When it comes to our heart health it's important that we follow a heart health diet, that we get enough exercise and that we learn to control our response to negative stress in our lives.It's true that heredity plays an important role in our susceptibility to heart health problems, but there are many aspects of our diet and lifestyle we can control, starting with a heart healthy recipe that you will enjoy.
Many studies have demonstrated the benefit of extra virgin olive oil, vegetables and garlic to overall health and wellness, yet it can be tough to combine these into something that is simple to eat, so here is a tasty pesto heart healthy recipe that will not only do wonders for your overall wellness but will taste great too.
I have to admit straight up that I have often had trouble digesting pesto recipes that I get in Italian restaurants, I'm not quite sure why, but my feeling is that there is too much oil or the garlic is perhaps too heavy.
That's the great part about making your own heart healthy recipes such as this pesto is that you can alter the amount of ingrediants to suit your preference.
There are 2 major ingredients in pesto that make it especially healthy for the heart.
Several studies have demonstrated the benefit of quality olive oil to heart health. By swapping other fats or carbohydrates for unsaturated fats such as olive oil you can have a positive impact on both lowering blood pressure and on lowering cholesterol. The impact on lowering blood pressure is a relatively recent finding by scientists and just one more added benefit of a heart healthy recipe that includes olive oil.
Another great ingredient in pesto that benefits the heart is garlic. Once again, several studies have demonstrated a beneficial impact on heart health with garlic including the ability to control and even remove existing plaque build-ups in your arteries. Even more important is that recent findings suggest that pure garlic (as opposed to supplements) is better for your system, pesto heart healthy recipes certainly fill that requirement.
In addition, the fact that this heart healthy recipe is low in salt and includes the tasty and healthy basil herb, also makes it a superb food for our heart.
HEART HEALTHY RECIPE - BEST PESTO
To make pesto you will need a food processor to combine and even liquefy the ingredients turning them into a marriage of flavors that is just simply incredible.
You will need...
1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil (I've even done 1/4 cup and had good success)
2 peeled garlic cloves (move to 1 if you not garlic crazy)
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 Tablespoon of lemon juice
2 Cups of fresh Basil leaves (if you find the Basil overpowering, substitute some parsley)
Fresh ground pepper
Combine everything together except the cheese into your food processor and puree until smooth - I like it when it's combined into a thick paste. Finally, stir in the cheese and store it for at least a day in your refrigerator - it will keep for days and the taste will actually get better.
You can east this heart healthy recipe with thin toasts such as Melba toast or oven roasted toast that you make in your own oven. You can also serve it with meats or bump up the flavor of many other recipes. Of course, this pesto recipe will also be great with any pasta. Just remember, keep it cool until you pour it over your pasta.
There you have it, a heart healthy recipe that is quick and simple to make, lasts for days, is big on flavor and inexpensive to make over and over again.