Welcome back to another episode of Nutrition Chats with Dietitian Dianna! Today, we’re diving into the importance of loading up on veggies! Whether you love them or aren’t thrilled to see that vibrant green on your plate, there’s no denying the incredible benefits of vegetables.

The truth is, no matter your preference, eating a variety of vegetables is essential for optimal health. They’re rich in essential vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and phytochemicals that support digestion, help regulate blood sugar and play a vital role in preventing chronic diseases.

What’s particularly eye-opening is a recent CDC study showed that less than 50% of children are eating enough fruit, and fewer than 12% are getting enough vegetables. Even more troubling, the study revealed 49% of children aged 1 to 5 didn’t eat a vegetable every day, and 32% skipped fruit daily.

Clearly, there’s a pressing need to find fun and easy ways to sneak more fruits and veggies into our diets, especially for our little ones.

If you're still reading, you're in luck! Below, I’ve listed simple ways to sneak extra veggies into any meal without even realizing they’re there.

5 Simple and Sneaky Ways to Pack More Veggies into Your Meals

1: Blend it up! Incorporate veggies into your smoothies for a nutritional boost! Adding spinach, kale, or cauliflower to your fruit blend is a simple way to increase your fiber intake. The natural sweetness of the fruit masks the taste of the veggies, so you get all the benefits without even noticing they're there!

2: Puree them into your sauces and soups! Puree carrots, zucchini, spinach into pasta sauces, soups and stews. They will add tons of nutrients without changing the flavor to much.

3: Add veggies into traditional pasta dishes! Try adding zoodles (zucchini noodles) or spaghetti squash to your pasta for an extra nutrient kick! These add tons for fiber and volume to your dish. Your gut will thank you!

4: Shred or grate veggies into dishes! Shred carrots or zucchini into your baked goods like muffins or pancakes! Check out our chocolate zucchini cake recipe HERE. I promise you won’t even notice the veggies in there!

5 Make veggie-based patties! Use root vegetables and legumes as the base, for example mashed black beans, chickpeas or sweet potatoes and add in finely chopped or grated vegetables like spinach, onions, and carrots.

You don’t have to dread eating your veggies when they’re prepared in a delicious way! Along with the tips shared above, explore our collection of flavorful, veggie-packed recipes linked below. Each one has been carefully tested and reviewed by me and the Dr. Yum team to ensure they’re both nutritious and enjoyable!

Recipes

Spring Vegetable Sauté

Chocolate Zucchini cake

Tofu Veggie Scramble

Purple Power Smoothie

Sweet potato and carrot soup

We can’t wait for you to try these out and tell us what you think!