Vegtables... How do you cook them????

Mmmm....so much goodness.

I had an older friend years ago who would only eat veggies raw or lightly steamed. No seasoning, no oils, not even salt.

"Vegetables should taste like vegetables."

I never understood it. That's like saying you can only eat boiled chicken breast or untoasted bread. I mean, do whatever you like and fits your goals...experiement. Use veggies as a base, an ingredient, a condiment. Bake, grill, sautee, roast...whatever.

I think you'll be surprised how much flavor is there - nuttiness, sweetness, caramelization, crispy edges - when you give them a chance to be "real" food instead of obligatory diet food.

One of my favorite things is veggie and egg white omelets. I use, for instance, mushrooms, zucchini, onion, tomato and spinach (or whatever I have and want, but that's a pretty common mix). I add garlic, salt, pepper, turmeric, onion powder, chili garlic paste, sriracha - whatever sounds good. Maybe a sprinkle of shredded parmesan or some other cheese. The veggies don't really need oil for this - I just sort of steam them in a pan with a lid to get them started and then let them get as done as I want. Depending on what you use, maybe pour off some accumulated liquid or you may cook it off (depends on what you use and how long you like them cooked). Then in with the egg whites (also seasoned to taste). On with the lid til set. For the record, you can also have a cup of hash browns with this if you like and the whole meal is 200-300 calories, depending on your choice of cheese.

Today I used almost the same - mushrooms, zucchini, onion, tomato, spinach, garlic, and cabbage cooked them about the same way, added a bunch of sriracha and had a turkey Italian sausage with it. Roughly 300-350 calories and it was a TON of food.

I've really enjoyed roasting veggies this year. Beets, green beans, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, asparagus, nice small Brussels sprouts. They are awesome - I roasted beets, onions, garlic, and sweet potatoes together mixed with mozzarella and stuffed big zucchini boats par-baked with olive oil spray and shredded parm. Baked together til the cheese was melted and the zucchini was just a little this side of crunchy, still with some texture. That was a hit!

Thin sliced, breaded zuchhini baked til crisp is a nice snack.

I always like veggies on sandwiches. Spinach is good instead of lettuce if you want.

When making tuna for sandwiches, I usually add about an equal amount of shredded carrot to the mix.

If I make meatloaf, I always run mushrooms and carrots through a food processor and add in.

Oh, speaking of hash browns, I really like mixing half shredded potatoes and half shredded zucchini.

Baked egg rolls (chicken breast, cabbage, carrot, onion, broccoli "slaw," garlic, bean sprouts, Asian seasonings (five-spice powder, soy sauce, ginger, etc), rolled in store-bought wrappers and baked til crispy (flip them over halfway through). They're so good!

Vegetable-heavy soups are great, with or without added meat, lentils or beans, rice, noodles, etc.

Baby carrots are good baked in a casserole dish with just enough butter or olive oil mixed with sesame oil to coat, a little honey (doesn't take much - the carrots are sweet, too), a little cayenne, maybe a sprinkle of sesame seeds and/or toasted almonds.

Veggies are AWESOME on pizza. Mmmm....mushrooms, spinach, zucchini, red onion, artichoke hearts, olives, pineapple (yes, I do know olives, pineapple and tomatoes are fruits lol), jalapenos, asparagus. Just awesome! Actually just the zucchini, red onion, and grilled chicken with sweet chili Thai sauce (use a light hand - it's pretty sweet and you can always drizzle a bit over the top, too) instead of pizza sauce is really good, especially on a thin crust (this is courtesy of Papa Murphy's).

We actually made pizza crusts out of cauliflower, non-fat Greek yogurt, Italian seasoning and salt. They were so, so good...not a single person didn't love them and I promise no one felt like they were on a diet. Made a really simple garlic white sauce with fresh basil, but use whatever you like. Here is the article the recipe came from:

http://greatist.com/health/make-healthier-pizza

We made the zucchini one from the article too, but it was a tad eggy on the first go (not bad, just not the best). Turns out it was really, really good browned in a dry non-stick skillet the next day, though! This one has cheese in it, so beautiful things happened in that skillet.

Here are some other really good pizza ideas:

http://ohmyveggies.com/50-vegetarian-pizza-recipes/

Vegetable lasagna is great, too. You can make it as traditional or as light as you want and layer spinach, chard or kale, lots of tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, zucchini, shredded carrot, whatever sounds good! I've even heard of people slicing zucchini into long, flat strips, baking a good part of the moisture out of them, and using them like lasagna noodles, but I haven't tried it myself yet.

Coarsely chopped cabbage is nice cooked in a skillet with a tiny bit of olive oil, fresh garlic, salt and pepper - you can add meat if you want or boil/roast red potatoes to go with it. It's different from, say cabbage soup (which is good too). I like the cabbage cooked not so soft, but you can find what you like.

Stir-fries are always good - broccoli, carrots, asparagus, cauliflower, pea pods, fresh ginger, green onion, bell peppers, whatever's on your good list, with some shrimp, beef, chicken, or tofu. Add some soy sauce or maybe some oyster sauce, fish sauce, hoisen and/or teriyaki if you prefer, garlic, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, etc. Or a bit of coconut milk and ginger! Serve over rice if you want.

A friend today said she's going to try Chinese Fried Rice - with riced cauliflower for the rice! I am so going to try it, but I'll wait to hear how her trial run goes first to see if she has any tricks! lol

A couple of weeks ago, my daughter breaded and baked thick slices of eggplant and layered those, alternating with tomato slices and onions slices, added lots of garlic, spaghetti sauce, and cheese. She repeated the layers, made the most awesome little stackers out of them and baked them in the oven. It was even canned sauce, so it was quick and easy and fantastic. You could cut the calories if you wanted by leaving off or using less cheese, but it was just great! Plus they were already portioned!

I love spaghetti squash - the favorite of this summer is to bake it and shred it and mix in a little garlic powder and salt and shredded Parmesan. Meanwhile, sautee large shrimp, lots of diced fresh tomatoes and tomatillos, lots of onion and pressed garlic, some black pepper, and some Italian seasoning. Serve that mix over a pile of the squash.

Here is a random link I found today for something I'm going to try (inspired by an MFP friend's lunch lol):
http://blog.cookingchanneltv.com/2013/06/04/dinner-rush-beet-salad-with-crispy-goat-cheese/

You can always just Google anything - "eggplant recipes" or "hot vegetable dishes" and browse around. Also, you may like this site:

allrecipes.com

They have SO many recipes, the vast majority of which have been reviewed by ones who have made them, so you can see their ratings, feedback, and suggestions. There is a pretty decent search tool and you can have an online "recipe box" where you save recipes and can categorize them and even notate them if you want. It's all free, although there are paid services on there, too.

Okay, off to bed I go. I hope you find some things you just love. Have fun!

Edited to add: Oh, yeah...the grilling suggestions are great, too! There are tons of online recipes for grilling ideas - it's super popular! I'll just add pineapple rings sprinkled with brown sugar and cayenne for dessert or to top teriyaki burgers. Just because. Okay now seriously - good night!