Tropical Traditions Organic Coconut Oil {Giveaway}

I remember quite a few years ago, when I was little, a big media surge about tropical oils and their assault on people's health (not sure why, as an 8 year old, that I remember this). Oils like those made from palm and coconuts were blamed for conditions like heart disease, obesity, and other health problems. Turns out that it's not necessarily the tropical oils that are the cause, but the hydrogenation process of many of these oils prior to being added to food.

I'm sure many of you know about partially hydrogenated oils (or trans fats) and how they are dangerous to our bodies. While they help stabilize foods for a long shelf life, they are awful for our hearts and bloodstreams.

Tropical Traditions, a source of 100% pure coconut oil, is trying to spread the word about the benefits of coconut oil.
I'm reminded of the avocado "campaign" back in the 90s, in that we were told for years that avocados were high in fat and bad for us, but now researchers and nutritionists have found that they are excellent sources of mono-unsaturated (good) fats.

Tropical Traditions' coconut oil is made from the least amount of processing required. Their USDA certified organic coconut oil is made in a traditional way. Here's a brief description from their website:

[We] extract the oil by grating the fresh coconut, extracting the coconut milk, and then letting the coconut milk stand in a covered container for about 24 hours. After about 24 hours, the oil naturally separates from the water producing a crystal clear oil that retains the full scent and taste of coconuts.

Their Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil honestly is wonderful to cook with. It has a light coconut fragrance that would be a great substitute for butter in a sweet recipe. I used it in my Coconut Noodles, which I made last week.
In the photo below, you see the jar of Tropical Traditions Gold Label. The actual coconut oil is the little white lump in the pan. The yellow item is a piece of ginger.
And it imparted a wonderful coconut flavor to the dish. And there are so many recipes on TT's website, which I'm eager to try out. The Cilantro Coconut Pesto sounds really good!

I really love that Tropical Traditions still makes their virgin coconut oil by hand, using traditional methods. They employ people in remote villages throughout the Philippines to make their coconut oil. Compared to commercially-prepared oils, Tropical Traditions' oil is much closer to the source and contains very high anti-oxidant levels, according to Tropical Traditions book, Virgin Coconut Oil. Here's a video of how they harvest the coconuts and make the oil:

There are so many benefits to coconut oil, and Tropical Traditions' website is full of them. They also have a book, Virgin Coconut Oil: How it has changed people’s lives and how it can change yours! touting the wonders of this oil.
I enjoyed reading the testimonials and research about all of the health benefits, and Tropical Traditions has a referral program where you can get a FREE copy of the book.

In addition to all things coconut, Tropical Traditions sells other products like skincare items, household goods, and organic pantry items, both tropical and non-tropical. Their Healthy Buyers Club offers bulk discounts too.

To get you hooked on coconut oil, Tropical Traditions would like to offer one K&K reader...

{{{{A 1 Quart jar of Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil! (worth $37.50)}}}}

To Enter:

Visit Tropical Traditions and leave a comment mentioning your favorite item.

Extra Entries (leave a separate comment for each one):

• Blog about this contest (2 entries--leave 2 comments)
• Subscribe to my updates
• Follow me on Blogger
  
• Follow me on Twitter (Katydidandkid) and tweet this giveaway, leaving a link to your tweet in the comments. You can simply copy and paste this tweet: Win a Quart of Organic Coconut Oil from Tropical Traditions ($37) http://bit.ly/fgvVh @katydidandkid @TropTraditions
• Join the Tropical Traditions mailing list
  

This giveaway is for US postal addresses only.

You must do the first entry in order to enter ("I want to win, thanks!" comments will NOT be considered). You will have until Wednesday June 24th at 11:59pm EST to enter. The winners will be chosen via random number generator the next day and notified by email. I'll also post the winners on my blog. If I don't hear back from the winner by Sunday at noon, I'll pick another.

Disclaimer: I was not paid for this post, but received a sample from the company for review.