Thursday, August 16, 2012

Project 10: Vegetable Edition

I'm happy to say that things have finally settled down again. After a whirlwind two weeks of trips and overnight guests it's nice to get back to every day life.

With the return to reality, I've also turned my attention back to living a healthy lifestyle and losing the last of the baby weight. I'm 1.5lbs over what I was when I first left on my camping trip almost 3 weeks ago, but i'm ok with that. After all, I know I wasn't eating right or exercising the way I should.

But now I've gotten back into the habit of recording all of the food I eat, and getting a work-out in at least 3 times a week. I've been going on long, 45 minute walks with the kids in the double stroller, using Wii Fit several times a week, and doing some ab work with weights. I'm feeling good again, and happy to be back on track!

My goal is still to get down to my pre-Stephanie weight by my birthday. (Which is September 17th, for those of you who were just dying to know!) That means I need to lose 6 more pounds. I think it's possible!

One of the things I've noticed that I'm lacking in my daily eating is vegetables. I think this is common for a lot of people, although I have to say that I actually do enjoy eating vegetables. The problem is, I get stuck in a rut. In fact, when we were driving to BlogHer we got talking about food and I listed all the vegetables that I like. (Broccoli, cauliflower, peas, carrots, green-beans, corn and sweet potatoes.) This is way more of a variety than I ate when I was kid (broccoli and corn was pretty much it back then) so i was surprised when my van-mates laughed. They insisted that I really don't have as much variety in my vegetable arsenal as I thought.

Not only do I not each as wide a variety as I should, I also get bored with the way I prep them. I tend to buy bags of frozen vegetables and boil them. They taste fine, Dan and the kids eat them with me, and so that's that. But after awhile it does get boring. I want to add some pizzazz to our vegetables. I want to add new flavors. I want to eat more than just one vegetable at a time, and I want vegetables to often be part of the main dish not just a simple side.

And so i'm asking you, my readers, to share some of your ideas. I'm looking for new varieties of veggies, as well as different ways of preparing my old stand-bys. Feel free to share any of your ideas in the comments below. I'm looking forward to hearing from you! Thanks. :)

10 comments:

  1. My new favorite is to sauté peppers (green & red), onion, summer squash (or zucchini) or really any fresh ones that I have around. Another idea (that mom made last week & I'd never thought of) is get the frozen steam fresh vegis but instead of microwaving them saute them in some vegi oil. It adds a whole different taste to it! You could do it with any frozen vegetables too

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  2. I'm into Zucchini and yellow squash lately. I slice them and season with the Trader Joes everyday seasoning grinder with oil then either sauté or grill. Also have you checked out the ri farm veggie box service? It's $20 a box and you get locally grown variety of veggies with recipe ideas. They have pick up stations throughout the state. Good way to force new veggies

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    1. oooh, I love yellow squash and zucchini! I'll have to take a trip to TJ's and get that seasoning grinder. I hadn't heard about the farm box service! i'll check it out. Thanks so much :)

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  3. I looooooove roasted veggies. Toss some fresh broccoli with chopped garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper then roast in the oven. So good! You can do it with any veggies really. I also love to add artichoke hearts to pastas. Throw peppers and onions into your red sauce.

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    1. oooh, that sounds delicious. I don't think I've ever roasted any veggies except Sweet Potatos. I'll have to give it a shot!

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  4. I always try to saute some add veggies to rice, pasta, stuffing whatever starch we're having. I add grated veggies to meatloaf. My kids LOVE vegetables, so I roast a lot too. Their favorite is the small or tiny potatoes and pearl onions from Trader Joes.

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    1. I like the idea of adding veggies to things, especially meatloaf. We eat a lot of that around here. I'll have to give it a try. Thanks! :)

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  5. Veggies was our theme tonight at dinner! We did an easy veggie lasagna. We lined fat free whole grain frozen ravioli (with just cheese, no meat) in a pan with some olive oil. Topped it with layers of fresh spinach (that we boiled before hand), sliced tomatoes, sliced green pepper and sliced zucchini;then topped it with fat free shredded mozzarella cheese. Baked at 425 for a half hour. Amazing!

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    1. I am stealing this recipe! Love it. Thanks so much for commenting :) xoxo

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