Dear GreenSmoothieGirl: I heard you on the Babies and Moms radio podcast recently, where the host Nancy was talking to you about me and how I am trying to lose weight to have a baby next year with green smoothies. Is it possible to use carrot tops/greens and turnip greens in green smoothies? Do you happen to know if there is a lot of nutritional value in those things? I was also wondering, is there nutritional value in the stalks of collard greens? I just bought a big bunch and was cleaning them and cutting off the stalks when I thought “Man, what if the stalks are really good for you nutritionally and I’m throwing them away?”
Answer: The link to the radio podcast with GreenSmoothieGirl hosted by Babies and Moms Radio a few months ago, referred to in this question is here:
http://babiesandmomsradio.com/blog/2008/11/04/easy-healthy-recipes-for-kids/
That’s part of the beauty of green smoothies—the ability to use the entire plant. Yes, the stalks of the collards (or chard, or turnip greens, or anything) are high in nutrition and off the chart in fiber. So throw them in your BlendTec Total Blender, definitely!
And carrot, turnip, and beet greens are highly nutritious and belong in your green smoothies, too (washed well). Strawberry tops are fine except that strawberries are always sprayed, so I generally throw those away (they don’t amount to much anyway).
Robyn,
How long does raw honey last (shelf life).. THanks! Toni
Several years. Raw honey has antibacterial properties and therefore keeps well.