Kale Coconut Water Drink

The kale in Tom's vegetable bins is exploding!  The pure taste of tender, fresh kale is undeniably one of my favorite pleasures.  With the abundance of kale, I have the opportunity to try many new ways of exploring it's full potential.  Kale is a cruciferous vegetable, rich in calcium and cancer-fighting compounds.   It contains sulforaphane, which is a well studied phytochemical that may inhibit cancer-causing substances, according to Rebecca Katz, author of one of my favorite cookbooks, One Bite at a Time. 

I have been sharing some of the kale with my friend, Tahirih, who made a juice of kale, grapes and coconut water.  I had never tried coconut water, but was convinced by her that it's slightly sweet flavor was a great compliment to the kale. So I purchased a small container  (11.2 oz) of VitaCoco coconut water and put it with fresh kale and an apple into my VitaMix.  If you have never made a kale drink, this would be an excellent one to introduce yourself to this nutrition packed green drink. I am unfamiliar with the nutritional merits of coconut water, but will explore that another day.  All I know for sure is that this beverage was true summer Pzazz as I sipped it on the deck yesterday in hot, sizzling summer weather! 

Kale in raised garden bin

Ingredients:
1 cup loosely packed chopped kale  (destem it first)
165 grams (just less than 3/4 cup) coconut water  (that's half of the small container I purchased)
1 small apple ( I used a braeburn apple)

Preparation:
Put it all in the VitaMix and watch it whirl.  Delicious and pure!

Nutrition:
Servings per recipe: 1

Serving Size: 1 1/4 cup                    
Calories: 126
Total Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 49 mg
Total Carbs: 30 g
Dietary Fiber: 4 g
Protein: 2 g