How I Learned to Love Vegetables

For 23 out of the 23.5 years I've been alive, I haven't been too fond of vegetables. I'd occasionally go through phases. A few years ago, I was obsessed with canned peas. Oh man. So good. Luckily that ended and canned peas taste pretty gross to me now. But in general, vegetables weren't my thing. Especially self-prepared salad. It was just so bland. Now salads from restaurants? A bit better, as I didn't have to make it myself.

Now cut to spring 2012 and the above photo. That is my brother, Gary, and that is his amazing garden that he grew this year.

He would bring in a variety of squash, then cook it up with coconut oil and a variety of spices. He could cut or shred the squash in different ways. He could make an entire meal from different kinds of vegetables prepared in different ways. For the first time, I realized that vegetables were delicious, and they had such potential!

Now these things matter to me. And a healthy lifestyle in general. And food! Although food has always mattered to me. But I realized just how much good food means to me-- so splurging on an awesome hole in the wall local restaurant is worth it to me now, and way more meaningful to me than going through the drive thru somewhere. Good local food + fruits and veggies galore = good for the soul.

Some inspiration from other bloggers: angela hardison // eat sleep cuddle // colemans in love // shanna kesler // a blog about love

I'm still not 100% amazing at cooking/eating well, but I remember back to days when I'd barely get a single serving of fruits or veggies, and I'm proud of where I am.

Here is what I ate yesterday, as an example:

Breakfast: gala apple + almond butter

Lunch: snapea crisps from sprouts market + carrots and hummus

Afternoon: split a J Dawg with a friend, yum! Then had a root beer snow cone. Both local small businesses.

Dinner: half of a giant green squash cut into 1/4ths, and a handful of baby tomatoes, cooked in a skilled over medium heat with coconus oil + salt and pepper. Delicious!

So, like I said. Not perfect. The snapea crisps were definitely not the best choice-- neither is grocery shopping on an empty stomach, whoops-- but not the worst choice either-- the first ingredient in the snapea crisps is green peas. But I feel good about where I am, and feel healthier than ever.

What are your favorite fruits/vegetables to prepare, and how? Please share! I'd love to try them out!