Powerful veggies

Powerful veggies

The beetroot is really a universal panacea. The French call it lovingly as Bonbon de Nature (Nature’s Candy). The Russians use for the beet a word “svekla,” sounding like a pretty woman’s name. In my previous post, Kitchen Pharmacy: Beets Are Your Buddies, I described many benefits the beets can provide us.
Today I write again about this superfood for people who still don’t want to accept it.
My grandmother (herbalist and healer) introduced me to this veggie when I was two years old. At this age she started giving me in the mornings one teaspoon of freshly squeezed beet juice mixed with carrot juice. I still love organic beets. I mix them with the apples, baby carrots, celery and ginger and create fresh and tasteful homemade juices, salads, appetizers, soups, including the famous Russian borscht.
Discover the best kept secret of red beets; the ancient doctors’ findings, and what scientific studies and research, conducted around the world conclude. Now it’s your time to learn how to make delicious, healthy meals not only with the beetroot, but with other powerful veggies and fruits. It’ll help you to prevent many diseases or to heal naturally.

 I met different people who grew up here, in the U.S.A. They never tried the beetroot, but they are very confident about hating this vegetable. How you can hate something if you even did not try it? Good question. What an “iron” logic I have to say! I don’t know what these veggies did to deserve such a hatred? So I asked Kami McBride, herbalist and founder of the Living Awareness Institute in California (www.livingawareness.com) to share with the readers her experience and knowledge about this powerhouse veggie. Kami has taught herbal medicine since 1988. She has helped thousands of people to learn how to use herbs in their daily lives, and understand that whole foods and herbal medicine are an important aspect of everyone’s preventive health care plan.

By Kami McBride

Beets aren’t exactly an herb but one of the intentions of the herb of the month insert sheet is to help spread the word about the medicinal qualities of your plant based foods. Indeed what you eat is your first medicine. Our bodies make about one million new cells each second, we are constantly rebuilding ourselves. Those new cells are either made from good food or not from so good food.

Including more organic nutrient rich vegetables in our diet means that we can create healthier cells. Healthy cells make up  healthy tissue and healthy organs. When we eat well we feel better and have more energy. Simple as that. The vegetables in your box keep help your energy level up and keep you out of the doctor’s office.

Beets are a wonderful food containing many health benefits. They are high in folic acid, potassium, calcium, vitamin A and C.

Beets support women’s health in several ways. Folic acid, part of the B vitamin family isd an important nutrient for healthy cell growth and regeneration. Folic acid is one of the nutrients that helps prevent birth defects and supports a healthy pregnancy. Just one cup of steamed beets contains 35% of your daily requirement for folic acid during pregnancy. If you are thinking about getting pregnant, start eating your beets! Beets are also high in iron and help to replenish the blood during and after menstruation.

In the vegetable world beets are one of the richest sources of flavonoids which are important for strengthening capillaries and blood vessel walls. Beets are a delicious food that help to lower blood pressure and are a tonic for the cardiovascular system. Flavonoids have an anti-inflammatory effect in the body and help to reduce the inflammation that can contribute to heart disease and cancer.

As indigestible cellulose and pectin in the beets travel through the digestive system, they absorb and remove from the body substances such as heavy metals and cholesterol deposits. In addition, these substances in the beets promote active secretion of digestive juices and bile. Studies show beets increase cell activity in the liver helping body to detoxify. Beets support your digestive process, increase elimination and are considered a blood cleanser!

In one study it was found that beet juice is a potent inhibitor of cancerous cell mutations caused by nitrates. Nitrates are usually found as a chemical preservative in processed meats such as sausage, lunch meats and bacon.

I have met so many people that don’t like beets and upon further investigation, their experience is beets from a can when they were a kid. If you haven’t eaten beets in a while, fresh organic beets are a whole different experience. Chop them into small pieces, steam and let cool. Then toss the beets into your salads or mix into other vegetable dishes.

Garlic and Beet Soup

3-4 beets

5-6 cloves garlic

  • We love to steam a bunch of beets, puree them in the blender with a few cloves of garlic and feast on this simple garlic and beet soup.

Sweet Beet side dish

5 medium sized beets thinly sliced

1 tablespoon ghee

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 tablespoon finely chopped oregano

Steam beets until tender, add rest of ingredients and serve warm.

  • Beet Juice Blast

2 raw beets

2 carrots

1 apple

1/2 cup greens (spinach, kale or chard)

1 tablespoon ginger

Run everything through the juicer and drink fresh.

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*None of the statements on this site are an endoresement of any particular product, or a recommendation as to how to treat any particular disease or health-related condition. Please consult with a health care professional before starting any diet, supplimentation and medication or exercise program.