind of “self-digestion program” in the body that cleans and detoxifies cells.

Why you should drink a coffee black

Unfortunately, animal milk in coffee reduces the positive properties and effects of the drink mentioned in the previous section. Researchers at the University of Graz have discovered that animal proteins can inhibit the process of cell purification. They therefore recommend drinking coffee black or, if you don’t like this variant, with plant-based milk.

The body’s reactions to black coffee vary from person to person. Therefore, you should only drink it in moderation at first to find out how wholesome it is for you. The roasting of the coffee beans produces acid and bitter substances. These can have effects on the gastrointestinal tract, for example attacking the gastric mucosa on an empty stomach. However, it is not 100% proven which substance in coffee causes stomach pain. For a long time, chlorogenic acid was considered responsible. In the meantime, however, this theory has been refuted. Likewise, according to the German Coffee Association, it has not been proven that drinking coffee increases the risk of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

How much coffee are you allowed to drink in a day?

According to the German Institute for Human Nutrition, four cups of normal coffee reduce the risk of developing liver cancer by 75 percent. However, not much more should be consumed. This is due to the high caffeine content in coffee.

Excessive caffeine consumption can be harmful to your health. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) cites increased nervousness, insomnia and tachycardia as consequences. As a rule of thumb, about 5.7 mg per kilogram of body weight is fine. So for a woman who weighs 60 kilograms, that would be around 342 mg. That roughly equates to the four cups of coffee per day mentioned above. For pregnant or breastfeeding women, about half of the value is considered harmless to health.

Although one cannot speak of a dependency or addiction to coffee or caffeine, according to the German Coffee Association, there are habituation effects after regular consumption. Caffeine does not target brain regions known to be addictive. However, it can happen that headaches occur, for example, when coffee drinkers abruptly forego their daily coffee dose.

How much caffeine is in black coffee?

The caffeine content in coffee generally depends on several factors. First of all, what beans you choose. Arabica beans have a lower caffeine content (average 1.2 percent) than Robusta beans (around 1.7 – 3.6 percent). However, these values ​​also vary. You have to consider how hot the beans were roasted, how finely ground the coffee is, and how long you let it steep while preparing it. Simple guidelines: the finer the beans are ground and the longer you let the coffee steep, the higher the caffeine content. According to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), a black coffee has around 90 mg of caffeine per 200 ml, which is about the same as a normal coffee mug.

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Cooking Tips

Freeze Rhubarb: with or without Blanching?

Freezing rhubarb is a great way to preserve it and enjoy it out of season. We’ll show you how to do it and whether you have to cook it beforehand.

Rhubarb is in season from early April through June. The rhubarb harvest time is always over far too quickly. Maybe you have a surplus harvest and are looking for a way to preserve the vegetables. Freezing is a good option – we’ll show you how it works.

It’s best to avoid plastic containers and freezer bags when freezing the rhubarb. Screw-on jars are a good alternative. It also makes sense to portion the rhubarb before freezing; so you can thaw and process the right amount later.

Freezing rhubarb: this is how it works

First remove the rhubarb leaves. The leaves are not edible, but you can make plant fertilizer out of them, for example: put the leaves in cold water and let them steep for 24 hours. With the resulting extract you can water your plants and give them valuable nutrients.
Rinse the rhubarb stalks under running water and then drain them.
Cut off the ends with a knife. This is only necessary if the ends are hard. You can usually process fresh rhubarb without this step.
Now you can peel the rhubarb.
Cut the pickled vegetables into chunks. These should be between two and five centimeters long.
At this point you can blanch the rhubarb. However, the investment of time and energy is not absolutely necessary. Blanching preserves the color better, but does not change the taste. The shelf life does not change if you freeze the rhubarb raw.
Layer the rhubarb pieces in screw-top jars. Fill it up to just under the brim and seal it. Label the glasses with the respective date. Then you can store them in the freezer and freeze the rhubarb.
Frozen rhubarb will keep for 10 to 12 months. After defrosting, you can make rhubarb compote or rhubarb crumble, for example.

Tip: If you want to avoid the rhubarb pieces sticking together after freezing, you can prefreeze them: spread the pieces out on plates – they shouldn’t touch each other. Freeze the rhubarb for about an hour and then pour the pieces into glasses. If you have a freezer instead of a small freezer compartment, you can also prefreeze the pieces on a baking sheet or tray.

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Cooking Tips

Grilling Without Aluminum Foil

Grilling is also possible without aluminum foil. You save not only money but also raw materials and minimize the health risk. We introduce you to recipes for feta, vegetables and fish.

Grilling without aluminum foil – why?

Aluminum foil is often used as a matter of course when grilling. It promises that vegetables or fish, for example, are cooked gently and can develop their flavor. Then it ends up in the trash.

Aluminum is a problematic raw material: it is mined in opencast mines, usually at the expense of the rainforest, which requires a great deal of energy. The toxic waste product red mud is produced during production. The finished aluminum can only be used after an electrolysis process. Even in the recycling process, aluminum foil is hardly ever used again. More information: How harmful is aluminum to the environment and health?.

According to a report by the NDR, foods with salt or acid in particular dissolve the aluminum, which can then be deposited. There are good alternatives to aluminum products for many products.

Alternatives to aluminum foil: grill basket, grill boards and vegetable leaves

The easiest way is to place the food to be grilled directly on a well-cleaned grid. You can easily remove soot with a grill brush (you can find e.g. at **Memolife) or a steel sponge. You can also disinfect the grid by heating it up in the embers before loading it.

There is also a large variety of different accessories:

Grill basket: You can use it to prepare vegetables and potatoes well. You can place the grill basket on the grill grate.
Cast-iron pan: You place the pan on the grid. In it, however, vegetables or fish need a little longer.
Grill grids: You can clamp vegetables or fish in grill grids and simply turn them. For fish, there are fish-shaped grilling grids on the market.
Grill boards: You have to soak these in water for one to three hours. Then you can place them directly on the grate and place the food on top. Depending on the type of wood the boards are made of, their steam gives off a tasty aroma to the food to be grilled.
Barbecue skewers: You can place barbecue skewers over the edge of the grill. They are suitable, for example, for vegetable skewers.
Vegetable leaves are a good, organic alternative, especially for fish and cheese. Cabbage, chard, grape, banana or corn leaves are suitable. You fill these and fix them with thread, toothpicks or roulade skewers. They become less sensitive to heat if you also coat them with oil.

Grill feta without aluminum foil

Above all, feta or aromatic mountain cheese from organic dairies enrich the grill menu. To avoid aluminum foil, you can simply wrap the cheese in large vegetable leaves such as kohlrabi, rhubarb or banana leaves.

Grilled Feta (for four servings)

200 grams of feta
1 tomato
1 small onion
1 clove of garlic
salt, pepper, herbs of your choice (e.g. basil)
1 tbsp olive oil
4 large kohlrabi leaves and olive oil
Instructions:

Cut the feta and the tomato into pieces about one centimeter in size. Chop the onion and garlic.
Mix the chopped ingredients together, seasoning with salt, pepper and herbs to taste. Mix in 1 tablespoon of oil.
Now divide the cheese mass into four equal parts and place them evenly in the middle of the four cabbage leaves.
Make a small package out of them and fix the packages with small skewers.
Brush the packets with oil and place them on the grill grate. Protected by the cabbage leaf, the cheese mass can simmer in it without burning. When the cheese is nice and soft, you can unwrap it and serve. You can dispose of the cabbage leaf in organic waste without a guilty conscience.

Peppers stuffed with cheese (for four servings)

2 peppers
200 grams of spicy cheese (e.g. mountain cheese or vegan cheese)
Herbs of your choice (e.g. a Provence mixture)
Instructions:

Halve the peppers and remove the core. This should not result in a hole in the pepper, especially on the stalk side.
Now fill the halves with 50 grams of diced cheese. Scatter herbs over the halves, if desired.
Place them on the grill grate. It’s best to lay them out so that you can place a lid (such as a metal serving platter or non-plastic pot lid) on top of them. This will trap the heat from the grill and help the peppers cook better. The peppers are ready when they are a little soft and the cheese is runny. Don’t worry: you can easily peel off the burnt skin on the underside of the peppers. There is no burnt taste, but a delicious mix of cheese and peppers.

Grill vegetables and potatoes without aluminum foil

Vegetables can also be easily grilled without aluminum foil. Choosing organic vegetables is even more sustainable. Here the farmers pay attention to soil-friendly, sustainable cultivation. In order to preserve biodiversity, as few pesticides as possible are used, especially no synthetic ones.

The easiest way is to slice vegetables and place them directly on the grid. Or you string pieces of vegetables on skewers. Dips for vegetables and herb butter (tip: make your own herb butter) refine the vegetables.

Vegetable shish kebab (for four servings)

4 mushrooms
1/2 zucchini
1 onion
1/2 peppers
for the marinade: salt, cayenne pepper, garlic, herbs de Provence, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 3 tbsp olive oil
metal or wooden skewers
Instructions:

Dice the washed vegetables (except the mushrooms) into cubes about 2 cm in size.
Load the skewers.
Mix the ingredients for the marinade.
Place the skewers in the marinade for about an hour. Make sure it’s well distributed.
Place the skewers directly on the rack.

Grilled potatoes (serves four)

8 medium potatoes
for the marinade: salt, pepper, rapeseed oil, sage and rosemary
Instructions:

Pre-cook the potatoes with the skin on. They shouldn’t be soft yet, but firm to the bite.
Drain and cut in half with the peel.
Mix together the ingredients for the marinade and soak the potatoes in it for about 30 minutes.
Then place them cut-side down on the grill.

Grilling fish without aluminum foil

If you want to grill fish without aluminum foil, cedar wood grilling boards are particularly suitable. After soaking, place the grill board directly on the grid and place the fish on top.

When buying fish, you should make sure that it comes from certified fishing. There are differences in the seals. Some are considered “dolphin safe” but don’t take into account the overfishing of the oceans. The organic associations Naturland and Bioland have the strictest guidelines. In conventional fishing, large amounts of bycatch such as dolphins, rays, sharks and seabirds get caught in the nets. The fish stocks in the sea are getting smaller and smaller. Just as in factory farming, large quantities of antibiotics and other medicines must also be used in aquaculture. The wastewater from aquaculture pollutes the environment.

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Cooking Tips

Weighing Without a Scale: 3 Tricks

Weighing also works without scales. We will show you three practical tips that you can use to determine the quantities of ingredients alternatively. You need a few kitchen utensils for this.

Weighing without scales, but with alternative kitchen helpers – that’s not that difficult. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, you can use the following kitchen utensils instead:

measuring cup
tablespoons and teaspoons
cups
Quantities may be slightly less accurate when measured using these methods. This is usually not a problem. Nevertheless, there are some recipes, for example for cakes, for which you need very precise quantities. In this case, you should use the measuring cup. With this you can get a pretty accurate result.

The kitchen scale alternatives are often more sustainable, after all they do not require electricity or batteries and you most likely already have them at home. We present the three options in detail.

Measuring cup for weighing food

Weighing without a scale works with a measuring cup, for example. It is usually printed with several scales. Thanks to the given units of measurement and quantities, you don’t have to convert anything when weighing. You can read liquids such as water by marking them in milliliters or liters. On the other hand, you can measure the amount of solid food, such as flour or sugar, in milligrams and grams.

Weighing without a scale: This is how it works with spoons

You can also use spoons to weigh without scales. The cutlery serves different purposes in the kitchen: you can use it not only for eating, but also for weighing. Many recipes use tablespoons or teaspoons as the usual quantities anyway. This often means a level, sometimes also a heaped spoon. Quantities may vary slightly depending on the size of the spoon and the density of the ingredients. However, a heaped spoon is always double the amount of a level spoon.

A teaspoon of salt serves as an example:

1 teaspoon (level) equals 5 grams of salt.
1 teaspoon (heaped) is approximately 10 grams of salt.

Weighing without scales, but with cups

You can also weigh food with a cup without needing a scale. As a rule of thumb, remember that a small coffee cup is about 125 milliliters. That’s the equivalent of about 80 grams of flour or 120 grams of sugar. Measuring cups are helpful for very precise information.

Many American recipes give the quantities in cups. But beware, the German cup corresponds to a much smaller unit of measurement than the American cups. The latter contains around 235 milliliters – almost twice as much as a German cup.

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Food

Food-to-go Without Packaging Waste

Especially during the corona pandemic, we should support local gastronomy – for example by ordering take-away food. However, mountains of garbage with food packaging are not an option from an environmental point of view. Reusable containers for food-to-go can be the solution. We present four initiatives to you.

Disposable cups for coffee-to-go are not necessary – many have now understood that and can only fill their coffee in the bakery or in the café into the container they have brought with them. Unfortunately, during the corona pandemic, this no longer works in all restaurants; many bakeries no longer accept cups you have brought with you. That’s why many of us seem to be falling back into old paper cup habits these days.

But that’s not all: Due to the Corona-related restaurant closures or now for fear of infection, many people have food delivered or take it home. This is good for gastronomy, but: Styrofoam packaging, aluminum trays and plastic bags quickly pile up after the meal. And what the pizza boxes on river and lake shores are to in the summer, the paper cups are to the colder months of the year.

Figures from the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) show that packaging waste in German households is constantly increasing. In 2018, we caused a new negative record of 18.9 tons of packaging waste, as the UBA recently announced. When walking, it is currently noticeable: In many places, the packaging waste no longer even fits in the garbage cans provided, but ends up in the meadow or next to the sidewalk.

Less packaging waste: food-to-go in reusable containers

Dishes to take away or calling the delivery service do not necessarily mean more packaging waste. Reusable systems for food-to-go show that there is another way. We present four Germany-wide examples.

Of course, the following applies to all reusable containers: the more often they (can) be reused, the better. When it comes to the eco-balance, reusables come off much better if one container can replace a large number of disposable cups and the like, making production quicker to pay off.

Reusable with food-to-go

According to its own statement, reCIRCLE Germany is the largest reusable system for takeaway food in German-speaking countries that works with a deposit system. The initiative has existed in Stuttgart since 2017.

This is how it works: The first time you order a reCIRCLE box from a participating restaurant for a deposit of ten euros. You can return the leak-proof and non-toxic plastic box to any participating restaurant and get your deposit back or exchange the used box for a fresh one the next time you order. You can currently choose between five different box sizes. According to the company, it is currently working on additional reusable packaging for pizza.

Here there is the multi-way system: over 200 participating restaurants in Germany, for example in Stuttgart, Munich, Regensburg, Frankfurt, Bremen, Hamburg and Berlin; in Switzerland there are even over 1400 participating restaurants.

Incidentally, when it comes to the ecological balance, reCIRCLE writes that their reusable boxes may pay off after the eighth reuse, depending on the material of the disposable packaging only after the 16th use.

Reusable bowls from Rebowl for zero-waste food-to-go

Quite new on the market: Rebowl, a Germany-wide deposit system for reusable take-away bowls. According to the company, the reusable containers are microwaveable, 100 percent recyclable and BPA-free. You should also be able to reuse them at least 200 times.

Behind Rebowl stands Recup, which many of you may already know from the Recup reusable coffee mugs. Since July 2020, in addition to the Recup cups, there have also been Rebowl bowls, which – if the founders have their way – should become the Rebowlution.

This is how it works: When you order your first meal, you get the reusable bowl for a deposit of five euros. You can then return the bowl and lid to all REBOWL partners throughout Germany and get your deposit back, or you can exchange the used bowl for a new one when you place a second order.

There is a returnable system here: in numerous cities throughout Germany, for example in Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Berlin and Hamburg, but also in smaller cities such as Konstanz, Braunschweig and Karlsruhe.

Vytal: reusable boxes without a deposit

Vytal is a digital reusable system for takeaway and food delivery. What makes it so special is that it can be used via an app and there is no deposit or other fee for the reusable containers. Recently, Vytal has even been certified with the Blue Angel. Among other things, the seal guarantees that the reusable containers are made of environmentally friendly and durable material and can be washed at least 500 times.

How it works: To participate, you have to download the Vytal app. After successful registration, you can use the map to see which participating restaurants are in your area. With a QR code you will receive your food in a BPA-free reusable bowl when you pick it up. Important: You have to return the bowls to a participating restaurant within 14 days of ordering, otherwise a fee of ten euros will be charged.

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Cooking Tips

Make Ice Cubes Yourself: This is How It Works Without an Ice Cube Mold

Need ice cubes but don’t have an ice cube mold? No problem! We have put together various ways for you to make ice cubes yourself at any time.

If you want to prepare ice cubes, the only option is usually to use molds made of plastic or silicone. You can also buy plastic ice cube bags everywhere, which end up in the garbage after one use. Both plastic and silicone are harmful to the environment and to your own health. Over time, for example, a silicone mold can release plasticizers into the ice cubes. Make sure that your ice cube mold is free of plasticizers such as BPA.

But if you don’t have such a shape or you want to produce ice cubes in an environmentally friendly way, you have to improvise. We have several ways for you to make ice cubes without an ice cube mold.

Make ice cubes without an ice cube mold

Use the shape of a box of chocolates. You can use any type of chocolate. We recommend buying chocolates made from fair trade chocolate. There are some seals for Fairtrade chocolate such as the Fairtrade seal. So keep the shape of a box of chocolates or you transfer the chocolates. You don’t have to throw these away, of course, but put them in a lockable box. The good thing about this variant is that you do not produce any additional garbage. Another plus is that you get ice cubes in special shapes. After all, chocolates often come in a wide variety of shapes. BTW: You can use other forms of candy as long as they are stored in a plastic mold.

Another option is to prepare glasses in advance that you want to drink from later or that you want to serve. To do this, fill in some water (a few centimeters high) and place it in the freezer compartment. But make sure that the glasses are freezer-safe. So don’t use glasses that are too thin. You can then simply pour the drink onto the thin layer of ice.

Crushed ice is also possible. You can use any type of container that is freezer-safe.

Cool drinks with alternative ice cubes

There are other ways you can cool drinks:

You can use frozen fruit as ice cubes: for example, put grapes in the freezer for about two hours and then put them in the glass. Alternatively, you can buy already frozen organic fruit. If the frozen fruit is no longer needed, you can simply eat it – it tastes delicious and you haven’t wasted anything.

You can also slice and freeze lemons or limes. It is best to use organic ones. Then you can be sure that they are free of chemical-synthetic pesticides.

Another option is to pre-chill the empty glasses or just the drinks yourself in the fridge. These are then cool from the start and remain so for a little longer thanks to the cool glasses.

Since the main problem is the material of conventional ice cube molds, you can use stainless steel molds, which can be bought online. There are also so-called whiskey stones made of stainless steel that you can freeze and use again and again.

Try making ice cubes out of liquids other than water. For example, freeze organic juices, yoghurt or fair trade coffee as cubes.

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Cooking Tips

Make Crushed Ice Yourself: This is How It Works Without an Ice Cube Machine

Making crushed ice yourself is easy and there is no plastic packaging. We’ll show you how to make the cool refreshment. This makes hot summer days more bearable.

You can buy crushed ice, but making it yourself isn’t difficult. Especially on hot summer days, it is a refreshing addition to drinks such as slush ice and summer (non-alcoholic) cocktails, or you can use it to cool other alcoholic drinks such as sparkling wine. All you need are ice cubes. With our tips you can easily make crushed ice yourself.

Make crushed ice yourself with a tea towel

Probably the most sustainable and easiest way to make your own crushed ice is with a clean tea towel and a solid object. So there is no plastic packaging and you don’t have to buy any additional new devices.

To do this, place ready-made ice cubes in the middle of a clean tea towel. Hold the open sides tightly together. Now you need a solid object. For example, a hammer, a rolling pin or something similar are suitable. Now break the ice cubes out of the kitchen towel with your solid object. Your homemade and sustainable crushed ice is ready.

Tip: Be careful not to break the ice cubes too small. This way you get more of your crushed ice because it melts more slowly.

Make your own crushed ice with a stand mixer

Another way to make your own crushed ice is with a stand mixer. However, this method only makes sense if you already own a stand mixer. In general, you should not buy any new equipment for the production of crushed ice to avoid wasting unnecessary resources. You can prevent this by using the dishcloth crushed ice method above.

If you already own a stand mixer, the crushed ice method with a stand mixer is the faster and less complicated method for you.

Simply put the ice cubes in a blender and crush them in batches. This makes it easier to crush the ice cubes than if you use the normal smoothie function. In addition, the blade of the blender does not wear out as quickly. Also make sure that your blender has enough power to crush the ice cubes.

Tip for sustainable ice cubes for your crushed ice

The basis for making crushed ice yourself are ice cubes. But you don’t necessarily need the classic plastic ice cube tray. A sustainable alternative is to simply make the ice cubes yourself in glasses. Make sure that you fill the water mainly in cone-shaped glasses and do not screw a lid on top. Let the ice cubes thaw briefly at room temperature before processing them into crushed ice – this is how you get them out of the glasses. Also, to avoid expanding the glass, you should only fill the glass up to three quarters full with water.

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Food

Thieboudienne: How to Make Senegalese Rice Without Fish

Thieboudienne is a Senegalese rice dish with lots of colorful vegetables. Here you will find a vegan recipe for the West African main course.

Thieboudienne means something like “rice with fish” and is a popular national dish of the African coastal state of Senegal. In this article you will find a vegan version of the colorful rice pan.

When it comes to the ingredients for the Thieboudienne, make sure that they are organic if possible. You support ecologically sustainable agriculture that treats the earth’s natural resources with care. You can also easily get most of the ingredients from regional cultivation during the season. This saves you unnecessarily long and CO2-intensive transport routes. Our seasonal calendar shows you when which types of fruit and vegetables are in season in Germany.

Thieboudienne: A vegan recipe

Ingredients:

1 medium onion
5 cloves garlic
1 red chili pepper
3tomatoes
2peppers
2 sweet potatoes
2eggplants
1carrot
2 medium zucchini
200 gwhite cabbage
1 small butternut squash
2 tablespoons coconut oil
3 tablespoons tomato paste
100 ml lemon juice
Salt
pepper
1 l water
500 g basmati rice

Directions:

Cut the onion into fine rings. Chop the garlic and chilli into small pieces. Clean the remaining vegetables and cut them into bite-sized cubes.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the coconut oil in a large saucepan or large, deep skillet. Sauté the onion, about a third of the chopped garlic, the chilli and a handful of diced tomatoes over medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add all the vegetables except the remaining tomatoes and simmer for another 25 to 30 minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally. Tip: If the vegetables are about to burn, you can simply add some water to the pot.
Meanwhile, using an immersion blender or blender, blend the remaining garlic, remaining tomatoes, tomato paste, lemon juice, a pinch of salt and pepper, and 8 ounces of water into a smooth paste.
Heat the remaining coconut oil in a second, medium-sized saucepan. Add the tomato paste and sauté over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add the basmati rice and 750 milliliters of water to the paste in the saucepan. Let the rice simmer over low heat for about fifteen minutes until cooked through. If necessary, add some more water.
Once both the rice and the vegetables are cooked, stir everything together in the large saucepan. Season the thieboudienne with salt. Complete!

Thieboudienne: possible variations

The Thieboudienne is ideal for using up leftover vegetables and thus avoiding food waste. The basic ingredients should be the basmati rice, the ingredients for the tomato paste as well as sweet potatoes, eggplant, carrots and cabbage. You can adjust the other vegetables depending on the season and what you have at home.

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Food

Vegan Ramen: The Noodle Classic, But Without Animal Products

Vegan ramen is a delicious twist on the Japanese dish. Here you can find out which ingredients you can use to prepare the pasta classic without any animal products.

If you want to eat vegan ramen, you can easily modify the traditional noodle dish with a few ingredients. The combination of fresh wheat noodles, a spicy aroma and crunchy vegetables conjures up a tasty and healthy meal.

In this article you will learn everything you need to know about ramen and how you can easily cook vegan ramen.

What is ramen?

Vegan ramen is a twist on the classic ramen. Ramen is a traditional noodle dish from Japan. Translated, it means something like hand-pulled noodles. Ramen is the name for the thick wheat noodles made from wheat, salt and water. At the same time, ramen is the name of the classic soup dish that is prepared with noodles, broth and meat, fish or tofu.

Ramen also lives from a fine seasoning. The recipe uses miso: a flavorful paste made from fermented soy. It is suitable for seasoning various Asian dishes, or can simply be prepared as miso soup.

Vegan ramen with different toppings are particularly tasty. Serve with fresh seasonal vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli or edamame. In our Utopia seasonal calendar you can always read which vegetables are currently available from regional cultivation.

When buying your products, make sure that they come from organic farming. In this way you support sustainable agriculture that does not use chemical fertilizers and chemical-synthetic pesticides. If possible, buy at your regional weekly market to support the farmers of the region.

You can get the somewhat unusual ingredients, such as shiitake mushrooms, miso or smoked tofu in a well-stocked health food store.

Prepare ramen: A vegan recipe

The vegetables in this recipe are suggestions and can be modified as desired. Find out which vegetables are in season at the moment and cook with fresh ingredients from the region.

Ingredients:

15 g shiitake mushrooms, dried
2spring onions
2 clove(s) garlic
50 g fresh ginger
100 g fresh shiitake mushrooms
1carrot
100 g edamame, peeled
1pak choy
4 tablespoons sesame oil
30 g miso paste
4 tbsp soy sauce
1.8 l vegetable broth
350 grams of ramen noodles
300 g smoked tofu
1 pinch(s) pepper, coarsely ground
50 g toasted sesame seeds
1 handful of fresh herbs of your choice

Directions:

Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms in a bowl of hot water for 12 minutes.
Then catch the broth and cut the shiitake mushrooms into small pieces.
Wash and peel the vegetables. Chop the spring onions and garlic and finely grate the ginger. Cut the mushrooms, pak choi and carrot into fine strips.
In a wok or large saucepan, heat 3 tablespoons of the sesame oil. First stew the spring onions, garlic, ginger and the dried shiitake mushrooms in it.
Now add the miso paste and the soy sauce. Let everything continue to simmer for two minutes.
Deglaze everything with the mushroom decoction. Add the vegetable broth and let it simmer for 10 minutes on a low heat.
Now add the carrot, edamame and pak choi to the broth and let it simmer for five minutes.
Add the fresh shiitake mushrooms to the soup. Cook them for another five minutes.
Prepare the ramen noodles according to package directions.
Cut the smoked tofu into small cubes and fry it in a separate pan with the remaining sesame oil until crispy.
Serve the ramen noodles in a deep plate along with the vegetable broth and tofu. Decorate the vegan ramen with fresh herbs, ground pepper and roasted sesame.
Tip: Serve with the vegan ramen soy sauce and sesame oil. You can season the ramen as you like.

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Food

Lose Weight Without Hunger: 3 Healthy Recipes

If you want to lose weight long-term and healthily, you should try it without starvation and crash diets. Rather try recipes for losing weight that make you full and satisfied and provide you with all the important nutrients!

Our weight loss recipes will help you lose weight in the long term. Because if you want to keep your desired weight in the long term, you should avoid any 14-day diet: starving for a certain period of time not only makes you unhappy, but also causes the “yo-yo effect”, which can even lead to you tend to increase in the end.

When cooking, make sure to include as many vegetables as possible in your diet, but also all the important macronutrients. Strictly avoiding carbohydrates or fat is not only ineffective, but can also have a negative impact on your health. Instead, aim for a balanced ratio of complex carbohydrates, good fats and proteins. This is how you create filling and healthy meals and will lose weight in the long term without going hungry. You can include these three healthy recipes in your repertoire for a balanced diet:

Recipe for losing weight: Fresh potato salad

Secretly a superhero for being able to lose weight without starving yourself: Potatoes are often incorrectly referred to as fattening foods due to their carbohydrate content. In fact, unlike rice, pasta or bread, potatoes have significantly fewer carbohydrates and calories. For example, potatoes in 100 grams have just 70 kilocalories, while cooked pasta has twice as many calories.

Since potatoes also consist of complex carbohydrates and contain some fiber, they are very filling and also provide you with many important vitamins and minerals.

For three servings of potato salad you need:

850 g waxy potatoes
2 onions
2 tbsp canola oil
120 ml (homemade) vegetable broth
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon medium hot mustard
1/2 cucumber
1 red pepper
150 g cherry tomatoes
1/2 bunch spring onions
2 sprigs of parsley
Salt pepper
How to do it:

Wash the potatoes and then boil them for about 20 minutes.
Peel the onions and cut them into small cubes.
Heat the oil in a pan and sauté the onions for about three to five minutes.
Pour in the vinegar, broth, and mustard and let the mixture simmer for two minutes.
Drain the potatoes and let them cool slightly. Then peel them and cut them into small pieces.
Place the potatoes in a large bowl and pour the mustard and vinegar mixture over them. Then let it steep for at least two hours.
Wash the cucumber and peppers and cut the vegetables into small pieces.
Wash the tomatoes and halve or quarter them.
Wash the spring onions and cut them into fine rings.
Chop the parsley.
Add the vegetable pieces and the parsley to the potatoes and mix all the ingredients together well. Season with salt and pepper.
Tip: When buying the products, pay attention to organic quality. In this way you ensure that the food in the recipe is not contaminated with chemical-synthetic pesticides, which can harm not only the environment but also your health. Not only do you lose weight without starving, it also does other things good for your body.

Chickpea pan with creamy mushroom and spinach sauce for losing weight without feeling hungry

Chickpeas and peas keep you full for a long time thanks to a mix of vegetable proteins, complex carbohydrates and fiber and are therefore a great diet recipe. This effect is enhanced by the healthy fatty acids from nuts and pumpkin seeds. In addition, due to the high proportion of vegetables in this dish, you can eat a relatively large portion that still has few calories for a full meal.

For two servings you need:

1 onion
1 clove of garlic
1 tbsp canola oil
200 grams of mushrooms
1 medium zucchini
1/2 tsp dried thyme
300 g spinach leaves (fresh or frozen)
150 g green peas (frozen)
3 teaspoons cashew or white almond butter
1/2 lemon
350 g chickpeas (cooked)
Salt pepper
2 tbsp yeast flakes
a handful of pumpkin seeds
That’s how it’s done:

Peel the onion and garlic and chop both into small cubes.
Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the onion and garlic pieces for about three minutes.
Clean the mushrooms and wash the zucchini.
Halve the zucchini lengthwise and cut both parts into semi-circular pieces.
Slice the mushrooms.
Add the veggies to the pan with the thyme and stir-fry. If you are using frozen spinach, you should add it now.
Let the vegetables cook for about 5 minutes, until the mushrooms have wilted and the zucchini pieces are still al dente.
Add the frozen peas and cook for another 2-3 minutes until thawed.
Mix the nut butter with the lemon juice and about a tablespoon of water in a small bowl to form a creamy sauce. If it’s still too firm, you can add a little more water.
Place the chickpeas in a colander, rinse with water and drain well.
Then add them to the veggies in the pan.
Now stir the creamy sauce into the chickpea pan. Season with salt and pepper.
Divide the dish between two plates and refine it with yeast flakes and pumpkin seeds.

Recipe for losing weight without feeling hungry: light vegetable casserole

You can also eat a relatively large portion of this dish, as the meal mainly consists of vegetables and is therefore relatively low in calories. In addition, broccoli, carrots, potatoes and tomatoes provide you with important micronutrients.

For two servings you need:

500g broccoli
400 grams of carrots
300 g potatoes (waxy)
1 onion
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp tomato paste
500 ml tomato passata
Salt pepper
1 tsp honey alternative, organic honey or date syrup or sugar
4 sprigs of thyme
200 g grated (vegan) cheese
2 tbsp breadcrumbs
That’s how it’s done:

wash the vegetables Then cut the broccoli into small florets. Peel (if you like) the carrots and potatoes and cut them into slices.
Peel the onion and chop it into small cubes.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion pieces for three minutes.
Add the tomato paste and let it roast for two minutes.
Deglaze with the tomato passata. Season with salt, pepper and honey and stir the ingredients into a homogeneous sauce.
Pluck off the thyme leaves and chop them into small pieces. Add this to the tomato sauce and let it boil briefly.
Add the vegetable pieces and let the mixture simmer for about seven minutes.
Then put them in a casserole dish and sprinkle with cheese and breadcrumbs.
The casserole is now placed in the oven at 165 degrees Celsius for about 25 minutes. You don’t need to preheat the oven for this.
Tip: If you want to lose weight in the long term without starving yourself, pay close attention to your body’s signals: Only eat when you’re really hungry and stop eating when you’re full. You should also make sure to eat slowly and calmly. You can also avoid the unnecessary fat and sugar in finished products with these three and other recipes, for example breakfast for weight loss.

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