Back to the alphabet, and continuing on the theme of egg replacer, we come to flax seed. I came to know and love flax seed as a natural egg replacer, but it has so many other benefits. Flax is extraordinarily high in Omega-3s, so on that alone it is recommended to incorporate a tablespoon or 2 into your daily diet. It is also full of lignans (and therefore anti-oxidants) and fiber. The health benefits of all these lead researchers to propose that flax may help reduce risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, stroke… basically, it seems that it definitely will help you stay healthy. :)
It is important to note however that ground flax seed is your best option for consumption. Flax seed oil will give you your Omega-3s – but only your Omega 3s. All the other benefits are stripped out in the processing, so while flax seed oil is great, it provides much less benefit for the calories than ground flax seed, which still contains all of the seed, and all of the nutrients. And then there’s whole flax seeds, which are too small to be digested, so they pass right through you. Ground flax provides just the right balance – already broken up so your system can easily absorb them instead of having them pass right through, but not so processed that you lose a lot of the benefits.
I shouldn’t write about cookies when I can’t have them for a little while… mmmmmm. Man. :P Recipe below.
Conveniently, that ground flax seed works amazingly as an egg replacer. It does lend a bit of a nutty flavor, so you will want to incorporate into recipes that can stand, or even benefit from, that flavor – usually darker cakes and cookies. Like commercial egg replacer, flax does not provide the structure that eggs do, so it won’t work in a quiche or an omelette, but for baked goods… works perfectly. I would even venture to say it works *better* than commercial egg replacer. The key is to mix with water as directed (1 part flax to 3 parts water – 1 T / 3 T for one egg), and then let sit for about 15 minutes. It will work if you don’t allow the time to sit, but when you do it really begins to mimic the consistency of eggs and works all the better because of it.
So how to incorporate this superfood into your diet…?
Recipes
1. Sprinkle a tablespoon over a salad as a topping, or add a tablespoon or 2 to a green smoothie.
2. Mix into your morning chia pudding.
3. Make this wonderful crumble coffee cake, using flax instead of the egg replacer (1T ground flax + 3 T water, and let sit for about 15 minutes before adding to batter). Has become one of my standard offerings for potluck brunches, as everyone falls in love with it every time.
4. Oatmeal Cookies
(The Quaker Oats recipe, veganized :) )
1 C (1 stick) Crisco
1 C firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 C granulated sugar
2 flax eggs (preparation directions below)
1 t vanilla
1 C whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 C all-purpose flour
1 t baking soda
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t sea salt
3 C uncooked regular oats
1 C raisins (Optional, I leave them out. Could also use walnuts – or both!)
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Prepare flax eggs: mix together 2 T ground flax seed and 6 T water. Put aside for 15 minutes.
3. Beat together Crisco and sugars until creamy.
4. Add flax eggs and vanilla, beat well.
5. Add flours, baking soda, cinnamon and salt, mix well.
6. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet.
7. Bake 10-12 minutes, until golden brown.
8. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet, remove to wire rack.
Enjoy!!
