Our family owns a small manufacturing company with about 30 employees. I watched many of our employees drag around with little energy, particularly after their fast food lunch with its heavy load of carbohydrates and grease. I saw our two diabetics eat donuts rather than a meal, and many miss work with minor illnesses. I wondered what effect an improved diet would have. I also wanted Tony and our two sons who work there to have a more nutritious lunch. So, two years ago, I introduced a free lunch program for the employees.

I felt good that Tony, in particular, was getting a good lunch and was surprised at the enthusiasm of some of the employees. One woman who had two small children in day care had always caught every cold or virus that they brought home. She came to me, amazed, that she did not have the latest viruses, even though her husband did. One single young man told me that he had lived on hamburgers before the program but now if he ate two greasy burgers and fries in one day he became nauseous. A camraderie developed among the employees and I could feel an increase in energy in our staff. We just didn’t have the slump after lunch that we had before. I believe that the costs of the program are covered by the increase in production and enthusiasm of our employees. We just seem to run more efficiently.

I cook many foods that the employees have never eaten before, foods full of nutrients that we all need for energy and health. But what we provide most is a wide variety of foods resulting in a wide variety of vitamins and minerals that they did not get when they ate the same food day after day. I think variety is extremely important to insure that our diet is balanced and complete.

To keep the cost down, I buy produce and meat from vendors that supply the restaurants. I called my supplier one day, “This is Maggie. I need to give you an order”

“Hi, Maggie, this is Buck. What can I do for you today?” I kid you not. In Oklahoma some men have the nickname of “Buck”.

I read from my list, “Ten pounds of yellow onions, 10 pounds of tomatoes, 1 case of Romine lettuce, 1 case of apples, 20 pounds of carrots, a case of Kale…” Although he muffled the phone, I could hear Buck chuckling.

He came back on the line and I could still hear the laughter in his voice, “You mean a bunch of Kale, don’t you, dear?” Most people who call me dear outside of my immediate family usually get a good rap on their knuckles, but not Buck. I figure that anybody who has gone through life with the handle of “Buck” would not use a name for anyone that he considered demeaning. He continued, “Kale is that green curly stuff you decorate your salad bar with. You don’t need more than a bunch of it.”

“Well, I’m not going to decorate the salad bar with it. I am going to cook it.” Buck lost it. I could hear him laugh uncontrollably and yell to someone, “Maggie is ordering a case of Kale. They’re going to eat it.” I guess every salad bar in town was undecorated that week because Buck gave me the case of Kale, his total supply.

Most of the employees did not know what it was but now it is one of their favorites. But with that order, my reputation for cooking strange things was established and it has worked to my advantage. When Buck had yams leftover from Thanksgiving (who would believe that they are good at other times?) he gave them to me for $5 a case. And last week he thought of me when he had too many Brussels sprouts, those, too, were $5 a case.

Kale is an amazing vegetable. It is beautiful with its curly bright green leaves and belongs to the Brassica family. Along with cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, collards and Brussels sprouts it has gained widespread attention due to its health promoting, sulfur-containing phytonutrients, a group of nutrients necessary for optimal health. Despite its high tech ring, "phytonutrient" (from the Greek phyton for "plant") simply means a "nutrient from a plant." Phytonutrients may promote the function of the immune system, act directly against bacteria and viruses, reduce inflammation and contribute to the treatment or prevention of cancer and cardiovascular disease. They work as antioxidants to disarm free radicals before they damage DNA. Phytonutrients actually signal our genes to increase production of enzymes involved in detoxification of the cleansing process through which our bodies eliminate harmful compounds.

Kale is an excellent source for Vitamins K, A, C, and manganese. And you get all of that for only 36.4 calories per cup. You think that is a hard sell? Listen to this!

The Chicago Aging Project suggests that eating 3 servings of green, yellow and cruciferous vegetable (a vegetable of the mustard family) each day could slow the cognitive decline from aging by 40%. This is equivalent to about five years of younger age.

One of my favorite ways to cook Kale is by making Boerekool, a Dutch recipe made by the common folk.

2 bunches fresh kale
1 pound of smoked sausage (precooked)
7 or 8 potatoes (red “new” potatoes with skins on are best)
salt and pepper
2 tbsp. Olive oil
water or chicken stock

Cook the washed potatoes in the water or stock ( or a combination) until they just begin to get soft. Cut the tough stems from the kale and discard. Cut the kale into small pieces and add it with the olive oil to the potatoes. Cut the sausage into bite size pieces and add to the pot.

I don’t add salt to anything that we cook because some of the employees have health issues and should not have salt, but if you must, add the salt and pepper, put the lid on the pot and cook about 20 minutes until the kale is tender and the potatoes are cooked. Enjoy!

The following recipe is from the Pioneer Valley Growers Association. There is nothing like a big pot of potato soup on a cold winter’s day.

4 med. potatoes, peeled and chopped
8 cups water or chicken broth
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 lb. smoked garlic sausage, cooked and sliced
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
1 tsp. salt
2 lb. fresh kale, washed and shredded

Mix potatoes and garlic sausage with vegetable oil and water. Cook for 20 - 30 minutes until potatoes are tender. Remove potatoes and reserve liquid. Mash potatoes and return to potato liquid. Add salt and pepper and simmer for 20 minutes. Add kale and cook for 25 minutes. Add sausage. Simmer for 5 minutes.

Buck is no longer surprised when I order a case of kale and has developed a curiosity about it. I have promised to take him a bowl of Boerekool the next time we make it. The employees and my family seem to enjoy kale day. But my best compliment of all came last week when an engineer told me that he and his wife had gone out to dinner at a restaurant and that when he went to the salad bar to make his salad, he stole a big kale leaf from the decorations that were on the bar. Now I have arrived. I have engineers stealing nutrition.

More about kale: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=38