Clever (and Crazy Easy!) Ways to Get More Fruits + Veg Into Your Life
It goes without saying that eating more fruit and vegetables is hands down the number one way to get healthier.
It will help you feel more energized.
It will help you maintain your weight.
It will help you fend off chronic disease and fight inflammation.
But as much as I truly love salad…I need a bit more variety in my diet. So how do you work in more produce, in a way that isn’t just endless sides of steamed veggies?
You have to retrain the way you compose a meal.
Instead of anchoring a meal in grains or meat, anchor it in vegetables.
I am on Global BC Weekend News today sharing some of my favourite tips for working more fruit and veg into your life, from basic…to way beyond. Here they are…with a few bonus tips to boot!
The Basics
Double up the veg in any recipe. It’s really that simple.
Serve yourself more veggie sides (okay, it works!!). Try to make half your plate fruit and/or vegetables at every meal.
Boost smoothies with at least 1/2 cup of fruit and 1/2 cup of veggies.
Spread avocado on bread as a condiment (hello, avocado toast!).
Beyond The Basics
Grate fruit or veg into your everyday recipes, such as:
- Grate apples or pears into oatmeal or breakfast cereal
- Grate veggies like carrots, beets, or zucchini into muffins, homemade burgers, chilis and casseroles. Try these recipes to get you started!
- The beet cupcake recipe I shared on the show!
- Carrot-stuffed turkey burgers
- Beet Feta burgers
- Carrot pancakes
- Try my almost famous beet yogurt
Use purees: - Almost any green can be made into a pesto for spreading on sandwiches, omelets or for pasta
- Butternut squash can be used to make a cheese sauce…or a no-cheese vegan sauce!
- Boost broth-based soups by stirring in canned pumpkin, butternut squash or sweet potato puree
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Next Level Veg
Swap pasta for roasted spaghetti squash or make “zoodles” from zucchini
Blitz cauliflower in the food processor and use in place of rice.
Serve fillings in a radicchio cup or make collard green wraps.
Slice apples or kohlrabi to use as crackers.
Happy munching, my friends!
Desiree
