Recipes with lots of veggies?

[matrips]

We’ve been in a rut with meals.  I need tasty meals that incorporate lots of veggies, or even different ways to prepare veggies. We’re usually very basic.  Meat, starch, steamed veggie.  We are definitely meat eaters; just want to incorporate a lot more veggies.

A link to a recipe you really like would be awesome :). Thanks.

I’m so tired of cooking.

[katilac]

Just switching to roasted instead of steamed can give you a lot more flavor and variety. How to Roast Any Vegetable

A quicker alternative that's also good is to use steam-in-the-bag veggies and toss them in a frying pan with some butter or oil after steaming; just stir occasionally until you have some yummy brown-toasted goodness. We usually go for at least some bits of black, just experiment. We like steak seasoning on almost all veggies. Remember to steam for a shorter period of time bc you're cooking them again. 

For fresh brussel sprouts, skip the steaming part and just cook longer in the pan as above. Frozen brussel sprouts have to be flavored up a bit in my house. After cooking, we add balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and steak seasoning to taste. 

If you like fresh beets, see if your grocery store has the ones that are peeled, pre-cooked, and vacuum packed. Game changer! They heat in a couple of minutes in the microwave and I just add a bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. The package seems expensive at first, but not so much when you consider peeling fresh ones. You do lose the greens but I don't eat that anyway. I may lose some southern street cred, but there are no fans of cooked greens in this house. 

[Pawz4me]

Roasted veggies are really good! I'm lazy, so I keep a whole bunch of these in the freezer.

[MEmama]

Frittatas.

Seriously, they are so forgiving. I usually make one every week in summer to help use up all the farm share and garden produce. Just toss in whatever veggies you like and have on hand. I typically use greens (chard, kale, spinach, beet greens), onions, peppers, garlic, lots of fresh herbs, bits of leftovers like roasted potatoes...whatever you have around. They are my go to, use it up summer dish. 🙂 You can always serve as a side to your meat if you want.
 

Enchiladas are another use it up dish that gets packed full of veggies. Onions, peppers, tomatillos, corn, roasted sweet potatoes, zucchini...it’s totally endless. If I don’t have sweet potatoes sometimes I’ll add pumpkin purée along with the retried beans. 

[Kebo]

We just made this recipe for zucchini bolognese this week and it turned out very well.  We used the tips in the first review to add tomato paste, thyme and oregano.  VERY easy recipe, but it takes 4+ hours of cooking.  It is vegan if you leave off the parmesan.   https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipes/a58228/zucchini-bolognese-recipe/

Minestrone will also get a lot of veggies in, and you can adapt it to the veggies you like.  I add carrots, zucchini, yellow squash, spinach or kale, onion, and sometimes some sliced cabbage.  Also vegan if you skip the parmesan.  https://cookieandkate.com/classic-minestrone-soup-recipe/   

From the same website the lentil soup also looks good, but I haven't tried it yet: https://cookieandkate.com/best-lentil-soup-recipe/

 

[Lori D.]

Salad.
That will give you greens, a different type of veggie. Bagged salad "kits" at the store have varieties with cabbage, kale, and mixed greens, AND the dressing and any toppings all included, so lots of variety AND super easy -- open bag, pour into bowl, sprinkle toppings and drizzle dressing on top, eat. 😉 And adding sliced veggies to the salad increases the veggie count. Or try all-veggie salads, like this  Rachel Ray Greek Salad recipe (tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, red onion, olives, feta cheese + olive oil/red wine vinegar dressing). 

Raw veggies and dip or hummus.
A bowl full of sticks of celery, carrots, bell pepper, and jicama; snow peas; cherry tomatoes; cucumber slices; radishes; broccoli and cauliflower florets... And something for dipping (although, honestly, I prefer my raw veggies naked 😄 ) -- things like Ranch dressing, store-bought hummus or tsatsiki, baba ganoush (eggplant-based dip) -- so nice and cool for summer!

Cole slaw.
I prefer an oil and vinegar slaw, so that can expand the flavor options from traditional mayo-based slaws. Also, try using a bag of broccoli slaw from the grocery store when making your Cole slaw, just as a little variety. ETA: just found this webpage with 30 Bon Appetit Cole slaw recipes -- wide variety of types and ingredients!

Zucchini noodles / riced cauliflower.
Zoodles (zucchini cut into noodles) in place of pasta, and riced cauliflower (cauliflower cut into rice-sized bits) in place of rice. Top your zoodles with spaghetti sauce and meatballs; top your cauliflower rice with whatever curry or stir fry you usually use. (BTW, first oven-roasting the cauliflower rice (toss in olive oil, lightly salt & pepper, spread on foil, roast for 15-20 minutes at 375˚ till turning golden brown) -- adds a fabulous nutty flavor to the cauliflower!) My grocery store now carries packages of zoodles and riced cauliflower, so you don't even have to do the work of prepping the veggie! Just cook and eat.

Stir fry.
I get a bag of frozen Trader Joe BBQ Chicken Teriyaki for stir fry and on the side, stir fry a big bowl of veggies -- green onions, zucchini, baby boy choi, bell pepper, carrots, celery, broccoli -- and then add to the chicken and stir fry sauce, and serve over rice (or riced cauliflower). Note: we don't like a lot of sauce on our stir fry, so doubling the overall volume with all the stir fry veggies cuts the amount of sauce to just the amount we like -- we also drizzle with Sri Racha for added kick. But... the point is ANY stir fry can be dressed up with veggies 😄 . I've seen bags of stir fry veggies already cut up and in an assortment at the grocery store, so just lightly stir fry and add to your usual stir fry meat/chicken and sauce.

Agreeing with the roasted veggies suggestions above.
Thinly sliced shallots (or red onion) + veggies, tossed in olive oil, spread out on a foil-lined pan, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Optional: fresh rosemary leaves sprinkles on top. Roast at 375˚ for 20-30 minutes. Sprinkle with a little kosher salt when done, serve and eat. All of these come out great as roasted veggies: broccoli, cauliflower, sliced Brussel sprouts, turnips, beets, parsnip, carrots, sweet potato, asparagus (cooks very quickly, so be ready to pull it sooner)...

Edited August 2, 2020 by Lori D.

[ScoutTN]

Stuffed peppers. I make them without rice, so much lower carb, then serve a starch on the side. 

Slice peppers in half lengthwise, or  just cut off tops, remove seeds and ribss, drizzle with olive oil, cover and bake at 350 while you prep the filling.

Brown ground meat (I usually use pork and beef, ymmv), remove from the pan. Add oil if needed and sauté veggies until soft: onion, pepper, zucchini, kale or bok choy, garlic. Add meat back in and add a couple whole tomatoes, chopped, or some canned or tomato paste. Add some soy sauce, worchestershire, S&P to taste. Add a little beef stock or red wine if you like. Fill par-cooked peppers with filling, top with cheese that melts well. Bake til hot through and cheese is melted, 10 m.

This can be seasoned in a variety of ways. I usually do thyme, rosemary, parsley and oregano. But you can use lamb and go with more middle eastern spices, or mexican or whatever. 

I also make a version with cooked chx or pulled pork with mexican seasoning in poblano peppers. 

[73349]

Spring rolls! You could use them (or just the filling with the sauce) as a side if you like.

[alisoncooks]

Following. I'm always struggling to fit more (different) veggies in our week. 

[Alicia64]

Costco sells a huge bag of stir-fry veggies that are really good. They're kept in Costco's frozen section next to frozen strawberries and frozen blueberries.

it's called Stir Frye Vegetable Blend and has sugar peas, broccoli, carrots, mushrooms.

Now I need to get some.

W.

[alisoncooks]

I made this last week for the first time and everyone liked it: https://www.skinnytaste.com/warm-curry-roasted-sheet-pan-vegetable-salad/

Served it with chicken and naan. Served leftovers over basmati (ran out of chicken and naan, lol) and it was yummy. 

[mmasc]

Some of my favorite veggies are:

1) roasted with olive oil and S&P:

sweet potatoes-cubed

 Brussels sprouts (halved)

can chick peas rinsed and patted dry

This is such a good combo!

2) I also like a summer salad of:

cubed English cucumbers 

halved Cherub tomatoes

cut up bell peppers

feta cheese

little bit of olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Sometimes I eat it this way, or put it on a bed of greens, or toss in a few kalamata olives. 
 

3) baked potatoes with steamed broccoli and a bit of cheese melted over it

4) I also like to make any kind of black bean/cubed sweet potato/onion/red pepper combo with Mexican flavors (cumin and chili powder) to eat as a stuffing in corn tortillas or even served with a fried egg on top, or as a quesadilla filling. Just add some oil (Coconut is good for this dish) to a pan with cubed sweet potatoes, chopped onion, drained can of black beans, cut up bell peppers, seasonings. Put a lid on to kind of steam/cook the sweet potatoes and let it all cook together for a while. Done. 

[marbel]

Are salads of interest?  I have been making these salads over and over all summer:

Asian Kale salad from My Recipes:  https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/asian-kale-salad

Kale and Herb salad from Food52: https://food52.com/recipes/12791-kale-and-herb-salad

And my favorite, which I make with pretty much any raw vegetables I have around so it's endlessly interesting:

Chopped Salad with Feta, Lime, and Mint from Smitten Kitchen:   https://smittenkitchen.com/2012/06/chopped-salad-with-feta-lime-and-mint/

I've made this with all sorts of vegetables, with basil or Italian parsley in addition to or instead of mint... it's so good.  It could be eaten without feta though I have never personally  eaten it that way. 😁

 

 

[matrips]

5 hours ago, MEmama said:

Frittatas.

Seriously, they are so forgiving. I usually make one every week in summer to help use up all the farm share and garden produce. Just toss in whatever veggies you like and have on hand. I typically use greens (chard, kale, spinach, beet greens), onions, peppers, garlic, lots of fresh herbs, bits of leftovers like roasted potatoes...whatever you have around. They are my go to, use it up summer dish. 🙂 You can always serve as a side to your meat if you want.
 

Enchiladas are another use it up dish that gets packed full of veggies. Onions, peppers, tomatillos, corn, roasted sweet potatoes, zucchini...it’s totally endless. If I don’t have sweet potatoes sometimes I’ll add pumpkin purée along with the retried beans. 

My dd is making a sweet potato and black bean enchilada casserole tonight.  That’s a first for us, so hope it’s good!  It smells great.  My boys want to know if there is a meat shortage 🙄. They’re not happy 😂

[matrips]

4 hours ago, Alicia64 said:

Costco sells a huge bag of stir-fry veggies that are really good. They're kept in Costco's frozen section next to frozen strawberries and frozen blueberries.

it's called Stir Frye Vegetable Blend and has sugar peas, broccoli, carrots, mushrooms.

Now I need to get some.

W.

I’ve bought them in the past.  Somehow I can never cook them without some ending up soggy/limp and some still a bit frozen.  So I have to use fresh veggies

[KungFuPanda]

7 hours ago, matrips said:

We’ve been in a rut with meals.  I need tasty meals that incorporate lots of veggies, or even different ways to prepare veggies. We’re usually very basic.  Meat, starch, steamed veggie.  We are definitely meat eaters; just want to incorporate a lot more veggies.

A link to a recipe you really like would be awesome :). Thanks.

I’m so tired of cooking.

I've been trying to make sure my family eats all of these veggies that I worked so hard to grow.  Right now, the lettuce is finished but the tomatoes are pouring in.  I'm doing a lot of Israeli chopped salads with all of the cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and parsley from the garden.  I'm also doing pasta primavera with this recipe because it doesn't specify which veggies to use.  I made a chocolate zucchini bread that was AMAZING, but that's not really dinner; it's just cake. I did zucchini fritters too, but with asiago instead of parmesan.  I make a lot of breaded fried squash, okra, and green tomatoes, but nobody will eat it with me.  They call it my "weird country food." I didn't want to share my green tomatoes anyway!

[marbel]

1 hour ago, KungFuPanda said:

it's just cake.

Just cake, she says, like cake is not the best thing to have in the house.🤣

 

[KungFuPanda]

5 minutes ago, marbel said:

Just cake, she says, like cake is not the best thing to have in the house.🤣

 

OK, my family is often deprived.  While I don't mind cooking "real food" I somehow resent when my kitchen effort goes into desserts.  I prefer savory flavors most of the time and if I make a cake, I'm still on the hook for dinner.  I will add that we also have trouble FINISHING a whole cake and sometimes I freeze a layer just so it doesn't go bad on us. My DS wanted cannoli cake AND stromboli for his birthday.  Ugh.  I was in the kitchen forever that day! The only reason they got this cake is because I wanted them to eat the zucchini! I'm not sure they all even know it contained zucchini.

Upon reflection, we have managed to finish the chocolate zucchini bread, a cannoli cake, AND a blackberry cobbler in a week's time.  I guess when they're not getting coffee shop sweets several times a week they CAN finish a whole cake before it turns green.  It also seems I'm more willing to bake when I'm trying to get them to ingest fresh produce.  Still, I'm getting so tired of running my dishwasher 2-3 times a day. 

[Lady Florida.]

This blog is by a Hive member. I can't remember who it is but it's a name many of us know when we see it. She posted a link a year or so ago on a recipe thread and I've been visiting her blog for recipes ever since. 

https://peasandcrayons.com/

[Ausmumof3]

Is it summer where you are?  If just chuck together some salad or vege sticks with dip and make them a side.  Otherwise stir fry is always good for lots of veg on summer.

[Serenade]

12 hours ago, Pawz4me said:

Roasted veggies are really good! I'm lazy, so I keep a whole bunch of these in the freezer.

I'm glad to hear these are decent.  I may have to try them.

Edited August 3, 2020 by Serenade

[ktgrok]

2 hours ago, KungFuPanda said:

I' I make a lot of breaded fried squash, okra, and green tomatoes, but nobody will eat it with me.  They call it my "weird country food." I didn't want to share my green tomatoes anyway!

What? I don't think I've had fried squash, but fried okra and green tomatoes are SO yummy! Fried green tomatoes are like crack! In fact, we have ONE large tomato in the garden (too hot this time of year for them...only cherry ones do well in the summer) and I'm ridiculously tempted to pick it green and fry it. But my DD who grew it would be very sad. 

[ktgrok]

Roasted!

I actually use the air fryer so I don't heat up the house (y'all saw my house temperature on the other thread, lol). I in fact bought the air fryer specifically for veggies. 

I usually do red onion, red or orange bell pepper, and either zuchinni or japanese eggplant, all sliced. Toss in oil oil and some salt and cook until they look delicious. Drizzle with balsamic for even more yum. 

[cjzimmer1]

1 hour ago, KungFuPanda said:

Still, I'm getting so tired of running my dishwasher 2-3 times a day. 

I'm sorry but this just totally made me laugh.  I realize for a smaller family that is probably a lot of dishes so I can see where it would see overwhelming but from my side of things, 2-3 loads is a day where I didn't do any cooking and just told everyone to use up the leftovers.  I happen to love cooking and one of the best things about Covid has meant very few outside activities which has left me more time to spend in the kitchen.  A "typical" day for me these days is 4 dishwasher loads.  I have managed to squeeze 5 in.  But typically if it goes over that the dishes have to get caught up another day because with the cycle being so long, I really can't get more loads in during one day. But I don't wash anything by hand.  EVERYTHING goes in my dishwasher.  I love the cooking but washing dishes is probably my least favorite household chore (or maybe folding laundry, I really hate that one too).

Edited August 3, 2020 by cjzimmer1

[J-rap]

"Sheet pan dinners" are becoming popular now.  It's basically throwing your meat and lots of veggies on a sheet pan with various seasonings and baking them at high heat.  It can be very simple or fancy!  I've often cooked my chicken and veggies like that over the years, but have been getting lots of fun new ideas lately.  

For example:

https://thegirlonbloor.com/25-super-easy-sheet-pan-dinners/

https://www.feastingathome.com/10-sheet-pan-dinners-to-make-life-simple/

Again, you can make it so simple and easy...  I've done it before with pre-cooked kielbasa cut into chunks with a bag of frozen potatoes/carrots/onions, and add a head of cabbage sliced into wedges.  Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake.  (Clean-up's easy too!)

 

[matrips]

58 minutes ago, J-rap said:

"Sheet pan dinners" are becoming popular now.  It's basically throwing your meat and lots of veggies on a sheet pan with various seasonings and baking them at high heat.  It can be very simple or fancy!  I've often cooked my chicken and veggies like that over the years, but have been getting lots of fun new ideas lately.  

For example:

https://thegirlonbloor.com/25-super-easy-sheet-pan-dinners/

https://www.feastingathome.com/10-sheet-pan-dinners-to-make-life-simple/

Again, you can make it so simple and easy...  I've done it before with pre-cooked kielbasa cut into chunks with a bag of frozen potatoes/carrots/onions, and add a head of cabbage sliced into wedges.  Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake.  (Clean-up's easy too!)

 

Never heard of these!  Thanks for the links; they look good

[matrips]

2 hours ago, Lady Florida. said:

This blog is by a Hive member. I can't remember who it is but it's a name many of us know when we see it. She posted a link a year or so ago on a recipe thread and I've been visiting her blog for recipes ever since. 

https://peasandcrayons.com/

Thank you.  Her foods look delicious!

[KungFuPanda]

2 hours ago, cjzimmer1 said:

I'm sorry but this just totally made me laugh.  I realize for a smaller family that is probably a lot of dishes so I can see where it would see overwhelming but from my side of things, 2-3 loads is a day where I didn't do any cooking and just told everyone to use up the leftovers.  I happen to love cooking and one of the best things about Covid has meant very few outside activities which has left me more time to spend in the kitchen.  A "typical" day for me these days is 4 dishwasher loads.  I have managed to squeeze 5 in.  But typically if it goes over that the dishes have to get caught up another day because with the cycle being so long, I really can't get more loads in during one day. But I don't wash anything by hand.  EVERYTHING goes in my dishwasher.  I love the cooking but washing dishes is probably my least favorite household chore (or maybe folding laundry, I really hate that one too).

I, too, hand wash nothing if I can get away with it. It seems that one cooked meal = one dishwasher load and I’m a messy cook to boot. Still, if we’re just doing leftovers all day I can run the dishwasher once. There are only 4 of us. 

[Pawz4me]

8 hours ago, Serenade said:

I'm glad to hear these are decent.  I may have to try them.

I have to bake (roast) most of their varieties considerably longer than the package says to get them the way we like them. And that's on the convection setting, which generally bakes/roasts things faster. So be prepared to play around with timing.

[PeterPan]

I've made this recipe many times now, and it goes over huge and even has some meat. https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/recipe/113644/colorful-quinoa-salad  My dh is kind of picky, so I've decided i it's on the Kraft site "normal" people eat it and he should too. Of course he'll eat it the first time, like it, then realize he ate something healthy and balk.   But anyways, you might find more winners there.

Btw, I cook my qinoa in the instant pot (crazy easy), am generous on the bell pepper, and use prediced ham from the organic/natural section. So it can be a very easy recipe, and it holds well for later summer dinners or the next day.

Have you watched Jamie Oliver on youtube? He uses TONS of veges in his recipes. I was ust watching his Traybakes last night

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y41BBNmX4bs

 

[PeterPan]

Fwiw, te other way to eat more veges is to go to a farmer's market or produce stand.You may be in a vege rut and need inspiration. I've been going several times a week, so I buy what looks interesting. I had never had heirloom tomatoes, so we're trying thoe. Brandywine, Conestoga... and then you'll be googling what to DO with them, kwim? Have you made cucumber and tomato salad? SO amazing this time of year. You can also pop it out with avocado, corn, bacon

Have you had yellow squash casserole? It may be a southern thing. Yellow squash is cheap and readily available at the stands. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/18045/yellow-squash-casserole/ I made this with whole wheat ritz to be a little more virtuous, haha. I don;t normally serve/use bread or crackers, so that was a splurge. But so good.

Zucchini you just slice, evoo/s/p and them parm and bake. Also abundant and cheap.

Our stand just got eggplants and jaime oliver has youtubes and traybakes for that.

Do you do corn? That's why I go to our local stand, for corn. We eat just that for dinner often in the summer. I've taken to cooking it in the instant pot. freeze letovers in baggies.

Trader Joes always has freezer vege sides. I just got their roasted frozen corn to try.

Even just walking your store you''ll see new ingredientsto google for recipes. Look for okra, limas, etc in the reezer section. The trick is to RINSE conventional (nonorganic) frozen produce as it has a detergent residue tat tastes bad. I find as long as my recipes come from a major chef (like InaGarten) or a manufacturer (like Kraft) they usually work out well. I get burnt on blogs, too many errors, people who don't have (developed?) taste to realize the problems.

Edited August 3, 2020 by PeterPan

[Laura Corin]

Tagines are a good option.  Here's one version

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/north-african-chicken-tagine

For everyday veg, I agree with others that roasting veg makes a difference.  Last night we had pasta with a tomato sauce and cheese, but half the plate was made up of roasted bell peppers and squash (just simply roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper).  it was delicious.

 

[Serenade]

2 hours ago, Pawz4me said:

I have to bake (roast) most of their varieties considerably longer than the package says to get them the way we like them. And that's on the convection setting, which generally bakes/roasts things faster. So be prepared to play around with timing.

Thanks!  This is good to know.

[ktgrok]

10 hours ago, cjzimmer1 said:

I'm sorry but this just totally made me laugh.  I realize for a smaller family that is probably a lot of dishes so I can see where it would see overwhelming but from my side of things, 2-3 loads is a day where I didn't do any cooking and just told everyone to use up the leftovers.  I happen to love cooking and one of the best things about Covid has meant very few outside activities which has left me more time to spend in the kitchen.  A "typical" day for me these days is 4 dishwasher loads.  I have managed to squeeze 5 in.  But typically if it goes over that the dishes have to get caught up another day because with the cycle being so long, I really can't get more loads in during one day. But I don't wash anything by hand.  EVERYTHING goes in my dishwasher.  I love the cooking but washing dishes is probably my least favorite household chore (or maybe folding laundry, I really hate that one too).

1. I'm so glad to hear of people running the dishwasher a lot! I posted here once about that...I'd always heard people say thy run it every night even if not full....and um the idea of a dishwasher NOT full even once a day was insane. But I thought that was norma and was trying to only run it once a day, which meant playing Tetris with the dishes, never having room, etc. Now I do it at least twice, sometimes 3 times, and so much better! (and use correlle dishes that take up very little space)

And yes, I love cooking, hate cleaning it up. I hear people say they need a chef and I'm like, no, I need a scullery maid!

10 hours ago, J-rap said:

"Sheet pan dinners" are becoming popular now.  It's basically throwing your meat and lots of veggies on a sheet pan with various seasonings and baking them at high heat.  It can be very simple or fancy!  I've often cooked my chicken and veggies like that over the years, but have been getting lots of fun new ideas lately.  

For example:

https://thegirlonbloor.com/25-super-easy-sheet-pan-dinners/

https://www.feastingathome.com/10-sheet-pan-dinners-to-make-life-simple/

Again, you can make it so simple and easy...  I've done it before with pre-cooked kielbasa cut into chunks with a bag of frozen potatoes/carrots/onions, and add a head of cabbage sliced into wedges.  Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and bake.  (Clean-up's easy too!)

 

Yes! These are easy and I line the pan with tin foil or parchment to make clean up easier. A bit of italian dressing in a pinch is fast and easy, or whatever spice blend, etc. I can't wait until it isn't so hot here to do this again! (or maybe I'll just start cooking dinner in the morning before the house heats up)

[J-rap]

27 minutes ago, Ktgrok said:

1. I'm so glad to hear of people running the dishwasher a lot! I posted here once about that...I'd always heard people say thy run it every night even if not full....and um the idea of a dishwasher NOT full even once a day was insane. But I thought that was norma and was trying to only run it once a day, which meant playing Tetris with the dishes, never having room, etc. Now I do it at least twice, sometimes 3 times, and so much better! (and use correlle dishes that take up very little space)

And yes, I love cooking, hate cleaning it up. I hear people say they need a chef and I'm like, no, I need a scullery maid!

Yes! These are easy and I line the pan with tin foil or parchment to make clean up easier. A bit of italian dressing in a pinch is fast and easy, or whatever spice blend, etc. I can't wait until it isn't so hot here to do this again! (or maybe I'll just start cooking dinner in the morning before the house heats up)

Oh that's right, I forgot about lining the pan with tin foil!  Easier yet!

[Lady Florida.]

Another way to eat more veggies and even try new ones is to find a produce delivery service in your area. I started using Misfits Market at the start of the pandemic mainly so I didn't have to go to the store. As its name suggests, it's produce that isn't perfect, at least not good enough to go to a grocery store. There are a number of those types of produce delivery options depending on where you live. We learned that we like being challenged to try new fruits and vegetables as well as the challenge of finishing it all before the next delivery. I often find myself googling ways to use certain veggies. We plan to stick with this even after the pandemic is over.

If you have anything similar you might want to give it a try.

This is NOT a way for me to get referrals but if anyone does want to try Misfits Market and doesn't mind giving me the referral, PM me and I'll give you my link. You'll get 25% off your first order and I'll get the same off my next order.

[Mommalongadingdong]

I think we eat a lot of vegetables. I just try to add a ton to everything we eat. One of our favorites right now are burrito bowls. I use black beans, corn, roast up bell pepper and onion, make pico de gallo, avocado, and salsa. It's so yummy! And mostly veggies. 

I also like stir fry or fried rice with a lot of onion, cabbage, broccoli, and a bag of mixed vegetables. It's also really good sith cubed sweet potato. 

I used to cook a lot of meat, starch, veg dinners, but we're trying to limit our meat consumption right now so I've been trying new things. 

[matrips]

11 hours ago, Pawz4me said:

I have to bake (roast) most of their varieties considerably longer than the package says to get them the way we like them. And that's on the convection setting, which generally bakes/roasts things faster. So be prepared to play around with timing.

Maybe that’s my issue with them?  I usually cook them in a wok instead of oven, and the frozen part melts and they get soggy instead of cooked/crunchy.

[matrips]

9 hours ago, PeterPan said:

Have you had yellow squash casserole? It may be a southern thing. Yellow squash is cheap and readily available at the stands. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/18045/yellow-squash-casserole/ I made this with whole wheat ritz to be a little more virtuous, haha. I don;t normally serve/use bread or crackers, so that was a splurge. But so good

Perfect!  We just bought a bunch of yellow squash

[matrips]

11 hours ago, PeterPan said:

stands. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/18045/yellow-squash-casserole/ I made this with whole wheat ritz to be a little more virtuous, haha. I don;t normally serve/use bread or crackers, so that was a splurge. But so good.

Would other types of crackers work?  How would the flavor be affected?  I don’t have buttery type crackers, just regular crackers.  Is it more for the crunch?  Or for the flavor?

[math teacher]

My sloppy joe recipe has bell peppers, onions, celery, garlic, and zucchini in it. We really like it.

[PeterPan]

13 hours ago, matrips said:

Would other types of crackers work?  How would the flavor be affected?  I don’t have buttery type crackers, just regular crackers.  Is it more for the crunch?  Or for the flavor?

They just provide a little starch for the milk, egg,and sqush liquid. You could use saltines, bread crumbs, anything you want. It's pretty flexible. Just add a dash of salt maybe if it's fresh bread.

[PeterPan]

Your family might really like zuccihni casserole. rice, zucch, gr beef. Comfort food. 

Soups are always another good way.

[PeterPan]

2 hours ago, Seasider too said:

Lettuce wraps! They’re even fun to eat. I make them with lots of combinations of meat and vegetables. Kids think they’re fun to eat. Google “lettuce wraps” and “vegetarian lettuce wraps” for ideas. 
 

I’ve also made desconstructed versions when I preferred to use a fork. 
 

 

Ooo yes! We do gr turkey/chicken like PF Changs, but we also like salmon salad where you roast the salmon and flake, adding veges, mayo, spice, Eats great in a lettuce wrap. For that I use romaine. For the chinese type I use iceberg. We even eat turkey burgers in lettuce wraps to skip the bun. Dh got the lay off the carbs from the doc, so he was motivated, lol

[vonfirmath]

Does roasted carrots work? I came home from camp with a whole extra bag of baby carrots and I'm trying not to waste them!

[Lori D.]

39 minutes ago, vonfirmath said:

Does roasted carrots work? I came home from camp with a whole extra bag of baby carrots and I'm trying not to waste them!

Yes, all of the "root" veggies -- carrots, parsnips, beets, turnips -- work well with roasting. They do become sweeter upon roasting, so you might pair the carrots with cauliflower or halved Brussel sprouts to help reduce the almost candy-like sweetness of roasted carrots. Toss lightly with olive oil and salt and pepper, roast, then add a sprinkle of kosher salt -- yum! And DO be sure to add thinly sliced shallots or red onions and roast them alongside -- that's what absolutely turns any roasted veggie into perfection! 😄 

Edited August 4, 2020 by Lori D.

[vonfirmath]

11 minutes ago, Lori D. said:

Yes, all of the "root" veggies -- carrots, parsnips, beets, turnips -- work well with roasting. They do become sweeter upon roasting, so you might pair the carrots with cauliflower or halved Brussel sprouts to help reduce the almost candy-like sweetness of roasted carrots. Toss lightly with olive oil and salt and pepper, roast, then add a sprinkle of kosher salt -- yum! And DO be sure to add thinly sliced shallots or red onions -- that's what absolutely turns any roasted veggie into perfection! 😄 

My husband LOVES Brussels sprouts :)

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, vonfirmath said:

Does roasted carrots work? I came home from camp with a whole extra bag of baby carrots and I'm trying not to waste them!

theyre good in split pea soup. i throw them in whole!

[J-rap]

On 8/3/2020 at 11:25 AM, Lady Florida. said:

Another way to eat more veggies and even try new ones is to find a produce delivery service in your area. I started using Misfits Market at the start of the pandemic mainly so I didn't have to go to the store. As its name suggests, it's produce that isn't perfect, at least not good enough to go to a grocery store. There are a number of those types of produce delivery options depending on where you live. We learned that we like being challenged to try new fruits and vegetables as well as the challenge of finishing it all before the next delivery. I often find myself googling ways to use certain veggies. We plan to stick with this even after the pandemic is over.

If you have anything similar you might want to give it a try.

This is NOT a way for me to get referrals but if anyone does want to try Misfits Market and doesn't mind giving me the referral, PM me and I'll give you my link. You'll get 25% off your first order and I'll get the same off my next order.

Oh, great idea!  I forgot about those.  In our part of the country, Imperfect Foods seems to be the similar company.

[EmilyGF]

I like roasting meat and putting veggies underneath.

For example, we had chicken thighs yesterday. Before I put the chicken thighs on the tray, I rounded up a bunch of veggies, cut each in about 1" wedges lengthwise. For squash, that meant they were cut in fourths, for tomatoes, in quarters. I filled two cookie sheets with those then put the chicken on top. Finally, I sprinkled "steak seasoning salt" on top of them all and cooked them at 400 until the chicken was done.

Emily