It doesn't take a lot of reading about ttc before you run across how important folate is in the very early stages of pregnancy. Getting plenty of folate early on will reduce a mother's risk of having a baby with neural tube defects, heart defects, cleft palate and other congenital malformations. In fact, it's best if you supplement up to a couple of months before you even start ttc. Folic acid is the synthetic form of the B vitamin that you will find in supplements and fortified foods. Folic acid is absorbed easier than naturally occurring folate, but folate provides other benefits that the supplements will not provide. If you are eating a food that is high in folate then you are likely getting some other vitamins, as well as fiber. Go here to get more information on the health benefits and a list of foods that are good sources of folate.
My recent focus has been on eating more spinach. It's been one of the easiest "folate foods" to work into my diet. Don't believe me? Spinach shake anyone? I'll get to that in a minute.
Southwest Chicken Bowl - This is a low calorie dish with lots of protein, some fiber and yummy fresh spinach of course!
Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 pound chicken breast, chopped up small
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 Roma tomato
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup of your favorite salsa
1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- fresh spinach, torn up into bite sized pieces
- shredded Parmesan cheese
Directions
1) In nonstick skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat for 1 minute. Add chicken, chili powder, ground cumin, and salt. I like the chicken to be coated with the spices before I add the bell pepper and tomato, but you can add those veggies as soon as you get the spices mixed in with the chicken. Cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken looses pink color throughout. Stir in salsa and beans; cook 5 minutes to blend flavors and heat through.
2) Tear up spinach leaves and put into each person's bowl (however much you like). Spoon in chicken mixture and top with shredded Parmesan cheese if you like.
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A fellow blogger has a recipe for a spinach shake. I haven't actually tried this recipe yet (give me time!), but it gave me the idea to add spinach to my fruit smoothies. I never measure my smoothies, but it's hard to go wrong!
Ingredients
approx. 1/4 cup orange juice
approx. 1/4 cup low fat plain yogurt
banana
frozen strawberries
frozen blackberries
frozen blueberries
A handful of spinach (remove stems)
I find it is best to put in the orange juice, yogurt and spinach fist. Blend it well and then start to add the fruits one at a time, blending between each one. If you put everything in all at once then your blender will have a hard time chopping it all up. The first time I made this I was apprehensive about adding too much spinach. I did a taste test and ended up adding even more spinach because I really couldn't taste it!
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Make a salad with fresh spinach instead of iceberg lettuce (romaine would be a good alternative as well). I like to throw on some baby carrots, sliced almonds, feta cheese (which needs to be made from pasteurized milk) and a low fat dressing. Raw broccoli would be a great addition to this as well. Broccoli is not just a good source of folate, it also contains vitamin A, vitamin C, fiber and even some calcium.
I'm strong to the finish cause I eats me spinach..
~Popeye the Sailor Man
~Popeye the Sailor Man
2 comments:
As I said before the wraps are going on next weeks menu. Well I think I get lots of folic acid. I eat a lot asparagus and spinach. They are my favorite dinner veggies. Even though asparagus makes your pee smell. I also eat a lot of beans. We are trying to eat less meat lately. Not that I am trying to get pregnant. If that were the case I would probably being trying harder to up my folic acid intake. Thanks for the recipe! I should send you one for this lima bean stew that I made the other day. You like lima beans?
I think I do. I don't eat them often, but I would be willing to try out that recipe.
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