Centuries ago, when British sailors ventured out to sea for months at a time, without fruit or vegetables to provide their vitamins and minerals, they learned the hard way what a lack of micronutrients can mean – scurvy.
Although you might not be in danger (hopefully) of catching scurvy from a lack of vitamin C, the story shows just how vital micronutrients are to disease prevention and general wellbeing.
Part of the reason foods such as spirulina and wheatgrass have reached a “super” status is their incredible concentration of micronutrients. This is why they have been used by humans for centuries to keep healthy. Read on to find out how you can pack your day full of micronutrients at each mealtime.
Breakfast
Breakfast is one of the easiest places to add superfoods to your diet. Oats, pancakes, smoothies and more, just sprinkle, mix, and stir! One of our favourite recipes is the Lean Machine Green Smoothie featuring our Green SuperBlend. Just one serving provides Vitamin C and B12, Zinc and almost 20% of your RDI of Iron.
More of a chocolatey than a fruity person? Simply stir a couple tablespoons of cacao powder into your regular porridge. Those two tablespoons will be packed with copper, zinc, magnesium, iron and potassium, not to mention a range of antioxidants, all essential to good health.
Lunch / Dinner
Guacamole is the perfect superfood side dish for lunch or dinner. Avocados are wonderful – convenient, creamy, delicious, and with an abundance of healthy fats, almost a superfood in their own right. Now, add hemp protein powder to your guacamole mix, and you’re really talking super! Hemp contains high amounts of magnesium and iron to fight fatigue and relax the mind.
With a mild and nutty flavour, Hemp Protein powder can also be used in combination with or as a replacement for flour in baking. Make some nutrient-dense bread for sandwiches or to accompany a warming bowl of soup.
Lastly, you could create a simple salad dressing with spirulina. Spirulina is loaded with vitamin A, an essential micronutrient keeping your and eye-sight sharp and your immune system strong.
Dessert
Who ever said dessert has to be bad for you? Desserts are another really simple and delicious way to get micronutrients in your diet. For example, this Avo Cacao Maca Mousse can be whipped up in under 15 minutes and contains no refined sugar or dairy. Created with a combination of bananas, avo, cacao, and maca, this dessert provides you with micronutrients such as riboflavin (vitamin b2), iron, calcium and zinc to name a few.
Been baking? Simply replace your regular highly processed cocoa powder with nutrient-dense cacao powder in baking recipes to create brownies, cakes, and muffins with added benefits!
Snacks
A bit peckish throughout the day? 68% of people in the UK snack at least once a day, with 41% looking for a healthy option. If that includes you (which we hope it does!) then superfoods are a brilliant option.
We love homemade protein bars and balls; your base can be whipped up in under 10 minutes and you can add literally anything to them – including superfoods! Our base would include any Funktional Foods vegan protein powder, oats (gluten free or regular), nut butter, and maple syrup. Then let loose with superfoods, nuts, seeds, dates and berries! Cacao and maca are a great combo, with hemp protein’s mild flavour the perfect match with nuts and berries.
