...but Mom... I don't want to eat my vegetables....



From Newleaf on Flickr

A common phrase uttered most dinners at my house growing up. I still don't like most vegetables...and it is a struggle to put them in my daily diet. As an adult, it is easy to ignore and omit these daily since I am the one in charge of what I eat. As I get older and am more aware of the benefits of vegetables, I was trying to figure out how to get those nutrients into my diet. First, I tried supplements to get the benefits without having to eat the yucky things. I found gummy vegetable supplements, of course made for children. Yummy, but had added sugar. Then Centrum came out with a veggie and fruit supplement....hallelujah....a tablet to swallow, and, no added sugar. But, if you do any reading, the experts tell you that eating whole foods nutritionally trumps any pill.

Then, I was watching an infomercial for the Magic Bullet. Yes, I do watch them occasionally. Some of this stuff is really cool! Fortunately, I hardly ever succumb to purchasing items. Anyway, the hosts were talking to their guests about getting their kids to eat their vegetables was to make a smoothie with vegetables and fruit and the flavor of the fruit can hide the taste of the vegetables.

What a great idea! I was already making smoothies in the morning. If I add the vegetables, I get them into my daily diet! I was doing this for a little while with any frozen leafy green veggie I could find. My smoothie was still mostly fruit, yogurt and soy or almond milk. I stopped doing this but have recently started again. This time I am using more of the vegetables, fruit, protein powder (flavored), and cocoa powder.

The key for those of us who don't like our veggies, is to put enough stuff to cover the taste of the vegetables. The smoothie is a great way to incorporate foods/nutrients that your diet may lack in a tasty beverage. And, as noted in the Magic Bullet infomercial--it works for kids too!