Are you trying to work more veggies into your day? Me too! They’re slimming, filling, and oh-so-good for you. That’s why the Veggie Quest 2-pounds-a-day challenge is probably my favorite blog post each month.
Of course, I can’t claim to have thought up the 2-pound idea. Rather, I got it from Dr. Joel Fuhrman’s book Eat to Live, which describes a “nutritarian” eating plan that may help reduce risk of—and even reverse—certain chronic diseases, like diabetes.
For me, aiming to eat 2 pounds of vegetables reminds me to step outside my normal food routine and focus on food that’s both delicious and nourishing. Also, since I can get a little lazy about meal planning (you’d think a food blogger wouldn’t order in so much 😉 ), the 2-pound challenge forces me to plan a full day of fresh, seasonal, veggie-rich meals. (Especially since I don’t want to bore you with the same food every month!)
So, are you ready for a little vegetation inspiration? Let’s eat!
(You can find my final pounds-and-ounces tally at the end of the post.)
Breakfast: Mango-vanilla green smoothie (with zucchini)
- 6.5 oz zucchini
- 2.5 oz spinach
- 2 oz green peas
As some of you know, I’m temporarily following a yeast-reducing diet. (I’ve had some rather, erm, personal itching issues, shall we say.) However, I’m still allowing myself one serving of fruit a day, which I reserve for my morning smoothie.
Green smoothies are a seriously easy way to increase your veggie intake, and they taste amazing. Sort of like dessert for breakfast! (I really like dessert for breakfast.) You can work in two or three servings of veggies without really noticing it:
The vegetables that went into my green smoothie
Since my smoothies normally have at least 2 different kinds of fruit in them, though (see my blueberry muffin power smoothie), I’ve had to do something to make up for the lost fruit. So I’ve been using veggies as a substitute, with varying levels of success.
Now, it takes a certain kind of veggie to step in for fruit in a smoothie, but zucchini is up to the challenge. It’s sweet, mild-tasting, and helps give smoothies a nice, creamy texture. I’ve even used it in my chocolate-cherry vegan milkshake.
To make zucchini work as a fruit substitute in a green smoothie, though, you have to add a little extra sweetener and a source of acid.
So I followed my ridiculously simple green smoothie formula, but instead of a pear, subbed in about 2/3 of a large zucchini, along with a generous squeeze of lemon juice and some liquid stevia. My frozen fruit was mango, my leafy green was fresh spinach, and I added about ¼ scoop of vanilla Vega Protein & Greens powder and a little extra water. (I’m not normally a fan of protein powders, but since I’m dialing back on beans right now, it’s helpful. Plus, it tastes great.) I got a nutrition boost from some flax seed and hemp hearts, and for yumminess, I added a few hefty shakes of cinnamon.
The results were delicious, if I don’t say so myself.
I was still a smidge hungry though (I’d been up since 5 am), so I downed a Plum Organics “Just Peas” squeezy pack. The package said 3 ounces, so I guessed it was 2 ounces of actual peas plus water.
No, I don’t have a baby. I just really like veggie squeezy pouches: They don’t have any added junk, and they taste great.
Breakfast veggie count: 10 oz
Lunch: Summer veggie salad and spinach-stuffed sweet potato
- 2 oz spring mix lettuce
- 6 oz cucumber
- 4 oz tomato
- 3 oz cooked spinach
Lunch was quick and simple: A salad loaded with veggies fresh out of the garden (English cucumber, Purple Cherokee tomato, and Sun Gold cherry tomatoes) drizzled with my favorite lemon-tahini dressing. (Check back for the dressing recipe Friday; its rich tahini flavor makes any veggie taste better!)
I also had a small sweet potato, microwaved for about 5 minutes, then topped with garlicky sauteed spinach and roasted sunflower seeds. (Stuffing a sweet potato is a great way to use up leftover sauteed greens.)
In fact, lunch was so big that I ate what I couldn’t finish as a snack later, along with a small handful of raw cashews and sunflower seeds. Then it was on to dinner!
Lunch/snack veggie count: 15 oz
Dinner: Vietnamese summer rolls with black bean noodles and fresh herbs
- 7.5 oz of veggies in 3 summer rolls (lettuce, jicama, carrots, cucumber)
- 3 oz leftover veggies from making summer rolls
Making summer rolls is one of my favorite ways to sneak in more vegetables. First and foremost, summer rolls taste amazing, loaded with fresh herbs like cilantro, mint, and basil. What’s more, you basically end up eating a salad without feeling at all like you’re eating a salad. I mean, it comes in a wrapper. With dipping sauce. It can’t possibly be a salad.
And while they look a little intimidating, summer rolls are surprisingly easy to make. (Click here for simple step-by-step instructions—with pictures.) Sure, your first rolls might turn out a little lopsided, but they’ll still taste great.
You can get summer roll wrappers in the Asian food aisle of most grocery stores, or you can get them on Amazon here. (I know the label says spring roll wrapper, but trust me on this one.) The best part? You don’t even have to cook the wrappers. (Guess that’s why they call them summer rolls?) Just dip the them in water and they soften as you fill them.
For filling, you can use pretty much any veggies you have on hand. I used lettuce, carrots (pre-shredded), jicama, cucumber, and black bean noodles, along with cilantro, Kentucky Colonel mint, and basil. (Accompanied by plenty of my delectable cashew butter dipping sauce.)
So that was dinner, along with some veggies left over from summer roll prep, which I ate as I was cleaning up. (Yup, I weighed those too.) 🙂
Veggie count: 10.5 oz
Dessert
Dessert was chia seed pudding from Susan’s recipe on FatFree Vegan. I doubled the vanilla and swapped carob for cocoa, because I’m trying to cut back on chocolate, as it’s fermented. No veggies here, though, unless you count carob as a bean? But it sure was a sweet way to end the day.
The tally
So, how’d I do? Well, even without counting the sweet potato or the bean noodles (literally made out of black beans and water), I easily surpassed my 2-pound goal:
All in all, I’m pretty pleased with how my 2-pound challenge turned out. I’ve felt satisfied all day, although frankly three summer rolls plus extra veggies plus chia pudding was probably a bit too much for dinner. (But the pudding was so good.)
Anyhow, as I say every month, if you’re not used to eating lots of vegetables, it’s best to increase intake gradually to keep your insides happy! (Interestingly, eating more vegetables is linked to overall happiness as well.) However, keep in mind that some medications and health conditions can interact with certain foods—even vegetables. So if you have a health condition, it’s a good idea to check with your doctor before making dietary changes.
That said, even moderately increasing veggie intake is good for most people. So if 2 pounds of vegetables a day isn’t your thing, know that every little bit helps. Hopefully my over-the-top day has gotten you thinking of ways you can work more veggies into your day!
Shared on Inspire Me Mondays, What I Ate Wednesday, The Fit Dish Linkup, Plant-Based Potluck Party, Food & Fitness Friday, Gluten-Free Fridays, Real Food Friday, and Healthy Vegan Fridays.
What veggies did you eat today? Any recipes you think I should try for next month’s edition? Please feel free to link up in your comment!
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I'm Lee, an RD thriving on a healthy plant based diet.
Any idea of the macronutrient components in this day?
Hey Bill, it’s funny you mention that. I actually thought about entering the food into a database and calculating it, but ran out of time. Check back Friday; I’ll try to post the information by then!
I LOVE putting zucchini in smoothies! We have had a plethora from our garden and it has been a great way to up my veggie intake and use up some of those zucchinis in the process. Plus, they really do add a great texture!
All of your meals look delicious. I fear that I have been relying too, too much on protein powders lately…I really need to cut back, but they are so darn convenient!
I know, protein powder is way too convenient, and Vega tastes so goshdarned good. Glad to know I’m not the only one who puts zucchini in my smoothies, and I’m thrilled you’re getting so many zucchini from your garden! I’ll have to trade you for some cucumbers, which I’m swimming in right now. (I planted a zucchini plant too, but about 1.5 months late, so it’s just starting to get baby zucchini. At least I won’t have to worry about squash borers!)
Those summer rolls look DIVINE! I will have to try black bean noodles. What a great way to pump up the protein.
So far I’ve had some roasted butternut squash and broccoli with lunch. Simply roasting my veggies makes them so much more appealing day after day. It really pumps up the flavor!
As the other consumer of Lee’s summer rolls, I have to confirm that they are awesome. We eat a lot of salads as you can imagine, and its a great change of pace even though it uses mostly the same ingredients.
And I love me some roasted butternut squash. That stuff is like candy to me!
Thank you hubby Veggie Quest for being such a great recipe tester, taster, and co-chef. You’re the best!
Hi Jessica, yes, do try the black bean noodles! They’re delicious and I think they have something like 25g protein per serving, which is off the charts.
And oh, I love roasted butternut squash! You’re a woman after my own heart. Roasting really does bring out the best in veggies, doesn’t it? It’s the one part of fall I’m really looking forward to. Right now it’s so hot the only thing I can bring myself to fire up in my kitchen is my ice cream (nice cream) maker… 😀
I love this! I bet I did that when I was eating vegan… I used to get 7 lb bags of spinach at the farmer’s market every weekend and run out before the week was up!
Happy WIAW!
Hi Laura, I bet you did! Although you still eat pretty healthy now. 🙂 I’m jealous that your farmer’s market had 7-pound bags of spinach for sale. Jeff and I would totally kill one of those in a week. (Although I’m not sure I could do it solo!)
Looks like a delicious day indeed Lee! I love summer rolls. And I’m intrigued by those black bean noodles. . .
Thanks Maria! They’re great for people with food sensitivities (only 2 ingredients). I plan to review them at some point and hopefully do a giveaway too, so stay tuned. 🙂
Hi Lee. It’s so nice to meet you! I eat variations of everything you listed. Love black bean noodles and stuffed sweet potatoes. Yum! The summer rolls look so good. Thanks for sharing all the goodness with the #fitfam!
Hi Jill, great to meet you too and to discover your upbeat fitness linkup! I’ve also cruised around your blog and love your content. I’m thrilled to find a new blog that inspires and informs!
That’s an amazing (and impressive!) daily meal plan! I just had summer rolls this week as well. I’m curious about the sweet potato and chia seed pudding…I’m going to have to try that as part of my daily health and fitness routine. Thanks so much for sharing on #FoodandFitnessFriday! Please come back anytime!
Thanks Jebbica! Chia seed pudding is a staple of mine when I need something that tastes sweet and rich, but is actually pretty good for you. It packs a double punch: fiber and omega-3s!
Hi Lee,
Great information you have here and some wonderful healthy recipes. I love the sweet potato recipes because I love sweet potatoes. The smoothies are such a healthy tasty way to get many needed nutrients in one glass. Thanks for sharing on Real Food Fridays. Pinned
Thanks Marla, I’m something of a sweet potato addict. 🙂 I’ll keep an eye on your site for future sweet potato posts; I’m always looking for inspiration!
Hi Lee,
How delightful! This is also the way I eat! I love your yummy spring rolls. I can’t wait to make them. So yummy! I am so delighted that you shared How to Eat 2 Pounds of Vegetables a Day – July Edition with us at the Plant-Based Potluck Party Link Up. My family will love these meals. I’m pinning and sharing.
Hi Deborah, Thanks so much for featuring me on the Plant-Based Potluck Party this week! Your body must be loving you since you eat this way all the time! 🙂 I come close, but I’m guessing there are plenty of days I don’t make the 2-pound mark. Which is all the more reason I love doing this post every month–great motivation!
Wow – I don’t think I am eating 2 pounds of veggies. You are inspirational Lee!
I think I would need to try a veggie smoothie gradually, I’m so used to fruit in it to sweeten it. Zucchini is a great way to thicken a smoothie! Have you tried cucumber? I like cucumber in my smoothies too. Mmm green things.
So many great tips and recipes to pack in more veggies! Thanks so much for sharing this at Healthy Vegan Fridays – this post is being featured this week =) I’m pinning and sharing this.
Hi Kimmy, I still use fruit in my smoothie, just not much—I went from about 2 cups to a little less than 1 cup. When I took out the fruit altogether at the beginning of the yeast debacle, the results were NOT delicious. So now I reserve my fruit serving for my smoothie, and I’m looking forward to bringing back more fruit shortly! That said, the zucchini/lemon/sweetener combination is surprisingly good. And I actually just tried out your cucumber suggestion; it was really yummy! I forgot to cut back on the water, though, to make up for the cuke, whoops. Looking forward to getting it just right over the next few weeks, and thanks for featuring on Healthy Vegan Fridays!
HI Lee,
Just a note to let you know that I have chosen your post as one of my features for this weeks Real Food Fridays blog hop that goes live every Thursday @ 7pm EST. Thank you being part of RFF and sharing your great information. Have a healthy happy weekend! Hope to see you each week.
Hi Marla, thanks for featuring me on Real Food Fridays! I’m delighted that you like the post, and I hope it can help inspire your readers to come up with new ways to work in more veggies. (I know just writing it is motivating for me!) Thanks for the shout-out, and have a great week! I will certainly be back with more recipes and inspiration over the coming weeks. 🙂
Don’t overlook frozen spinach for your green smoothies. I like my smoothies to be almost like ice cream and you can add a LOT of frozen spinach without overpowering the other ingredients. In fact, it’s essentially tasteless which is why I don’t use it in anything else.