FOUR WAYS WITH SPRING GREENS

There are so many ways to incorporate nutrient-packed leafy greens into your diet – smoothies, spreads, fritters, sauces, and more. These greens are versatile and easily substituted for each other in recipes. If you’re growing your own, but don’t have enough for a recipe, add store-bought greens to make up the amount.

FRESH HERBY PESTO

MAKES 11 SERVINGS OF 25g

Pesto is traditionally made with pine nuts, but sunflower seeds taste just as good and cost a quarter of the price. They also make it suitable for those with nut allergies.

Cheese is another usual ingredient but isn’t necessary when it comes to taste. The fresh basil, garlic, and olive oil are the heroes in this recipe.

If you’re running short of basil, supplement the mix with other leafy greens – like rocket, parsley, baby kale, spinach, New Zealand spinach, or even ‘weeds’ such as chickweed and pūhā from your garden.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups fresh basil leaves

1/2 cup toasted sunflower seeds

1/2 cup olive oil

1–5 garlic cloves

1 tbsp lemon juice

¼ tsp salt

METHOD

Roughly chop your garlic. If you adore garlic, then put in a few cloves. If you aren’t so much of a fan, then just one clove will do. Slicing it then frying/roasting it first will also calm the flavour down.

Process all the ingredients in a food processor or in a large jar if you have a stick blender.

Spoon your pesto into a jar and store in the fridge for up to a week.

If you can’t use it all in a week, spoon it into ice cube trays, freeze, then transfer the cubes into an airtight container to store in the freezer for up to six months.

TIPS

• Smoked garlic salt has a lower proportion of salt as it also contains spices and dried herbs. It also naturally adds some more flavour.

• To toast raw sunflowers seeds, give them 10 minutes in a frying pan on a low to medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once they start turning a light brown and you can smell the delicious nuttiness, they’re ready.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

This pesto melts beautifully over freshly cooked pasta. A spoonful lifts a jacket potato and makes boiled new potatoes even more delectable. It also works well as a spread on wholemeal toast. Just add sliced tomatoes for the perfect breakfast or lunch.

NUTRITION PER SERVE: ENERGY 553kJ (132kcal) | PROTEIN 1.7g | FAT 13.6g (SAT FAT 1.9g) | CARBOHYDRATE 0.5g (SUGARS 0.2g) | SODIUM 70mg

CREAMY GREEN SMOOTHIE

SERVES 2

Sometimes the colour of a green smoothie can put people off wanting to try one, but once you take a sip of this of this recipe you’ll forget about the goodness hidden within it and just enjoy the smooth, creamy taste.

INGREDIENTS

150g banana or other fruit

1/2 packed cup of chopped kale, silverbeet or spinach

1/4 cup toasted rolled oats

1 1/2 cup of low-fat milk or soy milk

METHOD

Put the ingredients in a blender, capsule blender, or food processor – or in a large jar if you have a stick blender.

Whiz up and enjoy.

DIETITIAN'S TIPS

Adding one tablespoon of LSA mix (linseed, sunflower seed, almond) improves the nutritional value of this smoothie.

Soy milk has the equivalent amount of protein as cow’s milk. The protein, along with the fibre from the oats, reduces the glycaemic load of the smoothie.

NUTRITION PER SERVE: ENERGY 1070kJ (255kcal) | PROTEIN 10.1g | FAT 6.4g (SAT FAT 0.7g) | CARBOHYDRATE 34.9g (SUGARS 13.3g) | SODIUM 94mg

CHICKEN AND GREENS SATAY

SERVES 4

For satay lovers, this light tasty lunch is low in salt and fat but high in vitamins and flavour.

INGREDIENTS

250g skinless chicken breast, sliced into 1cm strips

1 tsp turmeric

1 lemon

1 cup rice

Olive oil spray

2 spring onions, finely chopped

1–2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 tbsp unsalted smooth peanut butter

1/3 cup water

2 cups of roughly chopped leafy greens, packed down

1 tsp reduced-salt soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

METHOD

Put the sliced chicken, turmeric, and lemon juice in a bowl, mix well, and leave to sit.

Start the rice cooking in a pot, according to instructions on packet.

While the rice is cooking, heat the sesame oil in a pan on the stove at medium to high. Add the spring onions and garlic and stir-fry for around 2 minutes.

Reduce the heat and add the water, peanut butter, and soy sauce.

Using a wooden or other suitable spoon, work the peanut butter carefully into the liquid until you have a sauce.

Add the leafy greens and stir over medium heat until the leaves soften. Set aside.

Spray a second pan with olive oil and heat to medium-high. Put in the chicken slices and stir fry for around 4 minutes or until you’re sure the chicken is cooked through.

Serve the chicken on top of the spinach satay sauce, with rice on the side.

TIP

If using kale in this recipe, remove the stalks first. If using silverbeet, remove the stalks or chop them up finely before adding.

NUTRITION PER SERVE: ENERGY 1580kJ (377kcal) | PROTEIN 21.8g | FAT 5.6g (SAT FAT 1.1g) | CARBOHYDRATE 56.6g (SUGARS 1.7g) | SODIUM 78mg

GREENS AND BEANS FRITTERS

MAKES 10 FRITTERS | SERVES 4

These fritters make a delicious meal for four, or a snack for more. Serving them alongside a green salad will complete the meal.

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups finely chopped leafy greens of your choice

170g canned beans, drained

3 eggs

2 finely chopped spring onions

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 tbsp wholemeal flour

1/2 cup low fat milk

1/2 tsp of paprika

1/2 tsp of cumin seeds

1 tsp of mustard seeds

Olive oil spray

METHOD

Mash beans in a large bowl.

Add greens, spring onions, garlic, flour, eggs, milk, and spices. Mix to combine.

Place a heavy-based frypan on a medium heat and spray with olive oil. When oil is hot, cook a few fritters at a time for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

Drain on paper towel.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

Accompany with green salad, pesto, a low sugar chutney or salsa, or low-fat sour cream. We served ours with sour cream and kimchi.

TIP

Use any canned beans and any chopped greens. We chose cannellini beans and baby spinach.

NUTRITION PER SERVE: ENERGY 315kJ (75kcal) | PROTEIN 4.2g | FAT 3.4g (SAT FAT 0.8g) | CARBOHYDRATE 5.8g (SUGARS 1.5g) | SODIUM 104mg

Win SunRice Low GI rice and a Breville rice cooker

SunRice Doongara Low GI rice is now available in 1kg bags in supermarkets nationwide.

An excellent substitute for other rice varieties that have a higher glycaemic load, SunRice Doongara Low GI rice has the Diabetes New Zealand Choice approval.

Enter the draw to win a Breville rice cooker plus four packs of SunRice Low GI rice.

Put ‘Sunrice Low GI’ in the subject line, and email your name, phone number, and postal address to draw@diabetes.org.nz.

Or post to: Freepost Diabetes NZ, PO Box 12-441, Wellington 6144. Competition closes 31 October 2022.