7 creative ways to beat vegetable boredom
Green beans. Spinach. Peas. Green beans. Spinach. Peas. We all know that vegetables are a staple of a healthful diet, but getting them on your plate everyday can be a challenge—and eating the same ones day-in and day-out can be downright boring. We don’t always have the time, know-how, or budget to perk up a simple salad or side of broccoli. And it’s hurting us. According to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fruit and vegetable consumption is down. Only 27 percent of Americans get the recommended 3 or more servings of vegetables per day.
A diet rich in colorful vegetables can help you live longer and fight heart disease, stroke, some types of cancer, and type 2 diabetes. Vegetables can keep you looking your best, too. Vitamin A in carrots, spinach, sweet potatoes, red peppers, winter squash, kale, and collard greens can help keep eyes and skin healthy, and protect against infections.
Our staff came up with some creative ways to beat veggie boredom. Here are seven of my favorites—one for everyday of the week:
• Off to a good start. Make a Spanish omelette for breakfast, with onions, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, and asparagus—or any other vegetable you have on hand. Half a cup of chopped vegetables equals one serving.
• For stew lovers. A good pressure cooker is a must-have. Throw in squash, carrots, celery, parsnips, lentils—you name it, and you can create your very own one-of-a-kind meals. One staffer is fond of his Israeli couscous and one-pot chicken-and-rice dish.
• Add some crunch. Serve risotto or mashed potatoes with romaine leaves. Try wrapping the potatoes in the lettuce leaf to add texture and color to your starch of choice. Or mix arugula or spinach into the potatoes.
• Go Mediterranean. Make an everyday Greek salad with chopped fresh tomatoes, vidalia onions, cucumbers and a few slivers of red pepper. Dress with olive oil, a few squeezes of lemon, a slice or two of feta, and if you like, some kalamata olives with salt and pepper to taste.
• Shake it up, baby. A veggie shake is a tasty alternative to summery fruit shakes. For a quick morning or afternoon smoothie, blend 1 cup of apple juice, 1 cup of slice apple, ¼ cup
of applesauce, ½ cup of sliced carrots, ½ cup of sliced cucumber with 2 cups of ice. Add a dash of nutmeg, and you’ve managed to fit two veggie servings into one delicious drink.
• When you’re on the go. For lunch, pack small containers with carrots and cucumbers as an alternative to potato chips. And instead of using the standard lettuce and tomatoes on your turkey sandwich, top it off with some celery, sprouts, or snow peas.
• Solve the dinner dilemma. Can’t decide what to have for dinner? For an easy one pot meal, when sautéing chicken or fish, layer greens like chard, bok choy, or spinach over the meat or fish and cover it until the meat is finished cooking. The vegetables get steamed, and add flavor and color to your meal.
Now it’s your turn. Tell us your favorite healthful way to fit more vegetables into your meals.
—Ginger Skinner
Find out when it pays to buy organic vegetables and fruits, get more tips on eating healthful on a budget, and read about how the Mediterranean diet can help lower your cholesterol (subscribers only).
Photos courtesy of 46137 and VirtualErn
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