The healthiest vegetable of all? It’s kale!

All vegetables are healthy, so it’s hard to choose favourites. But, non-profit group Centre for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) took up the task. They rated 85 different vegetables in terms of their vitamin, mineral, antioxidant and fibre content, and found that kale was by far the healthiest option.
“Kale?” you might ask. Perhaps you’ve never heard of it – but you will! It’s a dark green leafy vegetable that quickly going from obscurity to popularity. With its deliciously mild taste and hearty leaves, it’s a winner in pasta, soup, sandwiches, omelets and stir-fries. The only drawback for some people is its intimidating size – it is sold in very large bunches and some consumers don’t know what to do with so much foliage.
Enter Cookin’ Greens – the first line of frozen, chopped kale that requires no washing or chopping. Adding the healthiest vegetable to your diet just got easier. In addition to 500-gram bags of chopped kale, Cookin' Greens also offers spinach, rapini and a thoughtfully crafted "Designer's Mix," which is a healthy blend of spinach, collard greens, rapini, yellow beans and onion.
In CSPI’s rating system, vegetables were given a score based on their content of fibre, calcium, iron, folate, vitamin K, vitamin C and carotenoid antioxidants including lutein. Overall, dark green leafy vegetables were the healthiest choices, taking seven of the top ten spots for nutritional power. Spinach and collard greens take spots two and three, just behind kale.
Why are these leafy vegetables so much healthier than turnips and corn? One reason is their colour. “Dark green vegetables are filled with important antioxidants” says dietitian Cara Rosenbloom. “Beta carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin are concentrated in the dark green leaves. These antioxidants play an important role in maintaining good health.” Plus, tasty dark greens are naturally low in calories and sodium, but high in fibre.
For optimal health, Canada's Food Guide recommends that adults eat seven to 10 servings of vegetables and fruit each day. “Currently,” continues Rosenbloom, Canadians are getting less than half of the vegetable and fruit servings that they need for optimal health”. Making vegetables more convenient and accessible is one way to encourage increased consumption.

With Cookin' Greens, the frozen vegetable market finally makes it easy to include delectable dark-leafy greens in the diet. Cookin' Greens takes the fuss out of washing and chopping bunches of fresh greens by doing all of the work for you. Plus, buying pre-cut and pre-washed greens mean that there is no waste to dispose of and very little mess to clean up.

For a delicious side dish, simply sauté any Cookin' Greens variety in a ribbon of olive oil, lots of garlic and a touch of sea salt, and splash some balsamic vinegar. Cookin' Greens can also be added to omelets, pasta, stews, pizza, casseroles and soups. The culinary uses for Cookin' Greens are limitless. Inventive cooking ideas can be found online at www.cookingreens.com.

For more information, please contact Cara Rosenbloom at cara@wordstoeatby.ca or call 416-846-3865.