Difficulty level Easy

This is part of an ongoing series.

My husband has been adding ground flax seed to his morning apple cider for the past year. I sit with mildly wrinkled nose as he happily downs his concoction. I decided the caloric count was just too high for me to justify having it. Turns out that he is right, and I'm a dope.

According to Richard Beliveau and Denis Gingras, authors of Cooking with Foods that Fight Cancer (2007, DK Adult) "flaxseed is by far the best plant source of linolenic acid, an omega-3 fatty acid used by cells to make EPA and DHA, two-anti-inflammatory substances."

It is also a phytoestrogen and plays an important role in the prevention of tumours, whose growth depends on the hormone estrogen, such as breast cancer. The section on flax in this book is probably the most science-filled, but suffice it to say, I'll take the calories and add flax to my diet. You must grind the seeds in order for your body to absorb them. We bought a cheap coffee grinder, which is now used solely for the flax. Don't buy ground flax, because it degrades quickly and you won't be achieving any benefit. You don't have to grind it every time you use it like we do. You can keep a supply in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks at the most.

You also don't have to make the icky drink my husband does. You can add ground flax to your morning cereal, hot oatmeal, and bread dough, or even sprinkle it into pasta sauces. I tried this very quick salad last night for dinner and was very tasty. The recipe in the books suggests that you boil the spinach, but I'm going to give you a way to cook it that holds it's shape better and you don't lose all the nutrients into the cooking water.

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