Green Smoothies & Veggies

[divaitalia]

Hello All,

I was just looking at the food combining chart and saw that sweet fruits don't combine well with greens. Every morning I make a huge green smoothie with flax seed and parsley and greens and mostly a banana and other fruit. Since it is all blended does it matter what is in it? Also, I was putting kale into my smoothies and found out that kale is indigestible, so I am in a conundrum.

Also, I have been reading about veggies such as broccoli, cauliflower and kale and cruciferous veggies and how you should steam them a bit to break it down to digest. If you are trying to go raw how do you eat these kinds of veggies that are so good for you?

Help in Seattle,

Toni

[chilove]

Hi there,

Fruits combine great with TENDER greens, like baby spinach and tender lettuces. They don't combine as well with tougher greens.

Also those other veggies are very difficult to digest. I don't eat them at all and don't feel that I'm missing anything. If you really like them, you can always just be sure to chew them really, really well. Or maybe marinate them in a dressing for a long time to soften them up? You can also dehydrate them after marinating to soften them.

[Fred Patenaude]

Fruits combine with any greens including tougher greens like kale. I even make smoothies with bananas and kale without problems.

Keep in mind that the fruit combining charts are simply someone's interpretation of the fruit combining rules/concept.

After all the research I did, I only kept 3 basic food combining rules out of the dozens proposed.

Those are:

- Don't combine fat with sugar (example: nuts and dates)
- Don't combine acid with starch (example: bananas and oranges)
- Don't combine different types of fatty foods (example: avocados with nuts)

[Boysenberry]

Thanks for clearing that up Fred! I totally appreciate the simplicity of that.

Sami

[Arky]

Hey, Fred, I'm intrigued about your last point - 'don't mix fats'. May I ask what led you to this conclusion?

Thanks.

J.

[Fred Patenaude]

I guess it's more about not mixing avocados and nuts. From my experience it's a really bad combination. The original rule of food combining by Shelton was about not mixing different types of nuts together or not mixing nuts with avocados.

[swingbolder]

In general I don't miss avocados and nuts -- not bc of some hard fast rule but just bc the combo doesn't really appeal to me.

However, I do sprinkle ground nuts on avocado-containing salads sometimes, and have found no difference in my digestion or overall health.

Ditto with nuts and fats. I eat those together in sweets sometimes and haven't suffered any ill effects, although in general I do keep nuts to a minimum bc they are rather heavy. So I think it's best to experiment and see what works best for one's own body. You can go nuts sometimes with all the contradictory information out there.

[Fred Patenaude]

The other thing about food combining is that in small amounts pretty much everything combines ok...

For me, the only "rule" of food combining that I really follow all the time (or most of the time) is not combining fats and sugar (such as nuts and fruits).

I also avoid bananas and acid fruits.

I prefer to eat one kind of fat at a meal also.

[jaurequi]

I agree with not mixing sugar and fat -- this is one reason dehydrated foods aren't optimal, in my opinion.
Not sure about fats...I use different nuts in my dressings, flax seeds to top my salads and have no problems; however, I consume fresh, whole foods, so maybe this little bit of mixing doesn't bother me? Maybe.

[tglasco4]

After all the research I did, I only kept 3 basic food combining rules out of the dozens proposed.

Those are:

- Don't combine fat with sugar (example: nuts and dates)
- Don't combine acid with starch (example: bananas and oranges)
- Don't combine different types of fatty foods (example: avocados with nuts)

I guess it depends on the individual. I use all these combos and do not combine fruit and veggies (with few exceptions) and I have no problems.

The only combination other than fruit/veggie i avoid is apple juice/orange juice.......for some reason that is a bad one for me.

Peace.

Todd

[divaitalia]

Thanks everyone for the comments. So good to hear from you Fred since I get your e-zine. Nobody commented on the flax seed in the smoothie. Is it okay?

What about the cruciferous veggies that are hard to digest? How do we eat those and can we steam them a bit?

Thanks again,

Toni

[karenisraw]

I think it is up to the individual and finding what works for each person. I combine everything all of the time and don't have problems that I have noticed. I just notice that as time goes on you become more and more aware of your body and what works for you.

[jaurequi]

...Nobody commented on the flax seed in the smoothie. Is it okay?

What about the cruciferous veggies that are hard to digest? How do we eat those and can we steam them a bit?...

divaitalia, No need to steam.

Flax with greens is actually a great combination. I've read that this is actually the best way to consume both. I've also consumed them together and done fine as well as enjoyed it quite a bit since I love the taste of good-quality, ground, raw golden flax seeds. I like to sprinkle it on top of my smoothie and drink it that way -- so yummy; it tastes like wheat germ but better :).

Whatever you are having trouble digesting, you can digest easily by blending to a smoothie. How do you know you are not digesting kale? By blending whole leaves, you are predigesting them (skipping the mastication process) and making it very easy on your system to digest and absorb nutrients withOUT depriving yourself of the benefits of eating the whole vegetable -- it's sort of like cheating a bit ;). It's worth it though: you are able to consume large(r) amounts of greens than if you were to attempt to eat them as is or cooked. So the purpose of green smoothies IS to make it easy. I can't imagine anyone having problems digesting smoothies; if it were to happen, I would look to other behaviors as the culprit -- perhaps dehydration or constipation from too much dried foods. Barring that, I think you should not give up on those nutritious vegetables like the kales and collards (or broccoli -- you could make "cream" of broccoli soup too, if the taste of certain veggies like this is too savory for a sweet smoothie-- use coconut or nuts for the "cream.")

You can also try greens that are a bit milder such as the various lettuces (they vary in taste quite a bit and there are choices); spinach; bok choy; parsley; vegetable tops are great (carrot top greens, for example), such as the greens on heads of cauliflower and broccoli. I had some radishes the other day and they came with a lot of top greens: they were SO delicious in my smoothie, I wish they were available to buy separately! Lots of choices ...

Best,