Creative Nutrition

CatFan1019

So I wish I did but I just don't like fruits or vegetables. It seems to be an issue with texture because I don't mind drinking berries in a smoothie (although I can't do a banana at all) or vegetables that are pureed or chopped very fine and cooked in a soup. So I was just wondering if any of you have found a creative way to add foods you wouldn't normally eat into something to up the nutrition value.

kimny72

Have you tried different ways of cooking veggies? Roasted, stir-fried, grilled, raw. I ask because you will get a different texture with each. How many different types of veggies have you tried? Carrots, broccoli, green beans, red peppers, cabbage, butter lettuce, tomatoes, etc.

Nothing wrong with a smoothie every day, load it up with some greens and berries and some flavored protein powder. Pureed veggies in tomato sauce, finely chopped veggies mixed in with rice or other grains, veggie ribbons mixed in with noodles. My nephews like veggies chopped up and topped with pasta sauce and parmesan cheese.

apullum

Every vegetable that can be roasted should be roasted. Start with oil, salt, and pepper. Be relatively generous with the oil until you figure out how little oil you can use while still enjoying the taste. Experiment with other seasonings once you get the hang of it.

echmain3

Maybe you haven’t found your favorite vegetables yet. The variety is nearly infinite.

There must be something out there you haven’t tried yet.

My grocery store has roasted Brussel sprouts and rainbow carrots. Delish.

Or...try adding some spices you like. Most spices are very low in calories, almost negligible. (Not sauces though, they can be very high)

AnnPT77

There are also cookbooks written for parents who want their veggie-hating children to get more vegetables, so they use recipes that hide them. Some of it is mincing them up fine to put them in foods as you suggest, or things like putting pureed winter squash in sauce for mac'n'cheese, and that sort of thing. There lots of things to be found online, too, if you search for something like "hidden veggies".

I'd also vote for trying new things, or new ways of cooking things. Maybe make one try a month, of something new, and try a small bit more than once to see if you like it once you get past the newness?

Good luck!