it was the best of times, it was the worst of times
It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness.
Famous words from the only Dickens book that I've read and actually liked.
And how is that at all relevant about what I'm posting? I'm talking about food. On one hand, with all our modern day technology we're able to eat foods from all over the world, we're able to cut the time on cooking or baking with different appliances, we're able to have a plethora of recipes at our fingertips thanks to the internet. We have a deeper understanding of human physiology, of what our bodies need to be healthy.
But then there's the bad. Even with all this knowledge, obesity rates are increasing. Processed foods are becoming the norm. And going out to look for information on the internet can be completely chaotic.
I'm currently taking a phy sci class that's got me wanted to eat healthier, and reign in the amount of unhealthy foods I like to indulge in. Something I've constantly heard is how honey and agave are healthier alternatives to sugar. I use honey as a substitute in tea and smoothies, but have never really tried using agave.
I then decided to do a little research... which left me incredibly overwhelmed. On top of there being about 1,001 different conflicting opinions on agave, I'm left wondering if the writer's have alternative incentives to sharing their findings?
But here's the basics on what I found. In comparison to sugar, agave has less calories, has a lower glycemic index (meaning it will not cause your blood sugar to spike as fast), and is sweeter -- meaning you will have to use less to get the same amount of sweetness. On the other hand, agave is primarily composed of fructose, which in high doses has been linked to a multitude of diseases.
As my professor always reminds us, rather than avoiding anything remotely unhealthy, it's important to control what you intake. For instance, even though bananas are healthy, eating 4000 calories a day worth of them isn't. So small doses of agave once a week isn't going to kill me (I hope.)
P.S This isn't a proper recipe, but rather an excuse to try out food photography + introduce the idea of doing recipes on my blog.
The Drink
One of my favorite drinks to drink at Coffee Bean is their agave nectar sweet tea! Naturally, making it at home is immensely cheaper. Plus, it's incredibly easy to recreate. It has a distinct taste when compared to other sweet teas, and I must say I'm a fan.
Instructions: Instead of sweetening with sugar, sweeten your freshly brewed tea with about 1 + 1/2 tablespoons of dark agave per cup of water. You can add more or less depending on your tastes, but that's the sweet spot for me. Then refrigerate to let it cool down, and drink away!
I used the constant comment tea by Bigelow because it has a hint of orange rind along with some sweet spices, which I think works perfectly with the agave! Listening to the people of steepster, I steeped it for about 2 minutes before removing the tea bags.
Famous words from the only Dickens book that I've read and actually liked.
And how is that at all relevant about what I'm posting? I'm talking about food. On one hand, with all our modern day technology we're able to eat foods from all over the world, we're able to cut the time on cooking or baking with different appliances, we're able to have a plethora of recipes at our fingertips thanks to the internet. We have a deeper understanding of human physiology, of what our bodies need to be healthy.
But then there's the bad. Even with all this knowledge, obesity rates are increasing. Processed foods are becoming the norm. And going out to look for information on the internet can be completely chaotic.
I'm currently taking a phy sci class that's got me wanted to eat healthier, and reign in the amount of unhealthy foods I like to indulge in. Something I've constantly heard is how honey and agave are healthier alternatives to sugar. I use honey as a substitute in tea and smoothies, but have never really tried using agave.
I then decided to do a little research... which left me incredibly overwhelmed. On top of there being about 1,001 different conflicting opinions on agave, I'm left wondering if the writer's have alternative incentives to sharing their findings?
But here's the basics on what I found. In comparison to sugar, agave has less calories, has a lower glycemic index (meaning it will not cause your blood sugar to spike as fast), and is sweeter -- meaning you will have to use less to get the same amount of sweetness. On the other hand, agave is primarily composed of fructose, which in high doses has been linked to a multitude of diseases.
As my professor always reminds us, rather than avoiding anything remotely unhealthy, it's important to control what you intake. For instance, even though bananas are healthy, eating 4000 calories a day worth of them isn't. So small doses of agave once a week isn't going to kill me (I hope.)
The Drink
One of my favorite drinks to drink at Coffee Bean is their agave nectar sweet tea! Naturally, making it at home is immensely cheaper. Plus, it's incredibly easy to recreate. It has a distinct taste when compared to other sweet teas, and I must say I'm a fan.
Instructions: Instead of sweetening with sugar, sweeten your freshly brewed tea with about 1 + 1/2 tablespoons of dark agave per cup of water. You can add more or less depending on your tastes, but that's the sweet spot for me. Then refrigerate to let it cool down, and drink away!
I used the constant comment tea by Bigelow because it has a hint of orange rind along with some sweet spices, which I think works perfectly with the agave! Listening to the people of steepster, I steeped it for about 2 minutes before removing the tea bags.