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Recently, I’ve talked to just about everyone in close proximity about food. As a health-conscious person with a firm belief of the importance of making quality food choices and a mom of a daughter with diabetes, I hover on the “very well informed” end of the spectrum. The conversations centered on the recent changes in the dietary guidelines, which feel a little like new year resolutions, and food issues friends and family members are dealing with. It all has me questioning our food choices, reviewing our eating practices and contemplating changes.
After much discussion (and fretting), I’ve concluded we eat pretty well. And we like it! Fruits, veggies, not too much meat, whole grains, complex carbohydrates, mostly homemade foods, low usage of pre-packaged foods with preservatives. Whispering sweet nothings, am I right? It’s not perfect but that is unattainable. We care for our health and bodies by choosing quality foods most of the time.
There is always room for improvement, however. More of the good, less of the not so. We’ve relegated sweets for the weekend. It’s helped with midweek bargaining at the dinner table and cuts down on our overall sugar intake. I’ve limited my pop to hardly at all and increased the amount of water I try to drink each day. To add some variety, I’m infusing some of my water with fruits and herbs and drinking tea, the citrusy kind like I Love Lemon by Bigelow. It’s refreshing, zingy and, when I’m low on sleep and not feeling the best, soothes my scratchy throat.
My love of lemon continues with another kale salad, because there is no such thing as too many kale salad recipes. Olive oil and lemon soften the leaves and lessen the strong kale taste. Tossed with shredded pecorino and parmesan, salt and pepper, this is one of those salads everyone keeps pinching mouthfuls out of before dinner is completely ready. For the goodness it holds, it a behavior to encourage!
Recipe slightly adapted from the Kitchn
Ingredients
- 1lb of kale, washed & chopped with ribs removed (14 cups)
- juice of 1 lemon
- olive oil to coat, about 1/4-1/2 cup*
- 4 oz shredded pecorino cheese
- 1 oz shredded parmesan cheese
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Toss the washed and chopped kale in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and massage the leaves until all are coated.
- Add the lemon juice and mix to coat.
- Let the leaves sit 5 minutes to soften.
- Finally, add in both shredded cheeses and toss to combine.
- Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve at room temperature.
Notes
*I don't care for oversaturated leaves so I tend to use the lesser amount. Others might feel differently so choose what works for you.
Have you made any food changes this new year? How is it going? Easy? Challenging?
This post is sponsored by Bigelow Tea. Thank you for being supportive of our sponsors.
