Nutrients and Phytochemicals of Noni Fruit (Morinda citrifolia)

Noni Fruit (Morinda citrifolia), which commonly known as Indian mulberry, great morinda, beach mulberry, cheese fruit or noni (Hawaiian), mengkudu (Indonesia and Malaysia), pace (Javanese), Kumudu (Balinese), nunaakai (Tamil Nadu, India) , dog dumpling (Barbados) is a tree in the coffee family, Rubiaceae. Morinda citrifolia is native from Southeast Asia to Australia and is now distributed throughout the tropics.

Noni fruit (Morinda citrifolia) is high in carbohydrates and dietary fibre. According to the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, a 100 g sample of the powder contains 71% carbohydrate and 36% fibre. The sample also contained 5.2% protein and 1.2% fat.

These macro-nutrients evidently reside in the fruit pulp, as noni juice has sparse amounts of macro-nutrients.

The main micro-nutrients of noni pulp powder include 9.8 mg of vitamin C per 1200 mg sample, as well as 0.048 mg niacin (vitamin B3), 0.02 mg iron and 32.0 mg potassium. Vitamin A, calcium and sodium are present in moderate amounts.

When noni juice alone is analyzed and compared to pulp powder, only vitamin C is retained at a high level, 33.6 mg per 100 g of juice.

Although the most significant nutrient feature of noni pulp powder or juice is its high vitamin C content, noni fruit juice provides only about half the vitamin C of a raw navel orange. Sodium levels in noni juice (about 3% of DRI) are high compared to an orange. Although the potassium content appears relatively high for noni, this total is only about 3% of the Recommended Dietary Allowance and so would not be considered excessive. Noni juice is otherwise similar in micro-nutrient content to a raw orange.

Noni fruit (Morinda citrifolia) contains a number of phytochemicals, including lignans, oligo- and polysaccharides, flavonoids, iridoids, fatty acids, scopoletin, catechin, beta-sitosterol, damnacanthal, and alkaloids. Although these substances have been studied for bioactivity, current research does not conclude anything about their effects on human health.

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a step up...

when you're short on time, there are several ways to send out an electronic invite... there's the group email, there's evite and then there's paperless post. both are easy, online alternatives to real paper invitations and cards, but one of these is clearly a step above the other.

if you haven't already, i urge you to check out and browse through the thousand of options that paperless posts offers. they have something for every occassion and have done an incredible job at re-creating the ritual and excitement that ensues when you get a handwritten note or invite.

...you see an envelope.

...you click to open.

...you read.

...you reply.

the quality and design of each piece of stationery mixes the authentic look and feel of a handwritten note with the efficency needed to keep up in today's fast moving world... not to mention, they're working with some of the hottest vendor in the stationery world.

it's such a incredibly brilliant concept that i SO wish had been mine. and to boot, the founders are a brother and sister team in their TWENTIES!

... oh, if only i had been a dartmouth grad!

About Tapioca and It's Production

Tapioca and It's Production - Tapioca is basically a root starch derived from the cassava, or yuca plant. It's often used to thicken soups and sweeten the flavor of baked goods, and it makes a dandy pudding.  The cassava plant is native to South America and the West Indies, where its thick, fibrous roots are used in a variety of forms: bread flour, laundry starch, an alcoholic brew, and of course, tapioca pudding. As the Encyclopedia Britannica tells us, it was probably first harvested by the Mayans.

Tapioca is a starch extracted from the root of the plant species Manihot esculenta. This species, native to the Amazon, Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela as well as the Caribbean, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, most of the West Indies, is now cultivated worldwide and has many names, including cassava, bitter-cassava, manioc, "mandioca", "aipim", "macaxeira", "manioca", "boba", "yuca" (not to be confused with yucca). In India it has different names in different regions such as, "Sagudana" (literally, Sagu drops), "Sabudana"(literally, drops of soap) and "Kappa". In Vietnam, it is called bột năng. In Indonesia, it is called by malay ubi kayu or singkong.In Philippines, it is called sago.

The name tapioca is derived from the word tipi'óka, the name for this starch in Tupi. This Tupi word refers to the process by which the starch is made edible. However, as the word moved out of Brazil it came to refer to similar preparations made with other esculents.

Tapioca is a staple food in some regions and is used worldwide as a thickening agent, mainly in foods. Tapioca is gluten free, and almost completely protein free. 'Tapioca' in Britain often refers to a milk pudding thickened with arrowroot, while in Asia the sap of the Sago palm is often part of its preparation.

The cassava plant has either red or green branches with blue spindles on them. The toxin found in the root of the red-branched variant is less harmful to humans than the green-branched variety. Therefore, while the root of the red/purple-branched variant can be consumed directly, the root of the green-branched variant requires treatment to remove the toxin. Konzo (also called mantakassa) is a paralytic disease associated with several weeks of almost exclusive consumption of insufficiently processed bitter cassava.

Commercially, the starch is processed into several forms: powder, fine or coarse flakes or meal, rectangular sticks, and spherical "pearls". Pearls are the most widely available shape; sizes range from about 1mm to 8mm in diameter, with 2–3mm being the most common.

Flakes, sticks, and pearls must be soaked well before cooking, to rehydrate them; they will easily absorb water equal to twice their volume, becoming leathery and swollen. All these products traditionally are white, but sticks and pearls may be colored. The oldest and most common color is brown, but pastel colors are now available. In all its forms tapioca starch is opaque before cooking; and become translucent when cooked.

Nigeria, Brazil, and Thailand are the world's largest producers of cassava. Thailand accounts for 60% of worldwide exports.

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How to Make Homemade Corned Beef

Corned beef is a cut of beef cured or pickled in a seasoned brine. The "corn" in "corned beef" refers to the "corn" or grains of coarse salts used to cure it. The term "corned beef" can denote different styles of brinecured beef, depending on the region. Some, like American-style corned beef, are highly seasoned and often considered delicatessen fare.

Ingredients:

• 8 to 10 pounds of good quality beef brisket
• 1/4 tsp. saltpeter
• 2 tsp. paprika
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 3 cloves of minced garlic
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tbsp. mixed pickling spices
• 3/4 cup salt
• 2 quarts water

Directions:

1. Place the beef brisket in a large crock.
2. Dissolve the saltpeter in warm water and then add the sugar, minced cloves, pickling spice and paprika to the saltpeter mixture.
3. Add 3/4 cup salt in 2 quarts water, then add the other mixture and stir well. Pour this over the meat in the crock. Be sure the meat is totally covered with the liquid.
4. Cover the crock and refrigerate for 3 weeks. Turn the meat once or twice each week.
5. Take out the meat at the end of the third week and soak it in several changes of fresh cold water to remove the excess salt.
6. Soak the meat a final time in clean, fresh water for 24 hours in the refrigerator. An alternative to this is to boil the marinated meat in water to remove the excess salt.
7. Prepare and cook the corned beef using your favorite recipe

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it's the good fat...

i'm in love with coconut. i love to eat it. i love the smell. i drink the water. and, i even use a subtle smelling coconut body lotion. so when i came across these roasted coconut chips at the market, i threw a pack in my cart without thinking twice.

but what i should have done is stocked my cart full of them because these chips are serious deliciousness.

thin little slices of perfectly roasted, crunchy yet buttery, goodness. you can not eat just one. and if you feel guilty about eating the whole bag (or five) don't worry, it's the good kind of fat!

the company offers several different kinds of chips and if the rest are half as good as the coconut, i may just have found a new favorite way to eat my five a day!

How to Turn Soy Milk and Tofu into Ice Cream

Intolerant to lactose is a problem. And many people suffer from this love ice cream. Of course they may not eat ice cream because of milk is in it. Processing soy milk and tofu into ice cream is a solving for this problem. It is not too difficult to turn soy milk and tofu into ice cream. It is a dairy free ice cream. No refined white sugar and it is a healthy food because it's all natural. But don't worry, it tastes as delicious as ice cream you usually buy in the ice cream outlet.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups soy milk
• Tofu (silken)
• 8 ounces soy yogurt
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• Fresh fruit

Tools:

• Ice cream machine
• Food processor

Directions:

1. Pre-freeze the bowl of your ice cream maker a day or so before you plan to make soy ice cream. If you fail to chill the ice cream bowl, your soy ice cream mixture may not solidify properly.
2. Get to know your soy products. Many soy ice cream recipes call for soy yogurt or silken tofu but not both. Choose the ingredient you know how to use or experiment with a combination of each to get a texture you like for ice cream.
3. Combine 2 cups of soy milk with 8 ounces of soy yogurt (plain or vanilla works well for ice cream) or a standard-size box of silken tofu in a food processor. Mix until smooth.
4. Add 1/3 cup of maple syrup to the soy mixture. You can substitute brown rice syrup if you prefer.
5. Cut or mash up fresh fruit to add flavor and texture to your soy ice cream. Bananas, peaches, blackberries, strawberries or raspberries work well when they are very ripe.
6. Add the fruit to the food processor if you want a smooth ice cream. If you prefer a chunkier texture, stir the fruit into the mixture by hand.
7. Turn on your ice cream maker before you add your soy mixture.
8. Pour the soy mixture into the ice cream maker and close the top securely.
9. Listen to the ice cream maker as your cue to check on the soy ice cream. If you hear the paddle or motor moving more slowly, the cycle may be almost finished.
10. Take the soy ice cream when it is finished. If it is too soft for your taste, you can put it in the freezer for a few hours. After several hours, the consistency will have hardened.

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What is Agro-industry?

Agroindustry or agro-industry (agroindustrial or agro-industrial) is industry dealing with the supply, processing, and distribution of farm products. Agro-industry is related to the large-scale production, processing, and packaging of food using modern equipment and methods.

An 'agro-industry' means a unit which adds value to agricultural produce / intermediates / residues; both food and non-food; by processing them into products which are marketable or usable or edible, or by improving storability, or by providing a link from farm to the market or a part thereof. Agro-industry also includes hitech agriculture, biotechnology based agriculture and the certified/ truthful label seed producing industry.

'Agricultural products' would include produce of Agriculture - Horticulture - Sericulture - Floriculture - Medicinal plants - Fisheries - Poultry - Apiculture - Dairy products and also includes minor forest produce and live stock based products.

It would also include industries which are engaged in the utilisation of agriculture waste or its disposal.