The word is out: Kale is at the top of the current superfoods list. But to experience its extraordinary health benefits, it actually has to be eaten. And that's a problem for many people.

The taste of kale is bitter and the texture of raw kale is extremely tough. According to experts, the bitterness is the result of some of its beneficial compounds. Sulfurophane boosts your liver's natural detox power. Kaempferol supports the genes that promote longer life. Carotenoids, according to another recent study by Harvard University, are credited with helping to instill a positive emotional state.

The best news of all - If you can manage at least one serving a day of kale or its leafy green relatives, you may decrease the rate your memory and thinking skills decline as you get older, a benefit of particular interest to boomers. The nutritional powerhouse has just 33 calories, zero fat, and is packed with calcium, manganese, Vitamin A, potassium, and copper. 

To help you achieve that, we found four ways to improve the texture and taste of kale.

Option A: Massage it before you eat it. No, that's not a joke. Here's a brief video to show you how.

Option B: If you don't have time to massage your food, try preparing your kale the night before you plan to eat it. Remove the stems running down the center and chop the leaves into bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle on several tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice and salt, and put the kale in a sealed container overnight in the refrigerator.

Option C: Sauté it with garlic, chili flakes, or other spices you like so the kale takes on some of their flavors. Bonus benefit- Cooking kale doesn’t destroy any of its nutrients.

Option D: If none of the aforementiond options are working for you, consider one of these ideas from the some of the kale-loving folks on our staff. We promise- they don't include salad or green colored shakes.

1. Mix kale with oats and hard-boiled eggs
2. Serve sauteed kale with your favorite meal, like pork tenderloin
3. Add chopped kale to your lasagna- you won't even taste it
4. Try kale-pesto pasta. It's downright delicious
5. Make homemade pizza with spicy sausage and goat cheese

While you’re protecting your brain by increasing your intake of kale and other leafy green vegetables, incorporate some of these other super healthy goods into your diet: fish (salmon, mackerel, and tuna), avocado, sunflower seeds, berries, peanuts and peanut butter, and whole grains. They go well with kale. You could also use a salt and pepper mill to gently season kale instead of using artificial flavoring. For the best mills, you can check out foodal.com.

One final tip and a fun fact from our insiders: Store kale in a plastic bag in the freezer, as it tastes a little sweeter and better after being frozen. And just for fun, prior to the "kale craze", Pizza Hut (of all restaurants) was the world's largest purchase of Kale, used a garnish in their salad bars.