By Angelica Romero-Quintana
Clinic Manager, Valley-Wide Health Systems
- Start the day with leafy greens in your breakfast. Eat leftover veggies from dinner the night before, drink a green smoothie, add some greens to your eggs, there are several possibilities here.
- Green smoothies or juices. If you’re not a huge fan of eating all of your green veggie servings, drink them! I usually toss a handful of kale, spinach or Swiss chard along with a scoop of protein powder, half an avocado, berries, ice and water or coconut milk in my smoothie.
- Salads, of course. Make hearty salads with different flavor combinations that you love and you’ll start to look forward to leafy green salads all the time… switch up the greens and add some protein, nuts or fruit, and a tasty dressing.
- Add them to wraps, sandwiches, even to your burger patties! Piling on the greens is easy when they compliment or blend in with the other flavors of your sandwich or wrap. I also love to add chopped spinach and green onion to my burger patties (bean, veggie, or meat.)
- Toss them in your soups, stews, chili, and so on. If I have veggies I need to use before they go bad, I chop everything I have up and boil it in chicken broth and a can of tomatoes. Veggie soup, DONE.
- Take advantage of herbs to add flavor and nutrition! When my garden is not in full swing, I keep glass jars of fresh, washed cilantro & parsley (roots submerged in water) in my fridge so I can tear off some herbs whenever I want to throw them into dishes, on top of salads, or add them to smoothies. They’re also handy for making pestos that you can add to your zoodles.
- Add them to your main dish for dinner. I love to add chard, arugula, or kale to whatever I’m having for dinner. Tacos? Add extra lettuce, or cabbage if they’re chicken tacos. Throw extra spinach on those homemade pizzas, so many things to do here, just add some color!
- Switch up your usual snack and make (or buy) kale chips! There are a million different recipes floating around the internet that use various spices and flavors to customize kale chips.
- Stock your kitchen with them and try different types. It’s Farmer’s Market season, get up and out early Saturday morning and see what new fresh greens they have for sale. Be brave & try something new.
- Make preparing and eating them easy! Once you’ve bought (or grown) the greens you need, wash, cut and prep them so they’re ready to be eaten anytime. When it’s time to make a meal, you can literally grab them out of the fridge and make whatever you feel like! With my excess of greens this time of year I chop up a large Tupperware full of greens so they’re ready to go for any meal.
