What shall I do with Kale???

Posted on Jun 21, 2012 in Hiroko's Blog

My favorites kale and collard greens joined “The 2012 Dirty Dozen” according to CNN Health. The article continues that “This category was created this year to highlight crops that did not meet traditional Dirty Dozen criteria but are still commonly contaminated with organophosphate insecticides.” Many of the remaining Dirty Dozen vegetables and fruits are unfortunately my favorite – apples, peaches, strawberries, grapes, spinach, blueberries, potatoes and Green beans. Once upon a time eating these vegetables and fruits really nurtured our health and well being. Today it is a different story. What we eat may gradually poison us. Shall I stop eating these vegetables and fruits, or shall I go for organic (which is expensive)? Reading this article did not stop me to purchase delicious looking Tuscan Kale, Collard greens, blueberries and peaches which have been becoming bounty at our local farmers market (80% of the vendors are not organic farmers and I purchase my vegetables and fruits from them). After carrying them back to my kitchen, I thoroughly rinsed the Kale, Collard greens and blueberries, knowing that this does not do much help to remove chemicals. When it comes to peaches and apples, I will go back to my Japanese tradition – peel every fruits before I eat. Grapes…maybe I may spit out the skin. But, skin contains healthful flavonoid…. Today the life has become much more complicated than the time when I was under my mother’s protection.