Ensuring my children eat enough vegetables every day to meet the
Canadian Food Guide can be quite tricky! They can be picky some days, other days they do not want to eat certain vegetables raw (I’m sure you get the picture!). To ensure they are intaking enough vegetables, I have five vegetables that I keep stocked up in our fridge all the time that are so versatile and can be used in a variety of different recipes.
Here are our favourite vegetables that are used daily in our home:
1) Spinach
I love love spinach! Spinach is an excellent addition to recipes as it has a high nutritional value and rich in antioxidants. It is a source of Vitamin A, C, E, folate, iron, calcium, potassium, b2, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids and
more! I purchase at a minimum three bundles of spinach a week. It is the perfect addition into any recipe: spaghetti sauces,
sloppy joe’s,
Shepard’s pie and many more! Just shred it up and add it while cooking. Spinach is also a great addition in salads.
2) Mushrooms
Mushrooms are a low calorie food and are a good source of B vitamins, selenium and potassium. They are an excellent addition in any recipe – we use mushrooms in almost every dinner meal (and a lot of breakfast meals as well!). They are great additions to recipes with chicken and steak, and we always add them into our spaghetti sauces.
Check out our family’s favourite recipe using mushrooms
here.3) Carrots
My children are not a fan of raw carrots what so ever. That being said if I cut them and put them in sauces, casseroles or stir fries – they have no problem eating them!. They contain roughly 87% water and rich in minerals and vitamins. Carrots are also full of carotene which our body converts into Vitamin A. They are the perfect addition to sauces, chili and I love to use a potato peeler and create shavings to add them into our meatballs.
Want to sneak those carrots in, try my suggestion above with shaving carrots to add to meatballs – find the complete recipe
here.
4) Cauliflower
I was never a huge fan of cauliflower growing up. I did not like the appearance of it and how crunchy it was – it was not until I went away to school that I realized what a versatile vegetable it truly is! Cauliflower is low in fat and carbohydrates but high in fiber, folate, water and Vitamin C! There are so many fantastic recipes on how to cook cauliflower. It can be roasted, fried, raw, steamed and boiled. As a bonus, I have also seen it used as a substitute for potatoes in mashed potatoes
5) Green Beans
This is one vegetable my children will eat raw. We cut the ends together and they love to munch on them as snacks. Green beans are low in calories, saturated fats, sodium and cholesterol while still being a good source of thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, Vitamin B6, calcium, iron, folate and magnesium!They are excellent in casserole and stir fries!
What are your top vegetables that you love to keep stocked in your fridge?
Find more nutritional info here.
