When you look at your lunch and dinner meals, do you see an amount of fruits and veggies equal to about half your plate? Did you have a fruit or veggie for breakfast? And maybe include one as part of a snack?
Most of us know we should eat more fruits and veggies; most of us don’t eat enough.
Here are fun ways to eat more fruits and vegetables!
Make a dip by mixing ¼ cup peanut butter, 2 tablespoons orange juice and ½ cup low-fat vanilla yogurt. Serve with fresh apples, pears, carrot sticks and/or celery sticks.
Give your morning oatmeal a quick hit of fruit by tossing in some frozen blueberries or raspberries directly from the package.
Toss extra frozen veggies or canned beans into the pot when making canned soups. When possible, choose soups with less sodium.
People are also reading…
Stir chopped vegetables and/or fruit into cold rice and mix with salad dressing for a super side dish. An oil and vinegar dressing mixes well with vegetables while a sweeter dressing, such as poppy seed dressing, goes well with fruit.
Blend a cup of small pieces of frozen fruit, ¾ cup of juice and a half cup of vanilla or other flavored yogurt for a quick smoothie.
Try using the air-fryer for cooking Brussels sprouts, green beans or broccoli.
Instead of a big dish of ice cream TOPPED by fruit, enjoy a bowl of fruit capped with a small scoop of ice cream.
Buy vegetables that are easy to prepare — consider pre-washed bags of salad greens, baby carrots, grape tomatoes and celery sticks.
Add different ingredients to salads or sandwiches. Try adding mango, snap peas or dried fruit to a green salad. Add thinly sliced cucumber, avocado or apples to a sandwich.
Garlic Chickpea Dip
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Wash hands with soap and water.
Put all ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. If you do not have a food processor, mash the chickpeas with a fork in a medium sized bowl, then mix in the rest of the ingredients.
Serve with whole grain crackers or sliced vegetables.
Store leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Makes about 1 cup.
Nutrition information per serving (¼ cup): Calories 130 total fat 5g, saturated fat 1g, cholesterol 0mg, sodium 290mg, total carbohydrates 17g, fiber 4g, total sugars 4g, includes 0g added sugars, protein 5g.
Cami Wells is an Extension Educator for Nebraska Extension in Hall County. Contact Cami by phone at 308-385-5088, by email at cwells2@unl.edu or visit the Hall County website at www.hall.unl.edu