Fruit & Veg record - anybody care to join?

[Shoeshelpplease]

I have recently read How Not to Die (well, on Audible actually) and its absolutely fascinating. All the different benefits different veg have and the different benefits each has depending on raw v cooked.

It advocates a plant based diet, but that wont happen for me. I am however committed to reducing meat and increasing the amount of veg (mainly) and fruit in my diet.

Would anybody be interest in joining in recording the different veg they have managed to achieve each day and in what ways? I'm talking pretty hard core here - aiming for 9 a day with a big variety.

I'd find it really interesting to see how others are achieving it.

Good day yesterday.

B: Greek yoghurt, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries (3)
L: veg soup (carrot, leek, celery, broccoli, fennel, parsnip) (6) then a plum (1)
D: chilli made with turkey mince and onion, haricot beans, tinned tomatoes etc etc (3) served with a corn taco, plus avocado, iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, yellow pepper, jalapenos (7) then a pear (1)

Ha, 21! A new record. although most of these portions will be minuscule. Still, it's all about the variety, eh?

I've just bought a raised garden bed thing on eBay and am going to start growing my own this weekend. DH already grows veg but never believes in doing things properly, just throws a million seeds into the garden, followed by a lot of fertiliser and then is amazed when things don't grow as planned. I prefer to research everything to death so this is my own little gardening project and we'll see what comes of it. Going to start with heritage carrots, purple sprouting and courgettes.

Elementree what's in your bean mix please?

I've almost run out of fruit and veg here and not due to shop until sat!

Have had:
Porridge with grated apple and cinnamon (1)
Scrambled egg with carrots and hummus (2)
Pear (1)

Dinner will be roast chicken with sweet potato, carrots and parsnips and broccoli (4)

8

Will have to shop.

It's this one Mikado. You earn the recipe by scrolling through all the twee guff about how the recipe came to be . Just keep scrolling, you get there eventually.

cookieandkate.com/2017/black-bean-salad-recipe/

Oh that looks really good. Will be using that recipe (now that I have waded through the 25 pages of preamble, yes...).

Blimey @Lurking, that's amazing!

Today (7)

Breakfast: Half a grapefruit & toast (1)
Lunch: Carrot & hummus sandwich, cherry tomatoes and an apple (4)
Dinner: Sausage pasta with tomatoes and sweet corn (2) unless you also count the onion?

Are you counting them as proper portion sizes, or is it the variety that counts?

Thanks a mill Elementree looks really lovely. Few things I wouldn't usually have in ingredients though- I thought cilantro was for making drinks!

I'm very envious, I want a raised bed! I've just bought a gorgeous raised herb garden though so the veg one may have to wait till next year.

Sure the onions count, red and yellow also are different (different colours, different nutrients).

I count everything do long as it's a reasonable amount, ie not just a pinch. So I would definitely count onions in a dish (especially as I use copious amounts as so good for you) but I wouldnt count the garlic (although I do use four times as much as a recipe suggests as again so good for you).

Lurking I think you have set the bar high! 21 is amazing and for sure you'll have had 10+ decent portions in there with a massive variety of nutrients.

I think this article is interesting, although the Asian mushroom concept is new to me.

This is very similar to the way I am
aspiring to eat (minus the pasta).

www.drweil.com/diet-nutrition/anti-inflammatory-diet-pyramid/dr-weils-anti-inflammatory-food-pyramid/

I think his book will be next on my wish list .... off to add Asian mushrooms to shopping list!

Hello, I'd like to join please! When I'm on it, I eat about 10 portions a day. I'm working out of the house quite a lot at the moment so it isn't as easy, but I'm trying. I see it as a challenge and really not all that difficult when in the zone.

I find the best way for me to fit them all in, is to have a big old veg stir fry with either chicken or cashews, or both. Sometimes for breakfast!

Yesterday was:

Breakfast: omelette with

1 pepper
2 mushroom
3 onion

Snacks:

4 apple
5 satsumas

Then it went a bit different, because I had:

6 a banana (and a beer) after an evening race!

Today I'm out from 7:45 until bedtime. Plan is to have:

Breakfast:

Omelette with:

1 pepper
2 onion
3 mushroom
4 baked beans (do they count???)

Lunch and snacks
5 apple
6 satsumas

Salad with: mackerel and
7 carrot
8 broccoli
9 green beans
10 spring onions
11 salad leaves

Tea may not have any veg, hence my loading up in advance.

Can I join please? Slightly in awe of you guys, you're doing so well. I'm pregnant, so not really cutting carbs as I get too hungry! Also indulging my sweet tooth with a bit of chocolate or ice cream in the evenings. But really up for increasing veg and fruit intake, and sharing tips.

Yesterday's plan: B-cheese spread and cherry tomatoes on seeded toast 1

L-carrot soup, ryvitas, halloumi and cherry tomatoes 2

Snack-strawberries, blueberries, Apple, satsuma and Greek yogurt 4

Dinner- smoked haddock and egg kedgeree with added onion, spinach, tomatoes, and mushrooms 4

Total of 11 portions. I remember from past experience how eating lots of veg reduces sugar cravings/changes appetite. Hoping to keep this up

Welcome!!! The more the merrier.

Breakfast was a flaxseed muffin with added pumpkin seeds and

1. Strawberries

and my green smoothie which consisted of

1. Raw asparagus stalks (I figure that since I'm spending a fortune on organic veg, I'm going to use the entire thing and if that means in my morning smoothie sobeit).
2. Spinach
3. Fennel tops
4. Carrot

Lunch will be bean dip with raw garlic, olive oil and

1. Bean mix
2. Spinach

then crudites consisting of

1. Tomatoes
2. Radish

Fennel 10. Carrot 11. Yellow pepper

Tea will be kippers and

12. Red cabbage Asparagus
13. Celeriac More carrots

oh yes, and forgot to add that in my smoothie this morning I had a huge bunch of

15. Parsley

Oh yeah Mikado cilantro is just corriander. I can't tell you how long I spent in the veg section looking for arugala only to Google and find out it was just rocket!

Yesterday was

Overnight oats with banana, blueberries and apples. Turns out I'm not a big fan of overnight oats - I think it was all the almond milk. (3)

Lunch was tomato soup followed by a tub of raspberries (2)

Snack
Smoothie - Kale and orange (2)

Dinner
Bean mix above on rocket and spinach (7) and sweet potato wedges (1)

Total 15.

Yesterday:

B: Greek yoghurt, raspberries, mango (2)
L: cheese, ham, rye crackers, plus salad with iceberg, tomatoes, peppers, cucumber and seeds (4)
D: pork wrapped in parma ham and sage, with asparagus, broccoli and mushrooms, then an apple (4)

So 10 yesterday - can't ever top my record of 21, I don't think! And no, these are definitely not even anything like full portions (probably the dinner veg are but the rest are just small bits and pieces that go into a salad or whatever). I find it is really helpful just to focus on eating lots of different fruit and veg even if the portion sizes are teeny tiny.

I'm going to make the bean mix today, I think.

Today's plan:

B-baked beans and cherry tomatoes on seeded toast 2

L-Rocket, cucumber, spring onions, tomatoes, celery, avocado, sweet potato/carrot veggie burger, puy lentils. 8

D-leftover kedgeree. 4

Snack- strawberries, grapes, banana. 3

Grand total of 17!

Congrats to you all, this is a great idea OP. The two of us (dh and I) manage to get through a veg box intended for 3-4 every week along with extra orders of kale, cavolo nero, courgette and broccoli.

Recently the three quick and easy meals I rotate through are:

• Chickpea and veg tray bake: put cooked/tinned and drained chickpeas on a baking tray with sliced onions/shallots/leeks, add veg, spices and oil, roast in oven until chickpeas are toasty and browned and everything else is tender, serve with fish/chicken/tofu/poached egg on top. It needs maybe an hour to cook depending on your oven but if you add raw chicken before you put it in the oven it's a complete meal that takes only minutes to prepare. Based on this recipe but lots more veg (kale, broccoli, cauliflower) and I often omit the marinade.

• Soup: I make fresh chicken stock from carcasses and keep it in the freezer so all I have to do is saute some onion/garlic/celery/carrot/whatever, add herbs and a massive pile of veg (cavolo nero is especially nice) and some protein (chicken, chickpeas or lentils usually) and put it on top of the frozen stock and when it's boiling and veg are tender it's ready. Sometimes I add a squeeze of lemon, parmesan, bacon, different herbs etc just to change it up a bit. This can be ready in 10-15mins.

• Pasta (or you can sub pulses, quinoa or potato) with veg puree: garlic, shallots, massive pile of veg (cavolo nero, kale, spinach, fennel are my favourites), cook for 3-4mins max and puree, serve with cheese/pasta/protein and lemon zest/parsley/basil as desired. I make a huge pot of it so it takes some time to puree but aside from that it can be ready in about 15mins from start to finish. This is the recipe I based it on but I always load up on veg proportionally to pasta and cheese.

I read recently that a lot of these foods (cavolo nero, chickpeas) are very good for the gut biome in addition to all their other benefits.

Hi thefirstmrs, yes gut bio is a huge and interesting subject. I am planning on looking into this next. For now I am taking a spoon of vinegar and adding miso to the end of soups etc. Have you any tips? Good books to read? etc.

I'm posting tomorrows plan as I've just prepped it all and I am going away tomorrow for the weekend (again! I am looking forward to spending a weekend at home soon as being away can play havoc with plans).

Breakfast will be flaxseed muffing with pumpkin seeds and

1. Strawberries

In my green smoothie I have prepped

1. Cherry Active Juice
2. Mango
3. Carrot tops
4. Parsley
5. Mint
6. Asparagus ends
7. Courgette ends

It looks very murky!

Lunch is leftover pork stir fry:-

1. Beansprouts

10. Pak Chow Carrots Asparagus 11. Monks Beard

For tea on the go its the bean dip I had today, but as a thick salad dressing with

12. Mixed beans
13. Spinach

Then salad of

14. Organic leaves
15. Roasted courgettes
16. Tomatoes
17. Cucumber
18. Pomegranate seeds

Oh and another thing, and I appreciate this will seem ridiculous to some! In the book, he mentions that even with steaming, some of the nutrients leak out into the water below.

So I have started using filtered water in the pan and then drinking afterwards. Its not always pleasant, but tolerable. Tonights water was blue thanks to the red cabbage.

Is this taking it to the extreme? Possibly so!

Dont want to waste any of those precious nutrients!

That's interesting about steaming.

Today (9)
Breakfast: Half a grapefruit & toast (1)
Lunch: Falafel & lettuce sandwich, grapes, satsuma (4 - I'm counting the falafel as one as I think they contain chick peas or some other pulse)
Dinner: Broccoli quiche, lettuce, tomato, cucumber and coleslaw (4, I'm discounting the lettuce as I also had it earlier)

Well I'm very smug about my fridge anyway- veg overload and an overflowing fruit bowl.
B: porridge, Apple and cinnamon (1)
S: mandarin Orange (2)
Carrot, pepper, hummus (3?)
L: Carrot and coriander soup (1)
D: Bolognese w/peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms (3)

10
Prob not huge portions though.

Some plans for the next week based on shopping done are: lentil, roast pepper, feta and salad leaves; sweet potato frittata w/red onions, feta and spinach; broccoli, cherry tomato, hazelnut and feta salad :)

I've also been reminded of a lovely salad of tomatoes, carrots and courgette w/cinnamon and other spices - will root out recipe. Appreciate the tips and inspo from others.

Shoeshelpplease - I save the water from steaming veg and use it for soup. Obvs I don't let it sit in the fridge for a week but if I'm planning to make soup I try to do it on the same night as I steam veg!

Yesterday:
B: Greek yoghurt, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries (3)
C: Fish chowder (argh, no veg but it needed used up), a pear (1)
D: Baked cauliflower fritters, lentil dhal with onions, cucumber salad (4), then an apple (1)

So 9 yesterday - not brilliant but the fridge and fruit bowl are getting empty so big shop tomorrow. Adding things to the shopping list from the ideas above. Brilliant.

I've had 7 already today, as has my 2yo (3f/4v). This is a great thread, really get a boost from how much you're fitting in. Lurking, don't say that's not great! 10 is good to anyone.

Thanks Elementtree 're coriander!

Btw kale and walnut make a lovely pesto.

Day started well with avocado and bagel (1) but went swiftly downhill with a stomach bug thing. Managed to eat some butternut squash ravioli with tomato sauce (2) for tea. So just 3 but still don't feel fantastic.