Krazy for Kale

This isn’t a nutrition or a foodie blog. I like bacon and carrot cake (not together, of course) too much to preach nutrition and I like eating in hole in the wall, no website, no star restaurants too much to be a foodie.

This why I ask for your forgiveness if the following commentary even slightly resembles a post of the nutrition or foodie variety.

Over the past Christmas/New Year break I caught an episode of Dr. Oz where he did a feature on what he described his “go to” foods. One of the edibles on that list was Kale – that curly leafy green that’s broccoli and cauliflower’s botanical cousin.

Enroute to tomorrow's lunch

I’m sure Kale was available back in the 70s. Despite that, growing up the only leafy greens we ate on Drexel avenue were Collard and Turnip – cooked thoroughly for hours in a briny pot soaking up the porcine goodness rendered from some part of a pig’s lower extremities.

Again, I am by no means Johnny Nutrition, but as I cruise through these mid life years I have gotten better at eating more – shall we say – carrot sticks than carrot cake. So I listened to the good Doctor and gave Kale a try.

Several weeks later, all I can say is… Hi, I’m John and I am a Kale-aholic.

I’ve had it raw in salads, lightly sautéed in olive oil with a little garlic and – brace yourself – tucked away in a banana and blueberry smoothie (the image of Daddy throwing back a frosty purple-green concoction has scarred my daughter for life).

I don’t think I’ve been this excited over a food product since my first Buffalo wing darn near 30 years ago as a wide- eyed freshman at SU.

Time will tell what – if any – health benefits I will realize from consuming this versatile (and pleasantly inexpensive) leafy green. One thing I am noticing is an improvement in the…uh…how do I say this.. reading room. Let’s just say I’m moving faster (and with more regularity) than Usain Bolt on a Red Bull jag.

Live and let live kinda guy that I am, I rarely offer recommendations on these pages, but in this case I am compelled – perhaps by all of that vitamin C and beta carotene – to encourage you to take another look at Kale.  If you like veggies, give a try. If you don’t – try it anyway! Your lower colon will thank you!

3 comments

  1. Dale Drinnon

    It SOUNDED like something that made sense: “Have an idea how Popeye felt”

    Actually, with Popeye it was just one of those things, it HAD to be spinach to do the trick. Not broccoli, not kale, not chard and not cabbage. He would get short on spinach and try to fortify his strength with a full load of broccoli or brussel sprouts in some of the cartoons–and just get stomach cramps for his effort. Worse than that, Bluto would just KNOW it wouldn’t work and lay it on thicker than usual because he could get away with it then.

    On the other hand, even a PICTURE of spinach would work nearly as well as the real thing sometimes. So you knew it was all really in his head anyway.

    Best Wishes, Dale D.

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  2. Myrna Greenhut

    Are you that famous guy?
    Having recently become a great deal vegan I am grateful to learn that kale has tons of vitamin c. I HATE CITRUS so I am always looking for that vitamin in other foods.
    Thanx

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