Thyme herb benefits

Thyme herb benefits abound but, for me, the big one is outstanding flavour. I add a sprig to our Eggs Florentine every morning.

In these days of double-blinded studies and research in respected scientific journals, one hesitates to make outlandish claims.

But of the taste of thyme there can be no question. It is just beautiful in any number of dishes.

This page was last updated by Bernard Preston on 9th March, 2023.

Today we will look at roasted butternut with thyme; winter squash as the North Americans call it. It is pure heaven.

Yes heaven because butternut is definitely one of the good Lord's gifts to mankind and we ignore it at our peril. Loaded with beta carotene, fibre and old-fashioned superb taste it is a winner; there is absolutely no need for flavour enhancers. Small amounts of the pumpkin family is the ancient treatment of choice for type 2 diabetes.

• Pumpkin for diabetes
  

Used since antiquity for a variety of purposes from embalming the dead to giving us courage in difficult times, I love it with butternut. You may find many other uses for it like its culinary benefits in cheeses and wines; and in olive recipes. Fava beans with cream and thyme is another of our favourites.

Perhaps I should try a few sprigs in my honey brown beer.

It grows like a weed incidentally. Just get a root from a friend and put it in a pot with well-rotted compost, and you will have a lifetime of pleasure; thyme is a perennial. It withstands both heat and cold, and if you forget to water the plant, it will survive.

Thyme herb benefits

Thyme herb benefits are all about a phenol compound called thymol. A German expert panel has given approval for its use in the treatment of bronchitis, cough and upper respiratory tract infections^[1].

Perhaps in these dark days it may even give us some protection against Corona-19; it is after all just a particularly nasty flu affecting the lungs in particular.

Claimed benefits are declared by the dozen, but whether it will give you courage, I have my doubts. But it does contain that thymol which has proven antiseptic properties; put a sprig in your hand-sanitiser to help give protection against viruses.

It also has anti-fungal virtues, as in athletes' foot and is often used to reduce candida in patients on treatment for malignancies.

In addition thyme has antibiotic properties.

And as an anti-oxidant it lends virtue to any meal.

For me it is just one of those weeds that we try to use to flavour our food on a regular basis. I am convinced that it is because we include herbs like thyme daily in our meals that we very rarely have need for drugs and antibiotics.

Can you imagine consulting your medical doctor less than once a year? And then only because you got a speck of brick dust in your eye whilst chasing a wall with an angle-grinder; or to get clearance to donate blood in your dotage?

Start looking to add a rainbow of coloured foods and plenty of herbs to your cooking. 

Neither of us have had any drugs for over a year and it is not impossible that these medicinal herbs are one of the reasons.

I regularly see our bees in the thyme flowers, so these phenols will also be found in the raw honey we enjoy daily.

Roasted butternut

Roasted butternut is surely one of my favourite foods, rich in beta-carotene; thyme herb benefits abound. However, remember that roasting vegetables raises the glycemic index; if you have a weight problem, rather boil it or have a very small portion.

Or learn about retrogradation of starch; chill your starches overnight in the refrigerator and reheat them the next day. They will be much less fattening. Test your blood glucose after a meal if you are diabetic; perhaps just a very small portion.

Test with a fork if it is tender right down to the skin. I like my butternut well roasted; the garlic, thyme and chili make it divine, each adding their anti-inflammatory properties.

And yes butter is back. A conclusive study of 80 of the main research projects on cholesterol prove that margarine has no benefit.

Here is more information on roasted butternut squash recipe.

Solar power

Becoming a greenie does change your habits; because we are able to bake our roasted butternut with thyme using solar power, most of our cooking that requires plenty of energy is done during the day.

We have not contemplated going off the grid because that would mean considerable inconvenience, though not hardship.

The early morning cup of tea I am enjoying was brewed using solar power since we upgraded to lithium ion batteries. I am just wondering what a touch of thyme herb benefits would do for the cuppa?

But with 10kW of residential solar panels we certainly could manage without the utility if push came to shove.

Mind you we do store up hot water, boiled when we have excess solar power, in thermos flasks.

Hummus

Butternut hummus is just one of hundreds of delicious and nutritious chickpea recipes; slip in some thyme herb benefits.

Keep a scoop of your roasted butternut back to go in your favourite authentic hummus recipe.

If you are eating low glycemic foods like these on a regular basis, you need have no fears of cholesterol or obesity; the pumpkin family was used in many ancient cultures to treat diabetes. The flavour and herb benefits of your thyme will infuse the hummus.

• Pumpkin for diabetes
  

Organic butternut

Organic butternut is worth a thought if you have a large garden; it is not difficult but they do have a long growing season.

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Butternut need deep compost to grow in; they are heavy feeders.

Actually the best organic butternut grows right out of the compost heap; your thyme herb will flourish there too, but it is easier in a pot at the kitchen door.

I especially love two or three sprigs of thyme herb benefits in our eggs Florentine.

In short our thyme herb is a plant to grow in your own garden, rather than buy dried in bottles that age and get oxidised. It is so easy, and has beautiful blue flowers that the bees love, so it supports them too.

Banting diet

The Banting diet is not one of my favourites, in fact I have none to recommend, but it does help folk lose a substantial amount of weight, without feeling famished, and dramatically reduce the insulin needed by diabetics. Neither butternut nor chickpeas are allowed, yet both have a very low glycemic index. Thyme herb benefits are not frowned upon though.

I am on a new little expedition to find out what entirely whole carbs like our 100% wholemeal bread, new potatoes and fresh corn on the cob straight from the garden will do to our blood sugar.

It is unfortunately almost impossible to purchase what the British are now calling real bread; you have to grind the wheat for wholemeal flour and bake it yourself.

Use the Site Search button to find the link to the "Banting diet."

Choice foods

Nutritious choice foods should include a wide range of coloured carotenes. Enjoying eight to ten such delights every day research shows it will reduce the all-cause of death by a massive 35%.

Nutritious choice foods should regularly include organic greens, yellows and purples; your thyme herb benefits are just a very small part of the deal.

• Organic butternut

Bernard Preston

Bernard Preston is a semiretired DC with a passion for zestful living and delicious meals with herbs; weeds he calls them. Thyme herb benefits in bobotie recipes is one of his latest favourites.

• Fast nutritious dinner recipes.

Carbohydrate count chart and the meaning of glycemic index is the secret to easier weight loss. Forget that nasty word diet; none of them work in the long term.

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