We all know we should be eating fruits and vegetables each day. But it’s not always easy to follow this recommendation!
According to the CDC, only 9% of Americans eat enough fruits and vegetables.
Our tips eating more vegetables, alongside easy recipes you can follow, will make this shift much easier and more fun!
Find more healthy swaps and cooking tips on our website.
How to eat more vegetables
Have veggies for breakfast
Start your day with a serving of veggies. Especially if you like savory breakfasts, this is a great tip!
Add mushrooms, onion, or bell pepper to your tofu scramble, incorporate pumpkin puree into your waffle batter, or top your morning toast with avocado and cherry tomatoes!
One genius way you probably haven’t eaten veggies for breakfast is to make “zoats” — this stands for “zucchini oats.”
Grated zucchini is mixed with oats, plant-based milk, and different spices, so you won’t be able to taste the zucchini!
Check out our recipes below for how to eat more vegetables during breakfast.
Savory Vegan Pumpkin Waffles
Easy Vegan Sweet Potato Waffles
Flavorful Silken Tofu Scramble
Easy Overnight Zoats (Zucchini Oats)
Make smoothies
Speaking of breakfast: making a quick smoothie in the morning is a fantastic way to incorporate more fresh fruits and veggies into your diet.
The possibilities are endless, from the traditional green smoothie with spinach, kale, or avocado to flavors like carrot cake or red velvet (hello, beetroot!).
Check out the recipes below and try our green smoothie!
Replace grains
Whether you want to eat fewer calories or low-carb or need to avoid grains for health reasons, vegetables can find their way into your diet that way, too.
Use lettuce instead of buns or tortilla wraps, make your next pizza crust from cauliflower or mashed potatoes (recipe below!), or get your food processor to make cauliflower rice.
One of our favorite ways to eat more veggies is to eat colorful sweet potato toast!
And you definitely need to try spaghetti squash, “zoodles,” or veggie noodles made with a spiralizer in place of traditional grain-based pasta!
Replace meat
Eating more vegetables is definitely good for you — if you use veggies to replace meat, it’s even better!
Ingredients like mushrooms, beets, cauliflower, lentils, beans, jackfruit, and nuts are packed with essential nutrients and create a similar texture to meat.
With the help of some spices and sauces, your family will gobble up those veggie burgers, that bean chili, or that lentil loaf in no time!
Find more meaty vegan recipes here and try the following goodness.
Stuff & bake vegetables
What’s better than a comforting dish straight from the oven? Make use of seasonal produce, from bell peppers to eggplant, zucchini, or pumpkin, and serve deliciously stuffed vegetables for dinner.
They are great for meal prep or as a meatless main during the holiday season!
Check out the recipes below for some inspiration.
Make casseroles
Casseroles are just as comforting as stuffed vegetables — if not more. They can feature hearty noodles or potatoes, creamy sauces, and a whole bunch of vegetables.
They are weeknight dinner-friendly, can be prepared in advance, and come in so many flavors!
Try our simple potato casserole or check out the recipes below.
Soups & stews
Besides smoothies, the best way to disguise or “hide” vegetables is to puree them into creamy soups!
Almost any vegetable works for this trick: spinach, carrots, kale, peppers, peas, zucchini, and more.
Use frozen veggies for convenience, and experiment with the amount of vegetables in your soup to find a middle ground.
Make your pizza with veggies
Pizza without any vegetables is just boring in our books!
No matter your taste preferences, a handful of peppers, onion, sweet corn, mushrooms, or roasted veggies elevates any pizza and works for most picky eaters.
Our personal favorite is mixing minced veggies into tomato sauce, pureeing it, then spreading that mixture on pizza dough to make rolls!
Check out the following articles for more ideas.
Sides & snacks
Ready for some finger food? Kids and picky eaters love this trick to eat more veggies.
Typical side dishes, such as roasted Brussels sprouts or sautéed veggies, might work for some — however, there are even better ways to incorporate vegetables into family-friendly meals.
Create a colorful platter of crunchy veggies, crackers, and dips, to graze!
Bake sweet potatoes, beets, kale, or zucchini into veggie chips or make fries out of vegetables.
Check out the recipes below and try making veggie chips!
Make stir-fries
Versatile, healthy, and ready in under 30 minutes: stir-fries are one of the most straightforward ways to eat more vegetables.
Crunchy carrots, bell peppers, broccoli, snap peas, and anything else you love, team up with a flavorful stir-fry sauce and can be served over rice, noodles, and more!
Add a source of protein and enjoy a nutritious and quick dinner.
Flavorful Thai Vegetable Stir-Fry
Easy Vegan Mushroom Chow Mein
Dips & condiments
Offer a selection of freshly cut, colorful vegetables as dippers for your favorite dips! Either as the only dippers, or alongside bread and tortilla chips.
Serving delicious condiments alongside vegetables makes them a lot more palatable for everyone.
We also like to blend vegetables into dips and sauces (hello, cauliflower Alfredo!) They can be served warm or cold, depending on the recipe. Check them out below!
Make desserts
This tip might just be our favorite one! Who could resist a delicious dessert — even if it features some vegetables?
Especially if you’re on a plant-based diet and want to replace eggs, butter, or cream when baking: vegetables are your best friends.
From zucchini bread to avocado chocolate pudding, there are so many healthy dessert ideas! Check out our two favorites below.
Add to pasta
Lighten up any pasta dish with vegetables! The easiest way is to add some sautéed vegetables to your favorite pasta and pasta sauce.
This works well for pesto pasta or white sauce pasta.
Other ideas include blending vegetables into your pasta sauce, adding finely minced vegetables to your sauce, or combining spaghetti with spiralized zucchini!
Find examples for each and more ideas in the articles below.
Make awesome bowls
Bored of salad? Make colorful vegan bowls! They are endlessly customizable, so they work for any taste or dietary preference.
You can use anything you find in your kitchen to make them, from veggies to beans, nuts, rice, millet, potatoes, and more.
Add your favorite dip or sauce, and you’re ready to devour your veggie-rich bowl!
Use veggies as toppings
Our final tip for eating more vegetables is to use from as toppings for different dishes!
Roasted vegetables can elevate a simple green salad, toast, waffles, pizza, or savory oatmeal. Raw veggies also work well for toast or waffles!
Experiment with different varieties, textures, and flavors.
vegan freebie galore 🤩
Grab all of our 9 vegan & healthy eating PDFs at once! Including food lists, meal plan, easy recipes, and shopping & nutrition tips!
More guides
Did you find this article helpful? Share with us what you liked the most as well as any additional tips! You can also Pin this article here.
Ingredients
Grazing Platter
- Hummus
- Salsa
- Guacamole
- Cashew sour cream
- Tortilla chips
- Pretzels
- Falafel
- Carrot sticks
- Cucumber sticks
- Bell pepper sticks
- Cherry tomatoes
Instructions
- Arrange all ingredients nicely on a grazing platter. Use freshly cut vegetables, so they taste good!
- Swap out any of the suggested ingredients you don’t like. Enjoy!
Do you want to eat healthier and wonder how to eat more vegetables? This list of 15 delicious ideas will help you out.