Immune Boosting Time!

Yes, it's that time of the year again!  If you watch the news or have kids that may be showing signs of illness, you know the routine:  wash your hands, sleep well, eat well, take immune boosting supplements, try to relieve stress through exercise, the list goes on.  Sometimes that is not an easy thing to do ... even with all of your best intentions.

I have always been asked about which supplements are good for keeping immunity up.  There are many you can find in the health food store such as echinacea, royal camu, vitamin C, etc.  They are great, however sometimes I feel like the most important thing you can do for yourself and your family is simply to eat well.  Oh yes, love the rainbow spectrum that you can find in the produce aisle!  My husband actually went shopping with me for a New Year's Eve gathering we had last week, and he laughs at me because I am like a kid in the candy shop when I see beautiful produce!

  

Collard greens!

Here are a few nutrient dense veggies and fruits you should be stocking up on:  carrots, sweet potatoes, kale for your vitamin A boosts;  bell peppers, strawberries, kiwi, papayas, oranges, clementines (these go really quickly in my house), broccoli, spinach for your vitamin C boosts and swiss chard, collard greens, spinach and other dark leafy greens gets you a good dose of vitamin E. 

Kale with Lemon, Basil and Corn

I actually had help with brussel sprouts!  Yay Hannah!

If you are constantly fighting with your kids over eating veggies in the winter, I have found that by roasting them at a high temperature (425 degrees) with a nice olive oil and sea salt makes them nice and crunchy instead of mushy.  If you want to try this make sure you chop them into bit sized pieces to cook them evenly.  Kids generally don't dig mushy veggies!  I do this with carrots, kale, and broccoli often as we still have braces on in this house and raw veggies tend to break brackets, and poke wires out!  

Happiness in our kitchen ... the busiest room in the house!

Sophie making her famous sweet potatoes! 

Wishing you all a healthy start to 2014 with some new colors on your plates!

Krista