Not being Perfect in an Imperfect World

I’ve recently met two rather incredible, smart, and very insightful new friends that have really helped me think through something I’ve been struggling with for quite some time; namely, the drive for perfection in an otherwise imperfect world. While a lot has been written about perfectionists or Type-A personalities, I’ve seen very little written about it in regards to nutrition.

I’ve always been pretty demanding and typically hold myself to pretty high standards. Unfortunately, this blog is often reflective of that. My one friend semi-jokingly calls me “the robot” as a way of pointing out my rigidness, and while having tea with my friend Gena, I came to realize that I’ve become entrenched in the “diet wars” and have become so dogmatic in regards to nutrition that I sometimes am unable to remember why I began writing this blog in the first place.

The reason why I write this blog is not to bicker about how many nuts should be consumed in a sitting or any of the other semantics that nutrition bloggers often get bogged down with. Instead I write this blog because I’ve learned a lot about nutrition and want to share that research-based knowledge in an attempt to help people find their own paths to healing and long-term health. Long time readers have been able to watch many of my thoughts about nutrition evolve over that time - particularly when it comes to oil. However, the one thing that consistently bothers me is that my posts are often written from the perspective that the world is black or white, with nothing in between  when nothing could be further from the truth in regards to nutrition.

Before I continue, I need to be completely clear. I am an ethical vegan (which is why I have never backed away from using the term) regardless of nutrition, I do not support or condone any use or exploitation of any animals in any situation.

That said, nutrition is often very complex and works in highly sophisticated ways, many of which researchers are just now starting to chart. The world is even more complex and our daily lives are nothing if not the same.

To assume that the path that worked for me will work for everyone is a foolish errand. To be dogmatic about it will accomplish nothing. Furthermore sometimes optimal health and our lives stand simply at odds with one another… and that is okay.

It’s okay to skip out on the ideal 8-10 hours of sleep once in a while to spend time with friends and family, enjoying a sweet treat on occasion has, to my knowledge, never killed anyone, and if you prefer iceberg over kale or collards you won’t be the less healthy for it. Basically what I’m trying to say is, if eating less-than-optimal means less stress, then maybe that’s the right thing to do. As my friend Maria has taught me, what’s the point of living to be 100 if you’ve missed out on some of the best parts of life?

Now I’m not saying that cookies and cakes are the best parts of life – in fact, far from it, and personally I probably won’t change my own rather rigid habits – but if you’re moderately healthy, and are trying to move towards a healthier version of yourself, it’s okay to not always be perfect. Being hard on yourself or feeling guilty about what you’ve been eating is almost never a healthy or even productive habit. 

Instead, enjoy the moment. Food, like life should be enjoyed and is always better when in good company. If you feel like you want to eat healthier then focus on learning from the mistakes rather than punishing yourself for them. Focus your energy away from being negative; instead be positive and spend your energy on making sustainable changes. If eating optimally means you feel completely deprived and depressed, than you’re hardly developing healthy or sustainable habits. Being healthy is to enjoy life, and sometimes that means doing something inherently unhealthy.  As the book of Ecclesiastes Dave Matthews says, “Eat, drink and be merry. For tomorrow we die.” 

As always the information presented in this blog is for educational purposes only. It should not be considered as specific medical, nutritional, lifestyle, or other health-related advice.

Wild About Greens and Curried Chickpeas with Sweet potatoes and Collards

Last week I learned about a new cookbook from of all places…Fox News. Don’t be mistaken. I am not NOT a follower of anything Fox. However, a friend posted an article about veganism they published (I’ll spare you the trouble, it wasn’t all that flattering of an article, although considering the source it wasn’t terrible either) and Nava Atlas, the vegan cookbook author extraordinaire, was featured in it.  At the bottom, it mentioned she had a new book out called Wild About Greens: 125 Delectable Vegan Recipes for Kale, Collards, Arugula, Bok Choy, and other Leafy Veggies Everyone Loves. I messaged a close friend asking if they had heard of it and a week later that very special friend gave me the book as a birthday present. I can assure you all that this is one present that will be getting a lot of use!

Having now read Wild About Greens from cover to cover I can say this is easily one of my favorite cookbooks. The first 25 pages gives short “biographical” sketches about each of the main greens featured throughout the book. Here you will find blurbs about taste and texture for common household named greens like spinach and kale as well as a few more rare treats such as escarole and dandelion greens. Nava Atlas also included a quick recipe finder in this section to spare the reader from having to search aimlessly in the index for recipes for specific greens. (Note: I’m not actually so sure how much more helpful this is then the index, but it’s a nice touch). Unlike other cookbooks I have, Atlas chose to only use relatively easy to find greens (all the greens in this book are commonly found in grocery stores, health stores, and CSA’s) in her recipes, this is a particularly appealing aspect of the book.

After this introduction to the greens, come her amazing recipes. If you are familiar with her other work, all of the recipes in this book sound as amazing as her more classic ones. The book is broken down into Basic Preparations; Greens with Beans, Grains, Pasta & Other Vegetables; Salads, Dressings & Dips; Greens in Soups & Stews; and concludes with a short section on Green Juices & Smoothies.

The book is well written and the directions are easy to follow. So far I’ve made a few recipes all of which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed, but down below I decided to share my favorite!

There are two negatives in this otherwise excellent book. My first compliant is that the book was published in China. This just seems completely unnecessary with so many US printers. My second compliant is the lack of photos of the prepared food. Often times, I flip through a cookbook without reading a single word but instead just glance for the pictures that look appealing. This book, however, only offers 8 high definition photos found in the middle of the book. Still if you are looking to increase your intake of veggies, particularly of nutrient-dense greens, this is a must have cookbook!

Here is a remarkable recipe, which I altered just slightly. It is high in protein as well as vitamins and minerals. While I enjoyed it immensely in 90+ degree heat of the summer, I think it would really go-over well in the autumn and winter seasons.

Curried Sweet Potatoes with Chard & Chickpeas (4 servings)

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into chunks

1 16-20 oz can of chickpeas (I used 2/3 cup of dried chickpeas which I cooked ahead of time)

1 16 oz can of diced tomatoes

2 scallions (I used green onion)

8 to 12 oz of chard (I used collards)

2 to 3 cloves of garlic, diced

2 teaspoons curry powder

2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger

1 teaspoon ground cumin

¼ cup raisins

cilantro or parsley and salt and pepper to taste

Sauté the garlic over low heat until golden. Then add the sweet potato with 1½ cups of water. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook until the sweet potatoes until they are tender. (I think if you prebake the sweet potatoes you can skip this step and save about 12 minutes of cooking time).

After most of the water has been cooked off and the sweet potatoes are tender, add the chickpeas, tomatoes, scallions, curry powder, ginger, and cumin and bring the mixture to a simmer again; cook over low heat for 10 minutes or so until the tomatoes have been reduced to a sauce and the flavors have mingled.

Meanwhile, strip or cut the chard leaves (collards) away from their stems. Slice the leaves into strips.

Add the greens to the skillet and cook briefly, just until the greens begin to wilt. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Stir in the cilantro and optional raisins. I highly recommend the raisins. The sweet and spicy combination made this dish phenomenal!

                          (yes, I consider this a single portion)

Now besides swapping chard for collards, I also added freshly crushed red pepper seeds to the mixture as well as ½ cup cooked buckwheat that I had left over. While the dish certainly doesn’t need it, I couldn’t imagine making this again in the future without it! Finally I served the entire dish over fresh spinach adding just a little extra something special.

enjoy 

KALE v. COLLARDS

At the beginning of the world, five great rivalries were established. So intense were these conflicts that centuries later Chinese philosophers created the yin yang to help explain the delicate balance struck between each one. The eternal struggles of good and evil, light and darkness, peanut butter and chocolate I mean hot and cold, and dogs and cats have impacted human history in ways still unknown to us. However the oldest and most intense rivalry lies between Kale and Collards. These two dark leafy greens have been mortal enemies since they were first cultivated several centuries ago.

This rivalry runs deep within my group of friends. If you’re a fan of vegan cakes and sweets than you probably already know that my good friend Abby Bean has publically joined team Kale. On the other hand, my nutrition conscious friend Brian is a thorough supporter of collards. (Do note that I am slightly afraid to do this post as I would hate to learn that the only healthy food that A-Soy Bean eats is all a lie! Of course if we learn that kale is no healthier than cake, it would explain the Beans fondness for the cruciferous green.)

Both greens have their benefits but only one can rein supreme!

Kale is a green that grows in both summer time as well as in fall and winter, making it one hardy veggie! One of the most popular greens grown in Europe during the Middle Ages it's growth experienced a renaissance as it was encouraged by the British government during Dig for Victory, a campaign during the Second World War to ensure that rations would not negatively affect British citizens’ nutrition. Growing in nitrogen and lime rich soils, kale is a member of the cabbage family. Also know as borecole, there are several varieties and it even comes in two colors; purple and the more popular, green.

Collards have large, flat edible green leaves making them perfect for raw wraps. Grown in most parts of the world, collards are a cousin to kale, making their nutritional values similar. Having an upright stalk, collards, which is short for colewort, can grow up to two feet tall!

Ready and FIGHT!*

One cup of steamed kale contains roughly 36 calories. Lower in fiber than collards, kale has just 2.6 grams per cup. That said many of its mineral levels are also lower than collards. With 94 mg of calcium, 1.17 mg of iron, 23 mg of magnesium and 36 mg of phosphorus, kale packs a powerful punch. Kale really shines with its 296 mg of potassium and 53.3 mg of vitamin C. Potassium is particularly important in lowering risks of cardiovascular disease and is beneficial to athletes as it helps muscle contraction. One cup of Kale has just 1.9 grams of protein (which is actually a significant amount given it’s caloric weight).

In the other corner, weighing in at whooping 49 calories, we have Collards. Its 5.3 g of dietary fiber helps ensure healthy digestion. Collards also blows away its cousin in calcium, containing 266 mg of calcium, 2.2 mg of iron, 38 mg of magnesium and 57 mg of phosphorus. Collard greens also have roughly 3 grams of protein making this a true super food for athletes of all kinds. Kale just barely tips the scales to its advantage in potassium as collards have 220 and only 35 mg of vitamin C.

Both collards and kale have similar amounts of B-complex vitamins such as thiamine, riboflavin, folate and B-6. They both also have anticancer properties including antioxidants glucosinolates and diindolylmethane. Glucosinolates are responsible for the “spicy” flavor that these two cruciferous greens have. Diindolylmethane has recently been shown to promote a healthy immune system as well as having antibacterial and antiviral properties.

Ultimately, it is hard to determine a clear winner in this fight. Perhaps it comes down to taste preference. When in it’s raw state, I greatly prefer the taste of kale to collards, unless as mentioned above, the collards are used for a burrito-style wrap. 

However, according to Dr. Greger of nutritionfacts.org more nutrients are absorbed when slightly cooked- most-preferably steamed. Personally, I think collards have a slightly more refreshing taste when steamed. Microwaving will kill many of the nutrients. With that in mind, based off these numbers I would suggest choosing collards slightly more often than kale.

Perhaps it is best not to become too wedded to either team Kale or team Collards. I mean both are far healthier than nearly any other food on the planet! Whole Foods’ Aggregate Nutrient Density Index or the ANDI system gives both Collards and Kale a perfect score of 1000! Each has their strengths and weaknesses (which are really not weaknesses at all!) What is clear is that both of these little greens are incredibly healthy and should be implemented in your cooking repertoire.  I try and eat at least two cups or either of them ever single day! I like to rotate between purchasing bags of frozen kale and frozen collards to add variety to my diet. With time you will learn the subtle differences in taste and texture, and if you’re anything like me, you’ll quickly make room in your heart for both!

The final word:

EAT MORE KALE and COLLARDS!

*  These numbers are found on the USDA National Nutrient Database. Please keep in mind that I am not a registered dietitian and that these are simply my opinions.
 Interestingly, the numbers for kale and collards vary greatly between the raw and cooked pages. I chose to use the numbers found on the cooked page as I originally wrote the post using those numbers before realizing the great divergence. However, when comparing the numbers found on the raw page, Kale appears to have significantly higher values of Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Calcium, Potassium, and Protein. It seems unlikely that steaming these greens would so significantly change their properties.