How to eat more vegetables

David Buscher, M.D., a specialist in environmental medicine, has photos of vegetables in his office.

When I asked him why, he said to remind people of the importance of eating vegetables for good health.

I’m fortunate. I love vegetables. However, sometimes when I get busy, I don’t take the time to prepare vegetables as I should.

Here are 10 tips I’ve been using recently for eating more vegetables:

1. Buy more vegetables that don’t need to be cooked.

I’m purchasing more baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers. They’re quick to grab for a snack or add to a meal.

2. Cook a cauliflower whole.

You can chop off the leaves and cook the cauliflower in a large pot. No need to cut it up. If your steamer has a post in the middle, you can poke it into the cauliflower next to the stem.

3. Eat two vegetables with your meat or fish for lunch or dinner.

I like fish, salad, and crook neck squash.

4. Cook green beans whole.

I’m snapping off the ends of the beans and cooking them whole. It saves the time of snapping them into smaller pieces.

5. Cook larger amounts of vegetables.

I’m cooking two to three pounds of fresh green beans at a time, when I can buy them in season or when I have a large supply in my garden. You can use them for "plan overs" for a couple of days. I even eat green vegetables for breakfast. They’re delicious.

6. Buy vegetables in bulk at a warehouse store.

Recently I’ve been buying organic lettuce and spinach at Costco for $5 for a large plastic tub. I cook the spinach all at once, and it makes about five cooked servings. I’ve enjoyed the spinach with eggs for breakfast. The lettuce is about six to seven servings.

7. Add vegetables to soup.

I’m eating collards and kale to add nutrients to my diet. However, I’m finding them difficult now to eat plain. I’m adding them to canned organic soups.

8. Try veggie sandwiches.

I’ve been eating tomato sandwiches recently. We used to make them when my parents had a large vegetable garden. Add spinach for additional nutritional value.

9. Order steamed vegetables when you eat out instead of the fries.

Most restaurants will accommodate this request, which often provides interesting results.

10. Buy vegetables that are already cut up.

This costs more money, and is questionable environmentally because more packaging is needed. However, I do it occasionally when I’m in a hurry.

One idea that I tried didn’t work. To prepare Swiss chard more quickly, I tried rinsing it as a bunch, then chopping it all at once. I thought this would save time over my usual method, rinsing each leaf individually and cutting out the stem.

I didn’t get the Swiss chard clean enough. Eating crunchy Swiss chard wasn’t enjoyable.

Here are additional tips for eating more vegetables:

"Tips to Help You Eat Vegetables" – U.S. Department of Agriculture

"10 Tips for Easy Vegetable Preparation" – About.com

"How to Eat More Magnesium Rich Vegetables" – Healthmad

"How to Eat More Vegetables" – eHow