Kale is a new-found love of mine. I am fortunate that my friend, Brittany, grows it and is willing to share some with me. According to one of my favorite resources for whole foods nutrition, the website The World’s Healthiest Foods, kale is good for you in so many ways! Kale is truly a superfood.
Kale can help lower cholesterol levels, lower risk for certain types of cancer, aid in detoxifying your body and fight inflammation and oxidation. One cup of Kale is 36 calories and this one cup provides more than your daily supply of Vitamin K and almost all your daily supply of Vitamin A.
According to Mercola, kale contains all of the essential amino acids and 9 kinds of non-essential ones. If you are a food geek like me and need even more nutrition information, you can read The Chalkboard’s spotlight on Kale.
So, what do I do with kale? I add it to soups. I add it to omelets. I love it in quiche. Because of it’s unique flavor, I was a little skeptical about adding it to a smoothie. But, it didn’t disappoint. I use spinach in my smoothies all the time. I will admit that the kale is a bit “green” tasting compared to spinach, which I never really taste in my smoothies.
So here’s the breakdown: I used about a cup of kale. It looks like a lot more than that in this photo, but this was before I cut out the tough stems. I combined 1/2 cup of plain Greek yogurt, a couple of chunks of frozen banana, 2 tablespoons of PB2 powdered peanut butter and 1 teaspoon of maca root powder. I also added a tiny bit of water.
I add all of that to my blender and let it go. Once the kale is all combined, I add ice to the blender to make it thick.
Yum! I can’t wait to try it with other fruits. Banana and peanut butter just happen to be one of my favorite combos. I think the kale would be great in a berry smoothie or even a pineapple coconut one. Maybe this summer I will try making kale smoothie popsicles.
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