I hate vegetables. There I said it. I’m 32 years old and I don’t eat anywhere close to the daily recommended 3-5 servings. If I get 3-5 servings a week I’m lucky.
I blame this on my mother, who made us kids eat veggies that made us gag. Broccoli is my main nemesis since she used to drown it in melted Cheeze-Wiz and make us clean our plates. The Cheeze-Wiz wasn’t the problem – I liked the stuff, but I clearly remember swallowing whole chunks of broccoli with a swig of milk like I was taking a vitamin. I gagged the entire time.
I want to like vegetables – I love walking through the farmers market in the summer and lusting after all the fresh, beautiful goodness in the stands. Who can resist the dewy piles of fresh asparagus, green beans, ramps, beets, turnips and squash? But despite several attempts in my adult life to like them, I just don’t. I can do lettuces and fresh spinach, any pepper that’s not green, carrots, tomatoes, and celery. I don’t mind cauliflower if it’s roasted with olive oil and a fair helping of parmesan. I might enjoy a spring pea or two, but only when they are in season. The list pretty much stops there.
So I take multi-vitamin, eat lots of fruit and call it a day. I don’t usually stress over it. But, being pregnant I’m paying much more attention to what I eat. With M I had a “green smoothie” just about everyday and I had them for breakfast often when I was on Weight Watchers. This go around I haven’t been that good at making them, especially since I never feel like eating. (True story! I’m the odd pregnant woman who gets very few cravings and feels like eating is more of a chore then a joy. The only think I want is milk…glasses and glasses of milk).
Inspired by Kyle Roth’s tweets about his family’s new smoothie tradition along with reading this post by Mir I got back into the smoothie swing. I love green smoothies as you absolutely cannot taste the “green” part at all. I also love that I can get in a host of daily requirements all in one swoop. The best part is that M has taken a liking to them as well which means more veggies for her, too!
Here’s my basic formula for my favorite flavor combo:
One whole orange, peeled
One whole banana, peeled
Handful of raw (no sugar) frozen strawberries (about a ¾ cup)
1 serving/scoop vanilla protein powder – I prefer whey
As much fresh, baby spinach as you can stuff in the blender – I would say about 3 big handfuls or 2-3 cups
Some orange juice or water, depending on what you have – to thin to desired consistency
It looks like pond sludge but it’s mighty tasty and packs in 3 servings of fruit and 2 servings of veggies:
If I have it on hand, I’ll also add a healthy dose of flaxseed oil. If I’m out of the protein powder or if I don’t want it (when the smoothie is a snack rather then a meal) I’ll replace it with a little vanilla extract. And, after reading Mir’s post I sought out some Chia Seeds (Salba) at Whole Foods – they are in the supplement/wellness area – and have started adding about 2 tablespoons of those as well.
This makes enough for a large drink for me and a smaller one for M and has become our morning breakfast. It really does keep me satisfied until at least lunch, and it makes me feel so much better about my overall nutrition. Plus, it’s less than 400 calories, gives me 1/3 of my daily goal of 60-70 grams of protien (when I add the powder) and lots of healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
