Ah, superfoods. The lonesome gastronomic warriors. What is a superfood and why the reputation? Superfoods contain awesome amounts of goodness inside a small amount of edible mass. It’s for the healthy to consume, the modern mother on the go to devour in the car with a rack of busied children behind her. It is for the modern office whiz as he prepares for a big meeting with the big boss. Below we look into a few of the plethora of superfoods that are on sale today.
Kale
Here is the pinnacle of a modern superfood. Green, sourish and easy to prepare. It has risen past other superfoods to great heights. The leafy green vegetable is high in calcium, iron, fiber, Vitamins A and K. It is also a great anti-inflammatory benefits and a great detox food to keep your body and liver healthy.
Kale is a great accompaniment to most other foods. You can bake, boil, steam or fry kale. It will add flavor and texture to any dish. All that plus a machine gun amount of nutrients to boot. Its strong taste and versatility as a vegetable allows you to use kale in many dishes. Soups, snacks or salads, maybe even an omelet.
Brussels sprouts
In its raw form, the Brussels sprout is jam packed with vitamins. Goodness such as vitamins C, K, B, and B6 are present, teaming up with dietary fiber and folic acid to weigh in as a serious contender in the fight for health. The fight for your health doesn’t stop there; it is being researched for its potential to fight cancer with its naturally gifted sulforaphane. This is the weapon that Brussels sprout grower career paths are banking on for its future on the shop shelves and dinner plates of the world.
You can boil them or stir fry at your will. Boiling, however, does reduce or destroy the goodness in the vegetable while a stir fry is known to keep pretty much all the healthy benefits of its vitamin arsenal intact. The ever adaptable sprout is also good for roasting (best for flavor,) steaming and grilling. They can also be pickled and of course thrown across the dinner table as tiny green missiles for energized children.
Its Achilles heel is the delicate balance when cooking. Too much and it smells of sulfur, too little and you may as well eat a golf ball.
Beetroot
A messy reddened substance that has all the hallmarks of a superfood. Historically, the Beetroot has been used medicinally and gastronomically. It is a good source of iron and folate and contains nitrates and antioxidants among others. It has even been hailed a weapon against dementia and has anti-inflammatory benefits. The nitrates are turned into nitric oxide which in turn helps lower blood pressure and boosts performance in exercise and brain function.
The eating of it can be messy so prepare for your kitchen to have the occasional reddish stain. Among the ways beets can be eaten are in salads, pickled, roasted, juiced, and boiled.
Whatever your take on so-called superfoods, you’d be missing out on a super you if you didn’t at least one or all three of them. You just may find new foods to love and reap the health benefits from them.
Enjoy!
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