eating enough veggies?

number55

I am trying to cut down (not out) on my carbs...(I believe in keeping some in my diet, I don't think cutting them out all together will benefit me in the long run, I do think I eat too much carbs though) so I am trying to increase my veggie intake because I am sure I get enough fruits but not nearly enough veggies.

Does anyone have any good suggestions for how in include more veggies in my day?  I get tired of only doing salads as a way of achieving this. I guess what I am really looking for is some new, interesting recipes for veggie side dishes that are fairly healthy...

thanks ladies...

JessieR933

One thing I have to do with the FI is sneak them instuff. He is not a veggie friendly person.  When making dinner, I try to grill veggies (in summer) and in winter I tend to do more stir-fry. Just have to make sure that the stuff you use to make them is good for you too. Also, V8 jucie is good. You can make chili out of it! Also, many soups have tons of veggies, and you can always sneak them on to your sandwiches. cucumbers go good with just about any sandwich, just like tomatos. For more ideas, try allrecipes.com.  Good luck.

kelseyd625

I think it was Nebb who posted this but it's for www.greenmonstermovement.com
It's different smoothie recipes with spinach and other veggies/fruits that are supposed to taste great and give you lots of servings of veggies. I'm going to try them this week, so I can't personally recommend them yet!

samuraischolar

There are a lot of vegetables that are lighter on carbs. I eat a lot of cucumbers, radishes, celery (w/ a little laughing cow cheese on them). These are pretty tasty:

http://www.recipezaar.com/Crispy-Baked-Radish-Chips-Low-FatLow-Carb-288830

Nebb

Believe it or not, but you do need a certain level of carbs a day to be healthy and achieve your goals. As long as you choose natural carbs (in diary, whole wheat, vegetables and fruit without added sugars) you should be fine. Do you COUNT the carbs you take in? I eat anywhere from 125-165g a day (33% of diet). If you go too low you might affect your energy levels, or make it harder to keep weight off after you introduce more carbs back into your diet.

That said, add veggies to all meals - throw some into an ommlett in the morning, snacks during the day, roasted veggies as a side with lunch, stirfry (very heavy on the veggies) for dinner or what have you. Its easy to fit it in if you have a lot on hand precut and ready to be thrown in!

Jessie888

I definitely feel the same way, i love salads, but they can get old!

i mix mine in with other stuff :

for example turkey burgers.. I will take 1/2 pound of ground turkey. and then put carrots, celery, broccoli.... etc in a food processor, make sure its all diced up and mix that in with my turkey. I would do the same with meatloaf too! Omlets are a good way to throw in some veggies too or a quiche. 

I love doing corn and long strips of zucchini.. throw them in a pan with some olive oil and chop up your favorite herbs.

remember dont boil your veggies. just put a small amount of water in the pot, veggies on top, and then put on the lid. the steam will cook them. Boiling takes out all the nutrients, your veggies should still be somewhat crisp, not mushy!

jessandkevin

one of my favorite websites is eatbetteramerica.com. there are quite a few veggie friendly recipes on there and i've had success with a lot of them!

number55

Nebb...I eat PLENTY of carbs!  I have cereal or oatmeal almost daily and I have a portion of carbs with each meal...I just know that the size of that portion (particularly at dinner!) is way too big...I want to eat more veggies at those meals so that I don't fill up on carbs. I could never live without carbs. I did Atkins for about 2 weeks about 8 years ago and it took me months to eat red meat or eggs again...bread and cheese is the most wonderful thing ever and I love pasta, love love love pasta!

Nebb

I have also heard (i cant back it up with sources, sorry) that you do better to consume your carbs in the morning and early afternoon (breakfast and lunch) so your body has time to burn them off before bed. I rarely have starchy carbs with dinner, just meat and veggies. It was hard at first but you get used to it and it has really helped normalize the carb levels I was eating.

desertsun

Oh, a few of my favorites recipes:

Spinach is really good for you. I like it just cooked a tiny bit (wilted). I'll stir fry some onions and garlic while cooking some whole grain pasta. Then add a couple cups of spinach to the onions and garlic, drizzle a tiny bit of toasted sesame oil on top, stir, and remove from heat. Let sit a minute while pasta finishes, and then stir in drained pasta. Super simple and delish! Also good with stir fried broccoli and tofu, with a dash of soy sauce.

Roast asparagus in the oven on a cookie sheet with spears of zucchini and summer squash, a dash of lemon juice, a tiny bit of olive oil, and garlic. Adding cremini mushrooms is good, too. Set oven to about 350 and stir once over about 15-20 minutes until veggies are tender but still crisp.

(I really like this with mashed potatoes on the side. I make mine with a couple cut up red potatoes (boiled with a couple cloves of garlic until tender), a bit of low fat sour cream, and a touch of fat free milk. You don't have to be afraid of potatoes!)

Roast cauliflower on a cookie sheet for about 20 minutes at 400 or so, with some parmesan cheese shredded and put on top for the last 5 minutes. Yum! Really good with some dried red pepper to add a bit of kick. Good re-heated, too.

Sweet potato wedges are also easy -- roast in oven about 30 minutes at about 400 with olive oil and salt. Rosemary or oregano are nice, too. Also good as leftovers.

Broccoli stir fried or steamed with a dash of lemon pepper can be a nice flavor change up, too.

Mushrooms have special substances that enhance flavor and make you feel more satiated, so they're good to add where you can if you like them.

Hope that helps!

cac847

I like to chop up zuccini and mushrooms for my pasta, but you could do this with other veggies too... it's really fast and easy if you just throw the chopped veggies in the pot a few minutes before the pasta is done cooking so you don't have to get another pan dirty. Sometimes I add ground turkey or turkey sausage too.

greenglasshero

Zomg, I made the most amazing salmon burgers tonight with leftover filets, onion, carrot, celery in with oats & fat free ranch. TONS of veggies, little bit of ranch kick.
I food process my oats into tiny pieces, then mince the veggies in the food processor. Flake the salmon, mix together with just enough ranch to make it sticky. Brandon kind of likes salmon, but even he went for seconds on these!