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Super Foods!!

1.      Try KALE! Few foods on earth can compare, nutrition-wise, to this leafy green—a true superfood. The dark green hue is a giveaway that kale is packed with vitamins, minerals and health-enhancing antioxidants such as beta-carotene. What’s more, kale’s filling fiber, bone-building calcium and heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to help support the body’s ability to fight off disease. Plus, kale is easy to prepare. You can buy it pre-bagged, washed and de-stemmed. Or you can buy it in bunches. Simply remove the center ribs of its leaves, rinse well and then slice it into thin ribbons. Add this healthful pick to soups and stews in the last 20 minutes of cooking; coat lightly with olive oil, season with a touch of sea salt and roast in a hot oven to make yummy kale chips; or sauté it with a splash of olive oil and garlic for a delicious side dish.

2.      Eat CRANBERRIES! It’s holiday time so make sure you go for those super-nutritious, low-calorie cranberries! Why buy the expensive, over-hyped, pomegranate fruit juice when you can get serious healing power from a locally grown berry for a fraction of the price? Dried cranberries rank among the highest on the ORAC scale (measures antioxidant content) of any fruit, which means they may help reduce risk of disease. What’s more, cranberries contain compounds that help prevent urinary tract and other pesky infections. Toss them into salads, bake them into muffins or toss them into your morning cereal. Make your own cranberry sauce by boiling up fresh cranberries with some OJ, sugar and perhaps toss in some fresh oranges or apple slices.

3.      Drink FAT-FREE MILK, SOY MILK OR ALMOND MILK! Moo juice is so common that we tend to overlook its power and value. Here's a friendly reminder: One eight-ounce glass of either cow’s milk, soy milk or almond milk is chock-full of nine essential nutrients, many of which most of us fall short, including bone-building calcium, heart-healthy potassium, and vitamin D. Use it for lattes, in smoothies, in hot cocoa and be sure to add extra nutrition to your morning bowl of oatmeal by cooking it up with liquid calcium, NOT water! Buy the non-fat dairy products and light soy or almond milk to reap their potent health powers for the fewest calories.

Drink COFFEE! Surprise, surprise! Coffee is the new green tea! Why? Coffee provides more than just a morning jolt; java is also the number one source of antioxidants in the U.S. diet. That’s right, it’s packed with potent disease-fighting flavanoids (protective compounds that neutralize health-damaging particles called free-radicals) therefore, helping the health of every cell in our bodies. Plus, it has ZERO calories (that means you will need to nix all the creamy, sugary, high calorie additives and go for those skinny lattes or better yet, drink it strong and BLACK and enjoy the true taste of this fabulous antioxidant cocktail!). Just be sure that if you are sensitive to caffeine that you drink decaffeinated coffee instead—don’t worry, you are still getting those healthy antioxidants.