On Wednesday 29th March, Living Pure hosted a luncheon event titled “A Wholesome Lunch”. We gathered at the beautiful Melbourne Docklands waterfront head office for a presentation, panel discussion, food demonstration, tastings and a delectable lunch.

Sweet Potatoes

The hero ingredient of this lunch was sweet potato. As a Registered Nutritionist I should love all vegetables equally. However, I have a particular soft spot for sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes, often termed yams in northern parts of the world, come in various varieties. They are either orange skinned and orange fleshed (the most common variety in Australia), white skinned with purple flesh, pink skinned and white flesh and also white skin with white flesh.

The white skinned with white flesh variety is still sweet and in the characteristic sweet potato shape, therefore, is distinct from their cousin white potatoes. The shape of sweet potatoes mimics the shape of the pancreas and ironically all sweet potatoes support the health and functionality of the pancreas.

One of the key functions of the pancreas is in it’s control of blood sugar levels. Sweet potatoes support pancreatic health by promoting blood sugar stability. This is a very important task as in the short term highly fluctuating blood sugar levels can promote fatigue and apathy, irritability, headaches, poor digestion, increased release and circulation of stress hormones, low concentration and memory disruption. In the long term drastic fluctuations of blood sugars can lead to increased risk of illness and disease, particularly Type 2 Diabetes.

Sweet potatoes are also exceptionally rich in an antioxidant called Beta-carotene. This antioxidant is important for supporting the immune system. When we nourish our immune health, the rest of our organs and systems are more likely to be in optimal health. Beta-carotene is a fat-soluble vitamin; this means it requires a small amount of fat in order for the human body to absorb it. It is for this reason, we recommend cooking sweet potato with our Living Pure Premium Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The beneficial fats and antioxidants contained within this wholesome oil further boost the nutrients within the sweet potato recipe.

Lunch

The important of lunch can often be overlooked as daily tasks and a hectic schedule override the priority of sitting down to a long and slow lunch. As such, this event was designed to install the importance of a sit down lunch with healthy ingredients.

One of the reasons lunch is so vital is that it can either boost or hinder our energy levels early afternoon and whether we are likely to experience food cravings later that day or days/weeks later, pending our digestive processes. You see there are compounding actors to every food and drink we take in, so selecting wholesome varieties can strengthen our ability to balance hormones.

To highlight the importance of lunch and showcase the beautiful ingredients in Melbourne, we made these highly nutritious sweet potato chips with dip, sweet potato nachos, a colourful and vibrant salad sandwich and brain boosting salmon wrap.

We look forward to showcasing more of our wholesome recipes and invite you to experience this exclusive event with us.

Posted on July 17, 2018