Veggies, veggies, veggies…
Let’s talk veggies
While proteins, fats and starchy foods provide calories for energy, vegetables provide:
- the no-calorie vitamins and minerals absorbed in your small intestine and make the body work,
- nutrients and antioxidants that support your intestine and colon, boost your health, and help fight off disease,
- fibers you don’t digest but your helpful bacteria in your gut need in order to exist,
- fibers that bind toxic chemicals and make sure they leave
- fibers that keep your regular
- fibers…
Ounce-for ounce (or calorie for calorie) you get more “bang for the buck” when you make sure to include plenty of veggies while you meet your other nutritional needs. From building healthy cells to cleaning out the waste of day-to-day activity to feeding “good” bacteria in your gut, vegetables are a must!
Restore digestive health with veggies.
Diets high in starch and sugar promote a “take-over” of Bacteroides strains in the gut (don’t worry about the names). Why? Because they love sugar. They also love a more acidic environment (caused by digesting sugar and most prepared foods).
Diets high in soft plant fibers from fruits and veggies like inulin or pectin or oligofructose or… (NOT bran – a hard and irritating fiber; again, don’t worry about the names) promote a regrowth of the bacteria you want to have (e.g. Bifidobacteria). Why? Because this is what the bacteria you want actually eat.
That’s right the “good” life-giving bacteria (probiotics) eat the plant fibers (prebiotics). In return, they help digest and release plant nutrients and make a special form of fat that feeds all your organs but especially your liver and brain. And they calm down inflammation (we’ll talk more about this soon).
Amazingly, health authorities recommend only several servings of vegetables each day. Even more amazingly, most people don’t get even that much. The truth is that reversing health issues requires nine (9 !!!) cups of veggies every day.
Why am I saying that? Because most of us have neglected our health and truly need six to even nine cups of vegetables to reverse inflammation, pain, fatigue, and other manifestations of disease.
The foundation of eating is vegetables. If you want to balance any health situation, get more vitamins and minerals from your food, heal your digestion, and a gazillion other things, you need more veggies.
6-9 cups of vegetables??!!
Yes, that might sound like a lot—let’s find ways to get more… without falling into a rut.
It’s not that we don’t love vegetables—the problem is that serving the same veggies or salads over and over, well, it gets old. Of course, canned or overcooked veggies are never going to win fans.
Here’s the solution—a pattern you may notice from our journey so far.
Today: Create a list of quick veggie sides
Again, survey: Ask your family (or yourself): What are your top 7 favorite vegetables? Download and print Synergy’s free “veggie cheat sheet” to keep track of your family’s favorite veggies + their cooking times – keep it in the veggies section of your “Family Favorites” binder. Slowly start adding your own recipes. Get the “cheat sheet” here.
- Add preparation methods: For example, if you wrote down sweet potatoes, you can make sweet potato fries, bake whole sweet potatoes, roast sweet potato chunks, and more! Write the versions you like on your sheet and a brief set of instructions.
- Put the list in your sheet protector and add to your Family Favorites binder. Next meal planning session, look through these as well as your dinner lists.
Want more ideas? Check out the Veggies and Side Dishes categories at www.OurNutritionKitchen.com (there is nothing better than roasted root vegetables, balsamic Brussel’s sprouts, and more!) Vegetables take on a new charm by roasting, grilling, or cooking on your stove top with exactly the right flavorings.
Ideas for this week’s Meal Plan & Shopping list
1. Make Veggie-Based Soups
Soups are amazing. Whether a pureed veggie base or meat broth (for instant amino acids that help gut health and energy) it’s simple to cook veggies into soups with delicious spices and unique blends.
Amazingly portable for lunch, adding even a small amount of extra veggies to your day is a great way to increase your intake of fiber, vitamins and minerals.
These incredible plant-based recipes are some of my “Family Favorites”:
2. Try Zucchini Lasagna
Swapping commercial pasta for, well just about anything… but especially spiralized or thin-sliced zucchini is an amazing way to serve your favorite food.
Lower carb content and add more nutrients is by replacing wheat (or rice or…) lasagna noodles with strips of zucchini.
Zucchini is a rich source of B vitamins and vitamin C, in addition to trace minerals and fiber.
Here’s the recipe and it is easily adapted for vegan or vegetarian lifestyles
3. Experiment With Veggie Noodles
Veggie noodles are easy and and excellent low-carb substitute for high-carb foods like pasta.
Just put your veggies (carrots, zucchini, sweet potatoes…) into a spiralizer, process veggies into noodle-like shapes, saute, add your sauce… EASY 🙂
Try these sauces:
Pesto Sauce—or for a complete recipe try “Cecchini” Pesto 😉
Tomato and Wild Mushroom sauce
4. Add Veggies to Sauces
Whatever sauce you are making… add some parsley, carrots, mushrooms, peppers, think dark and green or red or purple and enjoy your higher energy.
5. Change your Pizza Crust
Seriously? I can have Pizza?
Yes, well…
You won’t be able to order this as a fast food but it is surely an amazing treat. Here are my favorite crusts, the toppings are yours to decide.
6. Blend Veggies Into Smoothies
Smoothies are refreshing and when you add a great protein powder they can become a complete meal. Make more than you can eat and pack the extra for lunch.
Please do make your own. When you grab them from Starbucks or a box or any other commercial entity, our current culture has dictated adding a ton of sugar to “improve” the taste. Gosh this is terrible!
Here’s the basic recipe:
1 Tablespoon chia or flax seed
1 cup coconut milk or almond milk makes it rich and creamy
¼-½ cup combined veggies and fruit
2 scoops of Standard Process Whey Protein or Great Lakes gelatin or plant protein (here is a well-balanced and economical brand)
2 teaspoons of flax oil or coconut oil
My favorite includes a little mint to be refreshing, the possibilities are endless.
7. Add Veggies to Casseroles
Veggies in casseroles is a great way to get your family eating more nutrient dense foods.
Most casseroles are loaded with grains, dairy sauces, cheese, and any number of foods that go against our health goals.
What about replacing the fillers (bread crumbs, rice, grains…) with veggies?
Grab your favorite recipe and replace any cheese and seeds with broccoli, mushrooms, celery, carrots…
One big switch that improves the meal means a lot!
Remember: Grains are 70 percent starch. If you need to control your blood sugar, blood pressure, or weight, you’ll need to keep your starches low, under 120 grams per day (which is not very low, but most of us eat 200+ grams per day. That’s great for the endurance athlete—for the rest of us, it’s making us fat, sick, and inflamed.
Swap out grains for veggies—you’ll feel much better!
Ready to take the next step? CLICK HERE