Veggies to start with?

Posts: 165
1/12/12 6:20 P

I just made kale chips. They were really healthy, good & crunchy.

Chop kale into bite size pieces, dry thoroughly, toss with 1 tsp olive oil and bake in a 450 degree oven for about 10 minutes.

my new go-to snack!

SparkPoints: (5,666)
Fitness Minutes: (17,393)
Posts: 252
1/12/12 5:18 P

You can search for smoothie recipes right here on SP - in the recipe area. There are also a bunch on www.smoothieweb.com.

Posts: 1,727
1/12/12 4:34 P

I hide my veggies in sauces. I am a BIG no veggie person, other then beans, corn and the occaisional salad, and pototoes. So I hide veggies. I diced cooked carrots up in to my spaghetti sauce. When eaten, you can't even taste them, plus the carrots somewhat have the same consistency of the noodles, look like tomatoes from the sauce, and poof. Veggies in the belly.

Posts: 49
1/12/12 3:56 P

I really like the idea of a veggie-smoothie, any suggestions on websites or anything I can find recipes.

SparkPoints: (5,666)
Fitness Minutes: (17,393)
Posts: 252
1/12/12 3:52 P

I am a pretty picky eater also, but much better than I used to be. I have a texture problem with most fruit, so I don't eat them. Occasionally I'll eat grapes or an apple (bad, I know...)

I also don't like a lot of veggies, but I am OK with them in soups. For example, I don't like onions (raw or cooked), BUT, almost every soup I make has them as an ingredient, and I am fine with that. Soups, especially homemade, are a great way to get veggies in.

How are you with beans? Black beans etc? You can mix them with rice for an easy, plain, but tasty meal. Make hummus out of chickpeas, and dip carrots in it to eat it.

The texture/temperature question is a good one, and should be explored. As I noted above, I have texture issues with a lot of food (it's why I don't eat shellfish, either).

Try out different things slowly and see what works. For example, I eat spinach raw (in salads) in large quantities, but don't like cooked spinach. I'll eat homemade tomato sauce (meaning, good stuff full of veggies and no added sugar or anything) but I don't eat tomatoes. My boyfriend won't eat peas, but he loves my split pea soup. So, just because you don't like something in one form, don't write it off entirely.

Smoothies are a great way to get veggie servings as well.

If you think it is a mental thing, have a friend feed you something blindfolded, and try to allow yourself to really TASTE it and enjoy new flavors. I eat a LOT more than I did 10 or 15 years ago...

Edited by: KAUDREY318 at: 1/12/2012 (15:54)

Posts: 461
1/12/12 3:48 P

Hi - best of luck with this! Are you going to try those cookbooks?

Posts: 1,175
1/12/12 3:44 P

Carrots are, to me, the gentlest veggie. They are sweet and crunchy and don't have the bitter flavor of many veggies. Since you like romaine, try other leafy green things, like spinach (which I used to hate and is now a favorite of mine). You might also like broccoli, which is probably my favorite veg. Onions are seemingly very strong, but they cook very nicely in a million types of foods, and provide a lot of really nice flavor that isn't as piercing as you might think when you smell them raw.

I sooo understand this situation. I used to be an incredibly picky eater. I hated most veggies and even most seasonings and condiments besides hot sauce. Even though I would have a physical reaction to foods I didn't like, I realized over time that for me, it was a mostly mental thing. I just had to try new things, then try them again and again and again. Now I am a fairly adventurous eater and I like all kinds of things, even things that would have made me ill just a few years ago. Since you've managed to do that with romaine, I think it's great that you've made the decision to try other veggies too.

First, you should go to a doctor and get an allergy panel done, just to rule that out. Then, just start trying things! You won't learn to like all your despised foods, and your tastebuds certainly won't change rapidly, but they most likely *will* change.

I am a huge proponent of trying new foods and new recipes. If I were in your shoes, I would have a goal to try one new food a week, and to keep trying that food periodically at least a dozen times (probably more). You can try the new foods in recipes that include flavors that you *do* like.

P.S. This is totally petty of me but it's a pet peeve: you don't "literally" eat nothing or you'd be dead; you "virtually" eat nothing. ;)

Posts: 24,629
1/12/12 3:40 P

The cookbooks that use the purees are:
The Sneaky Chef
and
Deceptively Delicious

You may also want to work with a counselor on this---is this a taste, texture, temperature issue?? Do you feel the same about raw broccoli, cooked broccoli, broccoli in stir-fry, broccoli with cheese sauce. How do you feel about smoothies?

SP Dietitian Becky

Posts: 2,699
1/12/12 3:35 P

Start withwhat you do like. Do you like pizza/ Pasta? You can puree veggies to put in sauces. Try mild veggies or sweeter ones, roasted. I know there are several cookbooks out there for sneaking veggies in to kids' foods without them knowin it, maybe you should check out one of those for some inspiration.

Posts: 49
1/12/12 3:12 P

One of my largest problems with dieting is that I really hate almost all foods. All my family and friends make fun of me because I literally eat nothing. My biggest no-no food group is vegetables. I seriously think I have a mental problem because some veggies will literally make me vomit afterward. For instance, I was eating a burger last week and there were pickles on it I didn't know about. I ate one I quickly had to vomit, after vomiting two times I felt sick for 2 days and could barely eat anything.

I want to start forcing myself to eat veggies though, I started forcing myself to eat romaine lettuce and now it is okay. So, my question is, any veggie suggestions for me? Stuff that is light and easy to eat.

Edited by: PATIENCEIAGO at: 1/12/2012 (15:14)