Vegan Golden Latte
Immunity products, you see it more and more! Especially due to COVID, consumers are more looking for (natural) products that enhance their immune system. Also now with winter almost coming, it is always good to give your body an extra health boost! Maybe you have already read or heard somewhere that certain ingredients, such as ginger & turmeric are beneficial for your health, but why and how does that work? Lets quickly dive into that before giving you this amazing recipe of this vegan golden latte!
ginger
Who does not use ginger? Ginger is an amazing ingredient, you can make fresh ginger tea, or you can even use it in Asian dishes e.g. noodles! But, besides the great taste, it is also very healthy. Ginger is known to be beneficial, inter alia, for the immune system. Fresh ginger contains high amounts of ‘Gingerols’, the bioactive component, whereas dried ginger contains way less. But what makes ginger so healthy for your body? First of all, ginger has antioxidant properties, meaning that it reduces ‘oxidative stress’ of your body, which basically means that it inhibits the damage of DNA. DNA damage can lead to development of (age-related) diseases, and ginger can reduce these processes. Besides, ginger is known to prevent constipation. Next to this, ginger is able to decrease inflammation and pain in your body (anti-inflammatory effects). These are just some benefits; ginger has many more! All good benefits that are quite difficult to explain, but if you are interested, have a look in the references we stated below or give us a message!
Turmeric
Turmeric, also known as curcumin, a spice that has been used as a medicine (in Asia) for more than 4000 years. Just like the other goodies we mentioned, turmeric also has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, resulting in the prevention of the development of diseases. Turmeric has many more beneficial effects, for instance that is it can prevent high blood pressure. The only thing what differs with turmeric, is in order to make turmeric more effective, is that is must be activated by another compound, in this case, piperine (major active compound of black pepper). It actually has been shown that by combining these two ingredients, the bioavailability (the proportion the compound is absorbed in your body and actually used/metabolised, which is very very important!) is increased with almost 2000%! So, make sure to always use some black pepper when consuming turmeric!
cinnamon
Did you know that cinnamon is one of the most used spices on earth? Well, we totally understand! Never enough cinnamon, right? Just like ginger, cinnamon had antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties, but cinnamon is supposed to be antidiabetic, antimicrobial … and so on! Studies have confirmed that cinnamon is able to lower blood glucose levels, by enhancing the secretion of insulin, thus, supporting the glycaemic control! Very useful for diabetic people. And can you believe there are studies that show effects of cinnamon on your cognitive functioning? Cinnamon contains phytochemicals (also found in e.g. cocoa powder and cinnamon) that are able to give your brain a cognitive boost! Wow!
Oats
And last but not least, the ingredient that just cannot be missed in your kitchen, oats! The main health benefits from oats are derived from the high amount of dietary fibre (B-glucans) and phytochemicals (also found in e.g. cocoa powder and cinnamon). Oats are especially know for their beneficial effects on the gastrointestinal tract and that it lowers cholesterol levels in your blood. Besides, it is one of the grains that can (most of the times) be consumed by people with gluten intolerance or celiac disease. The fibres in oats lead to the cholesterol lowering effect, and therefore the consumption oats is associated with a reduction of the risk of heart diseases. Next to this, oats are very beneficial for your gut, due to the way it is digested, and it even makes you feel full for longer! Besides, oats also show anti-cancerous effects. Such healthy effects!
Ingredients for 1 golden latte:
- 250 ml oat milk – I used Oatly Barista
- Around 2 cm of fresh ginger
- 1 stick of cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp of ground turmeric
- 2 pieces of star anise
- 2 cardamom pods
- A pinch of black pepper
- A drop of vanilla aroma – I used vanilla protein shot from Personal Protein
- Optional: 1 tsp of coconut oil
Instructions:
Peel the ginger and grate it. Gently crush the star anise and cardamom pods. Pour the oat milk in a pan on medium-high heat. Add all the ingredients to the milk and stir it with a whisk. Bring it to a light simmer and simmer it for around 10 minutes, but keep stirring so now and then, so the milk is won’t burn. Pour the golden latte through a sieve in a glass, so you won’t have any pieces in your milk. That’s it! 🙂
Optional: of course, you can use any kind of (plant-based) milk that you like!
Enjoy!
Love,
Anna & Marit
