The lazy girl’s guide to veggies

We know we need to eat more vegetables.  And we have good intentions.  But then life gets in the way, and you realize that the beautiful organic produce you spent a small fortune on is shriveling up in the produce drawer.

So how can we make life easier?

Think before you buy.  What does your week look like?  What is realistic?  You do not have to do anything elaborate to your vegetables…just eat them.

I like to always have a few options that I can just grab out of the fridge…no prep required.  I love sugar snap peas, and they hold up pretty well.  Carrots are another good one.  Don’t buy the crappy baby carrots.  I buy whole organic carrots and just eat them plain when I’m in a rush.  This may remind you of Bugs Bunny.  Or Pheobe Cates in Fast Times at Ridgemont High.  Take your pick.  The little mini bell peppers are a fun snack too.  They’re great for car trips.

Pre-washed baby organic spinach is a great time saver.  You can use it for a salad, or cook quickly in some olive oil or avocado oil, my personal fave.  I’ll often throw some spinach into scrambled eggs in the morning.  And maybe some of the mini peppers, chopped up.

I try to get a variety of leafy greens into my body, so if last week was spinach, this week might be arugula.  Keeps things interesting.

Sometimes it’s worth it to do a little prep work up front and know you have something really delicious in the fridge.  Just about any sturdy vegetable holds up well when it’s roasted.  Roasting sweetens and intensifies the flavor.  I discussed this in an earlier post, Fall treat…roasted veggies.  My suggestion is to wash the veggies as soon as you get home from the store (or better yet, local farmer’s market!), blast some upbeat music (download “Painkiller” by Meghan Trainor and Jason Derulo…you’ll thank me!), and get to chopping.  I roast a ton of vegetables at once so I can use them throughout the week.  Besides my favorite brussels sprouts and mini bell peppers, sometimes I’ll do mushrooms, asparagus, carrots or sweet potatoes.

So that’s it…don’t make your life too complicated.  Eating more vegetables will help you feel happy, healthy and hot.  You’ll be so happy knowing you have tasty food in the fridge, ready to go.  Vegetables are very nutrient dense (more so than most fruit), meaning you get a large concentration of vitamins and minerals for a small amount of calories.  And remember, nutrients coming from whole foods, as opposed to a pill, are more bioavailable.  So you’ll be healthy.  And those nutrients are supporting your healthy skin, hair and body.  Very hot!  Go grab a carrot from the fridge.