We know we should be eating plenty of vegetables
to help us live healthy,
but sometimes sticking with that goal can be tough.
So, in today's healthy eats, we learn how to get creative
with our veggie prep.
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We know vegetables are good for us,
we know vegetables are delicious, but you know what?
Vegetables can even be exciting and here to prove that
is registered Dietician, Nutritionist Rebekah Lancford.
Rebekah, vegetables are the topic for the day.
Why do you think people kind of shy away
from them sometimes?
- I think a lot of us grew up with our parents
cooking them in ways that aren't so flattering.
So, my mom boiled everything, nothing really had any flavor,
everything was mushy
and I think a lot of people get stuck there
with one bad experience,
that just kind of tells them I don't like it
when in fact they probably do if it was cooked
in a different way.
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Be creative and think outside the box
is the key to kind of enlivening your vegetables
and making them kind of a more appealing option.
- All right, so what are your tips
to enliven those vegetables and beat the boredom?
- So, you're gonna wanna take a deep dive into your pantry
in your spice cabinet, do some meal prep on Sundays,
so you could pick like three or four different vegetables.
You can cook them all on a sheet pan at once
and then you'll have them for the whole week
and use different flavors or seasoning mixes
on all of those vegetables
so that you have a variety of flavors.
Roasting is gonna give you a ton more flavor,
especially if you're adding in onions with those vegetables,
garlic powder, red chili flake, salt pepper,
some really tasty olive oil.
- So, let's talk about the benefits
of eating our vegetables.
There are so many.
- The first thing that comes to mind is the fiber.
Fiber is really good for your digestive system.
Obviously has been shown to reduce the risk of colon cancer
pretty significantly.
It's also really good for your cholesterol
if you have high cholesterol or a history of it,
all the vegetables have different colors.
If you've ever heard the phrase like eat the rainbow,
all those different colors are different compounds
that are good for you.
The goal for most adults is going to be one cup,
three times a day, so three cups of vegetables.
It sounds like a lot at first,
but if you think about it like about eight normal size
little broccoli trees is about one cup.
- All right, well, we're ready to get excited
about our vegetables
and one way to do that is by learning a new recipe
and you're gonna share one with us today, what is it?
- If we're gonna make Moroccan carrot fries.
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Make sure he gets the bag of Walt carrots,
give them a good scrub.
You don't need to peel them
if you have a good vegetable brush
and you're gonna go ahead and trim off your ends
really quickly and you're gonna cut them in half
and now because carrots really roll around a lot
when you have a knife,
I really recommend putting the tip of your knife down
into the carrot first and then you're gonna hold it
and cut in half.
We're looking for like a matchstick, like a fry shape
and then you're gonna add those into your bowl.
I took a bunch of spices and blended them together
to be a Moroccan seasoning
and I like to put it in my mortar and pestle.
It's got cumin, clove, cinnamon, cayenne pepper,
salt pepper, ginger,
toss it with a little bit of coconut oil,
just smelling so incredibly fragrant and delicious,
it's way more than just a normal carrot.
Cook them and passing the pan in the oven
or a panel cooking sheet.
Do 450, about 20 minutes,
maybe flip em' until you see some really nice brown color.
- What's the one thing you want people to remember
about eating their vegetables?
- The one thing I would say to remember is to have fun,
enjoy your food.
Take some time to be creative,
dig around your spice cabinet, look up some new recipes
and enjoy it, but make sure you get in those veggies.
- Now, it's time to hear from you.
We wanna see how you get creative with your vegetables.
Tag us with your veggie pics on Instagram
at livinghealthytv.