Kale for Lunch

Yesterday I had kale for lunch. An entire bunch of kale! It was good.

I started with kale chips, which were super yummy. Instead of salt, I used lemon pepper, and a little too much, as it turns out. I liked them, but they were way too strong for Richard. Rachel wouldn't even eat one, the nut. She's been going through a non-eating phase, though, where all she eats is grapes, so whatever. Anyway with the chips I decided that they are yummy, and if that's the only way you can get yourself to eat kale then go for it. But they weren't really for me. I really liked them, but I like raw, unseasoned veggies just fine, and they were a little too dressed for my taste.

Which brings me to my next experiment: kale smoothie. This. Was. Amazing. I am actually planning a trip today to buy bunches and bunches of kale so I can have this for lunch every day! Here's the honest truth, though: Kale kind of tastes like grass. And it REALLY smells like grass. I added a frozen banana to my smoothie to make it smoother and colder, and it added a nice flavor and a little sweetness as well. But if you don't like unseasoned veggies like I do, you might want to add some berries or sweetener to this. I get past the taste sometimes by thinking about what amazing things it's doing for my body, so here's the deal with kale and this smoothie:
Vitamins A, C, E, and K
More calcium than milk, and its phosphorous levels help the calcium be absorbed better
Beta-carotene
Great for your eyes
Prevents breast and lung cancer
Folate, iron, zinc, magnesium, and potassium - great for your skin!

And while we're at it, let's talk about avocados, which are also found in this smoothie:
Best fruit source of protein
Better fat source than butter (seriously, you need to try it in mashed sweet potatoes)
Vitamin E
Folate, fiber, and potassium - great for your skin again!
Protects eyes against cataracts and macular degeneration
And a cool fact I found out the other day - avocados don't ripen unless picked. You can leave a mature fruit on the tree for up to 6 months and it won't ripen or go bad! I think I need to grow an avocado tree!

Since I added a banana, let's talk about those too:
Can help with stomach distress, including digestive disturbances and constipation
Great source of energy
Can reduce the risk of stroke, relieve heartburn, prevent ulcers, and speed up recovery from diarrhea (ok, gross, but true)
One of the best fruit sources of potassium (which lowers blood pressure. Bet you didn't know that)
Check out all the minerals in bananas: sulfur, silicon, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, chromium, iron, flouride, manganese, selenium, and zinc!!

So basically this is the world's best smoothie. Also, since its liquid is water instead of milk, I was able to get Reuben to sample some, and he loved it!