Eating “The Greens”: The Benefits of Green Foods

Wrapping up the "Eating the Rainbow" series, having looked at The Reds, The Yellows, The Oranges and The Purples, let's "bring it on home", in a big splash, with the "The Greens".

My mom is mesmerized by my conversion with green food. As a kid, I no less than hated them, not disliked, but literally hated them. Now, the color green represents life, health, and Mother Nature's trademark color, and all that it brings to health and wellness.

 

I'm not really sure when the transformation took place, but here I am. Even as I type this blogpost, I am drinking a smoothie, and although a "fruity" tasting treat, it still contains broccoli, green kale, fennel, and cucumbers.

 

So I say, be dynamic, be innovative, and embrace "The Greens". At the bottom of the post I have a recipe for the cool summer Green Drink, Cucumber Mint Lime Aqua Fresca.

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Mother Nature's Gifts from "The Greens"
Chlorophyll, Apigenin and Luteolin, Catechins, Isothiocyanates


Chlorophyll
Good Sources: watercress, leeks, arugula, parsley
Benefits: Present in virtually every green plant food (even pistachios!), this may decrease the risk of liver cancer.
Cooking Tip: Leeks are milder than onions; thinly sliced, they make a delicious addition to salads.


Apigenin and Luteolin
Good Sources: celery, parsley
Benefits: This pair's neuroprotective properties may fight diseases like Alzheimer's.
Cooking Tip: Add parsley to salads. Sliced celery, plain yogurt, and lemon juice make a simple dip.


Catechins
Good Source: green tea
Benefits: Studies show green tea is a fierce fighter of prostate cancer.
Cooking Tip: Blend brewed green tea with frozen berries and honey for a smoothie.


Isothiocyanates
Good Sources: Kale, brussels sprouts, broccoli Benefits: Found in cruciferous vegetables, these help purge the body of potential carcinogens.
Cooking Tip: Raw foods offer the most potent supply. For a no-cook side, marinate thinly sliced brussels sprouts in olive oil and lemon juice and toss with sliced apple.

Cucumber Mint Lime Aqua Fresca

1 lb of cucumbers (about 2 good sized cucumbers), ends trimmed, but peel still on, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup lime juice from fresh limes (from about 1 pound of limes, or 5 to 10 limes, depending on how juicy they are)

1 1/4 cup packed (spearmint) mint leaves (about a large handful), woody stems removed

1/2 cup Ultimate Sweetener Birch Tree Xylitol or Soliga Honey
Approximately 1 1/4 cup of water

Put ingredients in blender, add enough water to fill 3/4 of blender. Hold the lid on the blender and purée until smooth. Place a fine mesh sieve over a bowl and pour the purée through it, pressing against the sieve with a rubber spatula or the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid out as possible.

Fill a large pitcher halfway with ice cubes. Add the juice. Serve with sprigs of mint and slices of lime.

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Just a cool track called "Color Green" by the South African artist Jonathan Butler. Just put here to celebrate my love of green foods, and I suppose a dedication to "my girl" Mother Nature.

Take a listen if you feel like it, if not thanks for stopping by.

~stay healthy~

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You might also like

"The Purples"
 

"The Reds"

 

 

"The Oranges"

 

 

"The Yellows"

 

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check out all my articles in "Eat Smart", the science of food (click here or on the photo below)

posted to   Monday mania  fat tuesdays real food Wednesdays Freaky Friday , Fight Back Fridays

11 Responses

12.18.12

Great post.  Sometimes we all need reminding why we should eat our greens.  If you love green smoothies I'd love for you to come and have a look at my blog which is dedicated mainly to green smoothie recipes: http://www.greenthickies.com
 
Many thanks

12.18.12

This is Doug from http://www.GaiaHealthBlog.com . You made a couple pf comments on my blog. Love your blog, very clean and colorful and easy to read. I’d love to post that “Cold and Flu Busting Orange Coconut Smoothie” on my blog and I’ll be happy to link back to you. I like to give blogger “shout outs” when I can. Shoot me an email or message on my blog if OK.

12.19.12

Hi Doug, thank you so much! Yes that would be lovely for you to share my cold busting smoothie recipe.  Many thanks, Katherine.

12.19.12

Coolness!!! I’ll slap it together Wednesday night and shoot you a link. I’d like to feature one of your smoothies every few weeks or so if OK, mainly because although my smoothie is awesome, but I only have one that I drink every day, would like my readers to get exposed to more variety and see all the options for personal choices are endless, creative, and fun. So with blogs like yours, and with stuff like exercise where I haven’t had time to write a lot, I wanna partner up with other bloggers, it gives us all more exposure and a little more depth and reach and networking to our blogs. Remember I’m not doing this for money, there is not one Ad on my blog, just for the love of health and wellness……….

12.19.12

Done!!! thanks for such a good recipe for me to Add to GaiaHEalth Blog. He’s link https://www.gaiahealthblog.com/2012/12/19/the-cold-and-flu-busting-coconut-and-orange-smoothie/ . Hope to post more in he future because although I have a great smoothie for myself that I drink everyday, I wanted more smoothie variety on my blog, in that, as we know, everybody evolves to what work best for them.

12.20.12

Hi Doug, yes that would be fine for you to feature something from my blog every so often.  Would I be able to do the same with your blog?  Either on my Green Thickies blog or my other blog http://www.everythinghealthynaturally.com ? You have some great content on your website and it's very easy to navigate.  I'll have to sit down and do some reading!  Thank you!

12.20.12

Two blogs? Impressive!!!!! I’ll be sure to but your blogs on my sidebar on the lower right with all me other favs when I get home. I actually buy my papaya fresh and then dice it up freeze and yes they are not cheap. My smoothie is basically a collage of all the superfoods I can bring in consistently in one smoothie. There are other approaches, like my Best friend has a regular smoothie and a green smoothie and post workout smoothie. Mine works for me, but no variety, that’s why I wanted more variety for my readers, hence “borrowing” a couple of your creations. I found it interesting that someone else read the China Study, although it provoked me in some others ways, which is why I wrote that article, “The Mysterious Case of the Cancer Free Meat Eaters” https://www.gaiahealthblog.com/2012/10/25/the-mysterious-case-of-the-cancer-free-meat-eaters/

BTW, I do use a protein powder in my smoothies, I hope you don’t hold it against me 🙂 I do agree that most protein powders are garbage, but the Garden of Life Raw protein is in a class of its own. You realize that when you get into the whole science of “complete proteins” which most plant based proteins are not. If you ever had to break down and recommend a protein powder to anyone, this is the one, the ingredient list is: Organic Sprouted Brown Rice Protein, Organic Amaranth Sprout, Organic Quinoa Sprout, Organic Millet Sprout, Organic Buckwheat Sprout, Organic Garbanzo Bean Sprout, Organic Lentil Sprout, Organic Adzuki Bean Sprout, Organic Flax Seed Sprout, Organic Sunflower Seed Sprout, Organic Pumpkin Seed Sprout, Organic Chia Seed Sprout, Organic Sesame Seed Sprout

03.20.14

This is a fantastic round-up on the benefits of green foods. I write about green living, gluten-free recipes, the benefits of real food and much more. Please feel free to feature any of my content here. Great to meet you. 
Here are some samples: 
http://dontmesswithmama.com/how-to-make-coconut-milk/
http://dontmesswithmama.com/10-foods-not-to-buy-at-the-grocery-stor/
http://dontmesswithmama.com/6-reasons-avoid-agave-syrup/
http://dontmesswithmama.com/homemade-citrus-electrolyte-drink/

03.21.14

Thanks for your comments!! Great articles you linked in your comment, I hope people take a look at them ~stay healthy~

12.11.15

Wonderful article and photos. I love the photos, they make me go and make a green smoothie right away! Actually I am just going to make myself Cucumber Mint Lime Aqua Fresca 🙂 Thanks for the recepie.

12.11.15

Hey Blaz,

Thanks for taking the time to read and comment.

Cool pictures is to get the readers moving and motivated. If you actually go make that green smoothie, then my purpose for this blog is fulfilled!!!

~stay healthy!

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