Monday, September 29, 2008

banana muffins and cinnamon



























I just made THE most PERFECT banana muffins I've made in a long time. I'm going on my 3rd one right now and I feel very little shame about it. Actually, I'm even debating a 4th. These suckers are so good and they are beautiful. I had to capture it for you so you'd have a mental picture. :D

Anyways, the recipe I semi-follow is Bree's Banana bread recipe and it calls for cinnamon. I ended up putting way too much in there but they turned out great. And then I just learned there are medicinal properties to cinnamon. Did you know that ---

Studies have shown that just 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon per day can lower LDL cholesterol.

Several studies suggest that cinnamon may have a regulatory effect on blood sugar, making it especially beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes.

In some studies, cinnamon has shown an amazing ability to stop medication-resistant yeast infections.

In a study published by researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Maryland, cinnamon reduced the proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells.

It has an anti-clotting effect on the blood.

In a study at Copenhagen University, patients given half a teaspoon of cinnamon powder combined with one tablespoon of honey every morning before breakfast had significant relief in arthritis pain after one week and could walk without pain within one month.

When added to food, it inhibits bacterial growth and food spoilage, making it a natural food preservative.

One study found that smelling cinnamon boosts cognitive function and memory.

Researchers at Kansas State University found that cinnamon fights the E. coli bacteria in unpasteurized juices.

It is a great source of manganese, fiber, iron, and calcium.

So, I think I'll be adding a bit more cinnamon in my food and I was thinking about it earlier today while sauteing veggies that I think I want to take a few professional cooking lessons. How cool would that be to learn how to cook a few really nice meals. I'd like to do that. I think I'm a fairly decent cook but I want to expand my horizons and learn a few cooking techniques. That would be so cool.

These are my thoughts -- all inspired by cinnamon.

2 comments:

akshaye said...

Dude.. you got to give me a recipe after those pictures.. I am salivating on my keyboard now!

Jen in Budapest said...

oh yeah? I can do that.