Amaranth - Superfood for All, Gold for Vegans

Shopping for Quinoa the other day, I noticed the "Amaranth Seed" package sitting right next to it. So I decided to give it a try.

I came home and proceeded to make my breakfast as I was going to, with quinoa (I make something similar to oatmeal, except I use quinoa, or now, amaranth seeds).

The result was even better than I thought, I think I even prefer the amaranth taste over quinoa.

Later on, as I was doing some research on other properties amaranth might have I discovered this is a Superfood. So here are some of my surprising findings!

        

Protein:

Amaranth          16g 

Whole Milk         3g

Yogurt                 3g

Eggs                   3g

Rice                    7g

Tofu                     8g

Cottage Cheese  14g

Beef                    17g

Quinoa                17g

Calcium:

                    Amaranth            222mg

Cottage Cheese   60mg

Tofu                      100mg

Milk                      119mg

Yogurt                  121mg

Quinoa                 141mg

Other Facts:

• It's Gluten Free!
• Contains lignins and other factors that inhibit Candida growth;
• Removes arterial residues of fat and cholesterol because it contains Niacin and Vitamin E;
• Dried, powdered sprouts of amaranth are used in Mexico as baby food because of its high calcium content (higher than milk!);
• In Asian herbal and dietary traditions, the "sweet and bitter" quality of amaranth, amongst other grains, is helpful in long-term weight reduction because of it's Yin (deficiency) quality, that balances out one's Yang (excess) quality. It also suggests that its bitterness can heal a stagnant and swollen liver.

I am surprised that this seed isn't as popular as its sister-grain Quinoa. It is undeniably a great way to supplement a healthy diet with more than the suggested daily amount we need of Protein and amino acids, including hard-to-get Lysine, and minerals like Calcium and Magnesium that are so important especially for women and children.
I have a few more recipes with Amaranth I want to try, like: Amaranth Flour Tortillas, and Amaranth Suffle.. Yesss!

Recipes: Alegrias (Mexican Candy), Tabuli (Coming Soon!), Breakfast Amaranth

References

• Pitchford, P (2002). Healing with Whole Foods. Berkeley, CA: North Atlantic Books. www.healingwithwholefoods.com.
  

• www.traditionaloven.com/tutorials/l-lysine_amino_acid.html

• Helena Kloosterman; USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference. "Essential Amino Acids Search, amaranth". Retrieved 2010-10-10.
• www.livestrong.com