Edamame!

Thanks to my dear friends Samantha and Mary, I have discovered the wonderful-ness that is edamame! It is super easy to prepare and delicious. Edamame is the soybean in the least-processed form with a ton of fiber, protein, and folate. Because it is a low cal snack that has no cholesterol, this is the perfect food to have prepared and to nibble on throughout the day. 

The thing that partially kept me away from this fantastic veggie (besides the fancy name) was my ignorance of how to eat it. I knew you didn't eat the pods, but what the heck did you do with them and what to do with those little beans inside? Have no fear it's actually super simple! You buy it frozen in the husks or already shelled and then you steam it or boil it for a few minutes. Next you just squeeze the pods gently and out pop the sweet, bright green beans. For the simplest of snacks, blanch them in salted water, drain, and serve in a bowl with coarse sea salt or salt mixed with different blends (my friend Mary uses a dried seaweed blend that is delicious). You can also make hummus with the beans, but if you aren't up for the task, Trader Joe's has a great Edamame hummus you can buy and we love that as well. 

I think we can all say that we'd like to eat healthier in this new year and adding this to your diet is a great start! Happy, healthy eating friends! -jenna
ps. this is great for kids and it gives them something fun to do! Jude loves to sit and pop the beans out of the pod. =)