I think the only reason my ten year old brother ever ate spinach was just so that he could acquire those big muscular arms, like "Popeye the Sailor Man," a popular cartoon we watched in the 1960's. Everyone knew that Popeye loved it straight out of the can and we youngsters were lead to believe that it kept the bullies away!
I'll never forget how hard my brother tried, to be just like Popeye and eat it straight out of the can...I can still remember.... how he gagged it down (begging me to join him) as he added vinegar, olive oil and some salt and pepper, and on occasion ketchup. He was so determined to get those kind of muscles, hoping he would look just like his muscular hero......Popeye!
Fortunately for my brother, he had a genetic gene pool and the DNA of a long history of farmers... those biceps we're already going to be there in his future.
But, eating that dark green mush for muscles, just wasn't my gig. I could eat it raw... but cooked and out of the can...ewww, wasn't gonna happen anytime soon for me.
Recently, we asked a question to our friends on our Face Book Page:
Which vegetable is the LEAST healthy for you when eaten RAW? 1.) Tomato 2.) Cucumber 3.) Spinach 4.) Iceberg Lettuce? The correct answer is Spinach. Here's the facts:
1.) By heating spinach, it increases and boosts the release of antioxidants by breaking down the cell walls. Studies have found that eating cooked spinach (and carrots) – versus raw – results in much higher blood levels of beta-carotene, an antioxidant thought to guard against heart disease and lung cancer.
2.) You’ll also get more lutein, a phyto chemical that helps prevent cataract and macular degeneration.
3.) When it comes to certain minerals, you’re better off eating your spinach cooked. Green vegetables such as spinach, beet greens and Swiss chard are high in calcium, but their high levels of a compound called oxalic acid binds calcium and reduces its absorption. Cooking releases some of the calcium that’s bound to the oxalic acid. For example; Three cups of raw spinach have 90 milligrams of calcium, whereas one cup of cooked spinach has nearly triple the amount (259 milligrams). By cooking this vegetable it can substantially increase the amount of magnesium and iron that’s available to the body.
4.) When it comes to cooking spinach, water is your enemy! Boiling it causes a significant amount of nutrients that dissolve in water – vitamin C, folate and thiamin (vitamin B1) – to be leached away. Steaming is much gentler on nutrients because it doesn't come in contact with cooking water. Dry cooking methods like grilling, roasting, stir-frying and microwave cooking without water also preserve a greater amount of nutrients than boiling or pressure cooking.
Go Spinach, throw it into your next batch of lasagna, pasta, or top it off on your fish as a garnish... or make it you next best side dish ever!!! Cooked Spinach, Popeye Style!!!
