Crispy Tempeh & Warming Mixed Grains In Harissa Dressing

10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

Comfort food that packs a nutritional punch! Lots of protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats, and more polyphenols than you can shake a fork at.

You will need

  • 1 lb cooked mixed whole grains (your choice what kind; gluten-free options include buckwheat, quinoa, millet)
  • 7 oz tempeh, cut into ½” cubes
  • 2 red peppers, cut into strips
  • 10 baby plum tomatoes, halved
  • 1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and diced
  • 1 bulb garlic, paperwork done but cloves left whole
  • 1 oz black olives, pitted and halved
  • 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tbsp harissa paste
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce (ideally tamari)
  • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds
  • 2 tsp black pepper, coarse ground
  • 1 tsp red chili flakes
  • 1 handful chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • ½ tsp MSG or 1 tsp low-sodium salt

Method

(we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

1) Preheat the oven to 400℉ / 200℃.

2) Combine the red pepper strips with the tomatoes, garlic, 2 tbsp of the olive oil, and the MSG/salt, tossing thoroughly to ensure an even coating. Spread them on a lined baking tray, and roast for about 25 minutes. Remove when done, and allow to cool a little.

3) Combine the tempeh with the soy sauce and nutritional yeast flakes, tossing thoroughly to ensure an even coating. Spread them on a lined baking tray, and roast for about 25 minutes, tossing regularly to ensure it is crispy on all sides. If you get started on the tempeh as soon as the vegetables are in the oven, these should be ready only a few minutes after the vegetables.

4) Whisk together the remaining olive oil and harissa paste in a small bowl, to make the dressing,

5) Mix everything in a big serving bowl. By “everything” we mean the roasted vegetables, the crispy tempeh, the mixed grains, the dressing, the chia seeds, the black pepper, the red chili flakes, and the flat leaf parsley.

6) Serve warm.

Enjoy!

Want to learn more?

For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

Take care!

Don’t Forget…

Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

Recommended

  • Tuna Steak with Protein Salad
  • The Gut-Healthiest Yogurt
    Delve into delicious yogurt enriched with fiber, probiotics, and polyphenols – a delectable and nutritious treat anytime, with easy-to-follow steps! Enjoy the perfect healthful snack.

Learn to Age Gracefully

Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails:

  • Egg Noodles vs Rice Noodles – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing egg noodles to rice noodles, we picked the egg noodles.

    Why?

    It was close—these are both quite mediocre foods. They’re neither amazing for the health nor appalling for the health (in moderation). They are both relatively low in nutrients, but they are also low in anti-nutrients, i.e. things that have a negative effect on the health.

    Their mineral profiles are similar; both are a source of selenium, manganese, phosphorus, copper, and iron. Not as good as many sources, but not devoid of nutrients either.

    Their vitamin profiles are both pitiful; rice noodles have trace amounts of various vitamins, and egg noodles have only slightly more. While eggs themselves are nutritious, the processing has robbed them of much of their value.

    In terms of macros, egg noodles have a little more fat (but the fats are healthier) and rice noodles have a lot more carbs, so this is the main differentiator, and is the main reason we chose the egg noodles over the rice noodles. Both have a comparable (small) amount of protein.

    In short:

    • They’re comparable on minerals, and vitamins here are barely worth speaking about (though egg noodles do have marginally more)
    • Egg noodles have a little more fat (but the fats are healthier)
    • Rice noodles have a lot more carbs (with a moderately high glycemic index, which is relatively worse—if you eat them with vegetables and fats, then that’ll offset this, but we’re judging the two items on merit, not your meal)

    Learn more

    You might like this previous main feature of ours:

    Should You Go Light Or Heavy On Carbs?

    Take care!

    Share This Post

  • Rose Hips vs Blueberries – Which is Healthier?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Our Verdict

    When comparing rose hips to blueberries, we picked the rose hips.

    Why?

    Both of these fruits are abundant sources of antioxidants and other polyphenols, but one of them stands out for overall nutritional density:

    In terms of macros, rose hips have about 2x the carbohydrates, and/but about 10x the fiber. That’s an easy calculation and a clear win for rose hips.

    When it comes to vitamins, rose hips have a lot more of vitamins A, B2, B3, B5, B6, C, E, K, and choline. On the other hand, blueberries boast more of vitamins B1 and B9. That’s a 9:2 lead for rose hips, even before we consider rose hips’ much greater margins of difference (kicking off with 80x the vitamin A, for instance, and many multiples of many of the others).

    In the category of minerals, rose hips have a lot more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc. Meanwhile, blueberries are not higher in any minerals.

    In short: as ever, enjoy both, but if you’re looking for nutritional density, there’s a clear winner here and it’s rose hips.

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    It’s In The Hips: Rosehip’s Benefits, Inside & Out

    Take care!

    Share This Post

  • How To Rebuild Your Cartilage

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    We’ve covered before the topic of wear-and-tear on joints such as:

    Avoiding/Managing Osteoarthritis

    But what of cartilage, in particular? A common belief is “once it’s gone, it’s gone”, but that’s not quite right.

    Cartilage is living tissue (metabolically active, with living cells). Within this tissue, specialist cells called chondrocytes produce extracellular cartilage matrix and collagen fibers, which provide smooth joint gliding as well as shock absorption.

    Is exercise good or bad for cartilage?

    Yes, yes it is. Exercise is good or bad for cartilage depending on the details:

    • High-impact exercise e.g. running, jumping) places stress on cartilage, which is broadly bad
    • However, impact loading strengthens the subchondral bone plate (layer under cartilage)

    Strengthening this bone layer can help in long-term adaptation for high-impact sports.

    See also: Resistance Is Useful! (Especially As We Get Older)

    So, how to do that without wiping out your cartilage first?

    Building up

    A gradual process is what’s called-for here:

    1. Start with cyclic, non-impact moderate resistance exercises (e.g. cycling, rowing, swimming).
    2. Gradually add soft-impact loading (e.g. fast walking, soft jogging).
    3. Incorporate strength training to improve overall joint stability (e.g. leg press, for lower body joints)
    4. Slowly transition to running and jumping over a long period to allow tissues to adapt.

    How exactly you go about that is a matter of personal taste, but here are some illustrative examples:

    • Indoor* cycling
    • Cross trainer
    • Leg press machine
    • Tennis

    *Why indoor? It’s so that you can control the resistance level at the twist of a knob, and get on and off when you want.

    See also: Treadmill vs Road ← for similar considerations when it comes to walking/running. Outdoor definitely has its advantages, but so does indoor!

    And the very related: How To Do HIIT (Without Wrecking Your Body)

    Note that HIIT is High Intensity Interval Training, not High Impact Interval Training!

    Strength from the inside

    One of the most important things for cartilage is collagen. You can supplement that, or if you’re vegetarian/vegan, you can take its constituent parts to improve your own synthesis of it.

    See: Collagen For Your Skin, Joints, & Bones: We Are Such Stuff As Fish Are Made Of

    Another supplement that can be helpful is glucosamine & chondroitin, which is best taken alongside a good omega-3 intake:

    Effects of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate on Cartilage Metabolism in OA: Outlook on Other Nutrient Partners Especially Omega-3 Fatty Acids

    Want to know more?

    This book is technically about (re)building strength and mobility in the case of arthritis specifically, but if your joints have more wear than you’d like, you may find this one an invaluable resource:

    Yoga Therapy for Arthritis: A Whole-Person Approach to Movement and Lifestyle – by Dr. Steffany Moonaz & Erin Byron

    Take care!

    Share This Post

Related Posts

  • Tuna Steak with Protein Salad
  • Bird flu has been detected in a pig in the US. Why does that matter?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    The United States Department of Agriculture last week reported that a pig on a backyard farm in Oregon was infected with bird flu.

    As the bird flu situation has evolved, we’ve heard about the A/H5N1 strain of the virus infecting a range of animals, including a variety of birds, wild animals and dairy cattle.

    Fortunately, we haven’t seen any sustained spread between humans at this stage. But the detection of the virus in a pig marks a worrying development in the trajectory of this virus.

    David MG/Shutterstock

    How did we get here?

    The most concerning type of bird flu currently circulating is clade 2.3.4.4b of A/H5N1, a strain of influenza A.

    Since 2020, A/H5N1 2.3.4.4b has spread to a vast range of birds, wild animals and farm animals that have never been infected with bird flu before.

    While Europe is a hotspot for A/H5N1, attention is currently focused on the US. Dairy cattle were infected for the first time in 2024, with more than 400 herds affected across at least 14 US states.

    Bird flu has enormous impacts on farming and commercial food production, because infected poultry flocks have to be culled, and infected cows can result in contaminated diary products. That said, pasteurisation should make milk safe to drink.

    While farmers have suffered major losses due to H5N1 bird flu, it also has the potential to mutate to cause a human pandemic.

    Birds and humans have different types of receptors in their respiratory tract that flu viruses attach to, like a lock (receptors) and key (virus). The attachment of the virus allows it to invade a cell and the body and cause illness. Avian flu viruses are adapted to birds, and spread easily among birds, but not in humans.

    So far, human cases have mainly occurred in people who have been in close contact with infected farm animals or birds. In the US, most have been farm workers.

    The concern is that the virus will mutate and adapt to humans. One of the key steps for this to happen would be a shift in the virus’ affinity from the bird receptors to those found in the human respiratory tract. In other words, if the virus’ “key” mutated to better fit with the human “lock”.

    A recent study of a sample of A/H5N1 2.3.4.4b from an infected human had worrying findings, identifying mutations in the virus with the potential to increase transmission between human hosts.

    Why are pigs a problem?

    A human pandemic strain of influenza can arise in several ways. One involves close contact between humans and animals infected with their own specific flu viruses, creating opportunities for genetic mixing between avian and human viruses.

    Pigs are the ideal genetic mixing vessel to generate a human pandemic influenza strain, because they have receptors in their respiratory tracts which both avian and human flu viruses can bind to.

    This means pigs can be infected with a bird flu virus and a human flu virus at the same time. These viruses can exchange genetic material to mutate and become easily transmissible in humans.

    The Conversation, CC BY-SA

    Interestingly, in the past pigs were less susceptible to A/H5N1 viruses. However, the virus has recently mutated to infect pigs more readily.

    In the recent case in Oregon, A/H5N1 was detected in a pig on a non-commercial farm after an outbreak occurred among the poultry housed on the same farm. This strain of A/H5N1 was from wild birds, not the one that is widespread in US dairy cows.

    The infection of a pig is a warning. If the virus enters commercial piggeries, it would create a far greater level of risk of a pandemic, especially as the US goes into winter, when human seasonal flu starts to rise.

    How can we mitigate the risk?

    Surveillance is key to early detection of a possible pandemic. This includes comprehensive testing and reporting of infections in birds and animals, alongside financial compensation and support measures for farmers to encourage timely reporting.

    Strengthening global influenza surveillance is crucial, as unusual spikes in pneumonia and severe respiratory illnesses could signal a human pandemic. Our EPIWATCH system looks for early warnings of such activity, which can speed up vaccine development.

    If a cluster of human cases occurs, and influenza A is detected, further testing (called subtyping) is essential to ascertain whether it’s a seasonal strain, an avian strain from a spillover event, or a novel pandemic strain.

    Early identification can prevent a pandemic. Any delay in identifying an emerging pandemic strain enables the virus to spread widely across international borders.

    Australia’s first human case of A/H5N1 occurred in a child who acquired the infection while travelling in India, and was hospitalised with illness in March 2024. At the time, testing revealed Influenza A (which could be seasonal flu or avian flu), but subtyping to identify A/H5N1 was delayed.

    This kind of delay can be costly if a human-transmissible A/H5N1 arises and is assumed to be seasonal flu because the test is positive for influenza A. Only about 5% of tests positive for influenza A are subtyped further in Australia and most countries.

    In light of the current situation, there should be a low threshold for subtyping influenza A strains in humans. Rapid tests which can distinguish between seasonal and H5 influenza A are emerging, and should form part of governments’ pandemic preparedness.

    A higher risk than ever before

    The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that the current risk posed by H5N1 to the general public remains low.

    But with H5N1 now able to infect pigs, and showing worrying mutations for human adaptation, the level of risk has increased. Given the virus is so widespread in animals and birds, the statistical probability of a pandemic arising is higher than ever before.

    The good news is, we are better prepared for an influenza pandemic than other pandemics, because vaccines can be made in the same way as seasonal flu vaccines. As soon as the genome of a pandemic influenza virus is known, the vaccines can be updated to match it.

    Partially matched vaccines are already available, and some countries such as Finland are vaccinating high-risk farm workers.

    C Raina MacIntyre, Professor of Global Biosecurity, NHMRC L3 Research Fellow, Head, Biosecurity Program, Kirby Institute, UNSW Sydney and Haley Stone, Research Associate, Biosecurity Program, Kirby Institute & CRUISE lab, Computer Science and Engineering, UNSW Sydney

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

    Learn to Age Gracefully

    Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails:

  • 7 Minutes, 30 Days, Honest Review: How Does The 7-Minute Workout Stack Up?

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    For those who don’t like exercising, “the 7-minute workout” (developed by exercise scientists Chris Jordan and Bret Klika) has a lot of allure. After all, it’s just 7 minutes and then you’re done! But how well does it stand up, outside of the lab?

    Down-to-Earth

    Business Insider’s Kelly Reilly is not a health guru, and here he reviews the workout for us, so that we can get a real view of what it’s really like in the real world. What does he want us to know?

    • It’s basically an optimized kind of circuit training, and can be done with no equipment aside from a floor, a wall, and a chair
    • It’s one exercise for 30 seconds, then 10 seconds rest, then onto the next exercise
    • He found it a lot easier to find the motivation to do this, than go to the gym. After all “it’s just 7 minutes” is less offputting than getting in the car, driving someplace, using public facilities, driving back, etc. Instead, it’s just him in the comfort of his home
    • The exercise did make him sweat and felt like a “real” workout in that regard
    • He didn’t like missing out on training his biceps, though, since there are no pulling movements
    • He lost a little weight over the course of the month, though that wasn’t his main goal (and indeed, he was not eating healthily)
    • He did feel better each day after working out, and at the end of the month, he enjoyed feeling self-confident in a tux that now fitted him better than it did before

    For more details, his own words, and down-to-earth visuals of what this looked like for him, enjoy:

    Click Here If The Embedded Video Doesn’t Load Automatically!

    Further reading

    Want to know more? Check out…

    Take care!

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

    Learn to Age Gracefully

    Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails:

  • The Natural Facelift – by Sophie Perry

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    First, what this book isn’t: it’s mostly not about beauty, and it’s certainly not about ageist ideals of “hiding” aging.

    The author herself discusses the privilege that is aging (not everyone gets to do it) and the importance of taking thankful pride in our lived-in bodies.

    The title and blurb belie the contents of the book rather. Doubtlessly the publisher felt that extrinsic beauty would sell better than intrinsic wellbeing. As for what it’s actually more about…

    Ever splashed your face in cold water to feel better? This book’s about revitalising the complex array of facial muscles (there are anatomical diagrams) and the often-tired and very diverse tissues that cover them, complete with the array of nerve endings very close to your CNS (not to mention the vagus nerve running just behind your jaw), and some of the most important blood vessels of your body, serving your brain.

    With all that in mind, this book, full of useful therapeutic techniques, is a very, very far cry from “massage like this and you’ll look like you got photoshopped”.

    The style varies, as some parts of explanation of principles, or anatomy, and others are hands-on (literally) guides to the exercises, but it is all very clear and easy to understand/follow.

    Bottom line: aspects of conventional beauty may be a side-effect of applying the invigorating exercises described in this book. The real beauty is—literally—more than skin-deep.

    Click here to check out The Natural Facelift, and order yours!

    Don’t Forget…

    Did you arrive here from our newsletter? Don’t forget to return to the email to continue learning!

    Learn to Age Gracefully

    Join the 98k+ American women taking control of their health & aging with our 100% free (and fun!) daily emails: