You might be wondering if donuts can really aid in fighting cancer. Nope. I tricked you.
While these donuts should still only be an occasional treat, we've created a slightly sweet recipe chock-full of cancer fighting foods.
I'll be honest, I'm not much of a sweets person these days. For those of you who know my story, you know that the night my ovarian cancer was found, my husband rushed me to the hospital after a small scoop of birthday icing created the worst pain I've felt in my life. While my doctors have since said they have no idea what caused the pain and that the cancer wouldn't have been large enough to create that kind of issue, I still associate that sugary taste with pain and suffering. Now that I have learned much more about the biology of cancer, I have little desire to eat sweets.
However, sometimes a steaming, fresh-baked good straight from the oven is just what you need. These donuts are *slightly* sweet, so they're not your typical sugar-rush treat. I've kept the portion sizes in accordance with my dietician at the Block Center's portion size recommendations for my body size and weight. For me, a 2/3 cup of cooked grains, a tennis ball sized portion of fruit, and a teaspoon of maple syrup is all I should have at one time to keep blood sugar levels stable and to keep that insulin dump from happening. As we all know, insulin is a driving factor in cancer, so it's essential to keep that in check! I'll be posting more on that soon, so make sure you stay tuned for that post.
Better Ingredients
One of the things I love about Dr. Greger is how he talks about inn his How Not to Die book that he makes it a personal challenge to see how many disease fighting ingredients he can pack into a recipe. I've done the same. Here, we have a few key ingredients:
Sprouted Flours
While I'm unaware of any research that sprouted wheat flour directly fights cancer, it is lower on the glycemic index and keeps blood sugar lower than regular flour. It also has a higher levels of protein, fiber, and vital nutrients for cancer patients such as Vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, and folate. Folate is essential for the methylation process, which can mask or unmask nasty cancer genes. (Note that supplementation with folate is tricky, so please do not take this oversimplified statement as a reason to supplement!)
Sprouted millet, which I've added for its slight sweetness, is also hundreds of times higher than regular millet in flavanoids and phenols, two types of compounds which are key cancer fighters! Sprouted millet can sometimes take on a sour taste, so experiment with brands to find one you like.
Ground Flaxseed
Research shows that flaxseed has two key components which fight cancer: Alpha-linolenic acid, or ALA, and lignans, which are phytoestrogens. A study by AICR states:
"In one month-long trial of about 30 post-menopausal women with newly diagnosed breast cancer, daily flaxseed decreased signs of cancer cell growth. In several studies of healthy women consuming flaxseed daily, estrogen levels decreased or estrogen shifted to more of a relatively inactive form. The result was less estrogen in the form that seems to promote breast cancer growth." -AICR
Hemp Seeds
While there are some over-inflated claims about hemp seeds on the internet, they do contain vitamin E, zinc, and omega 3s, all of which cancer patients can use in their diets.
Pumpkin Seeds/Pepitas
According to Dr. Li, author of Eat to Beat Disease, pumpkin seeds are anti-angiogenic and promote cell regeneration and DNA protection. A Spanish study also showed that a compound found in pepitas, cucurbitacins, induced apoptosis in several cancer cell lines and was found to inhibit the JAK/STAT pathway. There is also the possibility that it inhibits other pathways, too, plus it is a good source of several other nutrients. Pumpkin seeds are awesome.
Blueberries
These are possibly one of the most well-known cancer fighting foods out there. They protect against DNA damage, oxidative stress, and cancer cell proliferation while the anthocyanidins are an anti-angiogenic.
Ok, so now that we know why we're eating the ingredients we're eating, let's get to the recipe!
Cancer-Fighting Donut Recipe
For the flax eggs:
2 Tablespoons ground flax seeds
5 Tablespoons water
For the batter:
1 cup sprouted wheat flour
1/2 cup sprouted millet flour
1/4 cup ground flax seeds
2 Tablespoons hemp hearts
2 Tablespoons pumpkin seeds
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2/3 cup plant milk of choice
3/4 cup applesauce
1 cup blueberries
Instructions: Preheat oven to 375°. Mix flax egg ingredients in small bowl and set aside. Place wheat flour, ground flax seeds, hemp hearts, pumpkin seeds, baking powder, and sea salt together. Create a well in the flour mixture.
Slowly add milk and applesauce to the flax egg mixture. Pour the liquid mixture into flour mixture and mix until thoroughly combined. Mixture should be sticky. If it is too dry, add water by half teaspoonfuls until the batter forms a light, sticky batter. Slowly fold in blueberries.
Pipe or spoon into silicone donut pan, leaving a small space for the batter to rise. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until tops or donuts are golden brown and spring back when pressed.
I hope that you all enjoy this recipe and that you learned something from the post.
Stay Healthy!
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