Teeter no more on the line between love and coconut. The white meaty nuts are not just husked ornaments for those spiky trees all over California; they're actually a vital source of energy.Coconut---the real thing, not the shredded, trans-fat mixture you find in the baking needs aisle--first found its way into my kitchen thanks to a recipe I recently tried for a snack involving nuts and dates (pictured above). But before mine, it made its way to Europe's kitchens via the Portuguese and Spanish, and El Coco, the iberian bogeyman that ate bad children, is from whence it got its name.
Before I tried the aforementioned recipe, I stayed far away from the stuff. Just glance at the nutrition label on a jar of coconut oil and you'll see why. Not only does it require machete-like tools to break open this nut, but inside it's loaded with everything you know to be bad: not just carbohydrates, but major saturated fat.
So I did my research. I thought, there has to be a reason why it's in the organic health food aisle. And what I found out is this: the coconut does have high levels of saturated fat. But saturated fat is one of the two necessary components (the other being regular fat) of basic heart health. And something specifically in coconut fat called myristic acid (a fatty acid) plays a big role in correcting cell deficiencies, and the age-related decrease of white blood cells. (If you'd like to read the article in its entirety about why saturated fats are important and how much of it we need, it can be found here.)
Anyway, it turns out coconuts are all-good. Not eaten in tremendous amounts, of course (a medium coconut, if eaten whole, contains 133 grams of fat, 118 grams of saturated fat and 1405 calories) but if you use it, for example, in this basic energy snack recipe, you'll get a nice boost of cell-regenerating fuel.
To make coconut balls, you need:
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1/2 cup dried dates, pitted
- 2 tbsp water or orange juice
- 1 small bag unsweetened coconut shredded
- In a food processor, pulverize raisins, walnuts and dates for 1-2 minutes. Add water or juice and blend for 1-2 more minutes until mixture clumps together
- Place about 1/2 cup of coconut on a plate. Dampen hands with a little water, then roll the mixture into 1" balls and roll them in coconut. Store in fridge.
