Supergreen Superfood Salad Slaw

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When it comes to “eating the rainbow”, in principle green should be the easiest color to get in, unless we live in a serious food desert (or serious food poverty). In practice, however, a lot of meals could do with a dash more green. This “supergreen superfood salad slaw” is remarkably versatile, and can be enjoyed as a very worthy accompaniment to almost any main.

You will need

For the bits:

  • ½ small green cabbage, finely diced
  • 7 oz tenderstem broccoli, finely chopped
  • 2 stalks celery, finely chopped (if allergic, simply omit)
  • ½ cucumber, diced into small cubes
  • 2 oz kale, finely shredded
  • 4 green (spring) onions, thinly sliced

For the dressing:

  • 1 cup cashews (if allergic, substitute 1 cup roasted chickpeas)
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 oz baby spinach
  • 1 oz basil leaves
  • 1 oz chives
  • ¼ bulb garlic
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 tbsp chia seeds
  • Juice of two limes

Method

(we suggest you read everything at least once before doing anything)

1) Combine the ingredients from the “bits” category in a bowl large enough to accommodate them comfortably

2) Blend the ingredients from the “dressing” category in a blender until very smooth (the crux here is you do not want any stringy bits of spinach remaining)

3) Pour the dressing onto the bits, and mix well to combine. Refrigerate, ideally covered, until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Want to learn more?

For those interested in some of the science of what we have going on today:

Take care!

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  • How to Do the Work – by Dr. Nicole LaPera

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    We have reviewed some self-therapy books before, and they chiefly have focused on CBT and mindfulness, which are great. This one’s different.

    Dr. Nicole LaPera has a bolder vision for what we can do for ourselves. Rather than giving us some worksheets for unraveling cognitive distortions or clearing up automatic negative thoughts, she bids us treat the cause, rather than the symptom.

    For most of us, this will be the life we have led. Now, we cannot change the parenting style(s) we received (or didn’t), get a redo on childhood, avoid mistakes we made in our adolescence, or face adult life with the benefit of experience we gained right after we needed it most. But we can still work on those things if we just know how.

    The subtitle of this book promsies that the reader can/will “recognise your patterns, heal from your past, and create your self”.

    That’s accurate, for the content of the book and the advice it gives.

    Dr. LaPera’s focus is on being our own best healer, and reparenting our own inner child. Giving each of us the confidence in ourself; the love and care and/but also firm-if-necessary direction that a (good) parent gives a child, and the trust that a secure child will have in the parent looking after them. Doing this for ourselves, Dr. LaPera holds, allows us to heal from traumas we went through when we perhaps didn’t quite have that, and show up for ourselves in a way that we might not have thought about before.

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    Click here to check out How To Do The Work, and empower yourself to indeed do the work!

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  • Leek vs Scallions – Which is Healthier?

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    Our Verdict

    When comparing leek to scallions, we picked the leek.

    Why?

    In terms of macros, scallions might have a point: scallions have the lower glycemic index, thanks to leek having more carbs for the same amount of fiber. That said, leek already has a low glycemic index, so this is not a big deal.

    When it comes to vitamins, leek has more of vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, E, and choline, while scallions have more of vitamins A, C, and K. Noteworthily, a cup of chopped leek already provides the daily dose of vitamins A and K, and the difference in levels of vitamin C is minimal. All in all, an easy 8:3 win for leeks here, even without taking that into account.

    In the category of minerals, leek has more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, and selenium, while scallions have a little more zinc.

    Both of these allium-family plants (i.e., related to garlic) have an abundance of polyphenols, especially kaempferol.

    Of course, enjoy whatever goes best with your meal, but if you’re looking for nutritional density, then leek is where it’s at.

    Want to learn more?

    You might like to read:

    The Many Health Benefits Of Garlic

    Take care!

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  • The 6 Pillars Of Nutritional Psychiatry

    10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

    Dr. Naidoo’s To-Dos

    This is Dr. Uma Naidoo. She’s a Harvard-trained psychiatrist, professional chef graduating with her culinary school’s most coveted award, and a trained nutritionist. Between those three qualifications, she knows her stuff when it comes to the niche that is nutritional psychiatry.

    She’s also the Director of Nutritional and Lifestyle Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) & Director of Nutritional Psychiatry at MGH Academy while serving on the faculty at Harvard Medical School.

    What is nutritional psychiatry?

    Nutritional psychiatry is the study of how food influences our mood (in the short term) and our more generalized mental health (in the longer term).

    We recently reviewed a book of hers on this topic:

    This Is Your Brain On Food – by Dr. Uma Naidoo

    The “Six Pillars” of nutritional psychiatry

    Per Dr. Naidoo, these are…

    Be Whole; Eat Whole

    Here Dr. Naidoo recommends an “80/20 rule”, and a focus on fiber, to keep the gut (“the second brain”) healthy.

    See also: The Brain-Gut Highway: A Two-Way Street

    Eat The Rainbow

    This one’s simple enough and speaks for itself. Very many brain-nutrients happen to be pigments, and “eating the rainbow” (plants, not Skittles!) is a way to ensure getting a lot of different kinds of brain-healthy flavonoids and other phytonutrients.

    The Greener, The Better

    As Dr. Naidoo writes:

    ❝Greens contain folate, an important vitamin that maintains the function of our neurotransmitters. Its consumption has been associated with a decrease in depressive symptoms and improved cognition.❞

    Tap into Your Body Intelligence

    This is about mindful eating, interoception, and keeping track of how we feel 30–60 minutes after eating different foods.

    Basically, the same advice here as from: The Kitchen Doctor

    (do check that out, as there’s more there than we have room to repeat here today!)

    Consistency & Balance Are Key

    Honestly, this one’s less a separate item and is more a reiteration of the 80/20 rule discussed in the first pillar, and an emphasis on creating sustainable change rather than loading up on brain-healthy superfoods for half a weekend and then going back to one’s previous dietary habits.

    Avoid Anxiety-Triggering Foods

    This is about avoiding sugar/HFCS, ultra-processed foods, and industrial seed oils such as canola and similar.

    As for what to go for instead, she has a broad-palette menu of ingredients she recommends using as a base for one’s meals (remember she’s a celebrated chef as well as a psychiatrist and nutritionist), which you can check out here:

    Dr. Naidoo’s “Food for Mood” project

    Enjoy!

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    Referencing the Mayo Clinic’s Sleep Facility’s director, Dr. Virend Somers, today’s video suggests a simple solution: sleeping on your side. The video goes into a bit more detail but, as you know, here at 10almonds we like to cut to the chase. 

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  • Who will look after us in our final years? A pay rise alone won’t solve aged-care workforce shortages

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    Aged-care workers will receive a significant pay increase after the Fair Work Commission ruled they deserved substantial wage rises of up to 28%. The federal government has committed to the increases, but is yet to announce when they will start.

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    Older person holding a stabilising bar
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    Shutterstock/Toa55

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