Did you know that cooked kale, spinach, and collard greens are all good calcium sources. Collard greens come in as having the highest amount: a half-cup provides 164 mg of calcium.This recipe was submitted by one of our amazing Yoga vs. Osteoporosis students, Kay Lisseck. There’s everything to love about this recipe, and Kay even offers options for making this with Bok Choy for another extraordinary calcium boost, quick and delicious option. Thank you Kay! And if you have a recipe you’d like to share, please send it to me at susan@ipivot-now.com
Ingredients:
- 2-3 large collard leaves
- 1-2 Tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
- 1-2 Tbsp roasted unsalted sunflower seeds
- salt to taste
Directions:
Wash and prep the collards by removing the center stems and rolling the leaves together to chop into narrow strips. For two people I suggest chopping 1 1/2 to 2 cups of chopped leaves. Bring a small amount of water (just enough to cover the greens but not flood them) to boil and add the greens to simmer until soft and still dark green, but not mushy. This might take 5-7 minutes until there is very little water left in the pan. Turn off the heat and add olive oil, sunflower seeds, and salt. That’s all there is to it! Feel free to adjust these additions according to your taste. We enjoy the taste of the greens alone, but the olive oil, salt and sunflower seeds add just the right texture and flavor to make eating greens and getting some added calcium more delicious!
It also add that this works great with bok choy stir fried instead of collards! With bok choy you can also add garlic, ginger to and/or a little low-sodium Tamari instead of salt.
photo also courtesy of Kay!
This makes me want to eat Collard greens. I have made them but very plain and not my favorite but thought they were rick in Calcium. Made this way they are delicious. Thank you so much for opening up my world to enjoying this delicious way of preparing Collard greens. Love, Joyce
Joyce, if you do try them, let us know what you think! Such a pleasure having you and your bright spirit in our Strong Bones membership!
I eat them this way every week, adding in other veggies I have on hand. Thanks for posting this recipe!
Meg, thanks for that great tip! Yes, the more veggies the better!
Hi Susan
I love collards! If I fry them in olive oil – do they retain the same amount of calcium? Thanks
Hi Lori! Always nice to hear from you. I do not believe that a quick sautee diminishses the calcium value, but it typically will reduce the amount of oxalates that are common in leafy greens and can interfere with calcium absorption. Thank you! -Susan