Go Greens This Spring

The eating of collard greens and kale dates back to prehistoric times. They are a part of the cabbage family, but American settlers didn’t know the difference between all of them, so they were classified as ‘greens’.

The traditional Southern style of cooking greens by immersing them in simmering water until tender was introduced in the 1600s. But that traditional recipe — including ham hock, lard, and loads of spices — is not part of the healthy and light beverage I’ll be exploring today.

Healthy Healthy Healthy

Greens — mustard, collard, chard, spinach, kale, bok choy, dandelion, parsley, and turnip and beet leaves — are loaded with minerals like calcium, essential for strong bones. They also provide stress-fighting B vitamins and help our eyes with vitamin A.

When cooked, greens provide more than nine times the recommended amount of vitamin K, which helps our blood clot. The USDA recommends we eat a minimum of 3 cups of dark leafy greens a week. How would you feel if you could get those three cups in one large glass?

Greens Galore can contain any kind of green leafy vegetable. Some are more nutrient dense, while others taste better. But by combining very important, nutrient-dense foods in one juice, you can get the best of both worlds while doing your body a galore of goodness.

Mixing it up

Make sure you thoroughly wash your greens. Some of the leaves come from right on top of the ground and are usually covered in grit and sand. As for the greens, use a combination of the leafy ones, like dandelion and parsley, along with the more bitter ones, like swiss chard or mustard.

To offset the bitterness of the greens, use in combination with a high-water-content food such as celery or cucumber, and add a fruit for sweetness like Granny Smith apples, green grapes, or even kiwi. For greater benefit, add other green veggies like broccoli, brussels sprouts, romaine lettuce, or even green beans.

The idea is to get greens galore. Below is just one example. Each week, change it up and get green this Spring!

Ingredients

• 2 limes, zest removed
• ½ bunch Swiss chard
• ½ bunch kale
• ½ bunch dandelion
• ½ cucumber
• 2 Granny Smith apples

Instructions

Process all ingredients through the juicer. Pour and enjoy.