Greens

Making Green your Favorite Color!



Cheria Soria, Raw Food Chef

http://www.rawfoodchef.com

Cherie's groundbreaking book The Raw Revolution Diet extols the benefits of including plenty of greens in your daily regime. Among the 12 Simple Raw Rules that will help you to build a healthy Diet and a lifelong healthful body weight, the first and most important one is "Eat your veggies." Vegetables provide a unique and marvelous complement of nutrients. They are very low in fat and cholesterol free. Vegetables are important sources of carotenoids (all those relatives of beta-carotene that our bodies can make into vitamin A), the B vitamin folate, vitamin C, and vitamin K. They're also primary sources of magnesium, potassium, a wealth of other minerals, fiber, and a host of important phytochemicals."



Vegetables have the highest nutrient density of any foods. This means that they provide the greatest nutritional value per calorie. Of the colorful rainbow of vegetables from which to choose, those that stand a head above the rest are dark leafy greens. They are undoubtedly the most powerful of all foods on the planet. Other important tips:



Select a minimum of six servings of vegetables per day. (One serving of raw vegetables equals one cup.) In this mix, aim for three or more servings of dark leafy greens. Enjoy other raw vegetables as desired. If including cooked vegetables, steaming is the best method of preparation, and ½ cup steamed vegetables is considered one serving. Bottom line is: The Greens Have It!

The vibrant green leaves of the kale plant provide an earthy flavor and offer more nutritional value per calorie than almost any other food. Vary the flavors of this soup to suit your taste; some people like it spicy and others like it sweet.



Nutrition Note: A hearty, full-recipe serving of this soup will give you 17 grams of protein-one-third of your day's supply-plus an abundance of vitamins A, B (except for B12), C, and E. It also supplies one-quarter of your calcium, iron, selenium, and zinc for the day, and all of your copper and manganese.





3/4 cup (185 mL) purified water

1/4 cup (60 mL) freshly squeezed orange juice, or 1/2 orange, coarsely chopped (see note)

3-4 cups (750 mL-1 L) chopped kale leaves, packed

1/2 apple, chopped, or 1/2 small cucumber, peeled and chopped

1/4 cup (60 mL) fresh cilantro or basil leaves, or fresh dill weed, packed

1 1/2 tablespoons (22 mL) light miso

1 1/2 teaspoons (7 mL) freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 clove garlic

1/4 red jalapeño chile, with seeds, or pinch of cayenne

1/2 green onion (optional)

1/4 cup (60 mL) sunflower seeds, soaked for 1 hour, rinsed, and drained, or 1/2 ripe avocado, coarsely chopped

1/4 cup (60 mL) mung bean or lentil sprouts or Savory Seasoned Sunflower or Pumpkin Seeds



1. Combine the water, orange juice, kale, apple, cilantro or basil leaves, miso, lemon juice, garlic, chile, and optional green onion (in this order) in a blender and process until smooth.

2. Add the soaked sunflower seeds or avocado, and process until smooth.

3. Garnish each serving with some of the sprouts and serve immediately.



Serving Suggestions: Add ¼ cup of finely diced vegetables in the center of the soup for contracting flavor, color, and texture. Or, if you are on the go, take it along in a ball jar!



Variations

· You can use a variety of vegetables in garden soups, such as bell pepper, celery, cucumber, romaine lettuce, spinach, tomato, or zucchini.

· In cool months, use hot water for a warming soup.



Note: The orange juice or orange gives sweetness to the soup. For a less sweet soup, reduce or eliminate the orange juice or orange and replace it with 1/4 cup additional purified water or an additional 1/2 peeled cucumber, coarsely chopped.





Looking for more fantastic raw food recipes?



Click here to purchase The Raw Food Revolution Diet for $21.95 (at the time of this posting)