This year, one of my "resolutions" was to eat more vegetables. I will be completely honest, this dietitian struggles to eat her recommended vegetables each day. We all should be striving for 7-11 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. I could eat fruit until the sun doesn't shine, but veggies, I just can't seem to get enough in.
I personally try to limit my fruit intake to 2 servings a day (serving size=the size of your fist or one small apple or 1/2 banana are examples) and the rest to come from my non-starchy vegetables (everything but potatoes, peas, corn, etc). Most days, I get about 2 servings of my non-starchy vegetables. Bad dietitian!
So, I am starting on this new adventure. I saw an commercial featuring a blender that blends whole vegetables into juices. It does not get rid of the skins or seeds, therefore keeping all the great benefits of fiber and other nutrients. This is different from "juicing" where you just get the juice from foods. Now the blender is a little pricey, so I decided before I committed to this, I would try something a little more inexpensive.
I bought a $16 dollar, 450 watt blender from Target and had my first go last night. I made a fantastic natural, very low sodium vegetable juice. It taste great and now I am ready to get even more adventurous! From the recipe (I will list it below), I will get 6-7 servings of my non-starchy vegetables in a day in just 24 oz of juice that I can easily drink. This is an easy and great way for me to get that big plate of vegetables in during my hectic work day.
Veggie Dream
3 Roma tomatoes
2 cups baby spinach
1/4 of a large white onion
1/2 beet, steamed
2 celery stalks
16 baby carrots
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp of black pepper
10 oz water
1. If using a regular blender, cut all veggies into 3/4 inch cubes.
2. Put in blender based on water content of vegetable, the more water the better the blending. Start with tomatoes and work your way down the recipe, in that order.
3. In between the tougher vegetables, pour water into the blender until the vegetable is covered.
4. Blend until smooth
5. Makes around 24-30 ounces of juice, this will be your total servings of vegetables for the day.
You can add water to make it the consistency that you like. I also like to put a scoop of Chia seeds into mine to get Omega 3 Fatty Acids in the juice.
Day one of drinking this started today, I will keep you posted on my new vegetable commitment.
Ann, this looks like a great drink to start the day. I am going to try the Every Other Day Diet (EODD) as soon as I can get to the market and buy the stuff. This will fit in nicely. -- Carol (Mrs. Okie)
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