Kale is one of the new buzz foods of the moment. It's a food I have not played around with yet, but I know a lot of people who love it and I am thinking about giving it a try. One food I DO love however is spinach: I use it almost daily, in salads, sandwiches, smoothies and wraps. So, I decided to put these two foods in the ring and find out which has the heavier punch. Here's what I found out.
Kale is part of the Brassica oleracea family, which includes broccoli, cauliflower and brussels sprouts: but the central leaves do not form a head like it's aforementioned cousins. Spinach is actually a flowering plant, but we pick the young leaves before it has a chance to mature and grow into it's flowering potential - I have actually neglected my spinach in the past long enough to witness it's full growth beauty.
NUTRITION FACTS:
Kale Spinach
Calories (1 Cup) 33 7
Total Fat 0.6 g 0.1 g
Sodium 25 mg 24 mg
Potassium 329 mg 167 mg
Carbohydrates 6 g 1.1 g
Protein 2.9 g 0.9 g
Vitamin A 6693 IU 2813 IU
Vitamin C 120 mg 28.1 mg
Vitamin K 229 mg 135 mg
Calcium 101 mg 30 mg
Iron 1 mg 0.8 mg
Vitamin B-6 0.2 mg 0.1 mg
Magnesium 31 mg 24 mg
COMPARING:
Kale does pack quite a bit more calories, but when it comes to nutrition, calories are only part of the equation: you have to look at the quality of calories you are eating as well. Rice cakes have virtually zero calories but they also don't have any nutrients to them either so they are a poor choice of food to eat. I would eat a 100 calorie banana over a 35 calorie rice cake any day!
When looking at the bigger picture, kale is packing a lot of nutrients into those calories it's carrying around. You don't have to eat as much of the kale to pull in a mass amount of nutrients. However, with that said, when you are comparing nutrients per calories, I think spinach pulls ahead in most areas - you just have to eat 3 cups of it vs only 1 cup of the kale.
Spinach is more mild in flavor and softer in texture, so kale take a little bit more prep work. Usually kale is blanched, or soaked in a dressing for a time to soften it up, whereas spinach is a more grab and go veggie, so if you are in a hurry spinach is probably a better bet for you.
Spinach is more mild in flavor and softer in texture, so kale take a little bit more prep work. Usually kale is blanched, or soaked in a dressing for a time to soften it up, whereas spinach is a more grab and go veggie, so if you are in a hurry spinach is probably a better bet for you.
BOTTOM LINE:
Both of these green leafy veggies are power houses, and we all know we need to add more of them into our diets. I really think the key to great nutrition is variety, so I am saying go for both! Switch it up, take turns with each or put them together for a kick-butt salad. Kale will be in my diet this summer for sure. Just remember, to get the same amount of nutrients you will need those 3 cups of spinach per 1 cup of kale.
