Microgreens or Super-geeens?

Microgreens are the micro version of their adult counterparts; a vegetable, fruit, and sometimes even an edible flower. Although technically most flowers are fruits, but that is for another day. What is so special about a microgreen? Why harvest and eat something before it is fully grown? Simply put, microgreens are super-greens! (reds, purples, yellows and more…).

Microgreens have been around, well since the beginning of plants. However, they were first intentionally harvested in the 1980s by professional chefs to use as garnishment in high end restaurants. In the early 2000s people began to take a look at microgreens as a source of vitamins and nutrition. There have been multiple studies over the years by Universities, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Center for Biotechnology Information, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Institutes of Health, and many others on the health and nutritional benefits of microgreens. These studies show that microgreens pack 5-40x’s more vitamins, antioxidants, and phytonutrients than their adult counterparts; depending on which green we are discussing. Furthermore, the amount of sulforaphane and other phytonutrients found in many microgreens are so concentrated they are showing to have cancer preventative and cancer fighting properties.

Okay, we get it microgreens truly are super-greens! However, how would I even incorporate them into my diet? Microgreens are easy to add to your daily meals. While they pack so many nutrients they also pack flavor! Most bare a strong and crisp flavor tasting nothing like their adult counterpart. This allows them to replace vegetables or to be used as a spice much like many herbs. Take broccoli for instance, I personally cannot stand the taste of broccoli, but love the taste of broccoli super-greens. Microgreens can be drank in your morning shake or used to flavor your omlet or breakfast sandwich. They can replace the lettuce on a your sandwich or lunch wrap and add flavor to any cooked dinner. Many microgreens also taste so good they stand alone as a snack, a side dish, or mixed as a salad. Furthermore, a few super-greens are even found to have a dry sweet taste making them the perfect topping to your brownie or other dessert.

If microgreens are this good for you and truly a super-green, where can I get them? Why do the greens not sell nationwide or in my local grocery store? While you can sometimes find microgreens in specialty stores most of the time microgreens are obtained straight from the farmer. Wether found from a larger outdoor crop farmer or an urban farm growing hydroponically, vertically, indoors, or in the green house microgreens are best obtained straight from the source. Microgreens, being harvested at such a young age are very delicate. Harvesting large amounts and and commercially packaging without damaging or destroying the greens has proven difficult. Your local farmers harvest by hand. This allows the greens to be sent straight from farm harvest to your kitchen table maintaining their nutritional benefits and freshness. Many of the farms, including ours, grow inside allowing them to be freshly available all year long. You can find these farmers at your local farmers markets or online. I am happy you have found Werth Crew Titchy Farm and we hope to be your local source super-greens.

Want to know more?

Find links below to many articles pertaining to the information above.