New Vegetable Testing

Asparagus
Artichokes
French Beans
corn
mixed salads with all kinds of stuff in it... cheese, potatoes, tuna or chicken, boiled eggs, etc.
Pasta salads
Tomatoes
Arugula
White beans in salads

Just mix anything together that you want. Add a good dressing, toss. Serve.

Or try Roasted Veggies. Very good. Use eggplant, bell peppers, onions, carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, Toss with EVOO Olive Oil, sprinkle with salt, put on a foil lined pan, stick it in the oven at about 400 degrees, watch it and take it out when the veggies are cooked/a tad browned.

I love Apple Bacon Green Beans! They are pretty amazing and look fancy but are easy to make.

You can also make Shishkabobs (Sp?) And put red potatoes, chicken (or other meat) with peppers, onions, and corn on them.
Fun, easy, and good

Roasted cauliflower: cut into bite size pieces or a bit larger, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast in the over at 350 - 375 for 15 - 20 minutes. Can also be done with brussels sprouts, carrots, pearl onions, or fingerling potatoes. Or toss all the veggies together and roast. Easy, super healthy and delicious.

I also cut up raw bell peppers, celery, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers or any combination thereof and have them out on the table to munch on.

Also good: pan roasted asparagus. Heat up a pan or griddle, DON'T add oil or butter or anything. Throw the asparagus onto the dry hot pan and sprinkle salt and pepper to taste. Cook, tossing around a bit, until you like. I prefer them a bit firm, and slightly charred.

Next time you make any sort of pasta, throw in a bag of baby spinach right at the end after you've tossed the pasta in the sauce. Cook just a couple of minutes 'til the spinach is wilted and serve.

Or do the spinach on its own: olive oil, slivered garlic, red pepper flakes heated in a pan, throw in spinach, cook 'til *just* wilted, salt, pepper, eat.

Broccoli rabe: olive oil, slivered garlic, red pepper flakes heated in a pan, throw in broccoli rabe (cut into slightly larger than bite size), toss for a minute, add a couple Tbsp chicken stock or water, cover, simmer for 6 minutes or so, serve.

Another cauliflower one: boil cauliflower 'til very soft, drain, put in food chopper, add a bit of milk, butter, salt, pepper, chop/blend until the consistency of mashed potatoes, adding more milk/butter as you like. A sprinkle of nutmeg right at the end is also yummy. I've actually argued with my kids that this was in fact cauliflower and NOT mashed potatoes.

The above broccoli rabe recipe can be used for baby bok choy also, but sprinkle on a bit of soy sauce and sesame oil at the end.

Eggplant: slice, sprinkle with salt and let drain for 30 min, rinse, dry, dredge with flour and fry in hot oil 'til lightly golden. drain on paper towel, salt, pepper.

And in winter, veggie soup: throw bite size pieces of any veggie (I use butternut squash, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, cauliflower, carrots, onions so my soup is a nice orange color) into a pot, cover with chicken or vegetable stock AND some tomato soup (like the ones in the rectangular containers, not condensed), bring to a boil and simmer 'til veggies are all nice and soft, add salt and pepper to taste, get your trusty stick blender and blend away until it's smooth and creamy - call it "cream of vegetable soup" if you like, even though there's not a drop of dairy in there. Make a huge batch and freeze what you don't use.

In salads: avocado, avocado, avocado! Healthy and delicious, although technically a fruit, not a veggie.

Enjoy!

We discovered roasting green beans: toss with canola or olive oil, and roast at 400 degrees until desired doneness. I like them browned, personally. You can also do this with broccoli and cauliflower and asparagus. Add a little salt and pepper or lemon salt and parmesan. Add cauliflower to your lineup: it's milder than broccoli and comes in colors like orange and purple. I also like to grill asparagus. A little oil and a grill pan--yummy! Another mild veggie combo to add is summer squash and zucchini: slice and grill, saute, or roast with oil. Add some spices or parm, and voila. You can add any of these to noodles (we do whole wheat). Today we did raw zucchini with ham slivers, dill, noodles, plain yogurt, and a drizzle of olive oil mixed together. Super easy and tasty. My 4-yo ate two bowls. Good luck!

KC---You've gotten some great ideas. When I bring home something new to try, I usually go to these sites for ideas: www.eatingwell.com or www.vegetarian times.com.

You might also want to try kale, swiss chard and collard greens. Mostly, these are used in soups or stews but they can also be cut up finely and put in salads. Swiss chard is like spinach, only with bigger and thicker leaves. There is a recipe for gnocci (potato dumplings) and swiss chard, a one-pan meal that is VERY yummy.

I cannot recommend roasting veggies enough. Most people who would NEVER eat brussel sprouts or beets actually (usually) like them when roasted. We often roast a BIG pan of root veggies, sweet potatoes are excellent roasted, and use them for several meals during the week. Once as a side-dish, another time on a salad, sometimes cut up smaller to put on wraps. Kale can also be roasted with oil and seasonings and they end up as chips...again, yummy.

Feel free to contact me if you have any other questions. I have a wellness education business and I basically encourage and help people to eat more fruits and veggies. They are the key to a healthy diet and disease prevention. Enjoy...D.

We eat all the same, plus carrots, peas, yellow squash, zucchini, cauliflower. My son prefers everything plain, or with just a touch of a salt and butter. I like to add various flavors, tarragon for peas, onion and olive oil for green beans, brown sugar and butter for carrots.

Basically, I steam or saute all of our veggies. Most are really good with a little sweet onion sauteed in olive oil first, then toss in the veggie, and whatever other seasoning you want.

Oh, have you tried roasting your asparagus? Roll them in olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, place in a single layer on a cookie sheet and roast for 10-12 minutes in a pre-heated 400 degree oven. You want the tops to get just a little browned and the stems tender.

Also, take a bunch of fresh veggies, add celery, colored peppers, and onion, and toss them in a curry sauce - makes a great meatless main dish served over rice, or an interesting side.

Another main dish idea is a veggie lasagna - roast or saute all the veggies in olive oil and Italian seasoning, layer with noodles, ricotta (mix this with an egg, garlic and onion powder, and parsley) and veggies and red or white sauce. I like to use two layers of sauce - one white and one red. You can use the jarred sauce and the noddles that require no pre-cooking to make this a quick and easy dish.

Have fun eating your veggies!!

God Bless

We do about the same as you (minus asparagus and add in cucumbers). We have recently discovered that most of us like cut up cucumbers, celery, carrots, bell peppers with low fat or fat free sour cream with ranch seasoning (I buy it in the large containers at Sams). I go home and cut them up right away so we all have something to snack on but also it's already cut up should you choose to use it for fajitas, salads, etc.

Or what about cauliflower (also can be dipped) but then can be cooked with velveeta poured over it. Or you could make cauliflower salad - chopped cauliflower, relish, mayo (not sure of all the ingredients) but it's simple and tastes similar to cole slaw and is DELISH with steak!!

We also love peas, carrots and cauliflower.

For some great ideas for how to make a variety of veggies, you might be interested in this site: weelicious.com. I was surprised that my son loved her okra nuggets!

Steamed califlower, carrots. Frozen peas. Sauteed cabbage - in a little EVOO with salt and pepper.

Sweet potatoes cut into "chips", coated in olive oil, lay on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with enough garlic salt to your liking. You can also use the popcorn salt (I think it's better that way) and bake until lightly browned.

Summer squash - cut into chunks (with skin on) and put in a pan with butter and garlic salt to your liking. You can cook until soft yet crunchy, or keep cooking until it is squash mush. Either way it's very yummy.

We hide veggies in everything ;) Veggie pizza, lasanga, wraps, etc. You can put shredded veggies in/on just about anything and because it doesn't look like a carrot/zucchini/artichoke, kids are more prone to eat the indistinguishable ;) I am the MASTER at hiding the healthy stuff! My daughters are super eaters; my son is NOT, so hide the veggies I must ;)

Even something as simple as adding lettuce and tomato to sandwiches goes a long way!!

We like sweet potatoes. Bake at 350 , in the skins til squishy....usually about 2 hours. We put a bit of butter, cinnamon and agave on them. Serve in the skins or out.
Corn and peas together.
Green and red peppers RAW . A great snack w/ peanut butter, especially the red ones.

Green beans OR asparagus Boil about 5 minutes...we like them a bit crunchy. Drain. Back to the pan toss w/ a bit of butter, lemon pepper and parmasean cheese. Sometimes I cook a bunch of green beans so they are ready and easy to just toss when it is time to eat.

Zuchinni and onions, sauteed in butter or olive oil. Season to taste w/ garlic salt and parmasean cheese.

They're expensive right now, but my 3 yr old, husband and I all love eating raw carrots, cucumber, broccili, and red bell pepper, either as 'sticks' with ranch to dip it in or with some italian dressing poured all over it. (my son thought that 'bell pepper' would be spicy. So we started calling them "crunchies" and he still calls them crunchies months later.)

We also just do peas - get a pan, put some butter in it, add frozen peas, heat for a few minutes until peas are done. My 3 yr old gobbles them up.

We love brussel sprouts, squash, zucchini, snap peas, lima beans and so many more!! One of our favorites for this time of year is summer squash, zucchini and thin sliced onions. We put them in a foil packed with salt, pepper and either olive oil or butter drizzled over. Cook 15-20 mins while you grill something else and they are soft. My 3 kids ages 7, 4, and 1 love them. They are pretty sweet and a good new veggie option to try. Can add tomatoes too! Good luck.

I like to make savory sweet potatoes. Instead of slathering them in butter and brown sugar (which is also very yummy) I will peel and cube them along with red potatoes and russet and/or yukon gold potatoes. I toss them with some chopped onions, olive oil, salt and pepper, and thyme. Then I roast them like I would any other potato dish and enjoy!

I am sorry I have no exact measurements because I tend to eyeball everything when I cook. You can however find any roasted potato recipe and apply those amounts to this recipe.

Grilled zuccini and grilled squash are super easy and my kids even like it. I do have to tell one that the zuccini is cooked cucumber but she eats it! Just slice length wise to make long strips, I like mine a little thicker because they hold up better. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill on each side until crisp tender. Some people like it cooked a little more but I find that it gets mushy if it's cooked too long. I do the same thing with my asparagus and with peppers. I leave the peppers in halves or quarters though. Corn on the cob is great grilled too.

I like to do my broccoli and green beans Italian style. They were my favorite growing up! Take fresh green beans or broccoli and steam or boil them until crisp tender. Then toss them with fresh sliced garlic, extra virgin olive oil, and salt to taste. I salt them while they are steaming and add more if I need it.

Brussels sprouts! Yuk I know, but I found a great recipe by Rachael Ray. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/brussels-s... . Holy cow were they delicious!

The absolute easiest and tastiest way to do veggies in my opinion? Pasta salad. Typically I use celery, a tiny bit of red onion chopped very fine, carrots, peppers, frozen peas, broccoli, and fresh corn cut off the cob (raw). Toss it with any cooked pasta and your favorite italian dressing and you have a light refreshing meal. I will someitmes toss in some cucumber and tomato just before serving. You can make this one a day or two ahead and then add a little more dressing just before serving.

Tomato cucumber salad is a favorite with my kids. Just toss with extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, and a little salt...or use whatever Italian dressing you like.

Also, my kids love dipping any veggies in ranch dressing. Raw broccoli and cauliflour, peppers, carrots, celery...typical veggie tray stuff.

Hope this helped!

I use stir fry to try out new veggies. It's a sneaky way to get it in there. Sugar snap peas. Baby corn, baby carrots, eggplant, bok choy, cabbage, have all made debuts in stir fry, along with bell peppers, mushrooms, juliene carrots and celery.

Roasting vegetables in the oven is a great way to eat new ones. Some of my favorites are: mushrooms, cauliflower, eggplant (cut into rounds), butternut squash cubes (season with fresh garlic, parsley, salt), summer squash/zucchini, red peppers, brussle sprouts, asparagus... Most veggies I toss in salt and olive oil. The mushrooms and cauliflower are good tossed in some soy sauce.

Beets can be good cooked, grated, and tossed with some olive oil, lemon juice, fresh fine cut onion and garlic, as a salad. I also have a great kale salad recipe (8 cups kale, chop fine; 1 can garbanzos; 1 can olives, sliced in half; 1 avocado, diced; red and yellow peppers diced fine; 1/2 red onion diced fine; dressing - 1/2 juice from garbanzos, 1/4 c. soy sauce, 1/4 c. lemon juice, 4 oz. of pesto. Toss and serve, its even good leftover) that I took to potluck last week and it was devoured, I don't think anyone knew it was kale.

Of course there is also the southern classic of fried green tomatoes. I slice, salt them, bread with corn meal, and fry on med heat with lid on until golden on one side, then flip and finish with lid off.

Red cabbage is great shredded fine with red onion, then saute until just tender, add a little soy sauce.

Cooked Artichokes. Trim stem and end of leaves, boil for 45 min. Discard first layer of leaves. Dip in melted butter or mayo, and scrape the soft inside part of leaves with your teeth. Once the leaves are gone, scrape out the seeds/fuzz and eat the heart with your mayo/butter. Good and fun to eat!

Hope thats helpful. I love summer, sometimes we eat meals of all vegetables!