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cruciferous vegetables

My neighbor, Sonia, is a middle aged black woman with congestive heart disease and a number of comorbidities because of obesity. However, she does cook soul food and she invites me over to get some of her food every holiday. She always says "Bring a plate," and then when I bring a regular dinner plate she says "You got to have more than that!" So I bring a pie plate and she says, "That's more like it!"

She piles my plate high with ham slices, potato salad, mac and cheese, and a huge portion of collard greens that she has cooked for hours with a strip of bacon.

As much as I love eating her greens, it really makes me wonder about nutritional value because they are boiled for about 2 hours. I learned in the 1970s that greens should be steamed and eaten soon because otherwise they lose a lot of their nutritional content.

But every cookbook I consulted recommends cook boiling collard greens for at least an hour and a half to two hours.

I did a little research on cruciferous vegetables because lately I have been eating kale, both raw and cooked and I have really been enjoying it. Collard greens are hard to find but I would like to try cooking those also. And for you non Cooks, there's nothing to that. You put the greens in the pot, toss in a slice of bacon, cover with water and just let it cook for 2 hours.

I wonder what it would be like to cook those in an Instapot. I don't own an Instapot so I can't check it out but has anyone else here ever tried that?

Regardless, these greens have so much nutritional content, it's not even funny. And especially collard greens which treat everything from obesity to depression to insomnia. I'll bet they grow hair too. And as to calories, you can eat an entire cup and it's only 35 calories. So I listed a bunch of stuff below about greens and would love to hear from anybody who enjoys eating greens or has any recipes that make them extra good.
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The cruciferous family includes bok choy, kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, rutabaga, and turnips. Cruciferous vegetables are high in nutrients and low in calories.

A high intake of plant foods, such as collard greens, appears to decrease the risk of a number of health conditions, including obesity and overall mortality, diabetes, and heart disease.

Is kale better for you cooked or raw?

“Cancer studies seem to show that raw kale is more beneficial than cooked, while cholesterol studies seem to show that steamed kale is more beneficial than raw,” says Harris, who recommends a bit of both in your diet. But whatever you do, don't boil, saute or stir-fry the veggie too long or with too much added liquid.

What are the health benefits of collard greens?

Collard greens are an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin C, and calcium, a rich source of vitamin K, and a good source of iron, vitamin B-6, and magnesium. They also contain thiamin, niacin, pantothenic acid, and choline.

A high intake of plant foods, such as collard greens, appears to decrease the risk of a number of health conditions, including obesity and overall mortality, diabetes, and heart disease.

Got to go cut up some kale now. I'm going to steam it and serve it with my Swedish meatballs and warm cottage cheese. No buttered noodles.
 
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