Lucky for us, Saint Patrick’s Day is coming up on March 17 during spring break. Some of us may spend this holiday eating Lucky Charms cereal, Irish-inspired foods such as corned beef and cabbage or even drinking beer. A variety of foods and drinks are enjoyed on Saint Patrick’s Day, and while everybody should eat what they please, consider incorporating one of the greatest green superfoods in your celebration: kale.
Despite your kitchen smelling funky and your family and friends accusing you of losing your mind, kale is one of those vegetables that has more health benefits than almost any other vegetable. My fiery passion for kale started about four years ago when Jeff Mauro of the Food Network released a recipe for barbecue kale chips. I’ve always wanted to try kale, but knew that if I didn’t love the taste of uncooked spinach or broccoli, I probably would not love the taste of uncooked kale.
My mom decided to use Jeff Mauro’s recipe for dinner one night, and that’s when I became obsessed with kale. From then on, my family bought me bags of kale chips, cooked kale chips and bought me cookbooks with a ton of recipes that included kale. I was hooked on the superfood. I even considered naming my future child Cale, and while that was shut down by nearly everybody I know, that idea is still not completely out of the question.
Kale is known for its incredible nutritional value. It is packed with vitamin K, which supports bone health and blood clotting (before you get nervous, it is normal for blood to clot, as it prevents excessive bleeding). Not many foods contain vitamin K, so kale is a gift to all of us. Kale has a very high amount of antioxidants and is incredibly high in fiber. According to nutritionalvalue.org, one cup of kale contains 32 percent of your daily intake of vitamins A and C. To sum it up, eating just some kale everyday would support your immunity, growth and development, blood health, bone health, hair, skin and nails – kale does it all.
Not many people enjoy the taste of kale on its own. Personally, kale has to be sautéed or baked ever so slightly for me to thoroughly enjoy the taste. If you want to eat kale but are not a fan of the taste, try finding a kale chip recipe, or sautéing the kale in just a dash of olive oil and spices. Incorporating kale into your meals is one of the best ways to go. If you’re cooking fajitas, include kale in your fajita vegetables! Or, if you’re cooking stir fry, turn it into a kale stir fry! There are plenty of ways to enjoy this amazing food.
Kale isn’t the most popular food, but it truly encompasses what a superfood is supposed to be. I’ve found that people either love it or hate it, but those who hate it without even trying it are just going to be haters. If people make fun of you for eating kale, just remind them that Beyonce loves kale. Maybe if they hear that Beyonce loves kale, they’ll want to love kale as well.
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