With the excitement of the holidays officially over, now is the time to get serious about your New Year’s resolution. And if you’re like 71% of the US population, that means dieting and eating healthier.
Of course, this goes further than cutting out those sugary and salty snacks. If you really want to live a healthier life, you’ll also want to increase your intake of fruits and veggies.
But, let’s face it, vegetables aren’t always the most appealing foods. Thankfully, there are ways to eat more veggies by hiding them in your favorite foods.
Do you want to know more? Keep reading to learn how you can sneak more vegetables into your diet.
Make Healthy Smoothies
Who doesn’t love smoothies? They can be a great snack to end your day, but they also make for a healthy breakfast.
Just throw in a handful of spinach into any fruit smoothie. Although the color will change because of the spinach, the flavor of the fruit will overpower the spinach, leaving you with all the health benefits of spinach without any of the taste. If the color throws you off, just pour it into a solid-colored cup and enjoy!
Sub Carbs with Veggies
One of the hardest parts of dieting is cutting out all your favorite carb-filled foods. But what if you could enjoy these foods without all the carbs?
Cauliflower pizza crust, cauliflower chicken nuggets, and squash pasta are just a few of the possibilities. Not only will you be sticking with your diet, but you’ll be getting all the added nutritional benefits of vegetables.
Try Veggie Burgers
Who says a burger has to be made out of meat? Veggie burgers taste amazing and let you sneak in plenty of vegetables.
Black beans make a great base for your veggie patties as they offer a good texture and color similar to traditional beef burgers. You can then throw in some corn, onions, and spinach.
Plus, let’s not forget all the great vegetables you can use as toppings. You can go further than lettuce, tomato, and onion and add mushrooms, sprouts, spinach, or jalapenos to get even more vegetables in your diet.
Add Veggies to Your Pasta Dishes
That’s right: meatballs aren’t the only thing that goes great with pasta. By choosing the right sauce, you can easily add in different vegetables to keep pasta dishes nutritious and delicious.
Eggplant parmesan is an amazing way to provide your family with a unique vegetable. And when you cover it with gooey cheese and throw it on top of pasta, nobody will mind it!
If you like alfredo sauce, consider mixing broccoli or cauliflower florets into the sauce. Broccoli and cauliflower also go great in mac and cheese to help your kids get the vegetables they need into their diet.
Spiralize Your Salads
You don’t always have to hide vegetables to make them fun to eat. Spiralized salads add a whimsical touch to your meals while allowing you to enjoy the look and taste of your favorite veggies
Spiralized cucumber or zucchini make a great base for the salad. Not only are they green, which mimics the color of lettuce, but they have a mild taste that’s good to build upon. You can then throw your favorite veggies on top or find something new to spiralize to give yourself a healthy spiralized salad.
Grate Them
Do you have a few picky eaters that refuse to eat their vegetables? If you’re struggling to get your kids to eat a well-balanced diet, consider grating the vegetables first.
The finer you grate your vegetables, the easier they’ll be to hide. The best part is that the taste is easy to cover, so they can be hidden in anything from scrambled eggs to meatloaf, so your kids won’t even know they’re there.
Turn Them Into Snacks
Who says chips and fries are all bad for you? You can make your own oven roasted or air fried snacks using various vegetables to boost your nutrition intake all while helping you avoid junk food.
Of course, you can stick with good old potatoes. But if you’re looking to live a healthier life and eat a variety of vegetables, consider using sweet potatoes, broccoli stems, or carrots to make fries. Kale, beets, and sweet potatoes can all be used to make crispy chips.
You can still enjoy your late night salty snack but feel good knowing that you’re sneaking more veggies into your diet.
Make Soups
If you only make soup when you or a family member is sick, you’re missing out. Soup is full of vitamins and nutrients that can help you live a healthier life.
Of course, many canned soup options are packed with salt, so consider making homemade soup for a healthier option. There are tons of recipes, almost all of which incorporate vegetables, so you’ll never run out of unique soup ideas.
Have a Pizza Night
Don’t discontinue pizza night just because you’re trying to eat more vegetables. Instead, work extra vegetables into your pizza.
You can start by making cauliflower crust and homemade pizza sauce with fresh tomatoes. Then, load up your pizza with vegetable toppings.
If you need to hide these extra vegetables to appease your kids, consider blending peppers and onions in with the tomato sauce or dice the vegetables finely and tuck them under the cheese. Your whole family will get all the health benefits of vegetables without even knowing it.
Ways to Eat More Veggies
Eating healthier doesn’t have to be so hard. By following a few simple tips, like throwing spinach in your morning smoothie or grating veggies and putting them in, well everything, you can eat more veggies and enjoy all the health benefits that come with it.
Are you trying to live the healthiest life possible? Then check out all the health benefits of eating organic today.