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Vegetable consumption


creekland
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Do fried green tomatoes count as a green vegetable? I've had them for lunch two days running. My northerner family won't touch them so I don't have to share.

 

I would guess so since tomatoes are a "kitchen veggies" even if they're a "botany fruit."  The fact that they were fried shouldn't have taken all the nutrition out of them.

 

Then, of course, the green vs red... totally unsure how that nutrition changes without googling - and don't have time to google right now.

 

I got my veggies in for breakfast again.  Technically that means I'm good for the day!  I have beets, beet greens, and oodles upon oodles of zucchini though, so those will have to be part of some meal today.

 

A Dark Chocolate Klondike bar will probably fit in there too - like, now.  :tongue_smilie: I just finished mowing our front lawn and need a shower, but have to wait for our dishwasher to finish running if I want reliable hot water.  It seems to be perfect timing for a Klondike bar...

 

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I have 5 kids.  

 

3 of them eat well above the recommendations for fruits and vegetables, most of that being whole, fresh, and unadulterated beyond washing and any peeling or cutting that may be needed.  So much so that I'm constantly lecturing about the produce disappearing so quickly.

 

1 is only like that with fruit.

 

1 acts as if produce in any form, including fried, slathered in cheese, or covered in chocolate, might kill him.

 

I have to force myself to eat vegetables.  I don't think all of them are gross, but none of them compare to cheese and crackers.  I work hard to hide my secret!

 

 

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I see what you're saying. I follow a plant-based diet, myself (Dr. Fuhrman's), to reverse my diabetes and keep my lupus in remission. It is extremely expensive, and it's definitely volumes of food comparatively to get all my nutrients from greens, beans, mushrooms, fruits, a tiny bit of whole grains, and nuts and seeds. I would say I can't afford it, but it's cheaper than insulin which I also can't afford, so I guess I'm affording it...

 

But the part where we're not seeing eye to eye is this:

 

Neither I, nor anyone else, is proposing that children in low-income families be raised on a plant-based diet, or (as you put it) that they "significantly up the veg quotient." Because the USDA recommended level of veg is not a significant amount. It's not swapping porridge for edamame. It's serving sizes of 1/2 cup cooked veg, 1 cup leafy veg, for adults. Children's portions are even smaller.

 

So we're saying that 1/4 cup of green beans, alongside the affordable  protein, complex carbohydrate, and fat servings, is not going to add significant cost and WILL add significant health. People who think they can't afford nutrition are gambling that they'll be able to afford disease. I've been there and disease is expensive. 

 

And again, if families can't afford the green beans and applesauce, in my experience they don't have enough money for the meat and potatoes, either. :( And this is why we need to help each other -- personally and through the government -- and to utilize the help available if we're in that circumstance.

 

 

Well, I think there is some swapping that is going on.  If someone is eating few vegetables, and wants to add in more, they are probably not just adding them on - it will probably replace some of what they were eating before. 

 

I'm not really commenting at all on poverty - just responding to the comments that some people didn't understand the complaint that veg were expensive.  I think that for just the average person, if they are swapping out some part of what they are eating now for veg or fruit, they may well find that it costs a little more.

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Food processor? That would work too as long as it has a hole so you can our in the hot butter while it's running.

 

I do, but it's so large it's not good at all for small quantities.

 

It's not difficult to do by hand; it's just one of those things you can't really do ahead.  You can, but it's best fresh. 

 

It's probably good that it is not so easy to make because it's a lot more calories than I need to be adding to my food regularly.  LOL 

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Completely agree that culture plays a big part. We live in a very fitness- and foodie-oriented city, the birthplace of Whole Foods (aka "Whole Paycheck"), and the middle class here has very high expectations from vegetables. Even humble grocery stores have a wide and inexpensive selection of fresh vegetables; there are farmer's markets everywhere; and restaurants (& the ubiquitous food trailers) are expected to feature fresh fruits and vegetables in or with the food. The competition keeps the prices low.

 

We subscribe to a weekly vegetable delivery service, and when necessary I send a child three blocks away to a grocery store with acres of fresh produce, which actually has an employee circulating at all times just to advise customers on produce shopping and preparation.

 

With this kind of cultural support, it's hard not to eat lots of veggies. We go way over the 3-a-day guideline. It's always a shock to visit other places and find dinky produce sections with bland, overpriced selections.

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I'm a super taster (I've done the test with the paper strip and it was SO gross, I still can't believe my family couldn't taste it!). Veggies are mostly gross. The exceptions are sautéed mushrooms in butter, roasted carrots or carrots cooked in stew, and now that I'm an adult I will buy california blend veggies frozen and roast them with olive or coconut oil. But steamed veggies? Nope. Awful. Can't stand them. Raw is even worse...the texture is weird and you have to chew forever before you can swallow and get it out of your mouth. 

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