The Powerhouse Ingredient Ancient Egyptians Used For Making Cake Is Loaded With Healthy Fats And Antioxidants

Oftentimes, food with ancient origins, such as barley or emmer wheat, can also be extremely healthy. One food cultivated in Egypt as early as 4,000 BCE, the tiger nut, is considered by many to be a superfood. It's become a popular ingredient for modern-day people interested in healthy eating, but back in ancient Egypt, it was often used to make honey cakes — the tomb of Rekhmire in Thebes includes a depiction of this process. These small tubers form the stem of yellow nutsedge, and are shaped like small, brownish, marble-sized, nut-like spheres with stripes.

If you're curious about what tiger nuts are and how you cook with them, they're similar to potatoes. Tiger nuts are a low-calorie food that happens to pack a nutritional punch: for every 1-ounce serving, they contain 120 calories; 19 grams of carbohydrates; 7 grams of fat (mostly monounsaturated fat); 10 grams of fiber; 1-2 grams of protein; and 9 grams of sugar.  Additionally, they're high in minerals and vitamins, such as antioxidants E and C. Their high fiber content, which includes both soluble and insoluble fiber, makes tiger nuts good for digestion. Just like many of the best high-fiber snacks, they keep you feeling satiated while helping to maintain steady blood glucose levels.

Tiger nuts may have originated in West Africa and traveled to Egypt, and are currently cultivated in Nigeria, Niger, Mali, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Togo, and Spain. Tiger nuts are the main ingredient in horchata de chufa, a sweet beverage similar to nut milk that's enjoyed in Spain. Many cooks use tiger nuts to make flour, then bake with it to make vegan, gluten-free, keto, and paleo treats, as well as AIP-friendly dishes, which omit eggs, dairy, and nuts. This lets you make a nut-free version of our keto-friendly carrot cake recipe, swapping tiger nut flour for almond flour in a 1:1 ratio.

You can modify a classic cookie recipe to make tiger nut chocolate chip cookies using some substitutions. Blend granulated sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil or butter, vanilla extract, sea salt, baking soda, chocolate chips, and tiger nut flour, then bake and enjoy. Additionally, if you enjoy preparing raw foods, make tiger nut bites by pulsing ground almonds, pitted dates, and apricots in a blender, then blending it with tiger nut flour, a blend of tiger nut and macadamia nut butter, chia seeds, and green anise. Add lemon juice and zest, roll the dough into a ball, and keep in the refrigerator until you're ready to shape and serve.