Meatless Monday: Start the Week with More Veggies

One Step At a Time...

You Can Go Meatless

For All Three Meals

Eat your vegetables especially on Mondays for a great start to the week. Smooth black eggplants, juicy red tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, and mixed greens of myriad varieties and flavors: getting your daily minimum veggie requirements is easy when they’re fresh and bursting with flavor!

And more is better when it comes to vegetables. They’re low in calories and high in nutrients, which makes them great for diets and overall health. In fact, one comprehensive study at Harvard found that the higher your average daily intake of fruits and vegetables, the lower your chance of developing cardiovascular disease. So buy enough for your main dish, side dishes, soups, salads, and snacks (like raw veggies with bean dip or yogurt), too!

As a group, veggies are full of vitamins A, C, B, and folate. And they’re high in minerals like iron, calcium, potassium, and magnesium. They’re also a great source of fiber and are high in antioxidants and phytochemicals, valuable plant nutrients. A healthy diet that’s rich in vegetables (and fruit) may be helpful in preventing certain cancers, heart disease, kidney stones, bone loss, and type 2 diabetes. It can also help improve gastrointestinal and eye health. In other words, eat your veggies, and you win all the way around.

To get the most out of your selection, experts recommend choosing a variety of colors. It’s also a good idea to select from these vegetable subgroups each time you’re in the produce aisle:

1. Dark green vegetables are high in vitamins A and C and contain a carotenoid that aids vision health. These include bok choy, broccoli, collard greens, dark spinach, kale, and other, similar leafy greens. Generally, the darker the color and the wrinklier the leaves, the higher the nutrient content, so look beyond that iceberg lettuce.

2. Orange vegetables are high in vitamin A. Good sources include squash (acorn, butternut, and Hubbard), pumpkin, carrots, and sweet potatoes.

3. Starchy vegetables bring vitamin B6 and copper to the table. Some examples are corn, green peas, lima beans, and potatoes.

4. Other vegetables (artichokes, asparagus, beets, Brussels sprouts, cucumbers, green beans, mushrooms–you name it!) pack a solid vitamin C punch across the board. Again, think variety!

5. Legumes (peas and beans) are also considered a vegetable subgroup. Here’s where you can add folate, copper, and fiber to your diet.

Keep in mind that while fresh is generally considered best, quality frozen and canned veggies are typically processed shortly after harvesting to lock in nutrients and flavor, so they count, too. For even more variety, dried veggies and 100% vegetable juice can add some spice to your nutritional bottom line.

Be brave in the produce aisle. Go ahead and pick up your old standbys, but try something new, too; those heirloom tomatoes or warty squashes just might end up being new favorites. Your co-op is a great source for local, organic, in-season vegetables—and great ideas on how to cook, serve, and enjoy them.

Healthy Meatless Recipe:

Squash, Chickpea and Red Lentil Stew

(Adapted from Eating Well)

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup dried chickpeas
• 2 1/2 pounds kabocha squash, or butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 large onion
• 1 cup red lentils
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon saffron
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• ¼ cup lime juice
• ½ cup chopped roasted unsalted peanuts
• ¼ cup packed chopped cilantro leaves

Directions:

1. Soak chickpeas in enough cold water to cover them by 2 inches for 6 hours or overnight. (Alternatively, use the quick-soak method: Place beans in a large pot with enough water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat and let stand for 1 hour.) Drain when ready to use.

2. Combine the soaked chickpeas, squash, carrots, onion, lentils, broth, tomato paste, ginger, cumin, salt, saffron and pepper in a 6-quart slow cooker.

3. Put on the lid and cook on low until the chickpeas are tender and the lentils have begun to break down, 5 to 6 1/2 hours.

4. Stir in lime juice. Serve sprinkled with peanuts and cilantro.

Enjoy and Bon Appetit!

Stress Less This Week

Long-term stress can trigger existing health problems and create new ones.

Talking to a doctor, about the symptoms you’re experiencing, can help determine if they’re due to stress or the result of another health problem.

If the diagnosis is stress, reduce it with these methods:

· Take five; find a place to sit down comfortably, and breathe in deeply.

· Reach out; a great support system can go a long way. Talk to a loved one.

· Walk it off; even 10 minutes of exercise can help relieve stress.

Remember Green Goes With Everything

Living safe, clean, and green means cutting back wherever you can on your energy use.

Have a great week and remember a better tomorrow starts with what you eat today!

Do you have a favorite meatless recipe you would like to share with us? Send it my way!

Wishing you health and wellness from the inside out,

Lisa

LQ WELLNESS

Professional Wellness Coach

973-383-0955

lisaquinnwc@embarqmail.com

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“Things change for the better when we take responsibility for our own thoughts, decisions and actions.”

~ Author Unknown ~