Green Leafy Goodness

Happy St. Patty's Day! Are you all "greened" out by now? Well, let me squeeze just a little more green-ification into you!

You hear all the time that you should be eating leafy green veggies, (The USDA recommends we eat at least 3 cups of leafy greens per week) but why?

Here are the benefits of stocking your diet full of rabbit food:

- Dark Leafy Green Veggies are calorie for calorie one of the most nutrient dense foods available

- Very low in calories and carbohydrates (making them very low on the glycemic index.)

- They contain TONS of minerals (iron, calcium, potassium, and magnesium)

- They are chalked full of vitamins (K, C, E, and a whole slew of the B's)

- They contain phytonutrients such as beta-carotein, lutein and zeaxanthin...these bad boys help fight age related problems in our eyes, and protect our cells from damage

- Vitamin K seems to be the one getting the most attention here. The leafy greens are packed with Vitamin K. K is responsible for regulating blood clotting, aids in stopping osteoporosis, can help reduce inflammation, and protects against atherosclerosis & arthritis. Note that because Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin it needs to have some fat ingested with it for it to be ingested.

Now, what kind of a friend would I be if I didn't provide a healthy and delicious way to get your greens in...

Greek Salad

½ head of green leaf lettuce, ½ head of red leaf lettuce,½-1 cucumber, cut up into chunks,2 slices red onion, cut in chunks, ½ small can of olives, 1 avocado cut into chunks, 1 small tomato cut into chunks,½ small container crumbled Feta cheese, finely grated fresh parmesan cheese *You could even add grilled chicken to this & it would be yummy!

Dressing:

1 part red wine vinegar, 2 parts safflower oil, Lawry’s garlic salt (thick until it falls into the oil), Lawry’s seasoned pepper

Voila! sooooo good.