Kale, spinach and greens recipes- help!

attentionseeker1

Ok so I had some bad new yesterday from my optometrist which is that I am at risk of getting age related macular degeneration in my eyes when I am older as I have some deposits on my eye that shouldn't be there.

He said that to try and prevent this, I need to eat a) lots of foods containing lutein-zeaxanthin which is apparently the major nutrient needed for eye health and b) lots of anti-oxidants.

And this during a month when I don't want to spend loads of money.

It seems that nutrient a) is basically found in kale, spinach and greens. I don't mind these things but probably only eat one of them once a week when it should be once a day apparently.

Anti-oxidants are in all fruit and veg but according to the leaflet I downloaded here, they seem to be disproportionately high in expensive berries rather than your basic apples and pears

At least the greens are cheap but does anyone have any recipes for making them palatable if I have to eat them every day

Help gratefully received as my first thought when I heard this was that OSers will help me figure this out!

cutestkids

Hi
Greens like the various members of the cabbage family are lovely shredded and stir fried and served with a little soy sauce,

Also use in bubble and squeak.
I use frozen spinach and it is great in a curry or added to a bolognes type sauce and then stuff into cannelloni tubes, pour over a basic tomato pasta sauce sprinkle with cheese and bake as you would for lasanga.

On the berries have you tried frozen berries, they are much cheaper and are great for using in smoothies, you can get a large tun of mixed for a couple of pounds and the have about 5 times as many in them as the fresh ones.

kittycat204

cook spinach and shred. Add to a pancake mixture. Make the pancakes and stuff with a creamy mushroom filling.

Could you not juice/blend the items and drink them raw? i know it might not be the best tasting but least you are getting the nutrients in one go. I would of thought they would be better raw anyway.

babyshoes

I was also going to suggest frozen berries, as well as dried - you need to eat less of the dried ones, so even if they cost more per gram they may still work out cheaper than fresh if you compare the cost per serving. Also investigate tinned, though not sure of comparative costs there. Berries are expensive primarily because they don't store well and go off very quickly, so the transport costs are high to get them to the customer while they are still in reasonable condition. Freezing, drying or canning removes the need for the quick transport, so logically should be more affordable! If you have space outdoors, consider planting some raspberries and blackberries. They will be seasonal, but you can always freeze some to save you money in the long term.

We use frozen spinach quite often to make my easy and delicious creamed spinach. Let the spinach cook gently in a pan, you may need to bash the cubes up a bit as you go so it defrosts quicker - some brands have smaller blocks which defrost better. Once it is cooked, add pepper (and any other seasonings you fancy) to taste and a good dollop of cheap cream cheese (philly style) - the value stuff is fine. Stir through and heat up so it can melt and coat the spinach well (if it's not visibly coating the spinach by the time it is melted, you need another dollop or two!), then serve. Very easy, and I think yummier than normal creamed spinach! My brother's suggestion was to serve it on top of a chicken breast as a type of sauce (you'd need slightly more cream cheese), but I prefer it on the side. It also works well with fresh spinach and related veg like chard, but I just find frozen more convenient for everyday food.

Spinach and greens can go well in stir fries, quiche, stews and soups, amongst others. Perhaps you could make a big pot of soup with all of them in, along with some strong flavours like a bacon hock and other veg, then have a bowl daily for lunch, or as a starter before supper if you don't have any of them in the meal. Soup freezes well (use ziplock bags for single portions) so you don't need to have it every day, just as a backup on days when you can't squeeze the veg themselves into your meal plan.

Not a huge fan of cabbage-type veg such as kale, but I do find a sprinkling of nutmeg helps it along nicely! Bacon can also help a lot with all sorts of less-than-inspiring veg.

Are brussles sprouts on the list, being of the same family? Perhaps find yourself a chart online (or ring the specialist and ask for one, either paper or online) of the relative concentration of that nutrient in different veg so you know how much of each to eat - perhaps you will find that one serving of kale will be equal to two servings of a more palatable veg like broccoli or sprouts...

plum2002

Spinach cooked in coconut milk with chili and peanuts is a nice side dish, or as a main with rice

RevolvingDoor

Green smoothies actually don't taste bad at all, I was really surprised when I tried one in my blender. I usually use spinach or kale with an apple or two and bananas. Bananas really hide the taste!:)

ETA - I have noticed spinach on offer quite a bit in the big supermarkets and you can just use value range apples and bananas.

kittycatface

at this time of year you should be able to source kale and greens a lot cheaper in your local greengrocer/market as its the right season for it. chop and freeze so you always have some in stock. we add ours to pastry tarts with goat cheese, i also really like spinach leaves raw in salad with beetroot as a side to a soup and bread lunch. you used to be able to get a massive pack of spinach for £1 in Ts: eating it raw will make it last longer as it dwindles so much when cooked. id suggest steaming it if you are going to cook it as it will retain nutrients better.

only other thing i can think of is to grow your own: the greenfingers board will have advice about when to plant seeds. spinach (if my dads veg patch is anything to go by) seems really easy to grow, its about £1 for a pack of seeds and you may get a few months crop after that.

attentionseeker1

Hmm I haven't been brave enough to do a green smoothie but I did an antioxidant one with loads of different coloured fruits including some not too pricey frozen raspberries so hopefully that will help.

Had a bowl of kale and lentil soup for lunch and have some spinach chucked into my chilli con carne for dinner so I must have had enough today!!!

msb5262

Spinach soup - quick, easy and delicious

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a saucepan and soften 1 chopped onion and 2 peeled and diced medium potatoes for 2-3 minutes. Add a chopped or crushed clove of garlic, about 1 pint boiling water and chicken or vegetable stock cube. Bring to the boil, cover the pan and simmer gently for about 10 minutes or until potatoes are done.
Now add a whole packet of fresh spinach, stir it in as well as you can and put the lid back on. Turn the heat off and leave for 5-10 minutes.
Use a stick blender or liquidiser to blend until smooth. Add a little fresh grated nutmeg if you like and seasoning to taste. Serve with bread or toast - I like it garnished with a splash of cream, sour cream, creme fraiche or natural yoghurt.

I usually make this with fresh spinach but would do the whole thing in exactly the same way with frozen spinach. It's very fresh tasting and freezes well.

HTH
MsB

cheeswright

kale crisps
chop kale - having removed most of stalk
toss in a very little olive oil
spread on baking sheet and bake either long on low heat
or briefly on higher one
basicly untill crispy but not burnt

toss in salt and eat - like crisps
also add lemon zest if liked

can also use a syrup based sauce to toss in before cooking...ie
maple syrup, bbq sauce....etc recipes all over internet

stuffed cabbage leaves ( rice & pork leftovers ) in tomatoe sauce nice and cheap and tasty....

oh and homemade closlaw with red and green cabbage - lovely fresh crunch this time of year

shredded cabbage mixes well with rice for most dishes - bulks up veg - cuts down carbs too

spinach main ingredient of many curries in our house too

Sambucus_Nigra

Homemade coleslaw salady thing - we have one on the go most of the time.

Crisp Cabbage - shred
Carrots - grate
Onion - slice very thinly
Cheese - a little grated
S&P, plus paprika
Mayo to taste

You can pretty much add whatever else you want, I picked a few pak choi leaves, lettuce leaves and kohl rabi leaves from my greenhouse today, added long cucumber julienne's and gave it all a mix up and we had it at lunch. I've got some left so will be having some for tomorrow's lunch.

Goes well with low carb curries, chillis, and pretty much any main meal.