I was raised in the midwest, but with a heavy southern influence. My family ate collard greens every Sunday dinner and every holiday. My family always incorporated southern traditions into my upbringing, even though we weren’t able to take trips to the south too often. As adults, everyone tends to take family values and traditions for granted. I’ll admit, I let collard greens slip into that category. While living on my own and away from family I have not eaten them once, which is a very unfortunate because I’m starving myself from prosperity and a ton of nutrition.
Remaining a favorite veggie of most southerners.
In 2011 South Carolina voted collard greens to be their state vegetable. Collard green love isn’t restricted to just southern states. It expands over the entire country. There are annual festivals for collard greens in Georgia, Florida, Illinois, and Pennsylvania. The variations in ways to cook collard greens are derived from all over the world. Who knew these green goddesses had such an extensive history?
It’s rumored that the cooking and eating collard greens were brought to the United States by West Africans due to rise in the slave trade in the early 1600’s. However, some historians will state that this edible green was already in America and growing in prehistoric times. Yup, dinosaurs were eating collard greens for dinner. Since collard greens aren’t a new discovery, why is this leaf glorified by so many people around the world?
It’s because of the prosperity and luck that it symbolizes.
Germans actually originated the superstition, claiming that eating leafy green vegetables brings luck and wealth to a household. This tradition was adopted in the south when German immigrants began to settle in the US in the 1800s. African Slaves in the south held on to this symbol of hope due to their horrific circumstances and collard greens became a precious piece of their heritage.
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The sentimental and lucky association of collards greens is most popular, and the nutrition is often overlooked. Collard greens are one of the healthiest vegetables to exist. It contains ample amounts of vitamins A, C, and K. It also has calcium, folate, fiber, and antioxidants. Collard greens are great for fighting cancer and detoxing.
Everyone wants to live a healthy life of prosperity. Little did I know my family was setting me up for this early on by serving me up so much prosperity. Join this tradition and bless your family with collard greens tonight!
