“Never iron a four-leaf clover because you don’t want to push your luck.” -Author Unknown
Think Green!
If I think green, I think of green grass, leaves growing on trees, plants sprouting out of the ground and just generally having weather conducive to spending a little bit more time outside. I think spring!
The springtime is the best time to start re-introducing yourself to greens. I’m not talking just about asparagus, broccoli or green beans, but also of that whole wide group of salad greens!
Not only are they easy to prepare, but they are delicious and can be used in a never-ending list of tasty recipes.
Salad greens or leafy greens offer you a laundry list of benefits. Such as:
- Excellent sources of minerals such as Calcium & Iron
- Rich supplies of Folic Acid
- Lots of Vitamins, especially A, C, & E
- Rich source of Carotenoids
- Fiber, fiber, fiber!
- Huge antioxidant powerhouses
- Preventative cancer fighter & protector, according to recent studies
- Contains dozens of phytochemicals & micronutrients currently being studied for their positive benefits on immune function
Eating your greens is one surefire way to get all of these great benefits. But if salads aren’t your thing, consider all the other options you have.
There are a wide variety of “Green” drinks out there. Great if you enjoy the taste of freshly mown grass! Not great if you don’t.
To be honest though, I do enjoy them myself…
There are also vitamin, mineral and green supplements out there although I wouldn’t recommend relying on these entirely. Everyone’s body digests food and supplements differently. Some will get the full benefit of these supplements, some will not. Because of this, I would always go the whole food route because at least you’ll get the fiber benefit along with the vitamin benefit.
So you’re going to try greens! Great!
Now what?
Not sure what to do with those greens once you’ve gotten them home from the supermarket?
Easy!
My all-time favorite greens cookbook is one that I think EVERYONE should own.
“Greens Glorious Green!” written by Johanna Albi & Catherine Walthers
This book contains everything you’ll ever need to know about choosing the best greens, what to expect when you bring them home and how to prepare them in a way that will not only be simple, but taste incredible as well. Over 140 different recipes!
