5 Easy, Delicious Ways To Make Leafy Greens A Staple In Your Daily Diet

By now, you’ve certainly heard that leafy green vegetables are good for you. But let’s be honest, how often do you actually eat them? If you can’t remember the last time you ate some greens, it could behoove you to step it up.

Leafy greens like kale, spinach, Swiss chard and collards have so many health benefits, it’s almost comical. As in, if foods were superheroes, leafy green veggies would be Batman. They are low in calories and fat; high in fiber; rich in folic acid, vitamin C, potassium and magnesium; and contain a vast array of phytochemicals and antioxidants.

Vegetarian Times has come up with ingenious ways to incorporate this superfood into your everyday diet. When you think greens, it doesn’t always have to mean a steamed side dish or salad. Here are five tasty ways to add greens to the dishes you already love.

1. Add steamed or sautéed greens to pasta dishes.
I do this one all the time. While the pasta is boiling, I’ll sautée a couple handfuls of kale or spinach with some mushrooms (or any other veggie), then combine with marinara sauce and toss it with the pasta. Super easy, and much healthier. Or try this VT recipe for Kale and Cauliflower Alfredo.

2. Fold chopped leafies or whole baby leaves into bean, grain and potato salads.
Who says potato salad has to be white? Or, er, yellow-ish? Adding greens not only boosts the health factor, it also provides some much-needed color and texture to an otherwise dull dish.

3. Feature greens in a flavorful, nutrient-packed topping.
Such a simple solution! Just make whatever you usually make and throw some deliciously prepared greens on top. Eggplant parmesan is pretty delectable as-is, but piled high with spinach? Double the yum.

4. Blend steamed or tender raw greens into batters and doughs.
Okay, I have to admit, this one is for those who have far more Rachel Ray in them than I do. I can’t remember the last time I made dough from scratch, but I did order some spinach gnocchi in a restaurant recently. If I had the time and patience, I’d definitely try this Watercress Spaetzle with Grape Tomatoes (never heard of spaetzle but looks bomb) or this drool-inducing Sweet Potato Cornbread with Collard Confetti.

5. Add two cups of leaves to your favorite smoothie recipes.
Honestly, this one is easy as pie. (Easier, actually, because pie is not really that easy… unless, of course, you’re eating it.) Blending greens into your smoothie honestly does not affect the taste, at least not in an adverse way. Today I threw some kale into my strawberry-banana smoothie and it was scrumptious. Or try this: Chard, Lime and Mint Smoothie, or this Ultimate Green Smoothie.

A Meatless Diet Of Veggies Can Reduce Risk Of Colorectal Cancer

A study has linked a vegetarian diet to a lowered risk of colorectal cancers when compared to data on nonvegetarians, researchers are reporting.

An emphasis on screening tests has gone a long way in battling colorectal cancers -- the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. following lung cancer -- but primary prevention through the lowering of risk factors is still seen as a vital consideration, experts say.

In a study by Michael J. Orlich of Loma Linda University in California, Orlich and his research colleagues identified 380 cases of colon cancer and 110 cases of rectal cancer in 77,659 study participants.

An analysis of the dietary habits of the participants showed that, compared with nonvegetarians, those on a vegetarian diet had a had an average 22 percent lower risk for all colorectal cancers, broken down as a 19 percent lower risk for colon cancer and 29 percent lower risk for rectal cancer.

"Our vegetarians not only ate less meat than the non-vegetarians, but also less sweets, snack foods, refined grains and caloric beverages," Orlich says, noting that in addition they consumed more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and beans.

Previous studies have linked red meat and processed meats to elevated risks of colorectal cancer, he says.


Although studies including Orlich's have shown an association between a vegetarian diet and a lowered risk of colon cancer, it is unknown what the causal relationship might be, if one even exists, experts say.

It is not certain whether there is some protective quality in vegetables or whether there are more harmful qualities in meat, says Dr. Alfred Neugut, an epidemiology professor at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City.

One unexpected finding is that risk factors are even lower for those vegetarians who include fish and seafood in their diets.

"We were surprised to find that pescovegetarians had a significantly lower risk of colorectal cancers than people on other vegetarian diets," Olich notes.

Pescovegetarians who ate fish at least once a month and meat less than once a month, had the biggest risk reduction of 43 percent, the researchers found.

In comparison, lacto-ovo vegetarians who consumed eggs and dairy while limiting fish and meat to less than once a month saw a risk reduction of 18 percent, while vegans who ate eggs, dairy, fish, and meat less than once a month had a 16 percent reduction in colorectal cancer risk.

"The comforting takeaway is that a person doesn't need to be vegan and cut out all eggs, dairy, and fish to get some benefit in terms of reducing the risk of cancer," says Dr. Leonard Saltz, chief of the gastrointestinal oncology service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.