It is the season of giving,
and hubby and I will do just that tomorrow.
We try to donate blood as often as we are allowed,
but we had taken a break during a time when we needed to stay strong
and a time when we tried to keep our ability to fight sickness at its peak.
Giving blood is easy, but it will leave us weak for a day or two.
The week we donate, I specifically tailor our eating toward increasing hemoglobin.
You cannot give if your count is too low.
We have never been turned away, but I don't want to start now.
So the week we donate, we avoid coffee and tea -
both inhibit the absorption of iron.
This morning, I made my smoothie with both vitamin C oranges and iron-rich pea protein.
The vitamin C helps to absorb the iron.
I also included spinach for folate which increases hemoglobin production.
We enjoyed leftover cranberry meatballs as a grilled sandwich for lunch.
Meat is the best source of iron.
And then for supper,
I boiled up some turkey bones and made this Harvest Turkey Soup.
Instead of frozen spinach, I used Kale
and I threw in about a cup of lentils.
The turkey, lentils, and kale will all boost hemoglobin or iron levels
and the tomatoes have vitamin C for absorption.
It is a powerhouse soup that we will enjoy again for lunch tomorrow before giving blood.
Oh, and to drink for a snack today...
a brown cow ...
A glass of milk with blackstrap molasses in it.
It is good hot or cold.
Oh - and we were thinking about the donation even on Christmas day.
We had a beautiful beet salad.
The raw beets were a beautiful color for Christmas Day!
Beets are known for increasing blood flow.
That's pretty helpful when you are trying to fill your bags during the donation.
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