What to Eat: Blended Foods Are Healthy and Nutritious

As mentioned earlier in this series, cooking vegetables and other plant foods can soften naturally occurring fiber, which makes it easier for your digestive system to extract the many micronutrients that are abundant in plant foods.

Another way to soften and even break down fiber in plant foods and thereby get the most out of what you eat is to blend some of your foods.

When I ran a residential fasting clinic, I found that people with chronic inflammatory bowel disease who couldn't tolerate even small servings of raw vegetables had little trouble digesting generous portions of blended salads.

I also found that people who had dental problems that made it difficult for them to chew their foods thoroughly benefited from blended meals, particularly blended salads.

How do you make a blended salad? It's quite simple, really. Combine a few leaves of romaine lettuce, one chopped tomato, half an avocado, and small chunks of any other raw vegetables that you enjoy (chopped onion and zucchini are nice choices) in a strong blender or food processor, add a tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice, and begin blending while adding a slow drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. Add just enough oil to allow the vegetables to come together into a thick soup-like consistency - you may be able to stop drizzling in oil after the first tablespoon or two and let the food processor do the rest of the work.

If you need to add a little extra flavor, season with a pinch of sea salt and pepper just before eating.

Blended salads don't look appealing at first glance, but they're exceptionally rich in nutrients and easily digested by people of all ages and health statuses. Think of them being like freshly pressed vegetable juices, but with all of the naturally occurring fiber still present.

Another way to promote optimal digestion is to blend steamed vegetables to make simple soups. Whenever I worked with people with severe ulcerative colitis - cases where it was common to have 30 or more episodes of bloody diarrhea per day - I found that the most easily digested meal was a bowl of plain Yukon gold soup, made by blending steamed Yukon gold (yellow flesh) potatoes with a little vegetable broth or freshly pressed celery juice. Also well digested by the masses was a bowl of soup made by blending steamed zucchini and vegetable broth or celery juice.

Blending soups can only help maximize the number of nutrients that your digestive tract is able to extract out of them; this applies to both cooked and raw soups. This is why the vast majority of healthy soup recipes in our archives call for blending of all ingredients to create easily digested soups.

If you'd like to invest in a blender that will serve you and your loved ones well for decades, the best machine that I can recommend is the Vita-Mix. It's a few hundred dollars, but in my opinion, the price is right; I haven't found another blender that's better at producing silky smooth soups and smoothies. And I like that while it's extremely powerful, it's relatively easy on the ears compared to most blenders on the market.

If the Vita-Mix is not within your budget, I recommend that you take a look at the Cuisinart Stainless-Steel Blender with Glass Jar, which also does an excellent job with soups, smoothies, dips, dressings, and sauces.

If you're keen to begin blending to get more nutrients out of the foods that you eat, here are a few recipes from our archives to get you started:

Please consider sharing this series with family and friends who don't know about the benefits of chewing thoroughly and including blended foods in their diets. Blending to promote optimal nutrient extraction out of foods is especially helpful to the young, elderly, and people with dental and digestive tract challenges.

Improve Your Health With Our Free E-mail Newsletter

Join thousands of people from all over the world who receive our natural health newsletter.

Reviews

Just a note to let you know how much I appreciate your newsletter. As a fellow health care provider (optometrist) and medical researcher, I find your distillation of the literature into lay terms to be accurate and very understandable. I really enjoyed your contribution regarding macular degeneration. Keep up the good work. - Kristine Erickson, OD, PhD, FAAO

I get a lot of e-mailed newsletters and yours is the only one I read thoroughly from top to bottom. Your advice is enlightening, educational, easy to follow and it works! Thank you so much for all that you offer. - Lisa Abramovic

Thanks for your excellent health newsletter. I look forward to it every week. Thanks for providing the best online health resource I have found. - Moorea Maguire

I'm sure as a doctor you hear your share of complaints. I just thought you'd like to know that there's at least one person in your "e-audience" that appreciates the time and effort you put into sending the emails. I really look forward to them. - Linda H., Raleigh, North Carolina

Many of my adult ESL students are Korean, and enjoy bits and pieces from your newsletter that I have shared with them. In addition to your logical approach to health, I enjoy sharing your newsletter because your English is unfailingly correct as well as easily understood. Thank you for your beautiful approach to life. - J. Zetterstrom

I thank you and your staff for such a great website. I am former National Level Bodybuilder so I know a thing or two about health and fitness. Your site is very valuable and I do my best to pass it on to friends and people I train. It is also a helpful resource in my career as a human service provider working with clients who need to recover from substance abuse. I believe a major part of recovery is getting your body and mind feeling healthy and strong. Thank you again! Great Website! - Michael Christopher, MSW

I truly appreciate your wonderful newsletter - your balanced and professional way of looking at issues is so helpful! - Erica H.

Disclaimer: Throughout this entire website, statements are made pertaining to the properties and/or functions of food and/or nutritional products. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and these materials and products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Blended Foods Healthy:

What to Eat: Blended Foods Are Healthy and Nutritious