food to glow

Cool down and fuel up with this energy-giving Activated Turmeric & Mint Citrus-ade. Made with three citrus fruits, ginger and turmeric, you and your family will want to sip this nutritious and delicious drink all summer long.

Today I’ve giving you my quick recipe to help keep you cool AND healthy. But first, a bit of a primer on my would-be Mastermind specialist subject, how to get the most out of turmeric.

Skip to the recipe if you already know how!

Why is turmeric so good for us?

As a cancer health educator “in real life” I’ve long been a fan of turmeric, in both powdered and fresh root form. They are pretty much equally good for us. Which one you choose depends on how you want to use it.

For my Spiced Golden Milk I tend to use capsules as they are easy to deal with on a day to day basis, as well as having a standardised amount of the main active plant compound, curcumin. We drink this hot, milky drink as a tonic when viruses are doing the rounds, or when we feel particularly low on energy. For curries and other recipes, such as my Lemon-Berry Polenta Cake, I use either or.

In daily eating I am not using it for specific health reasons. I include it more for the earthy taste and the background effects of dampening down bodily inflammation – something that affects us all as we age, no matter how healthily we live.

I am fairly evangelical about turmeric. It has helped me and my family when even prescribed medication has not. My own “lightbulb” moment with turmeric happened after 5 months of taking various strong antibiotics for a persistent and debilitating deep lung infection. About 10 days after adding twice-daily turmeric milk I no longer had detectable infection and felt like me again. Coincidence perhaps but, as someone long prone to respiratory infections, consistent, low-level intake of activated curcumin has seemingly kept me infection-free for over 8 years. I’ve heard similar stories from others, too.

But turmeric is not a miracle worker. You can’t just add turmeric into the diet and expect it to support health without also having a mainly nutritious and balanced diet. That goes for nearly anything else that is touted as being health promoting.

And it’s not for everyone. Anyone who is pregnant, on blood thinners, or prone to gall bladder issues or kidney stones is advised to stick with modest culinary use of turmeric. I would add anyone on chemo to this list. I advise those that I see at the Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre (Edinburgh) to only consume amounts of any potentially helpful food or food-derived compounds as part of a balanced diet. So, curries are fine, and so is turmeric milk, tea and this drink. But not in “medicinal amounts”. If anyone has any questions about this, do contact me. If you have a medical condition, do consult your doctor, pharmacist, dietitian or certified nutritionist before consuming turmeric as a supplement.

What can turmeric help? In addition to the more well known properties of curcumin/turmeric as being a highly anti-inflammatory, anti-viral antioxidant, research strongly indicates that when “used properly” –  more below and in my Metro article here – it can help with alertness, working memory, pain and mood in normally healthy people, as well as help in exercise recovery. There are strong indications that it can help prevent and adjunctively help a range of other conditions, including some types of cancer (here’s how it might be used in treating breast cancer), eye diseases, osteoarthritis, and metabolic syndrome. Much of this is probably due to the global anti-inflammatory effects that curcumin and related compounds have on the body. Up until last year the research was mainly animal-based, but there is now a burgeoning collection of studies confirming the effectiveness and safety of therapeutic uses of curcumin. Pretty exciting for a pro turmeric geek like me!

How to get the most from turmeric – activate it

The absorbability of the curcumin has long been an issue in researching purported uses and benefits. On paper it has oodles going for it, but due to its poor absorption, rapid metabolism, and quick dissipation we can’t capture this benefit by consuming it on its own. Adding it to curries is actually one of the best ways to consume turmeric. Do you want to know why?

Turmeric needs three things added to it to ensure the most absorption:

1. HEAT
2. PIPERINE – the main volatile compound in black pepper can boost blood levels by 2000%
3. FAT

Preparing and eating a typical curry gives you all three. Adding powdered or grated turmeric and some freshly ground black pepper – about 2-5% of the total turmeric volume – to warmed oil, along with all of your other ingredients makes the chemical magic happen. Once this natural process has occurred it can’t be undone. So, whether you are prepping a curry, a cake, a drink, a dip – anything using this basic method – you can have it warm or cold. In colder weather I will often make up a pan of my turmeric milk and drink it over a couple of days. In warm weather it’s nice to have other options, such as my Activated Turmeric and Mint Citrus-ade. We don’t know how long it stays activated, so I would advise consuming activated turmeric within 24 hours. But its anti-inflammatory action may well last longer.

I should add that any one of these three helpers will increase absorption of curcumin, but all three is the ideal.

If you really, really want to increase the amount you absorb, ferment it. I add some to my curried sauerkraut (my husband’s fave fermented food). Once fermented have it with something that contains fat, such as with a grilled cheese sandwich, or with some nuts. We like it alongside a meal salad with vinaigrette.

Other than curries, turmeric milk and this citrus-ade, there are quite a few ways to get an absorbable dose of turmeric every day. Here are some ideas:

14 ways to use turmeric

As a milky drink. Whether plant or dairy, choose full-fat for optimum curcumin absorption. Here’s my Spiced Golden Turmeric Milk recipe that is made by many of my readers (maybe you!) and cancer and nutrition class participants. I swear by it (see above).

* Adding turmeric to a savoury pancake batter, such as my Black Pepper and Turmeric Brunch Farinatas (chickpea flour crepes)

* In spiced tomato-based dishes, such as Creamy One-Pot Beans and Eggs (we LOVE this)

* Egg dishes, such as scrambled eggs, frittatas or my Cloud Eggs with Buttery Dal

* Scrambled Tofu is often tinted with turmeric to make it more egg-like in appearance. You could amp it up for the nutritional value, too.

* Fish dishes – it’s wonderful as a marinade for both white and oily fish. Here is my old, old recipe for Lime and Fresh Turmeric on the Griddle with Lime Leaf Rice – I still make it, too!

* Tossed with vegetables before roasting.

* Add it to rice – whether “real” or cauliflower (think pilau rice and go from there)

In dressings for grain salads and vegetable salads. This is my “no-brainer” way to get turmeric in beyond drinking it.

* Baking – I add turmeric to some of my polenta cakes to heighten the colour and add a earthy note that cuts through the sweetness. I would recommend it for recipes that include other warm spices, such as ginger, cardamom and nutmeg. I also use it in this unusual savoury Cauliflower Cheese Cake. It is really popular at work,  but I haven’t made it in awhile so I must do so soon.

* Smoothies and teas. One of my favourite websites, Well+Good, have 10 Turmeric Smoothies to Glow Up Your Body

* Hummus and bean dishes are ripe for livening up with turmeric. Here is my Dal Hummus and my Loaded Cauliflower Couscous Salad with Turmeric Chickpeas

* In greens {mini recipe alert!} – I add turmeric to many of my green stir fry breakfasts. Yes, stir fry breakfasts. All I do is add a little oil to a wok, a pinch of salt, freshly ground pepper and turmeric, then throw in a huge pile of washed and sliced greens – whatever is in my garden. I squeeze on some lemon juice or spritz with yuzu juice. I then tend to poach an egg or saute some tofu and mushrooms to go with it for a mega-filling, healthy breakfast. Even leftover lettuce is great to stir fry this way when it’s not quite perky enough for a salad. I did that today in fact! Yes, for breakfast 🙂

* Snack mixes and savoury granola. Add some to your homemade trail mix, granola, or something like my Turmeric and Japanese 7-Spice Seed Mix, which I sometimes use as a granola, but without the grains (stirring it into yogurt and topping with chopped tomatoes).

* In yogurt and creamy dips. Just a little with some lemon, chopped herbs and seasoning will be a great little dipper for raw veg. I sometimes do this while I’m cooking dinner.

I use it in other things too (porridge! with manuka honey!), but I will go ahead and give you my lovely summer drink recipe. Let me know if you have any questions on turmeric, my would-be Mastermind subject. 🙂

**Remember to follow me on Pinterest and, if you make this zesty, healthy drink, click on the pin below and leave a photo of your make with a comment telling me what you think, or any awesome changes that you made. Whether on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or of course here on the blog, I love to see what my lovely readers do with my recipes, and I welcome your comments, tweaks and suggestions.**

RIPE FOR PINNING!