How To Sneak Vegetables Into Your Diet

We've all heard it before:  eat your vegetables.  Never the entree and always the appetizer, vegetables seem to be the category of food that most often gets pushed around the plate.  Sure, they're not as exciting as that juicy piece of meat or that heavenly piece of bread.  Even a plate of fruit is sexier than a plate of vegetables.  So why, you might ask, do we have to eat our vegetables?  


Quite simply, vegetables are good for you.



Full of fibre and precious antioxidants, vegetables are nature's solution to preventing chronic diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.  Eating a diet full of brightly coloured vegetables ensures that your digestive tract works at an optimal pace.  They also make you feel fuller and aid in weight loss.   Are there any other foods that contain all of these benefits in such a low calorie package?  Likely not. 


Health Canada recommends eating a minimum of 5 servings of vegetables and fruit per day; however the average person consumes nearly half that.  How can we make it easier to include more vegetables into your diet? 


Here are some suggestions beyond just eating plain old salad: 


1.  Buy frozen vegetable blends. 


Contrary to popular belief, frozen vegetables have just as much nutritional value as fresh vegetables.  In fact, sometimes frozen vegetables have even more vitamins and minerals per serving because these vegetables are harvested and frozen when they are at their peak in nutritional value. 


The convenience of using frozen vegetable blends is parallel to none.  You no longer need to use that huge celery bunch in one night.  Wastage is minimal as you only use what you need, and then place it back into your freezer for another night.  If you are single, or do not have a large family to cook for, it can be expensive to buy many different vegetables for a single vegetable dish.  Using these blends allow you to eat a larger variety of vegetables without having to spend a fortune.


My favourite blend is the Far East Blend from Green Giant.  Snow peas, bamboo, crunchy water chestnuts and broccoli!  Just add some oyster sauce and a touch of garlic oil, microwave for 2 minutes, and you have nutritious "fast food."


You can also make your own vegetable blends by picking a variety of fresh veggies, cutting them up, and then freezing them in individual ziploc bags for use later on. 

2.  Drink your vegetables.


You know those V8 commercials?  They're true, you have no excuse.  I like the low-sodium V8. Vegetables can also easily be hidden in shakes and smoothies.  Make your smoothies with 60% fruit and 40% vegetables.  Spinach is the easiest to disguise, with no impact on the delicious fruity taste of a smoothie. 


3.  Make a vegetable soup.


For all you vegetable haters, this is the easiest way to increase your vegetable intake without changing your diet significantly.  You can make a huge pot of vegetable soup that contains more than your recommended daily servings of vegetables in one sitting!  It's so easy, all you need is an assortment of vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, squash, onions, leeks), a blender, and some sort of soup stock (vegetable, chicken, onion).  Throw them in a pot, boil for 20 minutes, and then blend into a thin puree.  I also add red curry paste and a touch of coconut milk in my soups.  Delicious!


Alternatively, if you are making a broth soup, just throw some frozen or fresh vegetables into your soup while heating to make it healthier. 


4.  Shred your vegetables. 


Shredding your vegetables makes it easy to hide in a variety of different types of food.  Instead of just using lettuce as a topping for your burger, add some shredded carrot, zucchini, mushrooms or spinach as a garnish.  Throw shredded veggies into your pasta sauce or chili.  I like using tons of red/green/yellow peppers and spinach in my pasta sauces.  The following vegan recipe is also a great alternative to red or creamy sauces, using plenty of vegetables:


Blend 1 package of spinach and 1 bunch of fresh basil with 1/3 cup lemon juice, 1/2 tsp dijon mustard, 1 tsp of agave nectar or maple syrup, 3 tsp olive oil, 1 tsp of salt and pepper to taste.  Toss with 1/2 cup of pine nuts and add to freshly cooked whole grain pasta.  Super quick, super easy, and very healthy. 


5.  Make a vegetable dip. 


That huge bag of baby spinach looks intimidating, but have you ever thrown it into your blender?  It becomes less than half a cup!  Instead of hummus, make a delicious dip with vegetables, like red pepper or spinach dip. 


Here's an easy recipe:
1 bag of baby spinach
1/2 cup of vegan mayonnaise or low fat mayo or low fat yogurt
1 packet of onion soup mix


Throw it into your blender or hand puree, and you will have a nutritious dip for your chips, carrots, and pita bread. 


Just on a side note, it's actually clinically been proven that babies who were breastfed as a child for 5 months or longer are less likely to reject their vegetables as toddlers.  This is due to the transmission of flavour in breast milk--if the mother has a varied diet, the baby is familiar with the taste of vegetables by the time they are introduced to solid foods. 


Hope that helps, this blog is dedicated to my friend Kenny, who requested a blog on "vegetables."