The Hits List: 25 Tips to Serving Up Veggie Success

It's the second week of our "hits list"— the best ways to incorporate fruits and veggies into your diet. Whether it's a struggle for you to eat either daily, or you're struggling to eat more, these veggie tips are for you.  

1. Resuscitate the old meal stand-bys: Switch from the familiar green beans, corn, and peas routine to okra, winter squash, spinach, or kale.
2. Eat more “meal salads.”  Use a variety of leafy greens as the base, but throw in other tasty and filling extras —a couple ounces of cooked chicken or turkey, canned tuna, some low-fat cheese, or legumes.
3. Take advantage of ready-made bagged salads, which are great when you are in a rush or feeling tired. Experiment with some of the darker greens like Romaine or leaf lettuce, kale, and spinach—these are tastier and more nutritious.
4. Experiment with herbs and spices.  Sprinkle nutmeg and lemon juice on spinach or broccoli, dill weed and Dijon-style mustard on green beans or carrots, and basil on tomatoes.
5. Mix your vegetables. For example, combine corn and green beans, zucchini and yellow bell peppers, red potatoes and carrot slivers, eggplant and tomatoes, or cucumbers and red onion slices. Frozen mixtures without sauce are fine, too.
6. Eat more vegetable-rich casseroles and main dishes.
7. Have at least one vegetable at lunchtime. Take along ready-to-eat carrots, cucumbers and celery, or red pepper slices with low-fat salad dressing.  If there’s a refrigerator at work, keep these items on hand.
8. Try roasting or grilling vegetables. Roasted vegetables taste heartier and more flavorful than steamed or boiled ones, and they are easy to prepare. Coat chunks of peppers, zucchini, summer squash, onions, eggplant or firm tomatoes with a light coating of vegetable spray or marinate them in a low-fat dressing. Then, grill or bake at 400° F for about 15 minutes, turning occasionally.
9. Use chunky salsa instead of thick, creamy snack dips.
10. Going out to lunch? Take a trip to the grocery salad bar. Help yourself to lots of dark green leafies and other crunchy vegetables and go easy on high-calorie toppings like eggs, bacon, and cheese.
11. Add frozen veggies to any pasta dish. It's an easy way to get in another serving of the good stuff.
12. When cooking or prepping vegetables, make 2-3 times more than you need and immediately store the extra away for tomorrow.
13. Add your own beans and vegetables (tomatoes, spinach, peppers, cabbage) to canned and quick-serve soups.
14. Load extra veggies on pizza instead of fatty meats and cheese.
15. Frozen veggies take only minutes to steam in the microwave.
16. Add spinach or leaf lettuce to a sandwich.
17. Invent your own delicious recipe for your favorite vegetable!
18. Fix tuna salad for lunch. Add in grated carrot or chopped apple.
19. Bake sweet potatoes for dinner.
20. Enjoy a hot bowl of chunky vegetable soup in the winter.
21. Seek out recipes that call for at least two different kinds of vegetables.
22. When making a casserole, try sneaking in finely shredded carrots or sautéed spinach.
23. In a hurry? Stop at a salad bar and load up on pre-cut fruits and vegetables.
24. Grow your own garden. If you have nurtured vegetable plants from the start, you’ll be less likely to let the fruits of your labor go to waste.
25. Put vegetables in your omelet. Some favorites are spinach, onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes.