Balsamic Vinegar Thief: Bad Salad Craving?

The Balsamic Vinegar thief who has been striking fear in the souls of good-hearted salad lovers everywhere, continues his or her unlawful acts of habitually stealing bottles of $30 to $40 balsamic vinegar at the Newport Avenue Market in Bend, Oregon.

Salad Craving? He or she must really like a good balsamic vinaigrette on their salad. Or is there indeed an underground gourmet foods trade emerging out of Bend, OR? I doubt it.

The owners of the market have been forced to place a sign in the balsamic vinegar section of the market reading:

“Thanks to the Balsamic Vinegar Thief this area is now under surveillance. We will get you.” The last sentence, it should be noted, is underlined.

Justice will indeed be poured, I mean served.

Can’t wrap your brain around why someone would do this? Well, click forward to read about the health benefits of vinegar…

Vinegar Health Benefits

From HowStuffWorks.com:
“Although vinegar can’t cure cancer, it can help improve your general health in many ways. Vinegar benefits the digestive system, improving the absorption and utilization of several essential nutrients. Learn about the different organ systems that are affected by simply adding vinegar to your diet, and find out how you can improve your health and the taste of your vegetables at the same time.”

Possible healthy effects:

Increase absorption of calcium. Especially when added to steamed leafy greens that contain calcium, like kale and spinach.

Control Blood Sugar Levels. “It seems that vinegar may be able to inactivate some of the digestive enzymes that break the carbohydrates from food into sugar, thus slowing the absorption of sugar from a meal into the bloodstream.”

Replace fat in recipes. Vinegar adds a lot of flavor without the calories. Compare a 140 calorie serving of olive oil to vinegar and the calories in vinegar are only around five to fifteen (depending on vinegar type.)

Remove harmful substances like pesticides from produce. Some people believe that if you wash or soak your produce in a bath of water and a few tablespoons of vinegar, the pesticides will be reduced. The vinegar will help lift the unhealthy substances from your produce, and when rinsed, be more chemical free.

The unknown benefits. There are a plethora of claims about vinegar that have not been fully studied to call theories. Apple cider vinegar has been touted to cure everything from obesity to diabetes to even preventing cancer. But these claims still need solid research studies to back them up. In the mean times, you can definitely feel good about using vinegar in your foods. Vinegar has been used for thousands of years and always highly looked upon for various reasons.

However, I don’t recommend converting into a balsamic vinegar thief, whatever the health benefits may be.