Increasingly, women—and particularly women of colour—are entering into the food industry with interesting products that are shaking up the industry.
A case in point is former tennis champion Venus Williams. Once the top of her game, Venus was forced to pull out of the U.S. Open Tennis Championship in the mid 1990s, when she was diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome, a serious autoimmune condition that causes dry eye and dry mouth, as well as fatigue.
Not to be one to sit back and mope with self-pity, Williams has made a come-back, recently launching Happy Viking, a plant-based protein company, in partnership with Dyla Brands, which produces Stur Drink Mixes and Forto coffee. If you look up Williams’ Happy Viking, some of the first things you will notice are the protein shakes made from recipes she depended upon to sustain her throughout her and her sister Serena’s gruelling tennis regimens and championships. The shakes contain a comparatively large amount of protein, as well as amino acids for protein synthesis and nutrient absorption, followed by healthy doses of leafy greens and prebiotic fiber to help with digestion.
As a physician, I can vouch for the efficacy of such products—adding leafy greens to smoothies boost the phytonutrients and fiber, and slows down the absorption of sugars into your body.
It is very similar to a shake I developed for my wife when she was recovering from surgery—and which was so tasty even my kids happily downed the sludge!
INGREDIENTS:
- Spinach—I prefer fresh but frozen is okay as well
- Fruit juice (I use pineapple as I feel it balances out the taste of the spinach)
- Frozen mango
- Frozen pineapple
- Frozen banana chunks or one fresh banana
- Blend 1 cup of spinach in a blender.
- Next, add 1 cup of liquid and thoroughly blend
- Toss chunks of frozen mango, pineapple and/or bananas
- Next, blend thoroughly
- Serve immediately before your kids get suspicious about how healthy this is!
