Nutrition
| Per 100 g | Per 1 oz (28 g) | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 200 kcal | 57 kcal |
| Protein | 20 g | 5.7 g |
| Fat | 3 g | 0.9 g |
| saturated | 0.4 g | 0.1 g |
| Carbohydrate | 15 g | 4.3 g |
| sugars | 6 g | 1.7 g |
| Fibre | 20 g | 5.7 g |
| Sodium | 300 mg | 85 mg |
Estimated from the ingredients, for the finished dried product. Actual values vary with the produce you use and how far you dry it.
Ingredients
- 650 g greens of choice (We used Spinach and Kale)
Instructions
- Pull the thick central ribs out of the kale and use only the leaf. The rib holds far more water than the blade and it grinds into fibrous threads rather than powder.
- Wash the leaves in a sink of cold water rather than under a running tap, lifting them out so the grit stays behind. Spinach in particular carries sand that you will taste in the finished powder.
- Spin or towel the leaves until they are genuinely dry to the touch. Any surface water has to be driven off before the machine can start on the leaf itself, and this run is short.
- Lay the leaves out loosely so they overlap as little as possible, and use a mesh liner. The setting here is very low and the airflow will lift a dry leaf off a bare tray and into the fan.
- Dehydrate at 30 °C for 5 hours. That is barely warm on purpose — greens lose their colour and most of what makes them worth drying if they are pushed any hotter.
- A leaf is ready when it crumbles to flakes at a touch and the stem fragments snap rather than bending. Test one that has been off the tray for a few minutes, since warm leaves always feel more brittle than they are.
- Grind the cooled leaves in short bursts, letting the grinder rest in between. A long run warms the powder, and warm green powder clings to the sides of the jug and browns.
- Jar it while it is cold, in glass, in a dark cupboard, and use it within six months. Green powder loses colour first, flavour second and nothing in the way of safety, so a dull jar is still usable, it is just no longer worth putting in a smoothie.
