LIVING & BREATHING

Earth Day? How about National Spinach Day or even National Vitamin C Day?

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By Mark Zuleger-Thyss

Everything must begin somewhere, and for spinach, the “Herb of Persia,” it’s Iran.

How National Spinach Day came about is anyone’s guess, although I suspect it was born in a marketing department in corporate America.

At some point, the leafy vegetable landed in Spain and was called “The Spanish Vegetable.” It didn’t make its way to being cultivated in North America until sometime in the early 1800s.

The 16th-century noblewoman Catherine de Medici, who ruled France behind the scenes, loved spinach and ensured her cooks served it at every meal. Because of this, even today, meals made with spinach are often known as “Florentine” in honor of the birthplace of Catherine de Medici.

National Spinach Day did not start because Catherine craved spinach, but more so because it’s a tasty, healthy vegetable. Dark and leafy green, spinach comes in different varieties offering shapes and sizes of leaves so tempting Catherine could not get enough of it. 

Most people love spinach for its extremely high nutritional value, rich in antioxidants, particularly beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin. And maybe it’s how it grows to form green leaves, either puckered, flat, or wrinkled and arranged in rosette shapes. In any case, it’s a delicious and easy-to-digest plant. Spinach is part of the “goosefoot” family, with its close relatives being Swiss chard, quinoa, and beets.

It’s probably true that no one knows precisely when National Spinach Day was conceived. Certainly, Popeye would bend your ear about spinach until finally exclaiming ...

"Blow me down!" "Ahoy!"

"That's all I can stands, 'cause I can't stands no more!"

"I'll lay 'em among the swee'peas!"

Mark your calendars for these celebrations next year!

National Spinach Day | March 26, 2024

National Vitamin C Day | April 4, 2024

Earth Day | April 22, 2024

One way to celebrate spinach’s big day is by trying a new recipe. Here are a few tasty ideas for meals that include spinach.

• Spinach, artichoke, zucchini dip (with pita bread)
• Spinach spanakopita
• Creamy spinach soup
• Spinach lasagna (perfect for vegetarians)
• Spinach quiche (Quiche Florentine)
• Mushroom and spinach risotto

There simply are no excuses to NOT celebrate National Spinach Day. You can get your leafy greens by consuming any number of vegetables. Once you know what spinach offers, you should choose it more often.

Spinach is the healthiest when served fresh and raw. Even when cooked, it remains one of the more nutritious vegetables. Here are a few of the many nutritional benefits of spinach.

• Antioxidants, for removing free radicals.
• Fiber, for the digestive system
• Vitamin A, for healthy organs and eyes
• Vitamin C, for the immune system
• Calcium essential for bone health
• Folic Acid useful in cell function and tissue growth
• Iron, for red blood cells and tissue health

After celebrating spinach, you have just a few more days before National Vitamin C Day on April 4th.

And then, it’s imperative to save yourself for Monday, April 22nd, 2024, to celebrate Earth Day. It’s your chance to go all out in appreciating and respecting the natural world.

This is the day to band together with family and friends to increase awareness of environmental problems. You can plan to clean up litter, plant trees, or simply reflect on the beauty of nature.

My favorite idea is to celebrate all these days at the same time.

Make a green smoothie by blending a handful of spinach with a few oranges and sit in your backyard admiring your garden plot. You know, the one that is or isn’t there yet.

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