Clean Diet - Need MORE Veggie and Fruit ideas

I will be increasing my caloric intake soon but instead of filling my calories with more of the foods I'm already eating, I want to eat more nutritiously dense foods so I can be adding more variety to my palate. I already eat a lot of American standard veggies (carrots, peas, green beans, brocolli, bell peppers, tomatoes, and onion) and I am eating a lot of wonderful fruits too (bananas, kiwi fruit, watermelon, apples, cherries, grapes, blueberries, avocado, and tangerines/mandarins). I have been considering adding sweet potatoes, egg plant, pineapple, and cauliflower to my list but I need your advice. What do you think I should add? I'm looking for the most nutritiously dense foods available and something that would be approved by a picky 6 year old child too.

I didn't notice any dairy. My nutritionalist recommend Greek yogurt. Also almond butter, cashew butter and susch are great fillers too. And a new one that I LOVE is cream of Buckwheat. Gluten free and yummy with a smashed banana.

Good luck. You're a great role model for your son. That's really nice!

i have to use butternut squash or pumpkin for 1 of my starch servings...it's half of what i get in my sweet potatoes that i usually eat..

also, i've been dying to try this recipe but it hasn't fit in my diet yet...
http://www.eat-drink-smile.com/2011/04/cauliflower-crust-pizza.html

I will be increasing my caloric intake soon but instead of filling my calories with more of the foods I'm already eating, I want to eat more nutritiously dense foods so I can be adding more variety to my palate. I already eat a lot of American standard veggies (carrots, peas, green beans, brocolli, bell peppers, tomatoes, and onion) and I am eating a lot of wonderful fruits too (bananas, kiwi fruit, watermelon, apples, cherries, grapes, blueberries, avocado, and tangerines/mandarins). I have been considering adding sweet potatoes, egg plant, pineapple, and cauliflower to my list but I need your advice. What do you think I should add? I'm looking for the most nutritiously dense foods available and something that would be approved by a picky 6 year old child too.

I didn't notice any dairy. My nutritionalist recommend Greek yogurt. Also almond butter, cashew butter and susch are great fillers too. And a new one that I LOVE is cream of Buckwheat. Gluten free and yummy with a smashed banana.

Good luck. You're a great role model for your son. That's really nice!

I'm gluten and lactose intolerant. I have been better at tolerating dairy lately, but I still don't want to risk more intestinal damage. And I didn't list my nut or protein intake because I just want fruit and veggie suggestions but I do well with my macros. I just want the veggies and the fruits to add in.

Can you take lactase? I'm also intolerant but I take lactase when I want to drink milk or eat a little bit of ice cream.

oh! and edamame... kids love those, especially when you buy the variety still in the shells...

Some of my favourite vegies:
- Definitely go with sweet potato or even purple/white yams- I dice it, steam it and put it in salads. Stops sugar cravings and keeps you full for longer.The texture of it in your soup (when pureed) is amazing too- makes it sweet and creamy.
- Zucchini (maybe you call that squash?) is great steamed, stirfried, grilled (broiled) or baked
- Eggplant is great tossed with other vegies (and olive oil) and baked. I can even steam it but some people dont like the texture.
- Silverbeet a tastier version on spinach- sauted with a little garlic and some water or just steamed in a layer of stacked roast vegies or lasagna.
- sprouts - alfalfa, mungbean sprouts, water cress.. all great for different flavours in salad.
- Try shaving raw rasish, fennel or beetroot into salads for some colour, texture and zing (purple and yellow carrots too if you can find them!)

As for the no dairy- try goats/sheeps/bufallo milk products. I can't tolerate even a couple of mouthful of cows milk in any sort of dish but have made up for it with yoghurt and cheese produce made from non-cows milk. Go slowly with these (I find I cant drink goats milk for example but can have a couple of mouthfuls of cheese)- most people with dairy intolerances can do these alternatives. Also be sure you get some calcium through sesame seeds, enriched soy milk. Tofu or and soy or nut milk are great to add to you your diet too.

Another tip: my lunches have always been the envy of any office I've worked in. I make 5 salads on a Sunday night and store them in the fridge (with the dressing and wet ingredients in a seperate container). Provided you pack it into a lunch box DRY and dont cut any more than you need to right before you eat (i buy cherry tomatoes and only cut the other vegetables into slice on the day) it's much fresher than any salad I buy. I dont eat meat but even the boiled eggs keep fresh enough if you peel them on the sunday night and dont cut them til right before.

brussel sprouts, spinach, kale, watercress, cabbage, greens (mustard, turnip, collard). Asparagus is one of my favorites on the grill. spaghetti squash and acorn squash are great

Spinach, kale, and other dark, leafy greens.

Although, for kale, I suggest locating some baby kale, if possible. It's much more appetizing, in both cooked and raw form. It makes a great salad.

-Try making kale chips by baking them in the oven and add your favorite seasonings like Mrs DASH. (If you want a lil salty fix)
-Bake some yams and add a lil cinnamon
-Overnight oats with almond milk or greek yogurt, next day top it off with blueberries or any berries and PB2 or almond butter
-Banana pancakes, mash 1 ripe banana and 2 eggs or 2 egg whites and throw them on the pan with olive oil

have you ever tried goat milk? Often people that have problems with cow milk can use goat milk. I have 8 children who are all lactose intolerant but they can do goat milk just fine (we even tried cow milk a few months back just to see if their bodies had changed and would accept cow milk and they spent 3 days with diarrhea and vomitting...no more experiments!). Goat milk breaks down much easier than cows milk. It's just a thought.

Some veggie ideas..

Bean sprouts.. I steam them with other veggies and make a big stir fry. I use the bean sprouts as a base for the stir fry sometimes instead of rice or noodles or just add in.

Bok Choy.. steamed then with a bit of garlic and vegetable oil or use in stir fry.

Leeks.. leek soup