All I Want For Christmas is Kale

Hello!

So I know I created this blog to catalogue my Building A Body project, but I think it will continue as a document of a continuing journey.  As many of you know I decided to begin the classes for becoming a personal trainer. As I learn things, as I test them out I will write about them. I think for now, I will begin just by posting some healthy reminders and some really good recipes that you can all try during the holidays.

 Eating healthy is a lot easier than you think it is. There are a lot of really quick simple things you can do that are the most nutritious things for your body. While I was doing the training I continued to have my crazy busy life, which meant that I have to make really nutritious and very healthy protein filled food very, very quickly. I will share some of those recipes with you as well, but let's start with something that I consider my quick, cleansing energy boost.

The reason all I want for Christmas is kale is because kale is the queens of greens.  One of the healthiest vegetable on the planet, one cup of kale contains only 36 calories, but packs in 5 grams of fiber, 15% of your daily requirements of calcium and vitamin B6, 40% of magnesium - which you need to process the calcium, 180% of vitamin A (holy crap!), 200% of vitamin C (forget orange juice when you are sick - eat kale for colds!), and 1,020% of vitamin K!!!!!  It is also an excellent source of minerals like copper, potassium, iron, manganese and phosphorous.  Essentially, you are eating pure health.

Wanna know more awesome kale facts?

Check in with Web MD. . .

 Mandarin Kale Avocado Salad

What you need:

4-6 leaves of green kale

1/2 avocado

1/2 lemon

1 mandarin orange

3-4 thin slices of red beet

 Begin by washing the kale.  Instead of ripping the kale, I use a pair of kitchen scissors to cut it from the vein. 

 Then take an avocado, cut it in half, take the seat out, and slice it up so it easily taken out of its skin. Now you can use either a whole avocado are half avocado depending on how creamy you want it. Then put the avocado into the bowl with the kale. 

Slice a lemon in half and squeeze half the lemon's juice into the bowl.

Thinly slice a few pieces of the red beet and cut into smaller pieces and throw that in there too.  

Peel the mandarin orange and put the slices in there as well.

Now, here comes the fun part.  With your hands, get in there and mush the whole thing together so that the avocado and lemon juice create a creamy coating on the kale and other ingredients.  Then it's ready to eat.

I made this one in the picture with a grilled black china rice gluten free bread with cheddar almond cheese sandwich.  Yum!

Enjoy!!!