Spanish Poppy Seeds for Baking

Poppy seeds are nutritious and can be used in a great variety of dishes. They possess some unique healing properties that made them extremely popular among the healers of old. Nowadays, poppy plants are grown commercially in many countries, and every kind has some unique features. The most popular are poppy seeds from England, Australia, Holland, and Spain.

Spanish Poppy Seeds Health Benefits

Poppy seeds from Spain are dark gray, almost black. The most essential health benefits offered by them are:

* Poppy seeds serve as a rich source of essential minerals. They provide your body with large amounts of iodine, calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron, zinc and copper. Therefore, including them in your diet reduces the risk of developing diseases caused by deficiencies of these elements, like osteoporosis, heart disease, cancer, etc.
* They provide your body with essential vitamins. Like with the minerals, poppy seeds help prevent vitamin deficiencies because they are packed with these essential elements. B vitamins make up most of their nutritional value in this regard, especially thiamin (100 g of seeds contain 71% of the required daily dose). These vitamins affect metabolism and thereby influence your overall health.
* They lower "bad" (LDL) cholesterol. Poppy seeds from Spain are full of oleic acid, which is a monounsaturated fat that helps control the level of LDL cholesterol in your blood and boosts the level of "good" HDL cholesterol.
* Poppy seeds assist your digestion by providing your body with dietary fiber. The fiber you get from these seeds is metabolically inert. It effectively absorbs liquids and toxins from your intestines and facilitates bowel movements. Therefore, poppy seeds serve as an excellent detox aid. 100 grams of raw seeds provide you with 51% of the required daily dose of dietary fiber.
* They calm nerves and help treat some nervous system disorders.

Poppy seeds are the safest for people prone to food allergies. They are also perfectly safe for both pregnant women and children when consumed in reasonable amounts. Sports players and personnel who need to go through drug tests need to know that eating a lot of foods that contain these seeds can make them test positive for opiates (codeine, morphine, etc.). While the amounts of these elements in your system will not be high enough to produce any narcotic effects, the test results can cause a great variety of problems.

How to Use Poppy Seeds

Poppy seeds are mostly used as a condiment in pastries because they release most of their flavor when heated. They can be sprinkled on toasts, salads, or other foods similar to sesame seeds. Poppy kernels are a great addition to many sauces, especially when ground.