You might first like to know that I am no longer inundated with squash. The squash heydays have come and gone, but, it may be that I just ate three squash chocolate chip cookies out of the freezer. Yes, yes, of course, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies sound so much better, but the difference in taste is minimal and when one is inundated with squash it makes an excellent use of the squash.

I used different types of winter squash for my cookies and once cooked and pureed and added to recipes that would use pumpkin, I couldn’t tell the difference (of course, pumpkin is a winter squash as well). I had so many different types, so I ended up cooking all of the acorn, butternut, delicata, fairytale, and others together and pur√©eing them. Just make sure to add enough unrefined cane sugar or honey… ok, you could also use maple syrup, sorghum, stevia, or xylitol, but let’s stop there.

What I like so much about winter squash is that it is very high in vitamins and minerals. It has oodles of vitamin A as well as nice amounts of vitamin C, B1, B3, B5, B6 and minerals like potassium, manganese, folate, and copper. It also has the amino acid tryptophan, you know, like in turkey. And omega-3′s! And fiber to keep you regular! Now we are just getting out of hand… or, squash is getting out of hand. Before you leave thinking that it is too good to be true, just ask yourself, “How else could the pilgrims have survived if the Indians hadn’t shown them the secrets of winter squash and squash pies??”

I’m gonna go grab a couple more squash chocolate chip cookies… good thing that winter squash is still serving me in the winter.

One of the things that is nice about kale is that it is not really bitter at all. It blends in a smoothie just fine and you hardly notice the tiny green chopped up flecks, especially among the blueberries, bananas, strawberries, and cocoa. But, but but!, what I like even better about kale is its power-packed nutritional profile. I mean, can I even list all of the good stuff in kale? It is like, in the hall of fame of nutrition density.

Kale is versatile! You can use it in salads, smoothies, soups, sandwiches, soap, salted chips, and something else that starts with S. Actually, I don’t know about the soap, but why not? Because kale is not bitter, it is much easier to work into your diet, at least that is my opinion, and I think it will be your opinion too, if you let it. Then we will be of the same opinion and our opinions will sway other people’s opinions. Yes, we are still talking about kale.

If you have any kale recipes that are to die for, please shamelessly promote them here. I mean, it’s kale!

Vitamins: A, C, K, B1, B2, B3, B6, Folate
Minerals: calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorous, potassium, selenium, sodium, zinc
Amino Acids: cystine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, tyrosine, valine
Omega-3 fatty acids: Yessss.

But, but, but!, I am still going to try dandelions in my smoothie. Lose the butt.

Thankfully, I grew up eating dandelions every now and then. My grandpa would pick them (from areas that had not been sprayed with pesticides or who knows what), and we would have them in salads or soups or sauteed. They definitely take some getting to know. You may not be the biggest fan right from the start. You may have to acquire a taste for them. You may have to work at including them in dishes and disguising their pungent bitterness. BUT, all your hard work will be rewarded. First, your work at liking dandelions will be rewarded with you becoming a fan of dandelions. Second, your body will be rewarded with numerous health benefits.

Dandelions contain:
-Vitamins – A, C, E, K, B1, B2, B3, B6, Choline. Of those it has, most notably, loads of Vitamin K and tons of Vitamin A. Is a load more than a ton? Well, for this article it is.
-Minerals – calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorus, sodium, zinc, copper, managanese. Of those, most notably, calcium and iron.

Aside from the nutritional goodness, what I find fascinating about dandelions is their long history of use in the body to promote healing and healthy functioning. It has commonly been used to heal and effectively treat liver disorders (jaundice, hepatitis) and promote liver health and detoxification. It is a diuretic and disinfectant, that is, it cleans you out and helps prevent harmful microbial growth in the urinary system.

Also, interestingly enough, the scientific name for dandelion is: Taraxacum officinale, which basically means The Official Remedy for Disorders or Pharmacy Remedy for Disorders. Because it can cause changes in the liver and flow of bile, it is good to start introducing dandelions slowly into your diet, especially if A) you are not used to eating them, and B) you have liver, stomach, bowel problems. So try some in a mixed salad or added to a soup. I wonder what they would be like in a smoothie? Hmmm. Bitter smoothie? Hmmm. I may have to try that.

I would highly recommend checking them out and doing some reading about them if you are interested in restoring vitality to your body. Yes, I said vitality. Good word, good word.

1. Don’t forget to eat your greens
Fascinating article discussing how chlorophyll in greens could reverse the effects of aflatoxin poisoning (like from peanut butter).
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2. Eat fat with your veggies
Good fats help the body absorb the fat-soluble nutrients. So put some olive oil on your salad! Good article.
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3. Fighting cancer with broccoli

The study can be found here. Broccoli sprouts are an even better and more powerful way to get your sulforaphane.
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Let’s talk about green beans. I am a huge fan of green beans… especially Italian style. Almost every time I go to visit my grandma she makes green beans cause she knows how much I like them. She knows I like them with some extra virgin olive oil, sauteed garlic, and tomatoes and then cooked down till tender.

Unfortunately most people’s experience with green beans is having a can of them dumped into a pot with pieces of bacon… blah. Canned green beans are just blah.

If you don’t know how good green beans are then let me help you get acquainted with them. Green beans are chocked full of vitamins, minerals, and goodies like: vitamin K, vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, manganese, magnesium, potassium, folate, iron, calcium, copper, phosphorus, tryptophan, protein, dietary fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids!

Wow. What a vegetable… I mean bean. Green beans are in the same family as shell beans but unlike them you can eat the whole thing (pod and bean) and eat them raw. I especially like this about green beans… they just seem so fresh. I mean… if you eat other beans raw you can get some nice/terrible stomach cramps… but oh no not with Mr. Green Bean. I especially like french green beans (haricot verts).

Oh the days of cleaning and picking off the stems of green beans for my mom or grandma. Nostalgia. Sigh.