When it comes to Thanksgiving, a lot of people don’t think the meal is complete if the collard greens aren’t on the table. In fact, some look forward to the collard greens more than the turkey! If you’re health-conscious, though, you might be wondering how to make a tasty dish without piling on all the calories.
Why You Need An Alternative Recipe
If you’ve been making the traditional collard green recipes that have been handed down for generations, there’s probably a good deal of fat involved.
Some recipes can call for bacon, smoked turkey, chicken, smoked pork, or ham hock. While those proteins certainly make your collard greens flavorful, they also add more calories than you might want to think about - especially when most of us are likely to have multiple servings.
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To put it in perspective, one cup of traditionally prepared collard greens can have as much as 200 calories per cup. That’s as much as three cooked eggs or a glazed donut. The good news is that this recipe has all of the flavor and none of the guilt!
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Your Guilt-Free Collard Greens Recipe
Each serving of this recipe only has 90 calories!
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Servings: 4
Ingredients
10 cups (or two bunches) of chopped fresh collard greens
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp smoked paprika
½ cup low-sodium vegetable broth
1 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
½ tsp red pepper flakes
¼ tsp liquid smoke flavor
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp brown sugar (optional)
Method
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
- Add onion and garlic to the saucepan.
- Sauté until browned and fragrant, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add collard greens and red pepper flakes; cook and stir until greens are slightly wilted, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add broth, vinegar, brown sugar, liquid smoke, and paprika to the pan. Cover and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
- Reduce the heat and simmer until the greens are very tender. That should take about 35 to 45 minutes.
- Strain before serving.
This recipe can be scaled up as desired. If you’re going to store some of it for leftovers, pack it in air-tight containers to be stored in the refrigerator. You shouldn’t keep it for more than 3-4 days.
If you’re thinking about freezing it, it’s recommended that you use air-tight freezer-safe bags. While your leftovers can last for a year in the freezer, the taste starts to decline after a few months.
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It’s Not Just About The Taste
While you love to have collard greens for Thanksgiving, this nutrient-rich vegetable has even more to offer. Collard greens are full of iron, antioxidants, vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin A, fiber, calcium, magnesium, zinc, and more!
According to several studies, if you eat collard greens regularly, you could be protecting yourself from multiple diseases including diabetes and heart disease.
Including collard greens in your diet could also decrease your risk of osteoporosis, breast cancer, kidney cancer, colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, and esophageal cancer.
Given its high water and fiber content, collard greens are great for encouraging digestion. They’re also a good cure for constipation. Additionally, the vitamins in collard greens are good for healthy skin, eyes, and hair. Your immune system also gets a great boost.
If you need any more information to be convinced that having a healthy collard greens recipe under your belt is a good idea, then you should know that it only takes a cup of this powerful vegetable to get all these benefits. It sounds like you shouldn’t wait for the holidays to have collard greens on the table!
