Day 15 – September Smoothie Challenge – Eat More Kale not Frozen Yogurt

I think this new Healthy Choice frozen yogurt commercial featuring a character who was on a “Kale cleanse” is comical at the least and misleading to consumers about the value of Kale.  To suggest that eating flavored frozen yogurt with added sugar is healthier than Kale is crazy.  I’ve always thought of frozen yogurt as dessert.  To say one is equal to the other, is crazy, especially because I know far more people who have lactose intolerance than kale allergies.

I know they are talking about a fad diet in the commercial for which I assume the participants only ate Kale, but let’s be real…most people know by now that any diet where you just eat ONE food is a terrible fad.  The body needs a variety of nutrients from a variety of sources.  I personally think that this ad may be a swipe at people who advocate that you don’t need diary to get sufficient calcium in your diet, especially for vegans and vegetarians.  Kale and leafy green can be a great source of calcium.  It’s widely known that there are tons of healthy people all over the world, most notably in Asia, who have virtually no dairy at all in their diets and are perfectly healthy.  Just google “The China Study”  to find out more on that.

Per serving this frozen yogurt has approx. 19 grams of carbs, 13 grams of sugar, 1.5 grams of fat and 10% of required calcium (blueberry version).  No vitamin A, C and no iron.  The serving size is listed as about 71 grams, which is approx. 2.5 ounces or .16 pounds.  That is a tiny dessert to me.

In comparison, let’s see what Kale has to offer.

“One cup of kale contains 36 calories, 5 grams of fiber, and 15% of the daily requirement of calcium and vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), 40% of magnesium, 180% of vitamin A, 200% of vitamin C, and 1,020% of vitamin K. It is also a good source of minerals copper, potassium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus.” – WebMD

Did I mention it’s low in sugar too?  It’s laughable that they would compare a leafy green to a dessert treat.  Crazy.

Today’s Recipes

Bee Sting Smoothie

• 1 tablespoon of Bee Pollen granules
• 2 cups of cut up kale
• 1 ripe banana
• 1 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
• 1 cup of water
• 1 tablespoon of honey

Blueberry, Banana and Kale Smoothie

• 1 cup unsweetened organic vanilla almond milk
• 1 tightly packed cup organic kale leaves (stems removed/chopped up)
• 1 cup organic blueberries (frozen or fresh)
• 1 organic ripe banana
• 1-2 soft medjool dates (optional, or other sweetener of your choice, like agave nectar, honey, etc)
• 1 small handful of ice cubes

Mint Chocolate Chip Smoothie

• 1 cup organic unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or other non-dairy milk of your choice)
• 1 frozen organic banana (if it isn’t frozen, just add a bit more ice in at the end)
• 2 cups tightly packed organic baby spinach
• 1/3 cup tightly packed fresh mint leaves
• 1 tablespoon ground chia seeds (optional)
• 2-3 drops of alcohol-free liquid stevia (or any other sweetener of your choice like agave nectar, medjool dates, honey, etc)
• 1/4 – 1/3 cup dairy-free, gluten-free mini chocolate chips
• small handful of ice cubes