Attack the day with these 10 ultimate superfoods

If you're like us, you are BUSY! We're talking every minute of every day jam packed with work and play and wonder and to-do lists and driving and running and walking and playing and picking up the kids and connecting and communicating and buying groceries and handing in reports and texting and talking and planning and on and on and on.

Whew. We're tired just writing about it.

If you're running around from the moment you wake up until sunset and beyond, you're gonna need some serious energy to keep up! We recommend these 10 ultimate superfoods. Fill your belly with their vitamin-rich nutrients and you'll be able to go-go-go to your heart's content (of course, sometimes "go-go-go" deserves to be replaced with "relax-relax-relax").

QUINOA
Funny name and fabulous grain! (actually, it's more like a grain-like seed.) It's kinda nutty, super filling, protein-rich, and bursting with 9 essential amino acids. You cook it kinda like rice. Quinoa pilaf, anyone? Count us in!

Pre-make a Gluten Free Quinoa Salad (recipe from Canadian Living) and pack it in your lunch to avoid a mid-day crash-n-burn.
BLUEBERRIES
Oh, be still our sweet tooth! These little juicy balls of nutritional goodness are among our faves. Each berry is filled with fibre, vitamin C, and minerals and compounds that help to fight cancers and improve memory. Plus, they just taste so darn delicious.

Snack on a handful (or two) throughout the day, blend in your morning smoothie, or toss in your salad at lunch! You can never have too much blue. Ever.
KALE
We know we know... kale is EVERYWHERE these days. It's the new healthy religion. And we're on the bandwagon too (You should hop on too!). Kale is a little rough n' tough and difficult to get to know and love. However, once you find your groove with kale, you'll love this superfood forever. Because kale is a powerhouse – straight up. It has more antioxidants than almost ALL other fruits and veggies. Plus a trifecta of extra goodness: Fiber, Calcium, and Iron.

Learn how to cook with kale (it's SO versatile) from our friends at Vegetarian Times. Stew it, steam it, even make it into a chip! Nom nom.
GINGER
Naturally one of our favorites (ahem... try our Gingermints!), Ginger is a zinger! It's a spicy cure for nausea, the flu, inflammation, the common cold, and even indigestion. It's bioactive compounds are great for body and brain!

Blend a thumb-size piece in your morning smoothie to add zip to your step from the get go or add it your soup, starry, or even tea!
ALMONDS
Almonds have the highest concentration of nutrients per ounce – out of all the nuts! Inside every delicious kernel is a whole lotta fibre, potassium, calcium, vitamin E, magnesium, and iron, too.

Toss a handful into your salad (or directly into your mouth), slather almond butter on some apple slices for an afternoon snack, or even bake them into a healthy dessert for when your 3 o'clock craving hits. Try the Simple Veganista's 4-ingredient Almond Butter Cookies. Yum!
BEETS
Good for more than just staining your fingers, cutting board, blender, and white pants (whose idea was it to wear white when making borscht anyway?!), beets are ruby-coloured nutritional rockstars! With a sweet combination of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants plus betalains (a fancy name for the beet's unique pigment), this superfood strengthens major organs, helps to fight disease, and may even help to prevent cancer. So embrace the pink fingers and double up on beets!

Even Martha Stewart is on the beet train. Check out her favourite beet recipes here. (We highly recommend the Beet Chips!)
WATERMELON
Not just for pool parties any more, Watermelon is a year-round nutritional dynamo! It's high in vitamins A and C and some studies suggest it may also lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease.

Put some slices in with your lunch or get creative – watermelon salsa anyone?
BROCCOLI
These little mini trees are big in flavor and disease-fighting superpowers. Broccoli also gets a gold star in Vitamin C and folate – which may reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease, and stroke. That's a lotta good from a little green.

Go raw and pack some broccoli florets and hummus to snack on throughout the day or make a Vegan Broccoli Casserole on Sunday and portion it out for lunch for the week. Easy peasy! (And good for you too. REALLY good!)
GREEN TEA
Drink in your superfood all day long! Green Tea is a natural remedy for all that ails you. It's not only antioxidant-rich, it's also super up with a brilliant phytonutrient called EGCG, which slows down irregular cell growth (translation: may reduce the growth of some cancers!)
BEANS
They didn't make a childhood jingle about this good-for-you "musical fruit" without good reason: beans are chock full of finer, folate, and magnesium and help lower cholesterol for overall body health! This superfood is also super versatile to cook with. You can hide beans in pretty much anything – and it always tastes delicious. Try the Minimalist Baker's Gluten-Free Bean Brownies and see what we're talking about. (Soooooo good. Make a double batch.)