Happy St. Patrick’s Day! As we celebrate with green clothes and green beer, I wanted to talk about green food: powders, recipes, and leaves, of course.
Eating more leafy greens and other vegetables is one of the easiest ways to improve your diet and your health. I strive to eat them every day.
There are also quite a few green powders in my life. 🙂 Though these are generally called superfoods (a buzzword, yes, but a word I use, as well, because that way we all know what I’m talking about) keep in mind that pretty much ALL healthy whole foods are super, full of the nutrients we need to thrive.
Also keep in mind that many of these superfoods are super-rich in certain nutrients. As with anything, balance is key. I love my matcha lattes, but I don’t drink six per day. I drink one every couple of days. (It was one a day there for awhile after I first discovered them, because YUM, but I’ve balanced out.)
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Spinach, Lettuce, Kale, Arugula, and So On
My favorite way to get my greens nowadays is in my daily green smoothie. I also love Greek salads (lettuce, cucumber, tomatoes, onions, olives, and a bit of feta cheese) and this Spinach and Chickpea Sun Wrap by Sunfood Superfoods:
1/2 cup chickpeas
1 ½ cup chopped spinach
½ cup sauerkraut
2 chopped green onions
1 ½ tablespoons of hemp seeds
½ avocado
Mix all the ingredients, then fill a tortilla or, even better, a coconut wrap. Squeeze a little lemon juice on it and enjoy. It’s surprisingly delicious considering how simple it is, and it takes just a couple of minutes to prepare.
Matcha
This potent green tea powder is basically your regular green tea on steroids, because you’re drinking the entire tea leaf, not just steeping it. I like it in matcha lattes, or you can add it to recipes like these matcha protein balls. I also have made chai with matcha instead of black tea and it’s very tasty.
Spirulina
This is a freshwater algae rich in iron and Vitamins A and B. It also contains all nine essential amino acids. It’s crazy bright green and it smells a little fishy. I add this to my smoothies and I don’t taste it, but don’t go overboard with it. I probably wouldn’t add it to a bowl of yogurt if you want to preserve the yogurt taste. 🙂
Moringa
Another strong-tasting powder, this one is rich in calcium, potassium, Vitamin C, fiber, and more. You can make it into a tea or add it to smoothies, again be careful about overdoing it for taste purposes. It’s pretty powerful! Sunfood has moringa, or you can get it on Amazon or at your favorite health food store.
What green foods are you eating today? I’m getting started with that green smoothie with lots of romaine, spinach, and cilantro.