Which oils and fats do you use and why ?

[Robbity]

@Celeriac sesame flour I get from Amazon or Sukrin's own UK website, but the last batch I got was from an ebay seller.

Per 100g:
Energy.......................1697kj/405kcal
Fat.................................................19g
-of which saturated fat.................3g
Carbohydrates...............................6g
-of which sugars............................0g
Dietary Fibre................................15g
Protein..........................................46g
Salt..................................................0g

I like hazelnut milk but the one I get from Tesco's (Alpro) has added sugar so I've reverted back to just my almond milk instead.

Robbity

PS I've got a jar of tahini, and am just waiting for some pistachios with our Tesco delivery tomorrow then I'm going to try making me some halva.

 

[Celeriac]

Ooh that looks low carb I have Amazon Prime so will investigate thanks !

I tried Provamel hazelnut milk from Holland and Barrett which was sweetened, but the one I got from Abel & Cole today is unsweetened and organic by Rude Health.

Good luck with the halva !

The Rude Health hazelnut milk seems thinner but otherwise fine for cocoa

 

[Celeriac]

Amazon Prime is such a handy thing, have ordered chia seeds and will be here tomorrow.

Sent from my Kindle using DCUK Forum mobile app

 

[Indy51]

I'd be very nervous of a butter made with brazil nuts - too much selenium might not be a good idea. Just one brazil nut meets daily needs apparently. Though there's a nut butter mix known as ABC made from Almonds, Brazils & Cashews made by Melrose (not sure if that's an Australian only company though).

https://nutgourmet.wordpress.com/2010/04/30/brazil-nuts-the-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde-of-the-nut-world/

 

[Celeriac]

Thanks Indy, I will show that to husband who is a Brazil nut lover.

 

[Larissima]

I'd be very nervous of a butter made with brazil nuts - too much selenium might not be a good idea. Just one brazil nut meets daily needs apparently. Though there's a nut butter mix known as ABC made from Almonds, Brazils & Cashews made by Melrose (not sure if that's an Australian only company though).

https://nutgourmet.wordpress.com/2010/04/30/brazil-nuts-the-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde-of-the-nut-world/

Have they changed the RDI for selenium? It used to be 3 brazils per day. I've certainly eaten more than that on occasion, with no problems (except T2D!)

EDIT: Regarding tahini, I tried it twice in the past, and both times binned the jar as it tasted bitter and rancid. Was I just unlucky, or is it really an acquired taste?

 

[Celeriac]

I buy either Al Wadi Al Akhdar or Cortas brands which are both additive free, Lebanese and much used by tahini users around the world. Never had anything rancid. I buy them from either a shop near Edgware Road or my local halal grocer.

www.alwadi-alakhdar.com www.cortas.com

 

[uart]

I often eat Brazil nuts. They're a good source of selenium and also chromium, both of which could be good for glucose tolerance. You may only need a couple of Brazil nuts to achieve your minimum daily allowance (of selenium), however you can safely eat at least 30 grams of them per day without any real risk of toxicity.

In Australia the RDA of Se is 60 or 70 ug/day, but the recommended maximum is 400 ug. Studies in China however, have shown no ill effects at 800 ug/day, so realistically the safe amount is probably 10 times or more than the recommended daily allowance. This translates to at least 20 Brazil nuts without any real risk.

BTW. I really enjoy Brazil nuts if I just have a small handful, but I get sick of them pretty quickly if I eat more than that. So it's kinda self limiting in my case.

 

[PerfectStorm]

[QUOTE="

PS I've got a jar of tahini, and am just waiting for some pistachios with our Tesco delivery tomorrow then I'm going to try making me some halva.[/QUOTE]

How do you make Halva please Robbity? I'm always looking for BG friendly sweet treats and I have a jar of tahini sat in the cupboard not doing much. I bought it on a whim but haven't got round to using it.

 

[Celeriac]

I second the halva request please Robbity.

Other uses for tahini would be: diluting a tad with sesame/olive oil and smearing over chicken or aubergine slices before cooking in oven and plunking a teaspoon in salad dressing.

The chia seeds turned up now

 

[Robbity]

@PerfectStorm and @Celeriac:

Please note the word "try" in my post - I've never yet made it - so I've just been looking to see if I could find a lowish carb recipe. I'm still looking through the ones I've found, so take your pick! My jar of tahini I can't eat as a snack as-is like my almond butter, so was wondering what else I do with it. Years ago we used to have a marvellous local independent health food store which sold very addictive halva - I had to buy some each time I went through its doors...

Robbity

 

[Celeriac]

This is Wikipedia's take on halva.. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halva

 

[Sid Bonkers]

My weight loss appears to have slowed/stalled recently and it appears to have coincided with extra fats appearing in my diet, most noticeably cream in various guises.

Probably time to experiment with removing some of the dairy fats.

A few Xmas's ago I started to eat a small piece of Stilton cheese, which I love, after my evening meal and my weight loss not only stalled but I actually put on a few pounds, I stopped eating the Stilton every night and the weight came off again without any other changes.

It seems fairly obvious to me that extra fat means extra calories which tends to mean weight gain.

 

[Celeriac]

Sid, it's probably not the fat, if you're doing LCHF, it's more likely to be the milk proteins in the cheese. Cheese is generally zero carb or extremely low carb but milk protein does cause insulin to rise.

 

[Larissima]

Sid, it's probably not the fat, if you're doing LCHF, it's more likely to be the milk proteins in the cheese. Cheese is generally zero carb or extremely low carb but milk protein does cause insulin to rise.

I've been thinking that my love for cheese, thick cream and butter may be behind the slowdown of my weight loss. I'm testing a dairy-free diet for a while (ghee instead of butter and almond milk or coconut cream instead of cream). I seem to be eating an avocado a day (very easy to pack for lunch, with crunchy veg and some oily fish) and find it very satiating.

 

[SunnyExpat]

Sid, it's probably not the fat, if you're doing LCHF, it's more likely to be the milk proteins in the cheese. Cheese is generally zero carb or extremely low carb but milk protein does cause insulin to rise.

I'm not one of the lucky ones that can eat unlimited LCHF either.
If my calories go up, from any source, the weight goes back on.
It's upsetting, as fat has twice the calories of protein, so it's easy to slip into fat overload if I'm not careful.

 

[Celeriac]

I'm testing a dairy-free diet for a while (ghee instead of butter and almond milk or coconut cream instead of cream)

Ghee is in fact clarified butter, with the milk solids taken out so that it doesn't burn. Vegetable ghee is obviously non-dairy but some of them are hydrogenated vegetable oil.

Avocado oil yes, but eating one.. I just have to be in the mood, if that makes sense. (Probably not !) I love coconut oil now, was a bit dubious for ages and still wouldn't fry eggs in it. It's just the best moisturiser too.

I'm a lucky one. Fat doesn't put weight on me - but carbs do. Even a 15g bag of organic cheese and herb puffs with 9g carbs, aimed at toddlers or a 20g bag of popcorn with 12g carbs. I don't think it's so much the calories as some sort of metabolic reaction. I'm beginning to think that I have as huge a reaction to processed carbs as coeliacs have to wheat.

 

[Indy51]

I've been reading Dr Colin Champ's book, "Misguided Medicine" and he has quite a long analysis of various oils and I'm now more glad than ever that my favourite oil is Macadamia - apparently it's highest in monounsaturated fat (85% cf. 75% olive oil), contains the most antioxidants of any pressed oil, contains minimal linoleic acid (which is cancer promoting), plus it's the most structurally sound oil for cooking (even more so than olive oil, butter or lard). Plus it tastes great

 

[Larissima]

I've been reading Dr Colin Champ's book, "Misguided Medicine" and he has quite a long analysis of various oils and I'm now more glad than ever that my favourite oil is Macadamia - apparently it's highest in monounsaturated fat (85% cf. 75% olive oil), contains the most antioxidants of any pressed oil, contains minimal linoleic acid (which is cancer promoting), plus it's the most structurally sound oil for cooking (even more so than olive oil, butter or lard). Plus it tastes great

I remember Mark Sisson recommending it as well. Unfortunately, I can't find macadamia oil here - at least not in my regular supermarkets. I'll make an effort to search online for it, as soon as I've finished the 2 kg tub of ghee my overenthusiastic OH bought a week ago... (expires 1 month from opening, apparently!)

 

[Brunneria]

I remember Mark Sisson recommending it as well. Unfortunately, I can't find macadamia oil here - at least not in my regular supermarkets. I'll make an effort to search online for it, as soon as I've finished the 2 kg tub of ghee my overenthusiastic OH bought a week ago... (expires 1 month from opening, apparently!)

ghee freezes really well, apparently. But I have never tested this theory...