Eat Your Vegetables!

Eat your vegetables!  Most people have either heard or said those words because we all have parents or are parents ourselves.  Our parents said them to us, and we in turn have passed on this dreaded edict to our offspring.   The sad part is, it is almost always said in response to a child who has declined to even taste something from the vegetable category of the food pyramid.

In preparing to write this post today, I have been thinking about this at some length.  Why do we have to beg or bribe or threaten some children to eat their vegetables.  They are actually quite beautiful to look at, such vibrant colors and different textures.  So it certainly isn’t because they are grey and shriveled and disgusting to look at, yet you might think they are, by the way that children often approach them.  I really gave this some thought and then bounced some ideas off my husband, Randy, who happens to have written his doctoral dissertation on the subject of eating disorders.  After years and years of schooling, he has a PhD in psychology so I figured all that education might come in handy for this topic.

Here is the gist of our conversation regarding kids and vegetables :

1. If something doesn’t look good there is little chance your kids are going to want to try it
2. If something doesn’t look good there is little chance YOU are going to want to try it
3. Kids are copy cats and they have built in intuition, so if you aren’t happily eating your vegetables, guess what?  They are going to do exactly what you do, NOT what you tell them to do.
4. Using ice cream as a bribe to get kids to eat broccoli is a mistake.

Boiled down, it comes to this, if you don’t make food, any food, but especially vegetables, look and taste good neither you NOR your children are going to want to eat them….and for good reason.  There are some really nasty looking and tasting vegetables being offered up at dinner tables around the country and parents who are forcing themselves to eat them because they think they should, are in turn putting the same demand on their children all in the name of good health.  Add to that, you are telling kids what you are probably hearing your mother say to you in your head even now as an adult, that you “can’t have dessert unless you finish those peas” and you have just convinced them that peas are a punishment and dessert is a reward.  (OK chocolate cake does generally seem more of a reward than peas but you get my drift.)

Foods should generally be considered “equal” or neutral.  We shouldn’t set things up for our children (or ourselves) that one food is good and another bad, albeit necessary.  It is more helpful to start early on to explain to kids that we eat foods in balance…some protein, some vegetables, some grains, some fruit, some sweet.  It isn’t that the sweet is a reward you get if you can endure the nasty Brussels sprouts, but rather that these are all good foods that our bodies need to stay healthy and grow up strong.

Our 4 year old granddaughter, Savannah, has understood this since she started eating solid food.  She generally likes most vegetables.  In fact just the other night when she asked for a cookie after dinner and was told that she had had enough sweet things for that day, she thought about it for a second and said, “Well OK, then can I have some more salad for dessert instead?”  I was SHOCKED….what 4 year old wants cole slaw in place of a cookie?  But she was completely happy with it because she didn’t know she shouldn’t be.

As unusual as that is, she LIKED the cole slaw because it tasted good.  Every persons’ taste buds are different, and as you have no doubt experienced yourself, things you once didn’t like may be things you really enjoy now and vice versa.  Your children are the same except that their taste buds are even more sensitive, so if they really just don’t like something give it a few months and ask them to try it again.

So in the spirit of healthy and happy eating we are giving you some ideas for how to prepare vegetables that might change some minds (and tastes) about them.  Try these and you just might Eat Your Vegetables….and enjoy them too!

Here’s to happy dining,

Roasting is a great way to prepare just about any vegetable.  The roasting process brings out the natural sugar in the vegetables and, as they cook, makes them taste sweeter and their flavor “richer”. Below is a method for cooking asparagus, but the roasting process is essentially the same for most vegetables though the timing will vary according to the size and density of the vegetable. Experiment with this and try adding garlic or your favorite seasoning.  You can also try drizzling vegetables with soy sauce or toasted sesame oil once they are done cooking, to add a sort of Asian flavor.

Asparagus

Trim the ends from the asparagus stocks and place on a baking sheet.

Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and then turn the asparagus to cover the stocks in the oil.  Sprinkle with a little kosher salt.  Roast in a 375 degree oven for about 5 minutes.  If the asparagus stocks are thicker they may need a little more time, but test them after 5 minutes to determine this.

Remember that they do keep cooking even after removed from the oven and vegetables taste better when they are not overcooked so better to err on the side of being a bit underdone.

Butternut Squash

Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds.

Drizzle very lightly with olive oil and place the cut side down on a baking sheet.  Roast at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes –  1 hour.  Allow this to cool slightly then scoop out the flesh of the squash and place in a pot.  Add about a half a stick of butter to the squash along with ¼ teaspoon of Kosher salt and a dash each of cinnamon and nutmeg.  Mash the squash thoroughly then stir in ¼ cup real maple syrup (not Log Cabin or Mrs. Butterworth’s but REAL maple syrup).  If you prefer you can use ¼ brown sugar but the maple flavor of the syrup works really well with the squash.  Serve this as you would mashed potatoes.

Braised Red Cabbage

Slice the red cabbage thinly.  Melt ½  stick of butter in a sauté pan and add cabbage.  Cook until the cabbage begins to wilt.  Add ¼ cup cider vinegar and ¼ cup of sugar and sprinkle with some kosher salt.

Continue cooking until cabbage is limp and most of the liquid in pan is absorbed.  Adjust salt and add some freshly ground pepper.  Cabbage can be fully cooked ahead of time and then reheated when ready to serve.

They say you eat first with your eyes.  Serve these vegetables with a piece of chicken and voila! …Dinner is served.