Tuna and Avocado pasta to prevent dementia!
Tuna & Avocado pasta!
As we grow older there appear to be more and more things to worry about- bills, cars, houses, mortgages, children, arthritis, impending doom of dementia... Don’t laugh! Dementia is a very real and frightening possibility of the future for everyone, especially when you hit the good ol’ nineties! Alzheimer’s disease accounts for up to 70% of all dementia cases, and is characterized by the degeneration of brain cells. This results in the loss of memory and reasoning abilities and life as you know it (well actually you won’t know it, because you will lose your ability to reason). The exact cause of dementia is unknown, however environmental influences and lifestyle are thought to greatly impact on your risk.
According to Lynda Johnson, M.S., R.D., Regional Nutrition & Health Education Specialist with University of Missouri Extension. “It appears that what is good for you [healthy lifestyle], is also good for your brain”. And regarding our diet she has a few recommendations to help prevent dementia: ensure adequate intake of B vitamins to boost brain power, eat a rainbow of colour each day- fruits and vegetables are a rich sources of antioxidants, Vitamins C & E in particular, that help prevent damage to your brain by free radicals, and fish is brain food! Our brain cells contain omega-3, the same healthy fat found in fish.
Now you’re probably thinking, what has all this dementia talk got to do with my pasta? Well, well, wait for it! Avocado is a rich source of Vitamin E, an important antioxidant, tomato is rich in Vitamin C, while tuna is, you guessed it, a rich source of Omega-3! I don’t know about you, but I fully intend to be on the ball when it comes to the thinking, when I am at the ripe old age of 90, and to do that prevention is key! Plus it doesn’t hurt that avocado, tomato and tuna taste good together! Research studies also indicate that the antioxidant benefit in reducing risk for Alzheimer’s disease is from food sources, not by taking supplements! So give your multivitamins a rest, and cook up some brain food today!
Tuna and avocado pasta
Ingredients: 350g pasta shapes, 2 tbsp olive oil, 100g stuffed olives, ½ cup parmesan cheese finely grated, 2 tomatoes diced, 1 heaped tbsp whole grain mustard, 1 avocado, 425g tuna chunks, salt and pepper to taste, grated parmesan cheese extra to serve
Steps: Cook the pasta: by bringing to the boil a large saucepan of water with 1 tbsp of sea salt. Add the pasta to the boiling water, stir occasionally, and cook for 9-12 minutes or until al dente. Drain and set aside, (do not rinse with cold water)
Add the olive oil and parmesan cheese to the pasta in a large bowl and toss. The warmth of the freshly cooked pasta will help to melt the cheese. Add the whole grain mustard and toss. Then add the tuna, diced tomatoes and olives and toss again.
To serve, place slices of avocado on the top. (This prevents the avocado from getting mashed in the pasta) And then sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
Serves 4
Urban myth! It appears that some people have been misled into thinking that the addition of oil to the boiling water when cooking the pasta is necessary to prevent the pasta from sticking together. Be well assured, that you do not need to add oil to the boiling water! Firstly, the pasta doesn’t stick together! And secondly as one of my friends pointed out today, the oil just floats on the top anyway, so even if the pasta were to stick together in some imaginary world, the oil would do no good!
