by not eating enough vegetables! I'm on Atkins, and I've been primarily eating meat, eggs, cheese, and salad as far as vegetables go. I've been a self-proclaimed vegetable hater, I don't even really like salad I just tolerate it.

I've read time and time again that it's good to eat a large volume of vegetables, that vegetables fill you up, but I never knew HOW much of a difference they made. Last night for dinner, I had a pure veggie meal...spaghetti squash with diced tomatoes, olives, onion, and garlic topped with cheese. I had a salad on the side and a diet coke...I was STUFFED. As in, I couldn't even think of eating seconds if I wanted to stuffed. I thought the meal was going to be wimpy, a square of that squash and some salad...but it filled me up more than any meat, cheese, condensed soup whatever casserole ever could.

Today, I'm eating mostly veggie. I'm trying to cut a lot of meat out of my diet. Breakfast was a 2-egg omelet with cheese and an Atkins shake. I just ate lunch, a veggie burger patty with some hot sauce and a broccoli salad I threw together (steamed broccoli, bacon, a bit of cheese, onion, and a mayo/vinegar/splenda dressing). Totally stuffed again. I'm not stuffed to the point of being sick, but I'm VERY satisfied.

I feel like I've been cheating myself by scoffing at my salad and devouring the meat and cheese on my plate. By eating a lot cleaner than I used to, veggies are starting to taste great and I actually prefer them. I feel queasy thinking about a big greasy burger...my veggie burger was phenomenal! Dinner will be leftover spaghetti squash, yum.

Does anyone else have suggestions for a former veggie hater? I love green beans, spaghetti squash, stewed tomatoes, salad, spinach, peppers, and broccoli. Right now the list isn't very big but I'd love to expand it until I'm eating a huge variety of vegetables every day. I love to cook so if anyone has great recipes please share.

Butternut squash: chopped and roasted with a little olive oil and salt. 450 degrees for 40 minutes or so, until it gets nice and caramelized.

Cauliflower: steam, drizzle tsp olive oil and some Bragg's Amino Acids or soy sauce.

Mushrooms: add to any dish. yum!

Broccoli rabe: steam, olive oil & soy sauce.

Carrots, onions, celery: the foundation of soups.

Beets (red and gold): boil chop salt and pepper.

Those are my favorites for this season.

A lot of those aren't allowed on the Atkins foods lists, but broccoli rabe is. What is broccoli rabe exactly? I don't think I've ever had it.

Oh, mushrooms! I love mushrooms too, especially with chicken. Mmm.

Cauliflower is a big one among many Atkins followers, made like mashed potatoes or in fake potato soup. I tried to eat it once and was really turned off by its pungent flavor. Can you cook it so the pungency isn't so overwhelming?

What a shame! They are so delicious and good for you. I can't imagine sustaining an eating plan for the rest of my life that prohibited certain foods.

Try boiling the cauliflower. I don't find it too pungent, but the water should take away some of the bitterness (same with broccoli rabe, it's like leafy broccoli, but slightly bitter.)

I don't think of cauliflower as pungent at all; it has a very mild flavor, good for seasoning and spicing.

My favorite way to eat cauliflower these days is roasted - cut into pieces, toss with a little vegetable oil, and roast at 500 degrees (yes, high temp) for 15 minutes. Then season with salt and pepper.

Cauliflower also good with indian spices - say, stir-fried with slivered ginger and green chilies and cumin seeds, add a little turmeric (mostly for color) and a tiny bit of water, cover and lower the heat and finish the cooking by steaming for a few minutes.

Broccoli rabe is one of my all-time favorite vegetables - I just saute it in a little olive oil with smashed garlic and red chili flakes. It is bitter but I like the bitterness. If you don't, you can give it a quick parboil before tossing it in with the oil and the garlic. Or, saute it as described and then add about 1/2 cup of chicken broth to the pan and let it simmer for a few minutes.

Well, pretty much any food in moderation is allowed in the final maintenance phase of Atkins. They slowly incorporate more foods into the plan. Once you reach pre-maintenance and then maintenance, you can eat fruit, legumes, starchy vegetables, and whole grains. Right now, since I have a lot of weight to lose, I'm doing Induction+nuts. My veggies are still pretty restrictive.

Thanks for the tip on the cauliflower, I might pick some up and try to make the faux cauliflower potatoes that people rave about. I think it calls for it to be boiled.

carter: Wow, I can't believe I forgot about stir-fry. I'm definitely going to be making a stir fry sometime in the next couple of weeks. Maybe I just had a bad cauliflower experience. I had no idea how to cook it so i just kinda did my own thing and it turned out awful, lol.

Vegetables are SOOOO important for your body- my husband's uncle was just diagnosed with esophagus cancer- stage 4- and flat out having a diet lacking vegetables is a contributing factor. All his life his uncle has said he doesn't eat "rabbit food."

Is cabbage allowed? I love cabbage. It's so amazingly low calorie and filling. I usually roast it with onions and add soy sauce and pepper after.

i also hate cauliflower, but i love this recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/02/c...itters-25.html

imo, it kind of tastes like hash-browns.