Alright, I have to admit I had a hard time selecting my favorite leafy green. First, I had to limit the poll to just 5 responses so I had to leave out a couple that I wanted to include (like arugula even though it is technically an herb). For my vote, I mostly struggled between collard greens and beet greens. While I am glad to see that I wasn’t the only person that loves beet greens, I was surprised no one selected collards.
Here is a bit of info on how you can eat your greens besides juicing or blending them in a smoothie. (Check out this WebMd article – Top 10 Leafy Green Vegetables – for more information and more greens to consider eating.)
58% Spinach – I am not surprised spinach got the most votes. Here is a spinach fact you may not be aware of. Did you know spinach is a good source of calcium? You have to cook it to really reap those benefits though. So, don’t think of spinach for only salads or smoothies. Throw a bunch in your scrambled eggs or tofu. Toss some in soup or a pasta dish. Or go super simple with a steam or saute.
18% Swiss chard – My favorite way to have swiss chard is to saute it with some coconut oil. Super delicious. If you don’t want the oil, you can squeeze orange juice on it instead. Less mature leaves can also be chopped and added to a salad.
18% Beet greens – Same as swiss chard, saute with some coconut oil, grapeseed oil, orange juice. So often beets are sold without the greens so many people don’t realize how tasty these really are. Next time you buy beets, seek ones that include the greens. Cut the greens from the beets to store them, and cut the stems from the greens too.
6% Kale – A surprisingly low score for kale. Kale can be used in many ways just like spinach. Kale chips have certainly become popular. I enjoy kale salads…just be sure to massage the kale with olive oil to help soften it up and it decreases some of the bitter flavor kale can have.
0% Collard greens – Maybe people don’t know what to do with them…or they think of southern cooked collards and think “not healthy.”
Walnut Pate & Salsa
Scrambled eggs
I mostly use collards as a wrap in place of a tortilla or bread. Yep, I have made a “sandwich wrap” with collard greens. Here are pics of a some of the wraps we have had.
