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Chef Wendell: Get your vitamins with Cauliflower Tabbouleh

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — If your busy lifestyle causes you to skip meals, eat at weird times and regularly eat the same old foods, you might be vitamin-deficient.

A balanced plant-based diet full of wholesome nutrition can prevent and even treat many of today’s diseases. Of course, the best source of vitamins come from the foods we choose to eat.

What are vitamins; why we need them

  • Foods from plants are packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.
  • A vitamin is any of a group of organic compounds that are essential for normal growth and nutrition and are required in small quantities in the diet because they cannot be synthesized by the body.
  • Dietary fiber can only be found in plants.
  • Many people don’t realize malnutrition is a problem in the United States.
  • When we don’t get enough nutrients from today’s food.
  • Processing food destroys vitamins. This is why we should eat fresh and local.
  • Symptoms of malnutrition can include dizziness, fatigue and weight loss, although you may have no symptoms at all, according to the NIH.

Do vitamins work?

  • According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, more than half of U.S. adults take vitamins.
  • Vitamins activate your body’s thousands of mechanisms performing functions that continue your life.
  • There are some supplements available that can boost the vitamin content in your body.
  • A multivitamin is often considered one of the best options for improving the health of your body.
  • Some reports say vitamins don’t work. And some do not. Lots of fakery out there. Food-based vitamins are best. Consult with your community vitamin specialist. (Georgetown Market, Good Earth).
  • Quality is crucial. Avoid grocery store and pharmacy vitamins.
  • Vitamins from food prevent heart problems, improve cholesterol levels, and treat eye and skin disorders.

High vitamin content of tabbouleh salad

Cauliflower

  • Member of the cancer-fighting cruciferous family.
  • Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant-rich, and may boost both your heart and brain health.

Parsley

  • Parsley provides impressive amounts of vitamin C, K, A and E, the B vitamins, calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc and potassium and more.
  • Diabetic rats given parsley actually showed a decrease in their blood sugar levels over a period of a month.

Recipe: Cauliflower Tabbouleh

A constellation of vitamin nutrition.

1/2 large head of cauliflower chopped up into florets (discard core)

3 bunches finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

2 cups finely diced tomatoes (about 8 large tomatoes)

1 bunch green onions, finely chopped (white and green parts)

1 English cucumber, peeled and finely diced (after seeds scooped out)

1/3 cup EVOO or Avocado oil

3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste

1 tsp. lemon zest

2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh mint, plus more to taste

1/2 tsp. Himalayan salt to taste

1/4 tsp. black pepper

2 tbsp. ground flax seed or chia seed

  • Cauliflower rice: place raw florets into a food processor; pulse until the consistency of couscous.
  • Transfer to a mixing bowl, add all other ingredients; toss until well combined.
  • Adjust oil, lemon juice, mint, salt to suit your taste.

Learn more about Chef Wendell.