The Nutrients in Raw and Cooked Parsley. Use parsley more in your meals, not just as a garnish. Parsley is more than just an attractive garnish for your dinner plate and a sneaky herb that ruins a clean smile.
Energy density is the amount of energy -- as represented by the number of calories -- in a specific weight of food. Energy-dense foods have a large number of calories per serving. An example of food with high energy density is ice cream -- lots of calories from the sugar and fat that fit a small serving size. Spinach has low energy density -- there are only a few calories in a whole plateful of raw spinach leaves.
As a rule, foods that are higher in water and/or lower in fat have a lower energy density than foods that are lower in water and/or higher in fat. By choosing foods with low energy density, such as fresh fruits and vegetables or reduced fat dairy products, you'll get a bigger serving for fewer calories.