Anyone who knows me, knows I’m a huge fan of vegetables. I’m always trying to find ways to pack more veggies into every meal. I try to eat a ton of them because they are so beneficial to your health. I especially love zucchini, red peppers and broccoli.
Here are the top 3 advantages to eating as many vegetables as you can get your hands on:
- Low in Calories: Vegetables are generally low in calories and sugar, making them a great choice for weight management or loss. They provide a feeling of fullness with fewer calories, which can lower your daily caloric intake and help prevent overeating. Many vegetables have high water content, which helps keep you hydrated and supports bodily functions.
- High in Fibre: Vegetables are an excellent source of dietary fibre, which aids in digestion, preventing constipation and promoting regular bowel movements. Fibre feeds our healthy gut bacteria to keep our immune system healthy, inflammation down and mental health strong. Fibre also helps with maintaining a healthy weight, and lowers the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes.
- Nutrient-Rich: Vegetables are packed with essential vitamins and minerals such as vitamins A, C, K, and various B vitamins, as well as potassium, magnesium, and iron. These nutrients support overall health, including heart, immune, skin and bone health, and help prevent deficiencies.
Consuming a variety of vegetables in your daily diet can contribute to a well-balanced and healthy eating plan, providing both immediate and long-term health benefits. This is one of the best ways to support your overall physical and mental well-being.
I sometimes get asked what my absolute favourite vegetables are, and that answer is relatively easy. All I have to do it think about is the vegetables I put into my shopping basket pretty much 100% of the time.
My 3 Favourite Vegetables
VEGETABLE ONE: Zucchini is the best, here’s why…
Zucchini is packed with essential vitamins and minerals, including vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin K, potassium, and folate. It is low in calories but high in water (about 95%!) and fiber, making it a great choice for weight management and for adding volume to meals without extra calories. And, it doesn’t cause bloating.
I love the fact that zucchini can taste like whatever flavour you’re cooking with it. This makes this veggie an amazing and healthy filler for Mexican, Italian, Greek, Indian or Thai inspired dishes. This versatile veggie is a ‘must have’ in my shopping cart! There are so many ways to eat zucchini; it’s great raw or cooked. Slice it thin, season and toast it, and you have zucchini chips – a savoury, healthy snack that fills you up at night when you get the munchies. Spiralize it and you have super healthy noodles.
Here are My Favourite 2 Zucchini-Based Recipes:
- Instant Pot Chicken Zoodle Soup
https://www.hungry-girl.com/recipe-makeovers/instant-pot-chicken-zoodle-soup
Feel free to add more spices to this soup (I like it flavourful), or try it with boneless, skinless chicken thighs. When I use the thighs, I like to place them whole in the instant pot, and shred them with two forks afterwards.
2. Stuffed Zucchini Boats
https://www.spendwithpennies.com/saucy-stuffed-zucchini
When you scrape the flesh out of the zucchini shell, don’t throw it away. Either add it to your meat or bean based sauce, or I often toss it into my homemade protein shakes.
VEGETABLE TWO: Red Peppers are a Staple for us, here’s why…
Red bell peppers go through the full process of ripening, so all available natural sugars fully enter into them, giving them their signature sweet and fruity flavor. When compared to green peppers, red ones have almost 11 times more beta-carotene (so they’re great for eye health) and 1.5 times more vitamin C. One red pepper contains all of the Vitamin-C you need in a day! Vitamin C, which strengthens immune function, promotes skin health, and aids in the absorption of iron.
Red peppers also contain vitamin B6, which is important for protein metabolism. This veggie is low in calories and high in water content, making it a great option for weight management and a healthy diet. Rep peppers are high in fibre (more than 3 grams per cup) and a good amount of water, so they fill you up. I always buy them in bulk, and they NEVER go bad! They’re delicous raw or cooked. I love them in salads, stir fries, pasta dishes, soups or stuffed. They’re even a common ingredient in my breakfast shakes!
Here are My 2 Favourite Ped Pepper Filled Recipes:
- Air-Fried Roasted Sweet Peppers and Onions
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/275428/air-fried-roasted-sweet-peppers-and-onions
I love tossing this veggie mixture in with some thinly sliced chicken breast to make chicken fajitas. It’s also great in an omelet.
2. Roasted Red Pepper Soup
https://feelgoodfoodie.net/recipe/roasted-red-pepper-soup/#wprm-recipe-container-52676
To make this recipe healthier, I roast my own red peppers versus buying them in the jars. If you do want the jar version shortcut, buy the peppers in water versus oil to cut down on the calories.
VEGETABLE THREE: Broccoli is always in our house, here’s why…
This cruciferous vegetable is packed with more nutrients than most vegetables. It is rich in vitamins and minerals including vitamins C and K, folate, potassium and calcium (1 cup has almost 10% of your daily calcium requirements!). These nutrients support various bodily functions, including immune health, bone health, and cell repair. They help protect cells from oxidative stress and inflammation to reduce the risk of chronic diseases and support overall health. Broccoli is high in dietary fiber, which aids in gut health by promoting regular bowel movements and feeding your healthy gut bacteria.
Broccoli is awesome by itself raw (I often serve it at my parties with a dip), or cooked, or as a side dish (a little cheese sauce on top makes it taste even more delicious!), or mixed in with just about any other vegetable. Lightly steaming broccoli helps preserve its nutrients better than boiling. The only reason I don’t eat broccoli everyday is it can make you gassy.
These are My 2 Favourite Broccoli filled Recipes
You will see from these two recipes, that if I’m adding anything to my broccoli, it’s cheese! They just seem to go so well together.
- Parmesan-Roasted Broccoli
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/parmesan-roasted-broccoli-recipe-1946423
To make this recipe healthier, you could reduce the amount of parmesan cheese, but the pine nuts are a must!
2. Broccoli Gratin
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/broccoli-gratin-recipe-1928220
To make this recipe healthier, you could reduce the amount of butter or bread crumbs, but the cheese is a must in this one!
To Sum it up…These are My 3 Favourite Vegetables, Here’s Why
There are so many advantages to eating as many vegetables as possible. Because they are low in calories, high in fibre and nutrient-rich, I try to pack as many servings of veggies into each day that I can.
Eating a variety of vegetables daily, contributes more than anything to a well-balanced and healthy eating plan. Veggies provide both immediate and long-term health benefits and they contribute to your overall physical and mental health.
When I think about the usual composition of my shopping cart, it’s easy to see that my favourite vegetables are zucchini, red peppers and broccoli. I find that these three veggies are particularly versitile. They taste great raw or cooked. They’re great with almost any flavour and spice, and they add a delicious crunch to a meal. All vegetables offer their own unique benefits, so it’s important to get a variety of them into your diet. What are your favourite vegetables?