Folic acids are important to produce and maintain cells in our body. It can also prevent changes to DNA to prevent cancers. Enjoy this delicious and nutritious Mediterranean dish when you want to try something interesting but also benefits your whole body!
Ingredients
Instructions
Notes
This recipe was created to adhere to the nutrition needs of pregnant women. This meal contains ~200 mcg of folic acid or vitamin B9 which is equal to about half of the RDI for pregnant women which is about 400 mcg. This recipe includes cod which is a low-mercury fish meaning it is safe to consume during pregnancy. It is recommended that pregnant women consume 2-3 servings of fish per week. Cod is also high in Omega-3s which are essential fatty acids. Essential fatty acids are important for your baby’s brain development. Iron is also important for fetal brain development. Spinach is high in iron, folate, and many other micronutrients so it is the perfect leafy-green to add to this meal. One thing to note is that this meal is somewhat high in vitamin A - it contains ~3,000 IU. It is important to limit vitamin A intake during pregnancy to under 10,000 IU per day since excessive intakes of vitamin A can lead to fetal birth defects.
Most, if not all, ingredients in this recipe can be found at the BMC food pantry. If the pantry does not have cod you can substitute it for another low-mercury fish such as salmon, flounder, Tilapia, hake, haddock, etc. Asparagus can be grown year-round and should be at the food pantry but if not then you can substitute it for broccoli which is another high folate vegetable.