How to sneak more vegetables into your diet during winter
Did you know most adults and children don't meet their recommended daily veggie intake?
According to the statistics, less than one in 10 Australians aged over 18 meet this recommendation. We should be getting in a minimum of two to three cups (or five to six serves) per day.
Veggies are an incredible source of fibre, they provide us with the vitamins and minerals our body needs and they fuel us with energy. Veggies are also natural disease fighters and it's important we include more of them into our family's diet.
Getting all these vegetables into your meals doesn't need to be complicated. Below are some of my easy tips to boost your family's veggie intake.
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Ana Robinson shares her tips for adding vegetables into your everyday recipes. Supplied
1. Grate, chop and dice veggies into casseroles, sauces, curries and pasta
Boost the nutritional value of these meals with a variety of finely, chopped or grated veggies.
For example, I like to add grated carrot, zucchini, chopped mushrooms and frozen spinach to our bolognese sauce.
2. Add veggies into your smoothies
Smoothies are an incredible way to increase your veggie intake. Don't worry – you wont be able to taste them when combined with fruit and some natural sweetener.
For example banana, avocado and spinach work so well together. Avocado adds a delicious creamy texture to your smoothies and spinach adds an incredible source of vitamins and minerals.
Another great veggie to add to smoothies is frozen cauliflower. Trust me on this one. It works so well combined with banana and some nut butter.
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You can add several different vegetables into an easy weeknight meal such as spaghetti bolognese . Supplied
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3. Blend veggies to make sauce and soups
Blended vegetable soups are a great way to get a good amount of veggies in and they also work so well with the younger children.
Instead of using one veggie, use a combination of a few. For example – my pumpkin soup recipe includes pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots and onions.
When making a pesto pasta, blend together green veggies like peas, broccoli and spinach.
4. Buy more frozen veggies
Frozen veggies are just as nutritious as fresh ones and in some cases they can be even more nutritious, especially if they have been 'snap frozen'.
Buy some extra bags of frozen veggies so when you're low in the fridge you can still make up meals with veggies. Frozen veggies work so well in stir fries and fried rice.
Blended vegetables can be added into any soup recipe. Supplied
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5. Pre-cut veggies and store them in the fridge
Spend some time at the beginning of the week cutting up some veggies so you have them ready to go in the fridge, for snacking or cooking with.
This makes such a big difference when you are in a rush or when the kids are constantly asking for the next snack.
For more family health and wellness tips you can Ana's Instagram page @nourish_us
