How do you get veggies in?

amother

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 2:19 am

I don't want to go on a diet or cut things OUT.

I just want to eat MORE vegetables, because I know I feel better when I do.

What are your favorite ways to get veggies in? Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, etc...

TravelHearter

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 2:22 am

Prepare something simple that you love. I love roasted broccoli for example. You can also chop veggies and have them laying around.

DrMom

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 2:24 am

I don't understand. Just eat them.

Munch on a few cucumber slices or red pepper as part of breakfast.

Steam or sautee some peas or broccoli or roast some Brussels sprouts or cauliflower and use it as a side dish.

Have a salad with lots of fresh vegetables and sliced hard-boiled egg or avocado or chick peas as your lunch.

shabbatiscoming

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 2:37 am

I also dont get it. If you want to add veggies, just add them. You can literally make a fresh salad with every meal and then cut up slices of whatever veggies you would like to snack on all throughout the day.

essie14

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 2:41 am

shabbatiscoming wrote:

This is exactly what I do. I have a fresh salad or cooked vegetable with every meal and I also snack on cut up veggies throughout the day.

SuperWify

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 7:27 am

Huge salad every lunch!

amother

Peony

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 7:37 am

Vegetable soup. It's easier to eat. Put it in a hot cup and sip, even on the go!

mimom

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 7:39 am

I don't always have time to make salad so I often make a large vegetable kugel on Sunday and bring a piece to work every day. ( Broccoli/ zucchini/ etc.)

amother

Amaranthus

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 10:31 am

I also need more vegetables.Never know what to do and how to do it.

livinginflatbus

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 10:36 am

Smoothies. Put spinach or kale with frozen fruit and almond milk and a little honey . Delicious!

FranticFrummie

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 10:44 am

Get The Moosewood Cookbook. It is the BEST vegetarian cookbook out there. It's been around for ages, and is a classic for a reason. The recipes are so yummy! Not overly complicated, either.

Yesterday I made the most delicious veggie soup. I used chicken stock that I had in the freezer, and pan roasted carrots, onion, potatoes, chopped celery, and fresh garlic. Cook the veggies until they are starting to turn brown around the edges, and the onion is getting soft. You need that bit of color in there.

Then finish cooking the veggies in the stock until they are all tender. Let it cool a bit, and then use a stick blender until every bit of it is smooth and velvety. Adjust for salt and pepper. You will taste the rich caramelization of the veggies, and be glad that you took the extra step of roasting them first.

You can make this in huge batches, and freeze into portions.

(If you want it parve, just use veggie or mushroom stock. I suggest mushroom if you can find it, the taste will be richer.)

amother

Yarrow

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 12:07 pm

I find it fascinating that the names I recognize as Israeli are saying to just eat chopped vegetables, and the anonymous or American posters are looking for ways to disguise vegetables or dress them up, as though vegetables are healthy but somewhat distasteful. Maybe a reflection in the quality of israeli produce.

amother

Lightgray

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 12:38 pm

DrMom wrote:

I don't understand. Just eat them.

Thats not very helpful. Some people don't enjoy vegetables and would rather eat cookies all the time, but are trying to listen to their mature voice and eat healthy in a way that doesn't make them want to throw up.

lfab

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 12:46 pm

I'm not a big salad person but I try to eat cot up peppers, Cucumbers, baby carrots each day as part of my lunch. I also try to add it to different one pot type meals such as mushrooms and broccoli in lasagne, peppers and zucchini cut into small pieces as part of a meat sauce, chicken lo mein - chicken with whatever veggies you like served over rice or pasta, etc.

amother

Cognac

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 12:48 pm

when I was on WW they always say, ' make the veg. the highlight of the meal' it's a great moto.

amother

Poppy

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 12:55 pm

I'm on a diet that focuses on veggies- here are some ideas:

Breakfast- eggs/omelette with onions, peppers, mushrooms, or spinach. Can make little egg muffin cups the night before too.

Lunch- big salad with lettuce and other veggies and a protein to make it filling like chicken, tuna, salmon, HB eggs, or feta cheese. Can also use veggies in place of noodles and do zuchinni noodles or spaghetti squash with sauce and cheese or just cheese.

Dinner- Cauliflower rice instead of regular rice. Tons of roasted veggie options- peppers, zucchini, turnip fries (taste almost like real fries), yellow squash, acorn squash, asparagus, green beans, purple cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli. so many options! Most of these are so so easy to make. Literally can take 2 minutes to prepare.

bigsis144

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 1:08 pm

I try to make vegetables a main part of the meal, rather than a side dish.

A salad full of veggies with sliced grilled chicken, rather than chicken with cucumber slices or broccoli on the side.

A vegetable soup with some meatballs in it for protein, rather than meatballs with rice, and roasted veggies on the side.

So much vegetable soup!

Teomima

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 2:41 pm

Like others have said, think of veggies as the main course, not the sides.

- Salads are great and there are so many options besides plain old boring lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers. For example the other day I roasted some beets and shredded them over baby mustard greens and added goat cheese, chopped walnuts, salt, pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I also love pasta salads with veggies. The last one I made had seared cherry tomatoes, pan fried zucchini, toasted pine nuts, and was seasoned with a fresh herb vinaigrette. None of this required any advance planning, it was all stuff I happened to have on hand (see the last part of my post) and was pretty quick to assemble.

- Roasted veggies are awesome because they introduce fun texture and flavor complexities to the vegetables. My favorites are oven roasted cauliflower seasoned with salt and olive oil, cabbage roasted with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, and brussel sprouts roasted with maple syrup and hot sauce. The secret with all of them is shorter cooking time with higher temps, that way you get delicious caramelized bits but without overcooking and drying out your veggie.

- Add vegetables to everything. Put tomatoes in your grilled cheese. Pickled onions on your hot dog. Shredded zucchini in your scrambled eggs. Etc.

- Stir fries. Yes chopping and prepping all the veggies can be annoying, but you can use literally any vegetable and it works really well for meal prepping, plus it goes well on its own or with any carb side (noodles, rice, quinoa, etc).

- Crustless quiches freeze really well and can be made with almost any veggies. At any given time I usually have at least one in my freezer or fridge ready to eat. I like to make them with greens (leeks, kale, chard, spinach, nettles, whatever I have on hand) but if I'm feeling fancy I make it with broccoli or sweet potatoes.

- Pickled veggies are the best snack! DH makes himself spicy garlicky cucumber pickles whereas I like to make myself sweet and spicy pickled kohlrabi. Sometimes I add carrots and cabbage to the mix.

Whatever you do, I think the trick is to always have a selection of beautiful fresh veggies at home to motivate you to eat them. I love getting a weekly CSA delivery for this reason exactly. Also because I know more are showing up in another week, I want to eat up what we already have so it doesn't go to waste.

ra_mom

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 2:45 pm

At breakfast with my eggs, slice a tomato, drizzle a drop of olive oil and sprinkle with salt & pepper (or grab a handful of baby carrots).

Make a blended creamy all vegetable soup to keep in the fridge. Pour into a covered coffee cup straight from the fridge and take it with you as part of your lunch. It's delicious to sip even room temperature or chilled. I find this the easiest way to get my veggies in and round out my lunch because there's no time during the day.

With dinner, I use a bag of ready lettuce with some grape tomatoes and kirbies for a quick salad. Or else I pour a bag of frozen veggies over a cookie sheet, spray with oil, season, and roast uncovered.

amother

Tan

Mon, Jun 14 2021, 7:11 pm

Maybe sneak them in a soup, while you turn away.
Put some squash into your kugels when you don’t look.