Would this Pistachio and Chocolate Tart Improve my Memory and Mood
Can good nutrition improve a person’s memory? My mother certainly used to think so. As my sibling and I preparedams in high school, my mother would plant a large bowl of pistachios on the table as study aid. It improved our memory, she said; she learned it from her mother.
Although my mother had no scientific basis for it, she was right about nuts and nutrition. And diet that is high in nuts and green vegetables and low in fat and refined sugar can maintain good memory.
The fat in a high-fat diets gets oxidized, which can produce free radicals that damage he brain and body. Raw vegetables help prevent free radicals from forming and, in their own way, because vegetable are high in antioxidants and vitamins, invariably help the memory.
Chemicals in nuts, seeds, and legumes strengthen neurotransmitters, the wiring that transmits information in the brain.
My comfort food is chocolate. To be more specific, dark chocolate. I can be in the worst mood ever, but after a few minutes of intake of the magic food, I’m transported to high levels of happiness. On those occasions when I actually need to eat chocolate for my sanity, I’ve been known to walk distance in order to fined it. When most people travel, they seek out antique shops, or good restaurants. I look for chocolate shops.
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon orange marmalade
- 1 cup raw pistachio
- 3 cups coconut milk
- 3 tablespoons corn starch
- 1/2 cup chopped candied oranges
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon orange blossom water
- 1 cup slivered raw pistachios
- 3 tablespoons orange jam
- Sift together the flour, cocoa powder and the salt.
- Cream the coconut oil with the brown sugar and the orange marmalade.
- Add the flour mixture and beat until the dough becomes crumbly. Add couple tablespoons of cold water and beat until you have smooth dough. Cut the dough into 8 balls.
- Dust a work surface with flour. Roll each ball into 5-inch circles. Use a dough scraper to remove the dough and place it over a 4-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.Gently press the dough to the edge and center of the tart pan. With a small knife to trim the excess.
- Place the tart pans on a cookie sheet and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- Bake the tarts in a 375 F. for 12 minutes. Remove from the oven, place on a wire rack and allow the tarts to cool.
- To make the the cream, mix the corn starch with the coconut milk, the candied oranges, the sugar, half of the pistachio and the candied oranges. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the sauce thicken. Stir in the orange blossom water. Cool sightly and spoon into the tart shells.
- Sprinkle the rest of the slivered pistachios over the tarts.
- Warm up the orange jam and drizzle over the pistachio. Serve and enjoy