How Will You Enjoy Purple Cabbage this Week?

Monday Challenge:

Eating Healthy on a budget?

Then you should know about a superfood that has more anti-oxidants per dollar than anything else you’ll find in the produce aisle.

Purple Cabbage, also known as red cabbage, is one of my favorite vegetables. It’s packed with antioxidants, inexpensive, and seems to last forever in the fridge. It’s pretty and can dress up any dish or salad.

Impressive health benefits of purple cabbage:

🟣Purple cabbage is rich in nutrients including vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin B6, potassium, vitamin c, and fiber.

🟣May help protect against cancer. Purple cabbage is a great source of anti-oxidants and other beneficial plant compounds that help protect against cellular damage.

🟣Helps fight inflammation. Purple cabbage contains a large amount of the amino acid glutamine which can reduce the inflammation and pain associated with ulcers and inflammation in the GI system.

🟣Promotes Heart Health. Purple cabbage contains more than 36 types of anthocyanins which are plant compounds that reduce your risk of heart disease.

🟣Good for your bones. Purple cabbage is rich in vitamins C and K1, both of which are essential for building and maintaining strong, healthy bones.

🟣Good for your gut health. Purple cabbage is also a good source of both soluble and insoluble fiber, which keeps your gut healthy and helps it digest foods more easily.

Purple cabbage is an incredibly versatile vegetable to include in your diet. You can eat it raw or cooked. Purple cabbage can be roasted or sautéed to eat as a side dish. It’s also great added to stir-frys, soups, and stews. You can also enjoy purple cabbage in a salad or slaw.

A delicious way to enjoy purple cabbage.

Your challenge this week is to experiment with different ways to add purple cabbage to your diet.

Keep purple cabbage in your veggie drawer and slice off shreds to add to your meals. It lasts for weeks, is cheap, convenient, and one of the healthiest things on the planet

Need recipe ideas? Let me know.

How will you enjoy purple cabbage this week?

Post in the comments below and let me know.

Be sure to hit the LIKE button 😊

Eight Pounds of Oranges 😲

Monday Challenge:

Eight pounds of oranges for $5 is a great deal, right?

I always go for this deal when I see it at my local grocer.

Sometimes I even get 2 bags. 😉

Kitty is trying to decide what to do with all those oranges!

Do you love oranges as much as I do? High in vitamins and fiber while low in calories, oranges are one of the healthiest foods you can eat.

Eating whole oranges is healthier than drinking orange juice. Why? One cup of pure orange juice has as much natural sugar as 2 whole oranges but without the fiber. It’s much less filling to drink than juice than to eat the orange.

Great things to know about oranges:

🍊Oranges are water-rich. One medium orange provides about half a cup of water. Eating oranges is a great way to stay hydrated.

🍊Oranges are a great source of fiber. One medium orange provides about three grams of fiber. Two thirds of that fiber is soluble fiber which is known to help reduce blood cholesterol.

🍊Oranges are high in vitamin C. One medium orange packs about 80% of your daily vitamin C. A tasty addition to a salad, oranges also help boost the absorption of iron from your salad greens.

🍊Oranges are high in thiamine (vitamin B1), folate (vitamin B9), and potassium Potassium supports heart function. Folate supports the brain and nervous system.

🍊Oranges are anti-oxidant superstars. The anti-oxidants in oranges help protect your body from free radical damage.

🍊Orange have a low glycemic index so they won’t spike your blood sugar.

Orange peels offer benefits too. Research shows that flavonoids in citrus peels may help prevent the reproduction, growth, and spread of cancer cells. So make it a habit to zest up your dishes with your (organic) orange peel.

I love eating my oranges just as they are (peel and eat) but they are also great with oats, with a salad or coleslaw, in smoothies, or in salad dressings and sauces.

A delicious way to eat your oranges.

Click picture for recipe.

Try my Oat Milk Orange Dreamsicle today!

Your challenge this week is to eat at least one orange everyday.

They’re in season right now so pick up a bag and enjoy the healthy benefits of this popular fruit.

Need recipe ideas? Let me know.

How will you enjoy oranges this week?

Post in the comments below and let me know.

Be sure to hit the LIKE button 😊

Friday Leftovers

Monday Challenge:

Friday Leftovers

Leftover quinoa, lentils, kale, and zucchini makes a great lunch bowl.

Do you often toss food you didn’t remember you had? Fruits and veggies that have gone terribly bad? Maybe there was a great “buy 1, get 1 free” sale that you couldn’t resist so you bought it whether you need it or not. 🙄

Some foods, like rice, quinoa, soups, and salads can easily be frozen but some things just don’t freeze well - I call these my Friday Leftovers.

I usually do my weekly food shopping on Saturday. So on Friday I like to check out what’s left in my fridge and create my Friday meals around that.

Your leftovers, (or food that needs to be eaten sooner rather than later) can be used in simple, tasty meals using a grain, a green, and a bean and topped off with a great sauce.

Leftovers can also be easily used in smoothies, soups, stir fries, tacos, wraps, and salads.

Some of the ways I like to use my Friday leftovers:

🥦Got Hummus that’s getting old? Use it on toast for breakfast or thin out and eat it with your salad. Or use it as a spread in a wrap with some leftover veggies.

🥦Got some veggies losing their crispness? Oven roast them and use in a grain bowl . Or add them to pasta with a great sauce.

🥦Have some fruit showing signs of age? These are great to use as sweeteners in your oatmeal (apples, bananas, and pineapples are great cooked with steel cut oats).

🥦Have tofu getting close to a “use by” date? Toast it in your air fryer and serve with a nice Asian sauce and some quinoa and greens.

🥦Greens or cabbage not as fresh as you’d like? Sauté them with some broth, Braggs’ Aminos, and nutritional yeast - delicious!

Prepping your produce in different ways can add appeal to your leftovers. Spiralizing veggies like zucchini can make leftovers fun to eat. Kids love spirals too!

Your challenge this week is to create tasty “Friday Leftover” meals.

Post your creations on Facebook and tag me (@Sarandwellness)

or Instagram: @sarandwellnes or #SarandWellness

Need recipe ideas? Let me know.

How will you enjoy them this week?

Be sure to hit the LIKE button 😊

The Mighty Flaxseed

Monday Challenge:

The Mighty Flaxseed

Flaxseeds may be small but they sure are mighty.

Flaxseeds are loaded with nutrients. They are high in omega-3 fatty acids, protein, fiber, and minerals such a B vitamins, iron, and magnesium. Flaxseeds also have lignans which have antioxidant properties and fight degenerative changes in the body and brain.

Did you know that omega-3 fatty acids are the only type of fat that the brain needs daily because our bodies cannot make them? Can you get them from eating fish? Yes, but realize you are also eating toxic substances like mercury. 🙄Ever wonder why pregnant and breast-feeding women are discouraged from eating fish (because of the child’s developing brain) but somehow it’s ok for the rest of us?

Why you should be adding flaxseed to your diet:

• Cardiovascular health: The good fats in flaxseed help reduce blood pressure, stave off artery hardening, lower “bad” LDL cholesterol, and prevent strokes.

• Digestion: The ALAs and the plant fibers in flaxseeds help to relieve constipation and inflammatory bowel diseases, which improves and balances the function of the digestive system.

• Inflammation: The omega-3 fatty acids in flaxseed can calm inflammation in the joints and also play a role in men’s health by preventing inflammation of the prostate as we age.

  Cancer: Flaxseeds are high in lignans which may reduce the growth and spread of cancer tumor cells specifically in the breast, colon, and prostate.

• Skin Health: Flaxseed can help calm skin inflammations such as eczema, psoriasis, acne, and rosacea, and may also promote healthy hair and nail growth.

• Menopause: The research is mixed, but some studies suggest flaxseed can help with symptoms of menopause like hot flashes.

Flaxseeds have an impermeable coating that enables them to pass right through your body undigested so you need to grind them before eating. Buy them whole, grind them in small amounts, and store them in the fridge for optimal freshness.

Make it a habit to eat flaxseed daily. The best way to do this to add a tablespoon or two to your morning oatmeal. They are also great in baked goods like breads, muffins, pancakes, waffles, and crackers. Or try adding them to smoothies or sprinkle on your salad and grain bowls.

Click for recipe

Your challenge this week is to eat flaxseeds daily.

Need recipe ideas? Let me know.

How will you enjoy them this week?

Let me know in the comments below.

Be sure to hit the LIKE button 😊

Sweet Potatoes are the Best!

Monday Challenge:

Sweet Potatoes

What’s your favorite food? This is mine :)

I think sweet potatoes are the best. You can eat them for breakfast, for lunch, for dinner, for dessert, or even as a snack. They’re great hot or cold.

Sweet potatoes are not just for holiday meals (where they’re often served loaded with sugar and fat). They need no added sugar.

They not only taste good but they’re good for you:

• Sweet potatoes are high in fiber and antioxidants, which protect your body from free radical damage and promote a healthy gut and brain.

• Sweet potatoes are one of the best sources of beta-carotene, which is converted to vitamin A to support good vision and your immune system.

• Sweet potatoes have low glycemic index (lower than regular potatoes) so they won’t spike your blood sugar.

• Sweet potatoes are a great source of potassium, which naturally helps to lower blood pressure by reducing the effects of sodium and tension in the blood vessels. Sprinkle a bit of cinnamon to pump up that BP lowering power.

Sweet potatoes are great to batch cook so you have them available all week long. And they’re budget friendly.

I like to wash them, cut them in half and bake (cut side down) for 20 to 30 minutes. You can eat them cold when you’re on the go. Try reheating them in your air fryer – amazing!

You can also use sweet potatoes to both flavor and thicken your soup or stew.

Your challenge this week is to add sweet potatoes to your menu.

Sweet potatoes are so versatile and can be easily added to your diet. Try them for breakfast, for lunch, for dinner, for dessert, or even as a snack. Need recipe ideas? Let me know.

How will you enjoy them this week?

Let me know in the comments below.

Be sure to hit the LIKE button :)