If you don’t get at least your minimum number of servings of vegetable per day then you are depriving your body of basic and vital nutrients that it needs.
The health benefits associate with eating vegetables are compelling and numerous: lose weight, burn fat, resistance to disease, clearer skin, younger appearance, improved elimination, higher energy levels- to name just a few.

But, sometimes it can seem difficult to incorporate them into your daily meals, or you get stuck in a rut with the same old combos day in day out. Here you will discover the top 3 easy ways that we use in our household on an almost daily basis to squeeze more vegetables into our diets in interesting ways.

“Not” Pasta

We are huge pasta lovers in this house, but did you know that courgette (zucchini) makes a fantastic substitute? It’s especially good in a lasagne. All you need is one of those peeler that can make thin slices. As well as lasagne you can also make your own Tagliatelle by taking your vegetable strips and slicing them lengthways- the stripy cream and green ribbons look so pretty and appetising on the plate.

For cooking, it’s just the same as fresh pasta and the texture is similar.

“Have with Everything Roast Mediterranean Vegetable Sauce”

Try this quick and easy recipe:

Slice and dice into 1″ cubes:

* 2 courgettes (zucchini)

* 1 aubergine (egg plant)

* 2 sweet peppers (red and yellow look great)

* 5 tomatoes

* 1 onion.

Pile your veggies in a shallow roasting tray then toss them all in olive oil (2-3 tablespoons), 2-3 cloves of garlic (chopped or grated) and salt and pepper and chopped herbs.

Preheat your oven to 220ºC (425ºF) and roast the veggies for about 40 minutes until the edges of the vegetables are starting to go brown.

At this point you either have an amazing, rustic sauce to serve or you can (with extreme care!) blend half of it to make a smoother sauce.

This sauce is fabulous with so many dishes. We have it with pasta, served over steamed vegetables, with potatoes, rice, quinoa- the list is endless. You can even mix in a little water and serve it as a tasty soup in winter. Vary the vegetables and include your favourite herbs- sometimes I also like to add black olives sometimes for a “gutsier” sauce.

Raw Vegetable Juices

I love fresh vegetable juices- especially in summer- so refreshing! Here are a few of our favourite blends:

Cucumber strawberry, cucumber apple, cucumber carrot, carrot & fresh ginger, carrot apple, carrot beetroot, beetroot apple.

Getting a mix of raw and cooked vegetables into your diet is best because there are enzymes present in raw vegetables that really benefit the body. And since they’re so delicious it doesn’t seem like any effort at all!

Try these suggestions out to get more veggies into your diet, remember, by making small, subtle changes like the ones described here, you can transition towards a healthier diet and reap the rewards.

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