High cholesterol diet results in LESS heart disease risk for men and women

This post features a summary of a study published in Metabolism 2004 Jun;53(6):823-30 and a recipe for braised lamb shanks with coriander, fennel and star anise.

Books:

Study title and authors:

High intake of cholesterol results in less atherogenic low-density lipoprotein particles in men and women independent of response classification.

Herron KL, Lofgren IE, Sharman M, Volek JS, Fernandez ML.

Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15164336

52 subjects, 27 women and 25 men (18 to 50 years) had either 640 mg/d additional dietary cholesterol (by eggs) or placebo 0 mg/d additional dietary cholesterol diet for 30 days to investigate the effects of cholesterol on heart disease.

The study revealed that the consumption of a high cholesterol diet produced less of the (bad) type B LDL cholesterol and more of the relatively benign type A LDL cholesterol and therefore lowered the risk of heart disease.

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Recipe of the day

Braised Lamb Shanks with Coriander, Fennel and Star Anise

Ingredients:

Food Mall: Lamb Shanks

4 lamb shanks

30ml/2tbsp coriander seeds

30ml/2tbsp fennel seeds

Salt and freshly milled black pepper

30ml/2tbsp olive oil

2 small onions, peeled and cut into wedges

4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

2 celery stalks, roughly chopped

300ml/½pint Port

750ml/1½pint good, hot lamb stock

2 bay leaves

2 star anise

1 small butternut squash or pumpkin, skinned, deseeded and roughly cubed

Method:

1.Preheat the oven to Gas mark 3, 170°C, 325°F.

2.Heat a non-stick pan and dry fry the coriander and fennel seeds for 2-3 minutes, tossing the pan frequently.

3.Transfer to either a mortar and pestle or blender and grind to a fine powder. Season the shanks with salt and pepper and coat in the spices.

4.Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan and brown the lamb shanks on both sides for 6-8 minutes, turning occasionally. Transfer to a large ovenproof casserole dish. In the same frying pan add the onions, garlic and celery. Cook for 1-2 minutes and add to the casserole dish with the lamb. Add the remaining ingredients except the butternut squash or pumpkin.

5.Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover and cook in the oven for 2½-3 hours until the meat falls away from the bone. 30 minutes before the end of the cooking time, add the butternut squash or marrow, mix well, cover and return to the oven for the remaining cooking time.

6.Remove the star anise and serve the shanks with a creamy cheese mash and sautéed marrow and tomatoes.