Collard Greens (Collards)

Collard greens – like all greens – are among the most nutrient-dense foods. Collards are loaded with vitamins, minerals (including calcium), and phytochemicals that help our bodies fight cancer.

This table gives the USDA National Nutrient Database values for calcium in collards, kale, and milk. Look! Collards are a great source of calcium!

Note: It’s hard to understand why the calcium in frozen/cooked collards and kale are higher than the calcium in fresh/cooked collards and kale. (I wrote to the USDA and asked them. I am waiting for an answer. When I find out, I’ll post the response here.)

COLLARDS, KALE, MILK – Calcium content

Food	Portion size	Calcium (mg)
Collards, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt	1 cup – 190 grams	266
Collards, frozen, chopped, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt	1 cup – 170 grams	357
Kale, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt	1 cup – 130 grams	94
Kale, frozen, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt	1 cup – 130 grams	179
Milk, lowfat, fluid, 1% milkfat, with added vitamin A and vitamin D	1 cup — 244 grams	305

Note re lowfat milk: I put lowfat milk in this table because it tends to be higher in calcium than whole milk. That’s because manufacturers add milk solids (dry skim milk) to low fat milk in order to make it taste creamier.

ORGANIC
I always buy organic collards (and kale), and that’s because these two veggies are listed on the Environmental Working Group’s list of the 12 most contaminated fruits and veggies.

LIGHTLY STEAMED COLLARD GREENS

I make a batch of collard greens at least twice a week. In fact, they’re one of my go-to vegetables for lunch or dinner AND breakfast – where I serve collards along with scrambled eggs, made with with fresh turmeric and black pepper!

This recipe for lightly steamed collard greens is as simple as it gets – just a few pointers on technique!

Directions:
Roll the collard leaves lengthwise tightly. Slice the leaves crosswise into rolls of ribbons about 1/2-inch wide and slice the stems into 1/4-1/2-inch pieces. Cut the ribbon rolls in half, and then in half again, if desired. Wash the cut pieces by putting them into a bowl of water and swishing them around; drain off the water and repeat washing with fresh water once or twice more.

Take a large pot with a large steamer basked (a pasta pot, for example) and place the washed and drained collards into the steamer section. Pour 2 cups of boiling water over the collards in the pot. (This helps cook the collards evenly as the collards on top of the steamer basket are touched by the boiling water that you pour on, and the collards on the bottom of the steamer basket are more directly in contact with the boiling water below the basket.)

Let the collards steam, covered, for 1-2 minutes. Use a pair of tongs and toss the collards; replace the lid; continue to steam the collards for another 30 seconds to a minute. The collards should be bright green when cooked!

Save the nutrient-rich liquid at the bottom of the steamer pot and use it in cooking, for example in making soups!

More information about collard greens and nutrition, including a few cautions about oxalates and calcium absorption:

• World’s Healthiest Foods re collard greens.
• National Osteoporosis Foundation re calcium.
• EatToDefeat (cancer) - See the videos and check out the database about foods that prevent cancer through anti-angiogensis! THIS IS MY NEW FAVORITE SITE about foods to prevent cancer!!!! Check it out!!!!

Collards like all green leafy vegetables are high in nitrates.

Learn about the nutritional importance of nitrates (and the cancer causing problems of certain nitrates/nitrosamines).

Nutrients important in bone health…

An excellent overview of the the the role of nutrition in bone health: from the Melio Guide website: Nutrition for Bone Health: There’s More Than Just Calcium 

Bone Architect’s blog gives entire article from Journal of Environmental and Public Health, October 2011 . Definitely worth reading if you are concerned about osteoporosis!

By the way, the beautiful photos in this post were taken by Jillian Lopina of Secondhand Exposure Photography (found here on Facebook  and a blog).

THANK YOU, Jillian!

Simply Roasted Kale

Raw kale ready to roast

According to the ANDI Scores – one of several indexes of nutrient density (nutrients per calorie) – kale and collards are the highest rated foods, meaning they are considered to be the most nutrient dense foods. In addition, kale is a member of the cabbage family and so it contains all the anti-cancer benefits that come packaged in cruciferous vegetables.

So including more kale (and collards) in our diets, is a no brainer. But how?

My favorite kale recipe these days is as simple as it gets: Simply Roasted Kale. Roasting kale makes kale slightly sweet and really delicious! And you can use roasted kale in salads, as a side dish, or just to decorate the dinner plate!

To make roasted kale, you just bake raw kale in the oven and remove it from the oven when some of the edges of the kale get brown and crisp.

Ingredients

1 bunch curly (preferably organic)

Note: I think curly kale works better in this recipe than dinosaur kale. It’s sweeter and doesn’t burn so easily.

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Remove the woody stems from the kale and reserve the stems (freeze) to use in making a vegetable soup stock; leave the tender stems attached to the kale leaves. Wash the kale and then rinse it well. Place the kale in a salad spinner and spin it just a little. You want to leave some moisture on the leaves. Tear the kale into generous pieces. (The pieces collapse a bit when roasted so you will have smaller pieces after roasting.) Place the kale pieces into a bowl and toss them with just a teaspoon of olive oil, until all the leaves have a touch of oil on them.

Place the pieces of kale on a baking sheet (as shown above).

Bake the kale at 375 degrees F for 12  minutes. Use tongs and turn the kale pieces over and bake for about another 8 minutes.

Serve the roasted kale fresh from the oven.

If you need to store the kale, that’s OK, but it will lose the slight crispness that you get when it’s fresh from the oven.

And…if you want to make kale chips, here are some good recipes:

• Kale chips from babble.com
• Kale chips from roostblog.com
• Kale chips from smittenkitchen.com

Enjoy and be healthy!

~Leni

Check it out! Listen! Two fantastic one-hour presentations!

Brenda Davis, R.D.

In her one-hour presentation, “Designing an Optimal Plant-based Diet,” Brenda Davis (a registered dietitian who works in nutrition research) puts it all together — the BIG picture — the many things we need to consider in order to eat for optimal health. While she does not talk about diet and cancer prevention per se, she talks about the key features of an optimal plant-based diet. And, bottom line, a healthy anti-cancer diet is a plant-based (or mostly plant-based) diet that’s provides all the nutrients we need, and within that context, specifically incorporates foods known to have anticancer properties and avoids foods and cooking methods that promote carcinogenesis.

The key points from Brenda Davis’ talk, “Designing and Optimal Plant-bassed Diet,” are given in her slides and are posted on her website! The slides for her other presentations, can be found there too!

While those of you who visited this blog earlier know that I planned to post the key points of her talk here, I see now that there is no need for me to do so. It is far ar better for  you to get the key points from Brenda herself!

Video of another great presentation by Brenda Davis: Reclaiming Your Health: Lessons from the Marshall Islands. This video focuses on how diet has been shown to prevent and even reverse type II diabetes!

To learn more, check out Brenda Davis’ website and books….

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To find all of Monamifood’s “Check it out!” posts (and the great video and audio programs that these posts point to), just go to the search box and enter “Check it out!”

Enjoy and be healthy!

~Leni

Hot and Sour Soup with Extra Veggies

Hot and Soup Soup with Extra Veggies

Here’s one of my favorite – easy to make soup meals. It’s so easy you don’t need a recipe!

Start with hot and sour soup from a Chinese restaurant that makes good quality soup (not loaded with corn starch and msg).

Then at home, add plenty of vegetables plus some tofu — and you have a great, light soup meal!

So this is how I made our soup tonight…

I put the hot and sour soup from the restaurant into a pot on the stove over medium heat. (Our microwave is broken or I could have done this in the microwave in either one big bowl or in individual soup bowls.)

To the soup in the pot or bowl, add:

• thinly sliced green or red cabbage
• lightly sautéd sliced mushrooms
• lightly sautéd (still crispy) diced onions
• tofu, cut into bite-size cubes

Heat the soup until the cabbage is tender crisp.

Top each serving with:

• thinly sliced green onions
• chopped fresh cilantro

If you add a lot of veggies and tofu like I do, then the resulting soup will be like a bowl of veggies in a little broth – a nice light meal!

Enjoy and be healthy!

~Leni

Applesauce Made in the Crock Pot!

Apples, pears and apricots waiting to be made into applesauce

This is a very easy recipe, and the applesauce is absolutely delicious — a lot tastier than store-bought applesauce. It’s also much less expensive than most organic, store-bought applesauce, especially if you buy apples at a good price. (I find that Trader Joe’s 2-pound bags of organic apples are usually available at a reasonable price. These apples are the smaller size ones, but that’s just fine!)

I shared some of my homemade applesauce with my friends at work today and they loved it!  Unfortunately, I had none left when one of my colleagues came into the kitchen foraging for a snack and left with a plate of potato chips and a bottle of orange soda…his fruits and veggies! : – (

BASIC RECIPE

Ingredients

4 pounds of apples – any you like. Here is what I used:

• 3 pounds of organic honey crisp apples (or another rather sweet apple with thin skins)
• 1 pound of organic Granny Smith apples (or another rather tart apple)

Notes:

• If you can, use only organic apples. That’s because apples are one of the most pesticide-laden fruits according to EWG’s Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides – a reliable resource.
• You might not want to make applesauce with all Granny Smith apples because it would be too tart. And I found that the skins of the Granny Smiths were quite thick and more noticeable in the applesauce than the skins of the Honey Crisp apples.

1 cup of filtered water

1 tablespoon lemon juice (or less if you prefer a less tart applesauce)

Directions

Cut the apples (skins and all)  into chunks. Put the apple chunks into the crock pot, add the water, and lemon juice; cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Remove the lid and use a potato masher to lightly mash the apples until they turn into a chunky applesauce. But keep mashing if you want a less chunky sauce.

RECIPE VARIATIONS

Instead of just apples, use apples plus:

• Pears
• Frozen organic berries
• Dried cranberries
• Dried chopped apricots (I like the unsulfured apricots. That’s why you see brown-looking apricot pieces in the photo.)

You may want add:

• Ceylon cinnamon . Sprinkle cinnamon on the individual servings, as desired.
• Mix some ground flax seeds into the applesauce.
• Top with yogurt.
• Top with walnuts.

More information….

• Heirloom apples in the USA – Many hairloom apples are in danger of extinction… See what the Ark of Taste program sponsored by Slow Food USA is doing to keep these apples and other heirloom fruits and vegetables from going extinct.
• Grow your own organic apple trees! Learn how from Michael Phillips of Lost Nation Orchard, author of The Apple Grower.

Enjoy and be healthy!

~Leni

Why apples?

The phytochemicals in apples – especially in the apple peel – help to prevent cancer. For more about the specific phytochemicals and how they work to help prevent cancer, see:

Cornell U research

National Institute of Health’s (NIH’s) summary of current research

American Institute for Cancer Research’s summary of current research

Organic or not organic?

Since apples are one of the most contaminated fruits on the market, be sure to buy organic apples, especially since you want to eat the healthy peels (which are higher in pesticides than the rest of the apple). Source: EWG’s Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides which you can download from the EWG website.

Check it out! – Listen! TED Talk – Anti-angiogenic foods!

List of anti-angiogenic foods from Dr. Li's TED Talk presentation

I just listened to a MOST INTERESTING 20-minute TED Talks presentation by William Li, MD, CEO and Scientific Director of the Angiogenesis Foundation. In this talk, “Can we Eat to Starve Cancer?”, Dr. Li highlights the compelling new frontier of research about food and angiogenesis — the process by which the body grows new blood vessels.

He explains that our dietary choices can tamp down angiogenesis around cancer cells (good: starve cancer cells because they don’t have a good blood supply by which to get the nutrients and other substances they need to grow) or rev up angiogenisis (bad: promote the growth of cancer cells because they have a good blood supply). In addition, a diet that tamps down angiogenisis (an anti-angiogenic diet) not only helps to prevent cancer or a recurrence of cancer, but also helps to prevent Alzheimer’s, heart disease, and obesity! The thinking is that the same mechanism contributes to all of these disease processes.

On this blog page are two slides from Dr. Li’s presentation. The first slide gives a list of foods (not complete list) that appear to have anti-angiogenic properties. If you have read the book, Anti-Cancer – A New Way of Life, by David Servan-Schreiber, M.D., PhD, you will note that Dr. Li’s list of foods in this slide and Dr. Servan-Screiber’s lists of foods in his book and on his website are not exactly the same. I think that this is at least in part because Dr. Servan-Schreiber does not focus ONLY on the cancer-inhibiting mechanism of anti-angiogenisis. Dr. Servan-Schreiber concludes his chapter, “Cancer’s Weaknesses”, (about how to fight cancer by attacking cancer’s vulnerabilities), by stating: “All the facts bear out this conclusion; everything that strengthens our precious immune cells also impedes the growth of cancers. All in all, by stimulating our immune cells, fighting inflammation (with nutrition, physical exercise, and emotional balance), and fighting angiogenisis, we undercut cancer’s spread.” (Anti Cancer, 2nd edition, page 53).

It is currently understood that inflammation in the body promotes angiogenesis. So foods that promote inflammation AND foods that promote angiogenesis itself are BOTH thought to promote the development and progression of cancer. And, angiogenesis is not the only mechanism that affects the development of cancer in the body. The point is that to prevent help cancer you need to provide your body with a wide VARIETY of anti-cancer foods that go after cancer cells in many different ways. So choosing a diet that contains many DIFFERENT anti-cancer foods — and very few cancer promoting-foods — is the best way to tip the balance in YOUR body toward good health!

In addition, as both Drs. Li and Servan-Screiber point out: The COMBINATION of healthful foods (at a meal or eaten closely in time) appear to produce a SYNERGY that’s more anti-angiogenic (or more broadly, anti-cancer) than the individual foods alone!

So…here’s how I decided to apply this information about synergy to my diet: At breakfast, I just started adding canned pumpkin (not canned pumpkin pie filling) to my oatmeal (and I have added that suggestion to the my earlier post about oatmeal). I also realized that for more variety, I could add frozen organic strawberries to my green tea, not just the frozen organic blueberries and raspberries I usually use. And…like I used to do, I could add a squirt of lemon juice to my tea, too. So now at breakfast when I have a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of tea, I’m getting LOTS of DIFFERENT anti-cancer foods and the assumption is that the synergy of all these foods working together helps makes my diet even more anti-cancer than the individual foods alone.  I hope so! And…besides, it all tastes GREAT!

Slide from presentation by Dr. Li at TED Talks

OK….now back to Dr. Li…. I was so impressed by Dr. Li’s talk that I listened to it three times (while exercising : – )), I joined the Angiogenisis Foundation (free to join), and I plan to go back to the Foundation’s website to learn more!

And…by the way…whenever my enthusiasm for the anti-cancer way of eating wanes, I re-listen to the talks/videos I have posted on this blog under the heading, “Check it out!”. It helps a lot!

NEW in 2012! EatToDefeat  - See more videos that will convince you that the anti-angiogenic properties of food have POWERFUL anti-cancer  effects!  Also, at the eattodeat.org site, you can access a growing database of foods that fight cancer and recipes using these foods – and more! 

To find all of the “Check it out!” posts (and the great video and audio programs that these posts point to), just go to the search box on this blog and enter the words “Check it out!”

Happy listening! Happy, healthy eating!

Enjoy and be healthy!

~Leni

Lebanese-Style Lentil Soup with Kale and Spinach

The calendar says fall and the abundance of summer veggies has tapered off…so it’s time to start making hearty soups again! Yesterday my husband and I had lunch at the Lebanese Taverna where they serve a wonderful Lentil Soup (Shorba Addas) that’s rich in greens (spinach?) and spiced with lemon, garlic, and cilantro. With this soup on my brain today, I picked out a Food and Wine recipe to make a lentil soup like the Lebanese Taverna’s.

But instead of making the recipe as shown, I made the soup using Monamifood Garlic Flavors Cubes, Cilantro Sauce Flavor Cubes, and Zesty Citrus Flavor Cubes – which meant I didn’t have to run to the store for any ingredients; just open my freezer! It made it easier and faster to whip up this soup for a Sunday lunch…and, if you ask me, it made this wonderful soup even more delicious than it was when I made it by following the Food and Wine recipe!

This recipe makes a LOT of soup, so you will have plenty left over to give to friends or freeze – or both!

Ingredients

2 cups small green lentils, picked over and rinsed

* Small (really tiny) green lentils are available in our Whole Foods store in the bulk section. But this variety of lentils is not essential. I have used brown lentils before, with good results.

16 cups water (yes, 16 cups!)

3 tablespoons Better Than Bouillon Organic Chicken Base (or Vegetarian No Chicken Base)

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 very large onions, diced

2 pinches of crushed red pepper

4 Monamifood Smooth and Mild Garlic Flavor Cubes

4 Monamifood Cilantro Sauce flavor cubes

1 Monamifood Zesty Citrus Flavor Cube

1 bunch organic kale (curly variety), stemmed and torn into small pieces

2/3 of a 16-0uncd bag of frozen chopped organic spinach

Directions

In a large stockpot, place the lentils, water, and Better Than Bouillon Chicken (or No Chicken) Base. Partially cover and cook over medium heat until the lentils are barely tender – about 25 minutes. (Do not over cook the lentils or they will split and the soup will be grainy!)

Note: Unless you have two, large (11-inch diameter), non-stick saute/frying pans, you will need to saute the onions in two batches. If you were to put all the onions in one pan, they would steam rather than saute.

While the lentils are cooking, heat 1 ½ tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat in a large 11-inch non-stick skillet. When the oil is hot, add half of the diced onions and one pinch of the crushed red pepper; saute, stirring occasionally, until the onions start to get lightly browned. Remove the onions from the pan and set them aside.

Cook the remaining onions with a pinch of crushed red pepper in the same 11-inch non-stick skillet. When the second batch of onions start to get lightly browned, add these onions — and also the reserved onions — to the pot with the lentils. Stir to mix.

Continue to cook the soup over medium heat. Add the cubes (Garlic, Cilantro Sauce, and Citrus) and stir the soup while the cubes melt. Taste and add a little more Better Than Bouillon Base, if desired.

Add the chopped fresh kale and cook for about 3 minutes. It will soften and turn a lovely deep green color. Then add the frozen spinach and simmer for another minute or two.

Individually season the soup at the table

Individually season the soup at the table! Just pass a small pouring container (creamer, perhaps) containing a few defrosted Monamifood Zesty Citrus Flavor Cubes and a small bowl with a few defrosted Monamifood Cilantro Sauce Flavor Cubes.

Enjoy and be healthy!

~Leni

No-Name-Yet Healthy Mushrooms (Curry; Miso)

My first attempt to make sauteed mushrooms with mostly turmeric for flavor, was real flop, and it has now been removed from this blog — which is why you won’t find it on this page any more.

Instead, let me suggest sauteeing the mushrooms in olive oil and some Sweet Curry Powder (which is not sweet, just not very hot). I chose Penzeys Spices Sweet Curry Powder because the first ingredient is turmeric and it also contains black pepper, but of course, you could add more black pepper to taste.

While using Sweet Curry Powder instead of turmeric doesn’t provide as much turmeric as if you used mostly turmeric, it tastes a LOT better!

But curried mushrooms do not go with everything…so I started to think again about what I could do to make a great sauteed mushroom dish that would go with most foods…and I came up with sauteed mushrooms and miso! It’s really good.  I don’t have the proportions down yet…but it’s something like 8 ounces of sliced baby portobello mushrooms sauteed in a little olive oil. Then before the mushrooms are fully cooked, pour into the pan a mixture of about 1/2 cup water and a tablespoon miso. Cool until the liquid evaporates and the miso has lightly coated the mushrooms.

Miso.  The darker the miso, the stronger the flavor. Try it you’ll like it!

Ingredients for sauted mushrooms with curry seasoning

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 large white  onion, diced (approximately 1/3-inch dice)

• How to dice an onion (a short video)

2 1/2 teaspoons Penzeys Spice Sweet Curry Powder

freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1, 8-0unce box  baby bello mushrooms , sliced (baby bello are baby portobello mushrooms)

pinch of hot red pepper (Note: Use a spoon, not your fingers to avoid possibly burning yourself when you touch your fingers to your eyes.)

salt, to taste, if desired

Optional additions to mix in

1  Smooth and Mild Garlic Flavor Cube I think this works quite well. Just mix a defrosted Garlic Flavor Cube in at the end so that the garlic won’t burn. I took a small (about 1/3-inch high cube) and defrosted it in the microwave and then added it to the cooked mixture of onions and mushrooms. It made the mixture a bit less grainy and more mellow. Very nice.

• Note: If you are defrosting a small amount of food such as a Garlic Flavor Cube in your microwave, it’s a good idea to add something else to the microwave at the same time so that the microwaves have more food to work with. I just keep a half cup of water handy by the microwave and use it over and over for this purpose, as needed.

A squeeze of fresh lemon or lime juice  -  I added a 1/2 teaspoon lime juice after adding the Garlic Flavor Cube. I think I’ll add more next time because it was very nice.

Optional garnish to add on

fresh chopped cilantro (Of course, if you love cilantro, add a touch of green!)

Directions

Heat the olive oil (1 tablespoon) over medium heat in a large (10-inch), heavy non-stick skillet. When hot, add the onions and saute over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the onions start to become translucent but still have crunch to them (about 8 minutes), add in the curry powder and black pepper; stir to mix; continue to cook over medium heat for 3 more minutes, stirring constantly. (This helps the spices mix and develops their flavor and it prevents the turmeric from tasting awful as it does – at least to me – when it’s raw/uncooked!).  Add a little oil or a little water, if needed, to keep the spices from burning. Remove the onion mixture from the pan and set aside.

Add the second tablespoon of olive oil to the pan (the pan from which you just removed the onions.) When the oil is hot, add the mushrooms. Stir to mix and continue cooking and stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes or until some of the mushrooms get a little brown at the edges.

Now add the onion mixture to the mushrooms in the pan. Add a pinch of hot red pepper and salt, to taste, if desired. Mix well and continue cooking, stirring constantly, for about 4 minutes.

How to use this versatile recipe

Add a few spoons on top of chicken, fish, tofu, eggs, and assorted grains. Mix some into greens and other veggies.

Enjoy and be healthy!

~Leni

Why basil? How to store basil?

Basil and other members of the labiate family (which also includes thyme, mint, marjoram, oregano, and rosemary) “…are rich in fatty acids of the terpene family, which makes them particularly fragrant. Terpenes have been shown to act on a wide variety of tumors by reducing the spread of cancer cells or by provoking their death.” [Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD, David, Anticancer, A New Way of Life, 2009 Edition]

How to keep fresh basil fresh longer?

As you may have experienced, fresh basil turns black on the edges and soon it’s not fragrant and wonderful anymore…so what to do? Store fresh basil just like you do cut flowers! Here’s what I mean…as explained by one of my favorite blogs, Kalyn’s Kitchen.