Kale: I'm Kind of in Awe

I've been seeing Kale recipes popping up all over the place recently. This is no surprise. Kale really is somewhat of a superfood. And the below Kale & Green Bean recipe is a yummy way to incorporate it into your diet!

Kale: First and foremost, Kale offers only 36 calories for a full cup. Combine that with the fact that it contains about 10% of your recommended daily Fiber content, and you've got an awesome side dish that will fill you up on fewer calories.
On top of that Kale is a excellent source of Vitamin A & Vitamin K (which maintain eye health and heart health respectively.) Vitamin K is great, too, because it aids in the absorption of Calcium. Now, Kale has about 10% of your recommended daily intake of Calcium, because it's inherently consumed with Vit K in Kale, that means the calcium is actually absorbale and won't get flushed out of your system! Hello healthy, strong bones :)

Another thing that's so cool about Kale is it contains some surprise nutrients you don't normally associate with greens (on top of the calcium mentioned above). Normally you don't think of greens as being high in Protein or Vitamin C, but 1 cup of Kale contains about 5% of your Daily Value of Protein, and over 80% of your Daily Value of Vitamin C. That protein will help repair damaged tissues and the Vitamin C will help protect your heart and keep your immune system healthy.

After reading all that how could you not want to incorporate this nutrient dense green into your diet!

Spicy Green Beans & Kale
(Recipe from Giada de Laurentiis)

3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, sliced
1 1/2 lbs green beans trimmed and sliced into 1'' pieces
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 c. white wine
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 bunch kale (1/2 lb) rinsed, stemmed, and roughly chopped
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp grated parmesan

Warm the olive oil in a large, heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the green beans, salt, and pepper and cook for 2 mins. Add the wine and continue cooking until the green beans are almost tender, about 5 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and the kale and continue cooking until the kale has wilted, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice and the Parmesan cheese. Toss to coat and serve immediately.

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=38
http://health.learninginfo.org/benefits-of-vitamin-k.htm