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Singer and actor Liv Austen has turned a health issue into a passion for cooking, by taking control of every ingredient that goes in to her meals. Every week she shares something she has learned from cooking from scratch, and goes through a recipe she loves, so you can cook alongside the podcast. Cook from scratch - your body will thank you.
You are listening to the From Scratch Body. I'm Liv Austin, and I believe that anyone can cook. Since being diagnosed with endometriosis, I have been on a journey to find out what food makes me feel great. By cooking my meals from scratch, not only have I started feeling much better. I've also fallen in love with cooking completely.
Liv:So every week, we explore a new topic that can help us feel better and become better cooks. And then I share a
Liv:recipe with you so you can cook along with me
Liv:if you want. You can always find the recipes and the transcripts from the podcast on my website, the from scratch body.com.
Liv:You probably associate apple cider vinegar with health, but what exactly does it do that is so good for you? So let's talk about this tangy tonic today. What even is apple cider vinegar? I didn't really know until I researched this. I do know that I love it though.
Liv:Again, we come across fermenting, which always seems to lead to something good. Apple Cider Vinegar is made by fermenting the sugar in apples. This turns them into acetic acid, which is responsible for the tangy taste and also thought to be what offers the great health benefits of the vinegar. So what are these health benefits exactly then? Here are a few, and I've just done a quick summary of them.
Liv:There's way more to learn about it if you really wanna go research. But just to kind of summarize it for you, number 1, weight management. Studies show that acetic acid can help control appetite, increase fullness, and aid weight loss. That's a handy tool if that's something that is important to you at this point in your life. 2, blood sugar balance.
Liv:Consuming apple cider vinegar before meals can improve insulin sensitivity, aiding blood sugar control, which is especially beneficial for diabetes management. 3, gut health. I bet you were expecting that one when I was talking about fermenting at the start. Acetic acid may promote good gut bacteria growth, improving digestion and immune function. Number 4, heart health.
Liv:Lower cholesterol and reduced blood pressure are potential perks of acetic acid supporting heart health. And that's certainly relevant to me. As I have mentioned previously, I suspect that I suffer from chronic hypertension, and I'm currently on blood pressure medication. So this is definitely one to note for me. Number 5, antimicrobial action.
Liv:The vinegar's acetic acid fights harmful bacteria, acting as a natural food preservative. Being able to use natural preservatives in our food instead of stuff used in processed food makes a huge difference to our health, and you know that this is one of my main points of the from scratch body. I believe that my endometriosis flare ups are my body telling me that there are some things, I don't know exactly what I'm constantly trying to figure out, exactly what preservatives or emulsifiers that are entering my body that are just not good for me, and I never have this when I use natural preservatives. Number 6, potential cancer prevention. Some early studies suggest that acetic acid could slow cancer cell growth, but more research is needed on that one.
Liv:So there you are. Apple Cider Vinegar, thanks to acetic acid, offers an array of health benefits from weight management and blood sugar control to heart health and antimicrobial properties. Remember that moderation is key, like with all foods, and consulting a healthcare professional is a smart move before making it a daily habit. Do you like apple cider vinegar? How do you use it in the kitchen?
Liv:Message me on Instagram at the from scratch body. I'd love to hear from you. I use apple cider vinegar all the time, honestly, and I'm going to share after the break a little pesto vinaigrette that is perfect for not just apple cider vinegar, any vinegar that you have, but apple cider vinegar is a good one for it. Well, that was a good place to take a break because if you have good headphones listening to this, my baby was needing my attention at the end of that. So dad brought him up for a little feed.
Liv:Anyway, we are talking about, pesto vinaigrette. This is my sort of impromptu vinaigrette that I made when I had about a tablespoon left of pesto. I think it was actually my, wild garlic pesto that I used for this, which you can find on the website and a previous episode as well. So using the last bit of your pesto, these lovely simple ingredients transform it into a lovely dressing to drizzle on your salad. I'm obsessed with 0 waste ideas.
Liv:There's so much flavour, even in a tiny bit of sauce like pesto, at the bottom of a jar. I know it would make a massive difference to just clean it out and pop it in the dishwasher, but not only do I hate to waste food, even the smallest amounts, I also love how wanting to use everything gives me inspiration for new ideas. Here's the recipe for stretching out the last bit of your pesto and make it into a lovely pesto dressing or vinaigrette for your salad or to drizzle over lovely sourdough toastie. If you have a good bit of pesto left, you can even double or triple this recipe and fill up the jar again and have the vinaigrette grette ready in the fridge to use several times. Pesto vinaigrette, this makes enough for a large salad.
Liv:You need leftover pesto in a jar, roughly a tablespoon, a tablespoon of olive oil, a teaspoon of honey or maple syrup or agave syrup or similar, a tablespoon of water, a tablespoon of vinegar. It can be apple cider vinegar. That's my favourite, but other vinegars work as well. Salt and pepper to taste. Optionally, some dried herbs like oregano is my favourite.
Liv:So there's not much to it. You just blend it all together, make it easy for yourself, and just blend it in the jar that you already had the pesto in or just in a bowl. There's no machinery needed here. Just gently mix each ingredient in with a teaspoon or a spoon. There's lots of room to play here depending on what you have or haven't got.
Liv:You can choose which vinegar works for you or even squeeze some lemon juice in there instead. Any type of pesto will serve as a great base here, but try my classic wild garlic or beetroot pestos if you need some inspiration. They are all on the web site, the from scratch body.com. Did you enjoy this pesto vinaigrette? Let me know.
Liv:And if you have any lovely photos, please do share them on Instagram, and don't forget to tag me. And I will be here next week.
Liv:Thank you for listening to this week's episode remember that you can always check out the recipe on my website the from scratch body.com if you want to have it in front of you when you're cooking but be brave and make it your own too also check out my instagram at the from scratch body and my youtube channel the from scratch body for lots of food inspiration that you can totally recreate yourself Remember, cook from scratch and your body will thank you. See you next week.