You probably know that you should be eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Most of us know that, but knowing and doing are two different things, aren’t they? Like most people, you probably struggle to get even a few fruits and vegetables into your family’s diet as well as your own – even though you believe in their health benefits.
Your family may prefer to fill up on a bag of chips, some cookies, or a bowl of pasta instead of trying an apple or a plate of steamed broccoli. Even for the healthiest of eaters, sometimes convenience foods are just more appealing and….more convenient. If you, your kids, or your spouse don’t love veggies, that’s okay. This is where creativity comes in!
Here are a 8 ideas to sneak some extra fruits and vegetables into your family’s diet…
1. Begin with a breakfast smoothie
Smoothies are a tasty and sneaky way to add several servings of fruits and vegetables to your daily diet. All you have to do is put some frozen fruits, greens like spinach or kale, yogurt or Kefir, and splash of milk or juice and combine into a blender. I recommend adding a scoop of protein powder for added protein and flavor if you opt for a like vanilla, chocolate or strawberry flavored powder. For even more servings of greens and fruit, try adding a scoop of doTERRA Greens. These are my absolute favorite because they taste really sweet and will make just about any smoothie taste much better, but they are made without added sugar and include essential oils to support digestion.
Just blend all of your ingredients up for a few seconds and you have a healthy and travel-friendly breakfast ready to go. This is also ideal for people who don’t like to eat breakfast since slowly sipping on breakfast can be easier than eating food early in the day.
Here are two easy smoothie recipes to try:
Berry Tasty
- ½ peeled and frozen banana
- ½ cup frozen berries
- 1 handful spinach and/or doTERRA Greens powder
- 4 oz plain yogurt or kefir
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- Add water, non-dairy milk, and/or orange juice to desired consistency
Choco PB & Banana
- ½ peeled and frozen banana
- 1 handful spinach or kale
- 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
- ½ tbsp nut butter
- 4 oz non-dairy milk or yogurt
- 3 drops liquid Stevia for added sweetness (optional)
2. Naturally sweeten your snacks
Fruit makes an excellent snack and can be enjoyed in dried or fresh form. ½ cup dried or 1 piece of fresh fruit is equal to one fruit serving. Dried fruit is easy to carry and doesn’t make a mess. Here are some easy ways to include more fruit:
- Add a small cartons of raisins, dried mango or apple slices to your child’s lunch box.
- Pack trail mix with plain nuts, raisins or cranberries, and sugar-free chocolate chips in your husband’s briefcase and/or your purse.
- Keep a bag of dried blueberries or dried pineapple around the house for when you or your kids are craving sweets.
- Make “ants on a log” with celery, nut butter or cream cheese, and raisins
- Spread nut butter on rice cakes and sprinkle on dried blueberries or strawberry slices
- Slice up 1 small apple and dip into 1 tbsp nut butter
- Make your own all-natural homemade fruit leather for the kids
- Add fruit slices or dried fruit to oatmeal or cereal
- Make a mini charcuterie snack with whole wheat crackers, grapes, cheese cubes and some olives
3. Hide veggies in baked goods
This is one of the sneakiest ways to increase fruit and vegetable consumption, and it works really well with muffins and brownies. Adding ingredients like zucchini is not only good for health, but can add moisture to baked goods. Most people won’t even notice!
Here are a few to try:
4. Add fruits and vegetables to sandwiches and salads
Sandwiches and salads are a great way to slide in some extra produce.
- Add some banana, sliced apples or strawberry slices to a peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat.
- Top a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, bell peppers, etc.
- Make a veggie wrap on a whole wheat tortilla with hummus, lettuce/spinach, eggplant, sun-dried tomato, roasted bell peppers, mushrooms, etc.
- Make tuna salad and finely dice veggies like celery, cucumber, tomato, mushrooms, etc to add some crunch and flavor. If they are cut really tiny, your family may not even realize how many veggies are included and therefore enjoy it more! Add some avocado mayo, mustard and/or relish to add extra flavor and moisture.
- Make salads with spinach or mixed greens instead of romaine, and toss in some chopped asparagus or green beans, as well as whatever toppings you enjoy.
- Make a broccoli slaw salad with light mayo and raisins
5. Explore new fruits and vegetables
Pick something exotic to peak your family’s curiosity. Their curiosity may outweigh their apprehension to trying something new. Try artichokes, plantains, papaya, mango, star fruit, eggplant, purple carrots, or anything else you can find in the produce department of your local stores.
Keep in mind that tastebuds change over time, so if you or your kids really dislike one vegetable or fruit, then trying something new may help them find something they like. Then, in another 6 months or so, revisit the old veggies and see if taste buds have changed.
6. Sneaky soups and stews
Soups and stews are a super convenient way to squeeze in more veggies and make them a bit more palatable for some people. Make a pot of vegetable soup or a stew that’s heavy on veggies and easy on the meat. You can also add a vegetable to your usual chili or soup, like adding some peas or diced up broccoli into a white chicken chili. If you have picky eaters in your family, try blending up leftover veggies and turning them into the base for your soup or stew. They may not even notice they’re in the meal! You can also try soups like potato leek, butternut squash or split pea soup for a creamy soup that’s made almost entirely from blended vegetables.
7. Try fruits and vegetables another way
Vegetables can be tricky because their flavors and textures are not always desirable to many people, especially kids, but they also change depending on how you prepare them. Personally, I’ve always hated raw broccoli and cauliflower. But steam or roast them and I actually enjoy it! Here are some ideas to make vegetables more appealing to both you and your family:
- Instead of raw veggies, try roasting them with lots of herbs and some olive oil
- Make cauliflower much more exciting with Animal Style Cauliflower or make riced cauliflower and use in place of white rice.
- Top steamed broccoli or zucchini with a dash of sea salt and some cheese
- Add flavor by using a dip like hummus, low-fat ranch, or salsa
- Cook eggplant parmesan, or add a layer of eggplant to chicken parmesan
- Mix zucchini noodles with whole wheat or gluten free pasta
- Steam spinach and add some salt instead of eating it raw
- Try kimchi or sauerkraut instead of raw cabbage
- Try steaming, boiling and roasting Brussels sprouts to see how you like them best. Roasted with bits of bacon is one of the most popular ways to get people to enjoy then!
8. Upgrade dessert
If you or your family just can’t say no to dessert, then try upgrading it to make it healthier by adding fruit. At least this way you’ll get some vitamins, minerals and fiber! Over time, this may also help you to kick sugar cravings if you can transition from something like ice cream to banana “nice cream”.
- Make your own healthy “nice cream” by blending frozen bananas and adding toppings like nuts and chocolate chips. Frozen mango or pineapple also work well.
- If it must be actual ice cream, frozen yogurt or sherbet, then top it with lots of fresh or frozen fruit.
- If you’re craving chocolate, try making protein pudding with sugar-free pudding and adding chocolate protein powder. You can also buy protein pudding online or at some vitamin stores.
- Melt chocolate chips and drizzle them over a bowl of berries, or cut a banana in half and drizzle melted chocolate chips and peanut butter on top!
Final Thoughts
Incorporate a few of these ideas and you will have everyone in your family eating more fruits and vegetables in no time! If you need more meal ideas that incorporate not produce, but more nutrient-dense foods in general, get one of my healthy meal plans for inspiration and meal prep tips.
