Learn to love your Veggies

20 Sep Learn to love your Veggies

We found these tips on the Health website.Veggies ! Hope you enjoy these great recipes, we love them!Brussels sprouts, broccoli, beets—yuck! Not so fast. Using a different cooking technique can totally transform the vegetables you thought you hated into mouthwatering sides you’ll want to make again and again. Here are 13 nutrient-packed vegetables you can instantly make taste better with a little know-how.

Brussels sprouts

Why you should eat them: These baby cabbages contain just 38 calories per cup and are packed with cancer-preventing phytonutrients and fiber.Yuck-factor: An organic compound can cause Brussels sprouts to give off a stinky, sulfurous smell. “Boiling can make them seem slimy and even leach some of the nutrients into the water,” says Cynthia Sass, MPH, RD, Health‘s contributing nutrition editor.Make them delicious: Roast Brussels sprouts to seal in nutrients and flavor. “Just slice in half, mist with a garlic and herb infused olive oil and roast on a baking sheet at 400 degrees,” Sass says.Try this recipe: Roasted Brussels Sprouts With Crispy 

Why you should eat it: Broccoli, another cruciferous veggie, is high in vitamin C and fiber and racks up just 33 calories per cup.Yuck-factor: Broccoli can taste quite dry when eaten raw, and watch out if it’s overcooked—you’ll end up with some very mushy florets. Make it delicious: Broccoli tastes best blanched—a cooking technique where you dunk veggies into icewater after boiling them for two to three minutes. “This helps

broccoli retain its crunchiness,” says Kristin Kirkpatrick, RD, wellness manager for Cleveland Clinic’s Wellness Institute. It also ensures the nutrients won’t get zapped from the food. After you’ve blanched the broccoli, you can pair it with an edamame dip for some extra fiber or top with lemon juice for an added kick, Kirkpatrick says.

Peas

Why you should eat them: A cup of raw split peas has 50 grams of fiber and still contains 16 grams after being cooked.Yuck-factor: “If you’ve only ever had the canned peas, then you are probably used to them being mushy,” says Tanya Zuckerbrot, RD.Make them delicious: Peas are another food you will love after blanching. “Peas boiled very fast are going to have a nice snap to them,” says Zuckerbrot. Just make sure to follow the blanching times suggested by the National Center for Home and Food Preservation. The heat makes it easy for chlorophyll in the peas (or really any vegetable) to lose magnesium. Leading to a chemical change that will leave them a yucky olive green if overcooked. Zuckerbrot says. When done just right, blanching will help your peas maintain ultimate freshness.Try this recipe: Orzo with Shrimp and Tiny Peas

Spinach

Why you should eat it: At seven calories a cup, this superfood is filled with lutein, folate, potassium, and fiber, all nutrients vital to keeping your heart going strong.Yuck-factor: Some people find raw spinach too bitter, while overcooking the leafy green leaves a soggy, mushy mess.Make it delicious: Adding fruit to your spinach salad cuts the bitter flavor, Sass says. With a drizzle of olive oil for seasoning, it will taste even better. “When I cook it, I often lightly sauté in a little bit of hot chili oil, along with minced garlic and chopped sweet bell pepper.”