We love spinach in our house, we have a raw spinach salad on the table almost every night, and we toss it in with all kinds of cooked dishes. Its full of fiber, iron, and vitamins, and my kids already eat it, so maybe I shouldn't rock the boat.
Your kids aren't the only ones eating at family meals...every time I bring up a new kale recipe my husband grimaces and moans like he's just been stabbed. And then, while watching a "Modern Family" episode that we had DVR'd last week, Mitchell comes home from the farmer's market and says, "Did you know that spinach is out? Spinach is out and kale is in." We thought that was hilarious and my husband was laughing, so I took that as implicit agreement that I could start throwing kale in everything. I'm married to a lawyer, though, so I should have gotten it in writing.
Yesterday I saw a recipe on Tastespotting for a potato kale gratin with gruyere cheese, so I decided to try it. I should have been more worried that it advertised that the kale would be an easy eat for a new eater because it was "smothered in cheese." We aren't really smothered in cheese kind of people but I still felt that it would be a great recipe, and chose to make some wild Alaskan salmon as our main entree. Needless to say, at this point in the story, it wasn't pretty. The gratin kind of curdled and the kale turned a sickly color and the smell, my god, the smell. I hurriedly threw together some egg noodles at the last minute. Everyone (including my husband) took a polite adventurous bite of the gratin and then devoured the rest of the meal.
If you are going to teach your kids to be adventurous eaters, it usually means that you are going to be adventurous with your cooking and baking as well. The best quality in an adventurous chef is to know when to throw a pan of water on for a backup side dish of egg noodles. But I'm not finished with kale! Stay tuned for some great recipes because I still have a refrigerator full of more kale.
Here are the spinach vs. kale stats. I can't imagine kale will ever replace spinach in our diet, but it is awfully good for you:
Kale
Spinach
Your kids aren't the only ones eating at family meals...every time I bring up a new kale recipe my husband grimaces and moans like he's just been stabbed. And then, while watching a "Modern Family" episode that we had DVR'd last week, Mitchell comes home from the farmer's market and says, "Did you know that spinach is out? Spinach is out and kale is in." We thought that was hilarious and my husband was laughing, so I took that as implicit agreement that I could start throwing kale in everything. I'm married to a lawyer, though, so I should have gotten it in writing.
Yesterday I saw a recipe on Tastespotting for a potato kale gratin with gruyere cheese, so I decided to try it. I should have been more worried that it advertised that the kale would be an easy eat for a new eater because it was "smothered in cheese." We aren't really smothered in cheese kind of people but I still felt that it would be a great recipe, and chose to make some wild Alaskan salmon as our main entree. Needless to say, at this point in the story, it wasn't pretty. The gratin kind of curdled and the kale turned a sickly color and the smell, my god, the smell. I hurriedly threw together some egg noodles at the last minute. Everyone (including my husband) took a polite adventurous bite of the gratin and then devoured the rest of the meal.
If you are going to teach your kids to be adventurous eaters, it usually means that you are going to be adventurous with your cooking and baking as well. The best quality in an adventurous chef is to know when to throw a pan of water on for a backup side dish of egg noodles. But I'm not finished with kale! Stay tuned for some great recipes because I still have a refrigerator full of more kale.
Here are the spinach vs. kale stats. I can't imagine kale will ever replace spinach in our diet, but it is awfully good for you:
Kale
| Serving Size 1 cup, chopped (67g) | |
| Calories 34 | Calories from Fat 4 |
| Hide Daily Values | % Daily Value* |
| Total Fat 0g | 0% | |
| Saturated Fat 0g | 0% | |
| Cholesterol 0mg | 0% | |
| Sodium 29mg | 1% | |
| Total Carbohydrates 7g | 2% | |
| Dietary Fiber 1g | ||
| Protein 2g | ||
| Vitamin A | 206% | Vitamin C | 134% |
| Calcium | 9% | Iron | 6% |
| Thiamin | 5% | Riboflavin | 5% |
| Niacin | 3% | Pantothenic Acid | 1% |
| Vitamin B6 | 9% | Potassium | 9% |
| Phosphorus | 4% | Magnesium | 6% |
| Zinc | 2% | Copper | 10% |
| * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. | |||
Spinach
| serving size 1 cup | |
| Calories 7 | Calories from Fat 1 |
| Hide Daily Values | % Daily Value* |
| Total Fat 0g | 0% | |
| Saturated Fat 0g | 0% | |
| Cholesterol 0mg | 0% | |
| Sodium 24mg | 1% | |
| Total Carbohydrates 1g | 0% | |
| Dietary Fiber 1g | ||
| Protein 1g | ||
| Vitamin A | 56% | Vitamin C | 14% |
| Calcium | 3% | Iron | 5% |
| Thiamin | 2% | Riboflavin | 3% |
| Niacin | 1% | Vitamin B6 | 3% |
| Potassium | 5% | Phosphorus | 1% |
| Magnesium | 6% | Zinc | 1% |
| Copper | 2% | % | |
| * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. | |||
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