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10 Easy Ways to Make Green Foods Part of Your Everyday Diet - and
Love Them!
© 2008 Karen Knowler
It's rare that you come across someone who LOVES eating green foods,
but that doesn't have to be the case for any of us. Not only can
green foods be delicious they can make us feel fantastic, helping to
cleanse and rebuild even the most jaded of bodies and spirits.
When I first got into raw foods I admit I was one of those raw
fooders who relied heavily on fresh juicy fruits, dried fruits and
nuts, and most days I'd eat a salad, but it wasn't what I'd now call
a "decent" salad. And that's because I've since learned that it's
nowhere near enough to have some green on your plate and think
that's sufficient, because it's not! We need dark greens, ideally
wild greens and plenty of them. A plate of iceberg lettuce simply
won't make the grade : )
So in this article I'm sharing with you 10 different ideas to get
greens into your daily diet and love them, because not only is it
possible, it's vital!
1: The Green Smoothie
Through various mediums I've shared what I consider to be the
easiest/ most yummy green smoothie recipe - Mango & Spinach, so
hopefully you're up to speed with what they are? (Brief explanation:
A large amount of leafy green vegetables blended with some
great-tasting ripe fruit of your choice to a soup or smoothie
consistency). So how do we incorporate them into our diet? Good
times of the day for drinking a green smoothie are: first thing for
breakfast (start as you mean to go on - if you start your day with
this you'll feel set up for the day ahead and plenty full enough
until lunch time); as a brunch if you get hungry between breakfast
and lunch time; as a liquid lunch if you are pressed for time; as a
pre-dinner course, perfect served as a drink or even a soup; as a
supper if you're not hungry enough to eat a 'proper' dinner, or if
you've come in late from work or a night out and don't want to eat
before bed.
2: Variety is the Spice of Life
We are all guilty of falling into ruts with our eating habits,
eating the same things over and over again, but it's important in
all diets to eat a wide variety of foods for pleasure and nutrition.
So too is it important to choose a wide variety of greens from the
vast range of green leafy vegetables (and herbs) and not just
finding one and sticking with it. Here's a starter list of green
leafies that you can use as a checklist. Whichever ones you haven't
eaten for a while (or ever!) make it your personal project to hunt
them down and try them out - starting this week!
Beet greens * Chicory * Chard * Endive * Kale, flat green * Kale,
curly * Lamb's lettuce * Lettuce, Batavia * Lettuce, cos * Lettuce,
flat * Lettuce, iceberg * Mizuna * Rocket (arugula) * Spinach *
Turnip greens * Basil * Chervil * Chickweed * Chive * Comfrey leaves
* Coriander * Dandelion * Dillweed * Garlic mustard * Lovage *
Mallow * Marjoram * Mint * Nettle * Oregano * Parsley * Peppermint *
Purslane * Raspberry leaf * Rosemary * Sage * Salad burnet *
Shepherd's purse * Sorrel * Spearmint * Watercress * Wild celery *
Wild garlic * Yarrow
3: Green Soups
Green Soups are similar to green smoothies but are thicker, and
obviously are looked on as meals rather than drinks. There are some
great green soup recipes around. One of my personal favourites is
Green Ginger Soup which is based on a Frederic Patenaude recipe of
many years ago. It goes like this: Simply take the following
ingredients and blend in your food processor, blender or Vita-Mix
until smooth: 1 cup diced tomatoes, ½ cup water, 2 cups spinach, ½
avocado, ½" fresh ginger, juice of ½ lemon, 1Tbsp olive oil. Serves
1. It's truly delicious.
4: Take a Walk on the Wild Side
It's rarely mentioned but I need to here - it's vital for all of us
to eat wild greens. These greens are (for the most part) as natural
and potent as you're going to get because they're (typically)
untouched by man and have not been treated in any way. So arm
yourself with a guide book such as Food for Free and a carrier bag
(and gloves if you're going to pick nettles) and take yourself off
for a walk to your nearest wood, farm or leafy park and see what you
can find. Of course the great thing about this route is that the
food is free, abundant and it's going to be fresh, fresh, fresh! AND
you really feel the difference when you eat wild foods - they're
electric! Great in juices, smoothies, various savoury recipes and of
course any salads too.
5: Green Juices
Green juices are of course another great way to get the greens in.
The difference between smoothies and juices is fibre - juices have
no fibre, whereas smoothies have ALL of the fibre, but if you find
smoothies too bulky or you just don't like them, then juicing is a
great alternative. The secret of a good green juice is to work with
1-3 strong green leaves such as kale, spinach, watercress, parley,
wheatgrass etc, then add cucumber and/or celery for more liquid and
extra vitamins and minerals, and if you feel your juice needs
sweetening, add a little apple, pear, carrot, red bell pepper, lemon
or lime. There's nothing like a green juice for lifting your energy
and mind, especially first thing in the morning. Don't forget, to
juice greens you need a juicer that is capable of handling them,
such as a Samson or Green Star - most centrifugals won't be able to
handle them.
6: Herbs
Herbs are nature's medicine and also one of the chef's best allies.
Herbs are so delicious and so fresh tasting that I encourage you to
eat fresh herbs at least once per day. Add them to your smoothies,
juices, to your salads and your savoury recipes. Line your window
sills with them, they look stunning! Fresh herbs really do make all
the difference.
7: Wheatgrass
Wheatgrass is the mother of all greens, really. There are many ways
you can take wheatgrass, but obviously freshly juiced is best. For
more information about wheatgrass, including the many ways to take
it and its benefits,
click here.
8: The Kale & Avocado Salad!
I've published this recipe a number of times but for those who
missed it you'll find it again in a moment (or you can watch me demo
it in person
right here). This salad is something that I rave about
constantly. Everyone who tries it seems to adore it AND then goes on
to incorporate it into their everyday life, not just now and again
but daily! Why? Because it's quick, easy and delicious and very
versatile AND it enables you to happily eat tons of dark leafy
greens! This is what you do:
Finely chop as much kale as you think you can eat plus a little more
(it shrinks). Make the pieces fairly small, say 1-2cm square, and
set aside in a bowl. Then pour on some olive oil (flax oil is good
too, as are others) and sprinkle on a little good quality salt such
as Celtic sea salt or Himalayan Crystal Salt, or Herbamare. Next,
massage the oil and salt into the leaves until the kale becomes
'wilted' and glistens. At this point the kale suddenly appears
extremely appetizing and you can start to see the potential! Next
add half to one avocado and massage that in to the leaves as well.
Now you have coated kale. Next, give a good squeeze of lemon juice
and mix it all in by hand. Taste test. Add more lemon if you want/
need to. Finally, add in your favourite ingredients. For me this
means sundried tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, occasionally spring onions
(scallions), and sometimes I'll sprinkle on some garlic or onion
powder, or even curry powder! Whatever takes your fancy. And
sometimes I dress it with a cup of macadamias blended with ½ cup
water and onion powder added. When you have all your ingredients
well mixed in, sample a little and add anything that you think might
be missing (highly unlikely!) and then sit down, exhale and enjoy!
9: The Superfood Smoothie
Superfood smoothies are never going to be as good as real live fresh
green smoothies, but when your fridge is bare then turn to your
cupboards and pull out your Nature's Living Superfood (Vita Mineral
Greens/ Nature's First Food in USA) or other favourite green
superfood powder and whip up a smoothie with it and other chosen
ingredients.
This recipe is a classic and a good few years old now; I have been
teaching it at my one day classes for years, and although at first
glance people were a bit put-off by it's "swamp-like" appearance,
there was never one single person who didn't go "Mmmm!" when they
actually tried it...
Ingredients:
* Fresh, ripe bananas (1-2 large per person) and/or frozen for
cooler creamier drink
* 1 Tablespoon of Nature's Living Superfood (also known as Nature's
First Food or Vita Mineral Green in the US)
* Dates (soaked if dried) - Medjool or honey dates are the best
* Pure water (to desired consistency)
Directions
1) Pop all ingredients in a blender. Add a cup or two of water and
blend.
2) If you are happy with the consistency then taste-test. If it's
too thick, add more water and blend again, then taste-test.
3) If it's too green for you add more bananas. If it's not green
enough add more superfood. If it's not sweet enough add more dates.
If it's perfect, drink!
10: Your Own Special Way
Each of us develops favourite ways of doing things over time.
Periodically, for example, I will take E3 Live or wheatgrass juice,
and then "let go of it" when my body no longer asks for it.
Similarly, green superfoods work the same way, as do herbs and all
manner of other raw foods in my dietary vocabulary. If you've
discovered a green recipe that you simply adore and that you feel
will be of interest to others, why not share it with the world by
emailing it to me and I will put all the suggestions on my blog.
Please send your ideas to me at
karen@therawfoodcoach.com.
© 2008 Karen Knowler
Karen Knowler, The Raw Food Coach publishes "Successfully Raw" - a free
weekly eZine for raw food lovers everywhere. If you're ready to look
good, feel great and create a raw life you love get your FREE tips,
tools and recipes now at
www.TheRawFoodCoach.com.
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