Our Cafe Ingredients: Buckwheat

We thought it would be a good idea to inform people about the type of ingredients we use in our Cafe treats, as well as WHY we choose to use them.

First up is Buckwheat.

This magical power ingredient is on our Café Menu in the form of our Buckwheat Chocolate Tarts and Sweet Potato Brownies.

       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While many people think that buckwheat is a cereal grain, it is actually a fruit seed, making it a suitable substitute for people who are sensitive to wheat or other grains that contain protein glutens. Buckwheat flowers are very fragrant and are attractive to bees that use them to produce a special, strongly flavored, dark honey.

Ten reasons to include buckwheat in your diet:

1. Best source of high-quality, easily digestible proteins.
2. Fat alternative.
3. The high level of rutin is extracted from the leaves for medicine to treat high blood pressure.
4. Non allergenic (used as pillow stuffing for those allergic to feathers, dust, and pollen).
5. May help diabetics: with a glycemic index of 54, it lowers blood sugars more slowly than rice or wheat products.
6. Great for digestion.
7. Chemical free.
   Buckwheat grows so quickly that it does not usually require a lot of pesticides or other chemicals to grow well.Top of FormBottom of Form
8. Buckwheat is good at drawing out retained water and excess fluid from swollen areas of the body.
9. Buckwheat is a warming food.
10. Buckwheat contains no gluten and is not a grain.

Source: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=11