Eat your veggies. It’s what parents say at the dinner table — fill half your plate with vegetables and fruits — and it’s what government guidelines recommend.
There are so many reasons why this matters. People who eat more vegetables are less likely to get cancer, heart disease and diabetes. They also have an easier time managing their weight. Now there’s evidence that vegetable and fruit consumption could be as good for your mental health as it is your physical health.
Yet despite the hordes of research documenting the benefits, and numerous public health campaigns focused on produce, most Americans don’t even come close to eating enough vegetables.
For some folks, maybe their good intentions rot in the crisper bin. Perhaps they’re unsure how to prepare different vegetables to make them taste good. Maybe they simply need new inspiration.
There are lots of creative ways to eat more vegetables that don’t involve doubling up on your side of peas or eating salads more often. Today, vegetables are making star appearances in the center of the plate. They’re taking different forms, served in new ways.
Here’s how you can switch it up at home and enjoy vegetables in seven new ways:
1. Noodle ’em. Get in on one of the hottest vegetable trends with a spiral vegetable cutter, or spiralizer. This handy dandy tool transforms vegetables into noodles — or pasta imposters. I recently bought a spiralizer (you can find them at kitchen specialty stores), and I love it. I’ve already made faux-pastas from zucchini (zoodles) and butternut squash. Simply toss with your favorite jarred or homemade pasta sauce, or check out some of the innovative recipes on Inspiralized, a website dedicated to the spiralizer.
[Read: Unusual Uses for Pumpkins .]
2. Burger ’em. Go beyond just lettuce and tomato between your hamburger buns and make your own veggie burgers — it’s easier than you might think. No, there’s no need to give up ground beef, but try an occasional burger made with black beans or lentils (beans count as vegetables, too, you know). Try a falafel burger with ground chickpeas or a grilled portabella mushroom in place for a burger. You can also added chopped mushrooms, grated carrots or zucchini and diced bell peppers into your ground beef to sneak in more vegetables. Check out Healthy Aperture for some mouth-watering veggie burger recipes.
3. French fry ’em. We love our French fries, but don’t just stick to the traditional tuber — you can turn nearly any vegetable into a fry. Sweet potatoes are a good place to start, but also try cutting carrots, eggplant, butternut squash, turnips or other root vegetables into spears, and roast them in the oven with some olive oil and sea salt. Or use long, fry-like vegetables such as asparagus and green beans. Find some inspiration here to get you started.
[Read: Unusual Uses for Avocados .]
4. Pickle ’em. Pickling is another big vegetable trend, but today’s quick version doesn’t require complicated canning and water baths. All you need is vinegar, sugar, salt and spices — along with a little time in your refrigerator. Pickled vegetables are a tasty snack, or use to add flavor and crunch to sandwiches, salads and entrees.
5. Rice ’em. A few years back, it was popular to swap whipped steamed cauliflower for mashed potatoes. Now cauliflower is being transformed into “rice.” Cauliflower rice is a huge trend on Pinterest, where you’ll find lots of ideas for using it like fried rice, in rice salad or for stir-fry recipes. You simply pulse the cauliflower in a food processor until it turns into rice- like grains or grate it into small pieces. Besides cauliflower, you can make the faux- rice with celery root, carrots, beets, sweet potato, butternut squash, parsnips and rutabaga.
[Read: Four Veggies That Deserve More Love .]
6. Crust ’em. Cauliflower (perhaps the new kale?) is an amazingly versatile veggie. Another new way to enjoy this white cruciferous vegetable is by turning it into a pizza crust. You simply start by making the cauliflower rice, then mixing it with a whisked egg, along with grated cheese. Check here on the various ways you can make a cauliflower crust for pizza, calzones and “breadsticks.”
7. Steak ’em. Once again, cauliflower is a breakout vegetable star. A trendy preparation is cauliflower steak, which is extremely popular on Pinterest. All you do is slice a full head into 3/4-inch slides and roast in the oven until brown. Serve with a garlicky pesto or chimichurri sauce. You can do something similar with cabbage. Check these Pinterest boards for ideas on how to make garlic-rubbed roasted cabbage steaks. And, of course, Portobello mushrooms already have a meat-like quality. Try grilling those ‘shrooms with a balsamic glaze and making veggie kabobs along with onions and peppers.
[Read: 6 Fruits and Vegetables You Should Eat This Fall .]
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A New View of Vegetables: 7 Ways to Change Your Current Approach to Produce originally appeared on usnews.com
