May 24th, 2015

1. Boost Your Breakfast: Add berries, dried fruit or sliced banana to your cereal, yogurt or oatmeal. Try peppers, mushrooms, onions or chopped greens in a delicious omelette.
2. Double the Veggies: Add extra vegetables into your soups, stir-fries, casseroles and pasta dishes. Load up on veggie toppings for pizzas and sandwiches.
3. Salute the Snack: Revolve snack time around vegetables and fruit. Pre-cut or peel fruit like oranges to make it more appealing and easier to eat quickly during snack breaks.
4. Take a Smoothie Break: Whip up large batches, freeze in single portions and take on the go when needed! Try adding a handful of greens with fruit, yogurt, milk and ice.
5. Dig the Dip: Dip apples, pears or bananas in yogurt or one to two tablespoons of peanut butter. Veggies are great paired with hummus, salsa or low fat sour cream. Try the easy dip recipe below, you can flavour it however you like!*
6. Reinvent the Chip: Bake thinly sliced sweet potatoes, beets, torn kale or collard greens to satisfy that crunch! Toss bite-sized pieces in a small amount of vegetable oil and your choice of spices before baking until crispy.
7. Weekly Featured Vegetable: Give everyone in the family their own week to choose a feature vegetable to cook with. Try to choose vegetables that are in season.
8. Use Frozen Veggies (and Fruit!): Over the winter buy more affordable frozen vegetables and then steam them, puree into soups and sauces or bake them in a casserole. Frozen fruit is great on cereal or in smoothies.
9. Delight in Dessert: Frozen grapes or bananas make a delightful dessert. Other simple ideas include fresh fruit, a baked apple, fruit salad or fruit kabobs with yogurt for dipping!
10. Half Your Plate Twice a Day: Meet your recommended number of servings in a flash by making half of your plate vegetables at lunch and at dinner!

Garlic & Dill Veggie Dip
Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup (250 ml) light sour cream or plain yogurt (1% M.F. or fat-free)
3 Tbsp (45 ml) light mayonnaise
1 Tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice
1 tsp (5 ml) minced garlic
¼ cup (60 ml) chopped fresh dill or parsley

*You can use any combination of fresh or dried herbs and spices to flavour this dip. Instead of dill, try it with 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of dried herbs or spices like curry powder and paprika or Italian seasoning.
Directions:
1. Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl and chill until ready to serve. Prepare up to one day in advance for even more flavour.

Recipe adapted from 500 Best Healthy Recipes by Lynn Roblin, MSc., RD