I am embarrassed to admit that I did not know anything about ‘rye’ until Aunty Vicki introduced it to me.

Aunty Vicki and her husband, Anil visited us this year on their way back from one of their annual Pole-to-Pole trips. On their last visit to NY, they introduced us to Ryvita’s Rye crackers to have with cheese and wine. Aunty Vicki always says that rye is better than wheat, and that rye helps her with her occasionally severe migraines.

Like Aunty Vicki, I’ve had migraines all my life. So this year, I made a conscious attempt to steer clear of wheat. But, the truth is – I love wheat and I love bread. So, letting wheat go from my diet has been rough. Rye crackers, however, have made it tad bit easy – And believe you-me, my headaches are gone! (well, I still get one from time-to-time, but often that’s because I forget to drink enough water that day).

My dear reader, are you a rye-fan? I know one of my Cook Aunty chefs is! We were planning a tea-party menu yesterday and she suggested rye bread finger sandwiches for the ‘figure-conscious-tea-party ladies‘ who care about what they eat… Honestly, that’s what pushed me to write about rye today.

Hopefully, this blog post will encourage you to read about rye! Do you know that rye is supposed to promote weight loss, lower the risk of Type 2 Diabetes, prevent gallstones, promote gastrointestinal health and may even reduce cholesterol?

Start at the grocery store – and start with rye crackers – They do have a slightly sour taste but pair them with some Spanish Manchego and Malbec and they can rock your world!

Here are two articles you could refer to, if you care to know more –

Wheat or Rye: Which one is healthier?

Rye Health Benefits