Super foods🤔👌👍

 

2 African Superfoods & Their Unmatched Nutrients, From A Nutrition Specialist

Many people add kale, acaí, legumes, and chia seeds to their diets in order to increase their intake of superfoods. While all of those contain powerhouse nutrients, certified nutrition specialist and behavior coach Esosa Edosomwan, M.S., CNS, LDN, says they've got nothing on African superfoods.

In this Q&A with Esosa, mbg had the chance to learn about some of her favorite African superfoods, their health benefits, and the best ways to add them into a daily diet.

The list could probably go on and on, but for the sake of your time, which African superfoods are your top 2? 

My number one is definitely moringa (Moringa oleifera). I was introduced to it when I was in Ghana and met moringa farmers. 

Some small-scale studies have actually tested moringa as a treatment for malnutrition in some African villages. The benefits are just potent. It could be a whole entire multivitamin on its own. 

What are the health benefits of moringa?

Moringa contains 92 nutrients, 46 antioxidants, and all of the essential amino acids. It has seven times the vitamin C of oranges, three times the potassium of bananas, four times the calcium in milk, and four times the vitamin A in carrots. 

The benefits go beyond nutrition, too. I put moringa oil on my face twice a day because who wouldn’t want all those nutrients added onto their skin? 

How do you use moringa outside of your skincare routine?

moringa can be add to smoothies, essentially the same way you would add a greens powder. 

It also make a superfood gluten-free bread with almond flour, tapioca flour, a little bit of salt, a chia egg, chlorella powder, moringa powder, and Everything But The Bagel seasoning from Trader Joes, because it’s lit—that will make everything taste good. 

The moringa powder turns the bread green, and it tastes just as good as it would without it, but now I have all these added nutrients. Sometimes I’ll make a pizza crust that way, too, then top it with pesto and a ton of green vegetables. I wouldn’t put it in anything sweet, ever, but you can sprinkle it onto pasta or other savory meals for added nutrients. 

That sounds amazing. So what’s next on your list? 

Number two would be baobab. Oh it’s so cool, they call it the tree of life and these trees can take up to 15 to 20 years to bear fruit. There are baobab trees that have been on this earth for thousands of years, so you’re basically getting ancient nutrition. 

The fruit is football-shaped and when you crack it open, it has an interesting consistency which can be ground into a powder. It contains about 50% prebiotic fiber, which is really important for maintaining the proper balance of good gut flora. It also has vitamin C, potassium, and minerals. 

Baobab has a tart taste, so I usually mix it into my fruit smoothies, or an acaí or dragon fruit smoothie bowl. I would never put it in a cacao smoothie or anything that doesn’t complement the tart flavor. It’s also great mixed into orange juice for added vitamin C.