Sneaky Veggies: Creative Ways to Incorporate More Vegetables Into Your Diet

Sneaky Veggies: Creative Ways to Incorporate More Vegetables Into Your Diet

1. Blend Into Smoothies

• Use mild greens: Spinach, chard and kale can be easily masked by strong flavors like banana, mango, or pineapple. Don’t neglect super healing herbs like parsley and cilantro.

• Avocado for creaminess: Add avocados to smoothies for a creamy texture without altering the taste significantly.

2. Incorporate Into Baked Goods

• Zucchini bread and carrot muffins: Grated zucchini and carrots add moisture and nutrients to muffins, bread, and cakes.

• Black bean brownies: Pureed black beans can replace flour in brownie recipes, enhancing the texture and boosting protein content without a noticeable taste difference.

3. Enhance Your Breakfast

• Veggie-packed omelets: Start your day with tofu omelets filled with spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers and tomatoes for an easy veggie boost.

• Pumpkin pancakes: Mix pureed pumpkin into pancake batter for a nutritious, flavorful twist on a breakfast classic.

4. Sneak Into Sauces and Soups

• Blend into marinara sauce: Sautéed or pureed carrots, zucchini, chard/spinach, or bell peppers can be blended into marinara sauce for an extra serving of vegetables.

• Boost soups with purees: Add cauliflower or squash puree to thicken soups and stews while boosting their nutritional content. Always throw in a handful of leafy greens too.

5. Upgrade Your Snacks

• Kale chips: Bake kale leaves with a sprinkle of salt for a crunchy, nutrient-rich snack.

• Broccoli bites: Spray with cooking oil small broccoli flowerets and toss with nutritional yeast, salt & pepper, and/or hot sauce. Bake at 350F until starts to get crisp. Super tasty snack.

• Veggie sticks with hummus: Carrot, cucumber, celery and bell pepper sticks are a crunchy, healthy snack when paired with flavorful hummus.

6. Get Creative with Desserts

• Avocado chocolate mousse: Use avocados as the base for a creamy, healthy chocolate mousse, sweetened with stevia or dates.

• Sweet potato ice cream: Blend cooked sweet potato with coconut milk and cinnamon for a dairy-free ice cream alternative.

• Frozen fruit gelato: Blend combinations of frozen mango, banana, cherries, papaya for a delicious dessert without added sugar. If you like even sweeter, add a few soft dates/date paste.

7. Rethink Your Pizza Toppings

• Veggie-loaded pizza: Top your pizzas with a variety of vegetables like bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, broccoli, kale, corn, artichokes, and/or spinach to make them more nutrient-dense.

• Cauliflower crust: Use cauliflower to make a lower-carb, veggie-packed pizza crust.

8. Revamp Your Pasta Dishes

• Zoodles and other veggie noodles: Replace traditional pasta with zucchini, carrot, or beet noodles for a fun and veggie-packed meal without the heavy carbs of grain pastas.

• Sneak veggies into lasagna: Layer spinach, zucchini, and eggplant into lasagna for an extra serving of vegetables.

Implementing these tips can help individuals seamlessly increase their daily intake of vegetables and fruits, making their meals healthier without sacrificing flavor or enjoyment.

•  “FRIED” RICE (2-4 servings)

  3C Cooked brown rice

  (or sub raw jicama/daikon grated in food processor and the liquid squeezed out, just mix into cooked veggies at the end)

  ½C Peas, frozen

  ½C Celery (diced)

  ½C Carrots (grated)

  ½C Onion (diced)

  ¼C Scallion (chopped to garnish with)

  ADDITIONAL OPTIONS TO ADD:

  ½C Chopped: broccoli, cabbage, spinach/chard, bok choy, zucchini, mushrooms, snow peas

  With cooking spray, sauté onion in wok or frying pan until translucent. Add other vegetables and sauté until tender crisp. Add rice and sauce. Warm and serve.

  SAUCE

  2tsp Tamari or coconut aminos

  1½T Red Miso paste

  1tsp Date paste or agave/coconut nectar

  2tsp Garlic, minced

  ¼tsp Coriander powder

  ½tsp Ginger, fresh, minced

  Chili flakes (to taste as desired)

  Water as needed to mix (~3T)