Eat Your Veggies

Adding vegetables to your diet

Eating more vegetables is a great way to improve your nutrition, and it can be as easy as adding grated carrots and zucchini to pasta sauce. Read on for more inspiration to get started.

Make it easy

• Buy packaged, ready-to-eat fresh vegetables to cut down on preparation time.
• Use the microwave to quickly cook vegetables.
• Keep raw carrot sticks or other favorites on hand for healthy snacking on-the-go.

Pump up the flavor

• Dip raw vegetables in low-fat salad dressing, hummus, or peanut butter.
• Toss raw or cooked broccoli and cauliflower with low-fat Italian dressing and Parmesan cheese to make a flavorful side dish.
• Roast vegetables to bring out their flavor—just drizzle with a bit of olive oil, and bake in the oven until tender.

Stay focused

• Keep track of how many vegetables you eat each day. You will likely eat more vegetables if you write down how many servings you're eating.
• Have goals. Start with small ones you can achieve easily, like eating one extra serving of vegetables a day. Then set larger goals like adding an extra serving of vegetables at most meals.

Take small steps

• Add lots of colorful vegetables, such as red cabbage, carrots, and bell peppers to green salads.
• Add extra vegetables, such as grated zucchini or carrots, spinach, kale, and bell peppers, to pasta sauces and soups.
• Add lots of vegetables to sandwiches. Lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, and avocado slices are flavorful choices.