A Caribbean Diet Cookbook (24 page)

Boile
d
pumpki
n
absorb
s
wate
r
whic
h
displace
s
vitamins
.
Bake
d
ha
s
mor
e
nutrients

tha
n
boiled
.
Seed
s
ca
n
b
e
ove
n
toaste
d
an
d
the
y
tast
e
delicious.
Keep
pumpkins
stored
in

a
cool
place
as
vitamin
A
is
vulnerable
to
oxygen.
C
ommercially
produced
pumpkin
seeds
ar
e
usuall
y
salte
d
an
d
ar
e
considere
d
a
hig
h
sodiu
m
food.

Swee
t
potatoe
s
ran
k
a
s
one
of
the
most
popular
vegetable
in
the
Caribbea
n
.
They

are
versatile,
high
in
starch,
with
moderate
amounts
of
food
fibre,
little
prot
e
in
,
a
trac
e
of
fat
,
an
d
n
o
cholestero
l
.
The
y
provid
e
a
n
excellen
t
sourc
e
o
f
vitamin
A,
derived
from carotene
pigments
that
make
it
orang
e
-
yellow.
The
deeper
the
colou
r
,
th
e
highe
r
the
vitami
n
A
content
.
A
100g
boiled
sweet
potato
provides
80%
RDA.
Swee
t
po
tat
o
ha
s
also
been
known
to
be
useful
in
treatment
for
protection
against
cancer.

Eat plenty
of
bananas
i
n
you
r
die
t
.
Th
e
gree
n
ha
s
mor
e
starc
h
tha
n
suga
r
because
the
starch
turns
to
sugar
as
it
ripens.
They
contain
moderate
amounts
of
pectin,
th
e
food
f
i
bre
that
may
prevent
absorption
of
fats,
and
help
lower
cholesterol
levels
in
the
blood.
Plantains
,
the
other
variety,
also
contain
starche
s
bu
t
thes
e
d
o
no
t
tur
n
t
o
suga
r
a
s
they
ripen. They are a good source of vitamin A.

Include
plent
y
o
f
bean
s
i
n
you
r
diet
;
the
y
ar
e
ric
h
i
n
carbohydrates
,
pectin
,
gums,
starch
and
sugars.
They
have
no
cholesterol
and
most
have
very
little
fa
t
.
Al
l
varieties
have
good
amounts
of
B
vitamin
s
,
particularl
y
B6
.
Drie
d
bean
s
ar
e
a
goo
d
foli
c
acid
source;
they
also
contain
ino
r
ganic
iron,
found
in
plant
foods.
Availability
can
be
improved by
combining
with
other
foods
such
as
meat
or
high
vitamin
C
foods
such
as
tomatoes.
Th
e
vi
t
ami
n
C
convert
s
th
e
ferri
c
iro
n
in
beans
into
ferrous
iron,
which
is
more
easily
absorbe
d
b
y
th
e
bod
y
.
W
as
h
the
m
well
,
an
d
discar
d
thos
e
tha
t
floa
t
(onl
y
withere
d
beans
ar
e
ligh
t
enoug
h
t
o
floa
t
i
n
water.

Bean
s
nee
d
t
o
b
e
covere
d
wit
h
cold
water
and
left
to
soak
for
various
lengths
of time,
or
brought
to
the
boil
and
simmere
d
,
depending
upon
the
type.
Be
sur
e
t
o
rea
d
the
instruction
s
first
.
The
y
ca
n
als
o
serv
e
a
s
a
goo
d
slimmin
g
aid
,
a
s
the
y
contai
n
medium
amounts
of
calories
and
are
high
in
bulk
and
fibr
e
.
A
small
amount
can
make
you
feel
full.
Bean
s
ar
e
insuli
n
–sparing
,
tha
t
the
y
dela
y
a
ris
e
i
n
insul
i
n
level
s
,
which
makes
you
feel
hungr
y
soo
n
afte
r
eating
. Research at Toronto University suggests that this effect may last for
several
hours
after
eating
the
beans.

Coconut
s
contai
n
sugar
s
an
d
n
o
starc
h
,
an
d
the
y
provid
e
a
goo
d
sourc
e
o
f
dietary
fibre
.
F
o
r
bes
t
result
s
stor
e
the
m
i
n
a
coo
l
place
.
Processed
types
include
toasting
and drying. Toasting the coconut meat caramelizes sugars on the surface and turns it a golden
colour
,
thi
s
reduce
s
moistur
e
an
d 
concentrate
s
th
e
nutrients
.
Dryin
g
concentrates
nut
r
ient
s
also
.
Unsweetened
,
desiccated
,
o
r
shredde
d
ha
s
twic
e
a
s
muc
h
protein
,
fat,
carboh
y
drate,
iron
an
d
potassiu
m
a
s
a
fres
h
one
.
The
y
a
ls
o
contai
n
around
6
times
as
muc
h
sugar
.
There
are
two
method
s
wit
h
whic
h
liqui
d
ca
n
b
e
extracte
d
fro
m
th
e
coconu
t
,
wh
i
c
h
resul
t
i
n
tw
o
end
product
s
,
coconut
cream
and
coconut
mil
k
.
The
cream
is
wrung
ou
t
o
f
fres
h
coconu
t
meat
,
an
d
mil
k
is
made
by
wringing
the
fresh
meat
that
has
been
soake
d
i
n
water.