The new year is almost here, and it is a great time to revisit ways to incorporate more vegetables into your diet! There are some super simple ways to up your intake and improve your health. We hope you can try a few easy or new methods.
Prep Some Veggies for the Week
Take twenty minutes at the beginning of the week to chop up some fresh veggies and have them ready to eat or to toss into a dish. You are guaranteed to reach for them more often when they are ready to eat.
Try Veggie Noodles
You can buy veggie noodles in the store – or make them yourself with a spiralizer. They’re a great substitute for high carb foods, such as pasta. And you can see how many types of vegetables you can turn into noodles. Try zucchini, carrots, sweet potato, and bell peppers.
Add Veggies to Sauces
Adding extra vegetables to your sauces and dressings is an easy way to increase your veggie intake, especially if you have picky kids. Even if you use a store-bought marinara sauce, you can add chopped onions, carrots, bell peppers, and leafy greens like spinach.
Rice Your Veggies
Similar to spiralized veggies, you can “rice” many vegetables. Just use your food processor to chop cauliflower, broccoli or sweet potato into tiny pieces and then swap in for rice in practically any recipe. Or make a cauliflower pizza crust and add your favorite toppings.
Grated Veggies are Great
Graters aren’t just for cheese anymore! Get out your grater or use the grate function on your food processor and grate broccoli stems, carrots, or any cruciferous veggie to make a slaw. This apple cider vinegar coleslaw is a great place to start.
Make Some Veggies Chips
Kale chips are so tasty, even if you typically don’t like kale. They are available in many grocery stores and you can make your own, such as this recipe for spicy and cheesy kale chips! You can also turn other veggies such as sweet potatoes into chips by slicing very thinly (mandoline recommended) and popping them in the oven.
Bake Some Veggie Fries
It’s so easy to make veggie fries and besides the popular sweet potato fries, you can make carrots, eggplant, jicama, zucchini, and turnips. Just coat in oil and add salt, pepper and any other seasonings and roast them in the oven or cook in an air fryer.
Make Vegetable Purees or Pesto
Use up those slightly soft vegetables in a puree. Process slightly sweet vegetables like carrots or beets, then drizzle that sauce on top of meat, potatoes or even other vegetables. Use olive oil to thin out any vegetables that need extra liquid (such as carrots). You can also make a creative pesto from vegetables such as beets, or carrot tops – play with different combinations of nuts, cheese, plus garlic and oil for a healthy and delicious spread.
Start the Day with a Veggie Omelet
You can get some veggies in first thing in the morning by adding them to an omelet! Sauté a handful of broccoli, spinach, onions, bell peppers, or kale and use as the base for your eggs.
Use Veggies in Desserts or Smoothies
Vegetables can add an amazing consistency and flavor to many desserts! And they can add a lot of nutrition to a smoothie. Try adding a handful of spinach to a smoothie or try dessert recipes such as sweet potato brownie bites, zucchini bread, and carrot cake.
We hope you will try some of these methods in 2023 and we wish you a wonderful New Year! And as always, if you are interested in learning more about our backyard organic gardens, please Contact Us.
Sources:
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/17-ways-to-eat-more-veggies