I chop up onion, red, green, yelllow peppers, tomato and sometimes other veggies and put it all mixed in a big tupperware.
I usually try to add the veggies to:
-home made pizza
-saute with baked chicken
-added to spaghetti sauce
-Mixed with canned black beans, a little cheese in a tortilla (somtimes chicken too)
I need more ideas! I hate letting vegetables get funky and rotten... and I need to keep up the veggie intake. Help!!!
I love veggies but have the same problem of finding them all squishy in the bottom of my fridge A few things I like to do are:
1) Chop up celery, carrots and peppers and eat them with hummus for snacks
2) Spread Laughing Cow cheese in celery sticks (yum!)
3) Put layers of mushrooms, zucchini, spinach and/or eggplant in homemade lasagna
4) Throw in 2" pieces of asparagus or green beans in with whole wheat penne about 3 or 4 minutes before your pasta is done
5) Throw frozen or fresh veggies in any soup
Hope you find these helpful! Can't wait to hear some more good ideas!
I loooove SPINACH! I cook baby spinach and put it in everything---pasta sauce, on my grilled cheese, in my WW Italian soup...I eat it fresh with pimiento cheese or on sandwiches. I also grill onions and spinach to put on Boca burgers.
Baby carrots are a good snack, along with cherry tomatoes (I could eat a whole box in one sitting!) I also eat a lot of salads, with lettuce/spinach, shredded carrots, cherry tomatoes, spices, and FF Italian dressing...Yum!
Baked potatoes with salsa---a great meal!!! (and very healthy!)
Lastly, grilled vegetables are amazing, and it's that time of the year! Last weekend, I grilled tomatoes, onions, and squash..but you can add zucchini, peppers, potatoes...anything!! I didn't even use any marinade, just put them on skewers directly on the grill. YUM!!
If I haven't used up my veggies then my last-ditch effort is to zap them in the microwave until tender, toss them in a little olive oil and garlic salt and eat them as a side or sometimes even the main dish. I really like making veggie-dense noodle stir-fries lately (I found brown rice noodles at Whole Foods and I love them!), and I've always added them to my rice dishes to help make the rice more filling and nutritious.
I also have a problem eating enough veggies, because I just don't know what to do with them and I get sick of the same old thing. I love some of the suggestions I've seen on this thread, and will try some out.
As for some of my veggie strategies:
*I make huge salads and toss in some shredded cabbage mix (cole slaw), cherry tomatoes, chopped cauliflower, and whatever else suits my fancy.
*I like cooking up zucchini in some olive oil with melted parmesan cheese on top. Mmmmm.
*I will sometimes cut up onions, coat them with fat-free dressing & bread crumbs, and throw them in the oven for home-made onion rings.
*I cook up mushrooms in a pan and sprinkle them with some garlic salt.
*I chop up cabbage, cook it in a pan with some "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" until it's not crisp (covering with a lid helps), then mix in some cooked Top Ramen noodles with it.
*I also like having a veggie sandwich on occasion: I fill it with tomato, avacado, lettuce, red onions, sprouts, and cucumber slices. I spread fat-free mayo & mustard on the bread. Delish!
Last edited by Apple Cheeks; 05-01-2008 at 04:12 AM.
I LOVE using veggies in wraps. I have these whole wheat wraps, 100 calories each, so I can basically have 2 of them for only 200 calories, and I throw a ton of veggies on there with mustard (which has 0 calories). My total calories for dinner with that meal is between 300 and 400, yet they fill me up very quickly.
I personally like to eat veggies alone too or with a low calorie dip. You can use some of them as a "mixed veggie" side dish to your dinner too, which is what I do.
I buy a lot of frozen vegetables, so that helps things last longer. Although I do buy some fresh stuff, and I have found that glad 'press n seal' wrap does help keep things fresher a bit longer, at least tomatoes and onions. Any green leafy stuff I have that starts to get slightly wilted I just give to my pet rabbit. It makes her day
I'm always trying to find new things to do with vegetables... why is it so hard to think of it sometimes?
I found this easy recipe on Simply Recipes for roasted cauliflower and have been using it ever since.
Ingredients
1 head of cauliflower
2-3 cloves of garlic, peeled and coarsely minced
1 lemon
Olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
Parmesan cheese
Method
1 Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut cauliflower into florets and put in a single layer in an oven-proof baking dish. Add garlic. Squeeze a lemon over cauliflower and drizzle each piece with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. If the oven hasn't reached 400°F yet, set aside until it has.
2 Place casserole in the hot oven, uncovered, for 15-25 minutes, until the top is lightly brown. Test with a fork for desired doneness. Remove from oven and sprinkle generously with Parmesan cheese.
Serves 4.
It's really yummy, even for non-cauliflower lovers!
And my other favorite thing to do is grill asparagus with garlic chips... especially super skinny asparagus.
I also steam or microwave sweet potatoes, peel them, and then mash them up. You can add stuff like milk, butter, sweetener but I find it doesn't really need anything. It's almost like dessert!
For a "different" kind of salad, nothing beats fresh roma tomatoes, basil, fresh mozzarella cheese, sea salt, ground pepper, a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic...
As you can see, I like the simple stuff as I am not a huge cook... more veggie ideas please!!
I chop up onion, red, green, yelllow peppers, tomato and sometimes other veggies
I use all of those very same veggies in one of my favorite dishes! I throw them together with a little cous cous or whole grain pasta, fresh lemon juice, lots of garlic, some black pepper and red pepper, a drizzle of olive oil, a little fat free feta and sometimes chicken too. It makes a super tasty "greek" type dish! I don't cook the veggies before hand, I like them fresh and crunchy tasting.
What do you do with veggies?
A few things I like to do are:
