Coconut oil has become one of the must-have ingredients for people who are becoming aware of the importance of healthy living. This oil is popular all over the world. But, it turns out that its cousin, coconut butter is trying to reach the same level of popularity.
This special type of butter is very versatile – you can use in coffee, spread it on a slice of bread etc. Even though both coconut oil and coconut butter come from coconut tree, they don’t have the same properties.
For instance, coconut butter is made in a specific way – by mixing all parts of coconut like the flesh and juice for example. On the other hand, coconut oil is just extracted directly from the coconut. That’s why coconut butter includes potassium, fibre, iron and magnesium besides fat. Of course, they have are very similar in at least one thing – they are great for our health.
Coconut Butter Health Benefits
It will boost your immune system
It’s because coconut butter is a good source of lauric acid. You should know that this type of acid is very useful for boosting your immune system and destroying the harmful bacteria, viruses and fungi. Lauric acid is the same acid, which is found in breast milk and it’s responsible for developing the immune system to fight off viral and fungal infections.
Supports Weight Loss
In case you are interested in losing extra weight, coconut butter is here to support your efforts. This butter accelerates the metabolism which ultimately leads to weight loss. If your metabolism is fast, the body can easily process the food in a fast manner which means that you’ll get more energy and eliminate calories faster too.
What is even better, this butter is packed with healthy fats that are used by our body for producing energy. Healthy fats make us feel sated for a long time and suppress appetite.
Take between one and two teaspoons of this butter on a daily basis and you will feel the effects after 15 days.
Protects Skin
In addition to helping you feel good, coconut butter can help you look good. Coconut butter protects against free radicals that may be damaging to the skin. It’s also a great moisturiser as it’s able to penetrate deep layers of skin, strengthening the tissues. It can even help you reduce the look of ageing by improving your skin’s elasticity.
Stabilizer blood sugar levels
As we all know, the blood sugar levels can have a huge impact on your weight. Because, if you have high blood sugar levels, it will be hard for your body to break all that sugar down. And the bad thing is that all extra sugar, which is not used by the body, is stored as a fat tissue. So, by adding coconut butter to your healthy diet – you will normalize and lower your glycemic index. This will help you prevent your blood sugar levels from spiking. You should also know that coconut butter will protect you from insulin resistance – which is often related with type II diabetes.
Tasty Ways to Enjoy Coconut Butter
One of the things that make coconut butter extraordinary is the fact that we can use it in many different foods. This butter has a specific, beautiful taste and it can easily blend in any snack, meal or beverage. So, if you use coconut butter in your daily diet, you will also consume a tasty meal while losing weight and providing nutrients to different body parts.
1. Spoon coconut butter straight from the jar and eat it. Yes, it’s that good.
2. Melt it and pour it over a sweet potato or winter squash.
3. Use it in a curry dish or stir fry for an extra amazing flavor.
4. Add it to a smoothie like this piña colada one. It doesn’t get more refreshing than this.
5. Spread it over toast in place of real butter and add some almond butter for a satisfying snack.
6. Drizzle it melted over berries or other fruit in a bowl for an amazing dessert.
7. Toss it with some shrimp or chicken and add some hot sauce. If you’re a vegetarian, you can toss it with tofu instead.
8. Add a spoonful to some cacao nibs for an antioxidant-bursting treat.
9. Use it in place of dairy butter in baking for a healthier fat (this tends to make baked goods a little dryer, so you’ll need to add a little more of a moist ingredient such as fruit puree or oil).
Coconut Butter Recipes
Simple Strawberry
- 2 teaspoon of agave or maple syrup
- Pinch salt
- 5 strawberries
- 5 tbsp virgin coconut oil
Spicy Goji Coconut Spread
- 2 teaspoon of agave or maple syrup
- 2 dashes cayenne (optional)
- 1 banana
- 2 tablespoon of goji previously soaked in warm water for 20 min (remove the water before adding)
- 5 tablespoons of coconut butter
Espresso Cacao Chip Coconut Spread
- Pinch of salt
- 2 teaspoon of agave or maple syrup
- 2 teaspoon of cacao powder
- ½ banana
- 1 teaspoon raw cacao nibs
- 1 shot espresso – warm
- 5 tbsp coconut butter
Instructions:
The preparation of all the recipes is the same. You only have to place all the ingredients in a blender and mix well until you get homogenous mass. You can also add some non diary milk or water if you need more liquid texture. Simply store it in the fridge if too runny. You can keep it in your fridge for up to a several weeks.
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