Why eat beetroot?
Beetroot or ‘beets’ are an amazing heath food with a full range of benefits, which can in turn help with infertility plus they are delicious. Although beetroot has one of the highest sugar contents of any vegetable at 10% of its nutritional content, this works to our advantage. Why? The sugar in beetroot releases S L O W L Y into the body helping to stabilise blood sugar levels to stop you craving sugar and causing blood sugar levels to spike.
Beetroot is effective in helping to increase circulation, which can help with infertility as it can aid with uterine lining issues and poor blood flow. The high levels of nitrate which convert to nitric oxide in the body are responsible for increased blood flow and lowering of blood pressure.
Beets also are a great plant based source of iron, which is important in the development of red blood cells. Red blood cells help in the transportation of oxygen to all cells of the body including the reproductive tract. This vegetable is also rich in folate/folic acid, an essential vitamin in fertility and pregnancy to reduce risk of birth defects.
Further health benefits of eating beetroot include boosting the immune system due to the high content of vitamin-c and betaine helping fight inflammation. The betaine pigments help support your body in detoxification by purifying your blood and liver. The potassium and manganese in beetroot are also essential for healthy nerve and muscle function.
So basically beetroot is a great blood builder and aid in circulation which helps boost your fertility as part of a healthy balanced diet. No one vegetable or food source is the answer to boosting fertility. It is about eating a diet full of vegetables, good fats, quality protein and whole grains to obtain the maximum nutrients to boost your fertility and aid in achieving a healthy pregnancy.
Recipe
I learnt to make this delicious roasted beetroot from my mum, she has mastered the art of making the beetroot deliciously crispy complimenting it’s natural sweet, earthy flavour. Accompanying the beetroot with the feta is delicious, and is a good source of calcium. It is a very simple recipe to make as a main plant based dish or as a side salad to roast chicken or fish.
Ingredients
x2 bunches of raw organic* beetroot (beets)
1.5 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp wild thyme
25g feta
Small bag of organic* rocket
Optional Dressing –
1.5 tbsp olive oil, 1tbsp balsamic vinegar, tsp ground cumin, salt & pepper.
Method
Firstly pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees.
Wash the beetroot, cut off the stalks & cut into cubes. Do not peel the skin off the beetroot as this crisps up gorgeously when roasted.
Once chopped, add the beetroot to a greased baking tray and drizzle 1.5tbsp of coconut oil over the beetroot.
Alternatively, if you do not have coconut oil, olive oil works really well too. Tip: if the coconut oil is too solid – melt in pan before.
Add a tbsp of wild thyme and season with sea salt & pepper. Pop in preheated oven for 35-40mins.....
Read a book, watch some TV and take it easy until the beetroot is ready.
Toss the rocket, crumbled feta & beetroot altogether.
If you want a yummy dressing for the salad, mix in a small bowl 1.5 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, tsp ground cumin, season & mix quickly with a fork, drizzle immediately over salad and voila!
Bon appétit.
*Buy organic wherever possible, organic foods have less chemicals, more nutrients, preserve our eco systems and taste better.
Happy cooking and please subscribe for the mailbox to be the first to know about more fertility boosting recipes.
Lisa x