
It all remains vividly clear to me, sitting at the kitchen table as a child and encouraged by my parents to finish all the food on my plate. My parents didn’t believe in wasting food. They found that to be healthy, we needed to eat all the food on our plates, and they thought throwing food away was wasteful. Our family had six children, and we sat at a large kitchen table. Three children sat on one side and three on the other, with our parents sitting at the heads of the table. I usually managed to eat everything on the plate pretty quickly, except when it came to vegetables.
Day after day, I always managed to be the last one sitting at the table, and I can still hear my parents saying, “Eat your vegetables.” Oh, how I hated vegetables! I would do anything to get out of eating them. When my parents left the kitchen, I would quickly grab a fist full of napkins and slowly fork my food into my lap until it was all gone. I threw my napkins in the trash and put my plate in the sink, avoiding yet another night of what I considered nasty vegetables.
Unfortunately, I carried that lousy habit into adulthood and didn’t start enjoying vegetables until I had my children. I then started telling them, “Eat your vegetables.” My oldest son loved veggies and preferred them over have them over pasta, pizza, sweets, or any other type of food. My younger son was not that much of a veggie-lover, but I managed to get him to eat them.
According to choosemyplate.gov, women should receive between 2 ½ – 2 cups of vegetables per day, depending on age. The diet should include red, orange, yellow, and green vegetables. I have a few suggestions I use to get all of my daily suggested servings.
1. Try veggie burritos. I sauté my vegetables, add mushrooms, beans, or anything else I choose, put them in a spinach burrito along with dressing and enjoy a meal. Other ingredients such as brown rice, corn, or beans make a good meal.
2. Veggie Pizza – When my children were young, we enjoyed veggie pizzas full of all types of fresh vegetables.
3. Vegetable soup – Soups are especially lovely to eat in the winter and can be prepared alone or in combination with other food items.
4. Vegetable Stew – Vegetable stew with more chunky vegetables and less fluid can be filling and hearty. Stew is another good choice for a healthy meal and an excellent way to eat those veggies.
5. Vegetable Juice – If you can’t buy or make vegetable juice, purchase Green Superfood. It offers the benefits of vegetables and easy mixing. (you don’t need a juicer), it can be put in smoothies or other dishes compared to other green drinks and has a great taste compared to many other green drinks or juices. It is also beneficial to those trying to lose weight.
6. Vegetable and Fruit Smoothies – These smoothies are healthy and taste great. I enjoy smoothies as a refreshing drink or an excellent way to get a meal in the morning, especially if pressed for time. I have a recipe that includes bananas and oatmeal. I questioned if it would be tasty, but to my surprise, it was pretty good.
7. Barilla Veggie Pasta – I also buy Barilla veggie pasta, pictured below. Their pasta is made from pureed in-season vegetables. One serving of vegetables is in 3.5 oz of this pasta. And if you add vegetables to the pasta dish, you get even more vegetables. They also carry whole grain pasta, another healthier choice. They won the best new product award for 2014 from Better Homes and Gardens. You can only tell by the smell of it cooking that vegetables are in it. When the dish is prepared, I cannot tell the difference between this and regular pasta except for the whole grain version. It is sometimes hard to find the vegetable pasta in some stores. See if your local grocery store carries the vegetable pasta. If not, you can always order from Amazon. Barilla vegetable pasta
I have finally reached a point in my life where I can say I enjoy eating my vegetables. I’ve learned how to cook different dishes and share them with others who enjoy eating vegetables in new and different ways. So go ahead, eat your vegetables!
Hi
I am wanting to get a bit fitter and eating more vegetables may help me, i have never given vegetable smoothies a thought sounds like a good idea and i will be trying them:)
Would you recommend what vegetables i could use for a smoothie? i am a great lover of sprouts and broccoli, i have a medical condition hemochromatosis which is too much iron in my body so i try not to eat too many foods which contain iron.
It would be helpful if you had a veg smoothie recipe hopefully not one that contains too much iron.
Great informative post:)
Sharon,
Veggies would be considered a Non-Heme. This type of Iron is absorbed differently than Heme Iron. Another consideration is food combinations. First, I would encourage you to follow the recommendation of your doctor. I also would like to refer you to this link to from Iron Disorders website as a reference.
http://www.irondisorders.org/W…
Here is another reference that is very good from a Hemochromatosis Help website that will be useful.
http://hemochromatosishelp.com…
I hope this is helpful.
Hi Karla!
Great post on the importance of eating your vegetables. I remember when I was younger and eating at the table with my siblings as well. I used to eat everything else except the vegetables just like you did. Now that I am older, I realize the importance of eating your vegetables.
I didn’t even know vegetable juice existed. What can be put into that to make it sweet?
Thanks for your response. Any kind of sweet fruit or juice can be put into a vegetable soup or smoothie to make it sweet. I use bananas, 100% fruit juice and some use pineapples. You can also use dates in a smoothie. It would have to be seeded and soaked to blend.
Hello Karla! I’m not a woman by all means but my wife and daughters could benefit from your site. I love information you have provided. Your post on “eat your vegetables” is a particular subject I like since like to eat. I happen to love vegetables especially spinach, cabbage and broccoli. My daughters loves vegetables a well. Thank you for the great information I think women will love what you have to offer to help getting fit. May God bless you on your journey.
Cheers to you,
James
Hi James,
Thank you for your comments. Yes we could cut down on a lot of health issues if we would all eat more vegetables and limit those things that really aren’t that good for us. Thank you for stopping by. Take care and remember to “Eat Your Vegetables!”