Fit Fare

We’ve heard it all our lives, starting with our mothers: “Eat your fruit and vegetables!” And as we grew up we saw constant reports from different research groups and the government, exhorting us with the same refrain. But, are most people listening? It would appear that the answer is a resounding no. Sadly, despite the constant advice and lectures on the health promoting properties of eating fruit and vegetables, few Americans are paying attention. Surveys show that Americans are actually eating less vegetables. And while the amount of fruit eaten has remained stable, those figures are dismal too.

Starting in 1991, the government announced a goal to have Americans eat two or more servings of fruit a day and three or more servings of vegetables. It doesn’t sound that hard, but research studies in 2007 show that only 28% of people met those goals in fruit consumption, a figure that is about the same as when the campaign began. However, vegetable consumption is 32%, which is a drop from 35% in 1991. So, despite all the pep talks about nutrition, we are getting worse. And frankly, the fact that about 30% of our population consumes enough fruit and vegetables is troubling.

I thought of these figures when yet another news story reported that eating vegetables and fruit is effective in fighting cancer. Studies show that black raspberries, blueberries and cloudy apple juice can prevent colon cancer. Other research shows that cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts contain phytonutrients that can inhibit cancer cell growth. And lycopene, found in tomatoes, pink grapefruit, and watermelon may help reduce the risk of prostate cancer in men.

Many parents say that they can’t get their children to eat vegetables and fruit. Instead, junk food is preferred and children often grow up into adults with poor eating habits. So, what to do? One tactic is to cut back or stop buying junk foods and replace them with fruit and vegetables, cut up into serving pieces and available when a child wants a snack. Fruit kabobs can also add a fun element to eating. There may be some complaining, but children usually make the transition.

Vegetables may be a harder sell, but creativity helps in the battle to get more of them in resistant eaters. Time honored tricks like making soup with pureed vegetables, add a creamy taste and lots of vitamins and fiber. Likewise, finely chopped vegetables added to low fat cottage cheese or ricotta make a nice dip, scooped up with crackers or carrot sticks.
Fortunately, in our house, vegetables are often preferred at a meal. Any trickery I might need to do would be with tofu, which my husband despises. An easy dip that we enjoy is made with roasted red bell peppers. You can roast the peppers yourself or buy them in jars, ready to use in an instant. Red peppers are an excellent source of vitamin c and carotene, but, we enjoy it for the taste. This puree can also be added to soup, or sour cream or ricotta for a creamy dip. It also tastes very good on sandwiches.

Sweet Red Pepper Puree

1 roasted red bell pepper
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 garlic clove
salt and pepper

Puree all the ingredients together. Serve as a dip or on sandwiches as a spread. Add to sour cream or ricotta to make a creamy dip. Add to soup or stews.