Vegetable of the Week - Spinach

Grow Calgary is excited to announce that we are going to have a vegetable of the week. These vegetables are ones we organically grow on the farm. We will be sharing nutritional information, benefits, as well as a recipe for you! This week's vegetable is spinach.

We all know that Popeye reached for spinach to increase his strength, and it turns out he knew what he was doing. Although eating a whole bag of spinach won't make you have super strength, it will however provide you with essential vitamins and nutrients. Spinach is one of the healthiest vegetables due to the fact that it is very nutrient rich. It is high in vitamins and minerals and concentrated in health-promoting antioxidants.

Spinach helps against anti inflammatory, oxidative stress, bone and cardiovascular problems, as well as cancer.

Spinach is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin A, manganese, iron, copper, calcium, potassium, and vitamin C, to name a few. It also is a good source of dietary fiber and protein. 

Spinach is low in calories and carbohydrates, and has zero fat. In 1 cup of spinach, you have 987% of your daily vitamin K and 105% of your daily vitamin A!

You can incorporate spinach into your daily diet quite easily! You could add it to your smoothies (honestly, you can't taste it!! I promise!), eggs, pasta, use it in a salad, put it in a wrap, on your sandwiches, make spinach dip (although not the healthiest option, it is one of the tastiest), among other things. Below is a recipe for a fresh spinach and berry salad, perfect for a summer lunch!




Strawberry Balsamic Spinach Salad

Ingredients:
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp sea salt, plus a punch or two more
1 cup fresh strawberries, washed and dried
5 cups baby spinach leaves, washed and dried
3 tbsp shallots, minced
1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
ground pepper to taste


Directions:
In a small bowl whisk the balsamic, 1/4 tsp of sea salt, and olive oil until it is emulsified.

Place the spinach into a medium-sized bowl and drizzle half the dressing onto the leaves, and toss until fully covered. Add the strawberries, shallots, and feta; add more dressing. Taste the salad and add more dressing or salt as needed. Finish with freshly ground black pepper and serve!

Resources:
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2626/2
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=43
http://www.babble.com/best-recipes/strawberry-balsamic-spinach-salad-recipe/