Working in more vegetables

ACB42
ACB42 Posts: 40 Member
edited December 17 in Food and Nutrition
How do you work more vegetables into your day -- especially if you don't like traditional salads? I am often lacking in vegetable intake, and especially need to add iron-rich vegetables (since I teeter on the edge of anemia). I will add spinach, tomato, lettuce, onions to a sandwich, or have a side of broccoli with dinner, but that's about it. What are some appealing ways to work in a greater quantity and variety? (I don't necessarily need "Sneaky Chef" methods, since I am open to trying new things -- I just don't know exactly where to start.)

Replies

  • SueGremlin
    SueGremlin Posts: 1,066 Member
    Sautee in olive oil (or water) with garlic.
  • FixItDuck
    FixItDuck Posts: 112 Member
    Spinach is my favourite vege for doing this - throw a couple of handfuls of fresh, or some frozen spinach into curries, mince dishes or pasta dishes shortly before serving (frozen needs a little more time). If you have a couple of servings of veges with the meal, there's 2 and a bit servings for the day. I always add salad veg to my sandwiches (they taste boring without!)

    How about your snacks? carrots and hummus? cucumber is good with hummus too, but I prefer carrots.
  • sonyachan
    sonyachan Posts: 518 Member
    Green smoothies. Check out www.incrediblesmoothies.com
  • Priincess_Natalie
    Priincess_Natalie Posts: 367 Member
    Green Smoothies. I use Kale or Spinach. I mix that in a blender with different fruits, carrots and juices or almond milk. Sometimes I use Yogurt. There are so many combinations. I hate eating veggies so this is a nice way to work them into my diet.
  • issyfit
    issyfit Posts: 1,077 Member
    Some of my favorites:
    Veggie stir-fry with shiratake noodles.
    Add lots of veggies to scrambled eggs.
    Add lots of veggies to crock pot stews and soups.
  • BigBoneSista
    BigBoneSista Posts: 2,389 Member
    Sautee in olive oil (or water) with garlic.

    This!

    I cut up zucchini, onions and green peppers and cooked them until they soften up in extra virgin olive oil. I season them to taste with Mrs. Dash seasonings. You can chop up some baked chicken breast & quinoa and add it to the veggies. Yummy!
  • vmclach
    vmclach Posts: 670 Member
    zuchinni and yellow squash sauteed with olive oil and salt & pepper!

    Raw cucumber

    Carrots, pickles, brocoli, caluiflower and fat free ranch dip

    You can also cook any of them too! yum yum

    All veggie sides to your meals
    Snack on veggies!

    I love veggies! I can't get enough of them!
  • rhichi
    rhichi Posts: 133
    A trick that is actually used with young kids who won't eat their veggies is to steam some broccoli, carrots, or whatever you want, blend it up, and add it to tomato sauce. Don't add so much it becomes broccoli sauce, but just enough to be useful. If you don't want to work that hard (and you said you don't necessarily need to be sneaky), then just add them to the sauce as is, or toss with pasta and olive oil.

    Additionally, make "chips" out of different veggies. I love kale chips and beet chips. They're really simple to make, too. Just cut or tear the veggies into flat, chip-sized pieces. Toss with just a little tiny bit of olive oil (I use a mister that only puts on a thin layer) and bake until crispy (at about 375 degrees F). Then you can put a small amount of salt or other flavoring, or just eat them as is.

    And then there's the traditional baggy full of carrot sticks. Eat with a little bit of hummus for protein.
  • hbm616
    hbm616 Posts: 377 Member
    I tend to just steam most things like broccoli, spinach, zucchini, summer squash and green beans.
    I also loooove roasted asparagus..just drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper and maybe some rosemary and bake at 375-400 until cooked but still with a crunch, maybe 15 minutes or so.
    I love carrots and hummus as a snack. Or If I add some pita bread I may make a meal out of it.
    And my new favorite thing is quinoa tabbouleh which has parsley, bell pepper, tomato and cucumber in it. I use this recipe http://cookieandkate.com/2011/quinoa-tabbouleh-recipe/
    I love to make stir fry and throw a whole bunch of vegetables in it, especially carrots, broccoli, snow peas, onion, bell pepper, mushroom...anything really.
    I've also made quick pasta sauces with sauteed pepper, onion, mushroom, and zucchini.

    When I started cooking for myself I really just tried to make sure I was adding lots of vegetables and lots of variety as well. In fact, whenever I'm eating lunch at work someone inevitably asks if I'm vegetarian because I usually have a meat free/veggie based lunch.
  • Zeromilediet
    Zeromilediet Posts: 787 Member
    Soups. Start with a homemade broth (ideally). Soups can be anything you want them to be: chunky, smooth, creamy. Also can be made in batches and frozen or for lunch.
  • AllisonMart
    AllisonMart Posts: 155 Member
    Kale chips - throw some chopped kale in a baggie with olive oil and salt and toss to coat. Roast at 300 degrees for about 20 minutes or until crispy. Yum!! Doesn't taste veggie-ish. I hear you can do this with spinach too.

    Use veggies as your snacks as much as possible. I bring a baggie of celery and carrots to work everyday for a snack.

    You can throw some chopped veggies into just about anything - an omelet, a casserole, a soup, a smoothie, anything! I'm not a fan of traditional salads either (iceberg lettuce, blech), but I've managed to make a few I like. Today for lunch I had about 2 cups of raw spinach with some chopped ham and kale. Dressing was a little olive oil and a lot of lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Yummy!
  • jelicaa
    jelicaa Posts: 83 Member
    Agree with all of the above.

    Tonight I hid two zuchinni squashes and some carrots into the spaghetti sauce. Just chopped it up in the processor and sauteed with the onion...wala! Kiddo and the other adults in the house had no clue.
  • hbm616
    hbm616 Posts: 377 Member
    Maybe this is "cheating" but I love homemade pizzas or calzones with a lot of vegetables. Really anything works. My favorite calzone is mozzarella and spinach...sooo good.
  • issyfit
    issyfit Posts: 1,077 Member
    If you're on Pinterest, you can look at my page--I have one board of all healthy veggie recipes, as well as other healthy recipe boards.
    http://pinterest.com/issypal/
  • ACB42
    ACB42 Posts: 40 Member
    Thanks, everybody! I found out that I like green smoothies. :) My favorite so far has vanilla Greek yogurt, spinach, blueberries, banana, and ground flax. I also discovered that I actually do enjoy a simple salad if it includes fruit. I like spinach, grilled chicken, & sliced grapes. Or spinach, tuna, grapes, and chopped hard boiled egg. I am going to try the chicken and spinach with strawberries, too. I find that I don't even need any dressing because the fruit adds enough moisture and flavor. I might try adding carrots, too -- maybe grated.
  • Laurej
    Laurej Posts: 227
    I make what I call rainbow salad,
    1/4 - 1/2 purple onion, diced very small
    1/4 - 1/2red yellow green and orange bell peppers each diced very small
    chopped carrots
    chopped celery
    chopped stalk of broccoli
    chopped stalk of cauliflower
    shredded purple cabbage
    and any other veggies you like
    add some chopped chicken breast if you like
    toss all with a 1/4 cup white vinegar, a teaspoon of sugar, pinch of salt and pepper
  • robot_potato
    robot_potato Posts: 1,535 Member
    Put them in everything. Everything. My omelets usually have spinach, mushrooms, onion, tomato, peppers. I made chow mein today, it had zucchini, onion, mushroom, bell pepper, carrot in it. Eat cucumber&tomato with pepper&vinegar for a low calorie snack.
  • jadedone
    jadedone Posts: 2,446 Member
    I make 2 for dinner. :)
  • JFroggin11
    JFroggin11 Posts: 10 Member
    Try different smoothies that incorporate vegtables....if you have a smoothie place near you...check out their menu....some add wheatgrass, carrots, beets, kale and so on....having that once to twice a week will be helpful. I love my steamed broccoli with mustard...really good!!!
  • Lissakaye81
    Lissakaye81 Posts: 224 Member
    2 things that work great for me: I add 36 grams each of baby spinach (use fresh baby, I used frozen once yuck) chard, collards to my protein shakes. Frozen mango and vanilla protein powder are great. I dont mind the shakes with pulp, but I have to blend em longer for my bf. A new recipe I just made for 2nd time tonight is a japanese version of greens, really easy and so tasty. I do 110 grams curly kale, 80 grams collard greens, 50 grams mustard greens, fresh with stems removed and chopped. Melt 1 tsp oil on low in sautee pan, add greens, sautee till wilted and tender. I cover for a bit. Sprinkle 2 tbs of brown sugar over greens, add just a touch of water a mix well. Put on plate and sprinkle with some ground toasted sesame seeds. I also like to add some finely chopped crystalized ginger. I know it sounds so strange but it is so good it will suprise you. If you can I highly recommend toasting your own sesame seeds. you can grind them in a coffee grinder, the flavor really makes the dish.
  • mamadolce6499
    mamadolce6499 Posts: 20 Member
    I just added a large carrot and 1 cup of spinach to my peach smoothie this morning. I honestly can't taste either one. My friend likes to blend zucchini and other veggies into her store bought pasta sauce. I think I'm gonna start doing that for my kiddos since their kinda picky eaters. Really you can add veggies into almost anything.
  • bryonysten
    bryonysten Posts: 44
    I roast a big tray of veggies - pumpkin, aubergine (eggplant), courgette (zucchini), peppers (capsicum) etc and put some spices on them such as moroccon mixes. I then just warm them up and add them to any dish during the week so that its quick and easy to get my veggie intake.

    I also agree with the green smoothie thing.

    Another way is to slightly rethink recipes you might already use.

    For example - make cauliflower & broccoli cheese instead of just cauliflower. I use ricotta as a low fat cheese sauce with a spoon of mustard, vegetable bouillon in some hot water and add herbs to make the sauce, then just put a sprinkle of hard cheese on the top.

    Another one to try with spinach is ricotta & spinach parcels made in filo pastry, again, very low fat, but full of greens & taste gooood!
  • simplysassi
    simplysassi Posts: 137 Member
    I keep a container of ready-to-eat veggies in my fridge at all times. eg, cut celery, carrots, mini tomatoes, cucumber slices, broccolli, snap peas, etc. When I go anywhere - even just a few minute drive to the store or running errands, I always grab a baggie of those and eat them in the car with a big container of water. It's amazing how quickly I can get my veggies in that way. And when others will be in the car with me I usually have to bring more because everyone in the car wants to eat them too.

    Sometimes I will take grapes, strawberries or blueberries too and that is always a good treat
  • BigBoneSista
    BigBoneSista Posts: 2,389 Member
    I have just recently this past week started juicing. I juice 2 cups of baby spinach, 4 oz of broccoli, 4 oz of zucchini, & a rome apple. I add a little bit of stevia to it and drink my veggies.
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