Eat Your Fruits and Veggies the Delicious Way

By Barbara Day, M.S., R.D., C.N.

Eating more fruits and vegetables is always a challenge for most Americans. One of the reasons for low intake of fruits and especially vegetables is finding tasty recipes that are easy to fix and ones that will be appropriate for the whole family. The following recipes are very colorful which helps to ensure that they contain an assortment of vitamins and minerals. Enjoy!

Cherry-Couscous Salad*

Per Serving: 281 calories, 9.1 grams protein, 6.6 grams of fat, 49.2 grams of CHO, 7 grams of fiber, 267 mg sodium.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 8 servings

Ingredients

Salad

• 1 ½ cups vegetable broth or water
• 1 ½ cups couscous
• 2 cups pitted sweet cherries (about 1 ¼ pounds)
• 1 can (15 to 19 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can (11 ounces) whole kernel corn drained
• 3 scallions, chopped (about ½ cup)
• ½ cup chopped parsley
• ½ cup chopped bell pepper

Fresh Lime Dressing

• ½ teaspoon finely chopped lime zest
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt (optional)
• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ teaspoon chili powder

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, bring the vegetable broth to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in couscous; cover and remove from the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Transfer the couscous to a serving bowl and stir in the cherries, black beans, corn, scallions, parsley and bell pepper.

To make the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together all the dressing ingredients until well blended. Drizzle the dressing over the couscous mixture and toss evenly coated. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Shopping List

• vegetable broth
• couscous
• sweet cherries (about 1 ¼ pounds)
• 1 can (15 to 19 ounces) of black beans
• 1 can (11 ounces) whole kernel corn
• 3 scallions
• fresh parsley
• bell pepper
• 2 limes
• olive oil
• sugar
• dried oregano
• chili powder

Fig, Apple and Chicken Stir Fry

Per Serving: 359 calories, 23.6 grams protein, 9.2 grams of fat, 49 grams of CHO, 9 grams of fiber, 373 mg sodium.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

Sauce

• 2/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon water
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• ½ teaspoon sugar

Stir-Fry

• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4 ounces each), cut into bite-size chunks
• 8 dried figs, chopped
• 1 medium red apple, cored and cut into ½ inch cubes
• 4 ounces snow peas, trimmed
• 1 medium carrot, cut diagonally into thin slices
• 2 baby bok choy, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 scallion, sliced
• Hot cooked rice or noodles for serving (optional) 

Instructions

To make the sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together the broth, soy sauce, water, cornstarch, and sugar until well blended and smooth.

To make the stir fry: Heat a large skillet or wok over high heat until hot. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil and the chicken; stir fry until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear. Transfer the chicken to a bowl. Add 1 teaspoon oil to skillet. Add the dried figs, apple, snow peas, and carrot; stir-fry for 3 minutes. Add to the chicken in the bowl. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil, bok choy, and scallions to the skillet; stir fry 1 minute. Return the chicken mixture to the skillet along with ½ cup of the sauce. Stir-fry until the sauce thickens and boils. Serve with rice or noodles, if desired.

Shopping List

• low-sodium chicken broth
• light soy sauce
• cornstarch
• sugar
• canola oil
• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4 ounces each)
• 8 dried figs
• 1 medium red apple
• 4 ounces snow peas
• 1 medium carrot
• 2 baby bok choy
• 1 scallion  

Polenta, Spinach, and Mushroom Lasagna

Per Serving without sauce: 523 calories, 18 grams protein, 16 grams of fat, 77 grams of CHO, 12 grams of fiber, 287 mg sodium.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pound white mushrooms, trimmed and thinly sliced
• ½ cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 package (10 ounces) chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• ¼ cup prepared pesto, plus additional for serving (optional)
• 1 cup instant polenta or yellow cornmeal
• Tomato sauce, for serving (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly coat a 9-icnh pie plate with cooking spray. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over high heat. Add the mushrooms and cooking, stirring about 10 minutes, or until tender and lightly browned. Transfer 1 cup of mushrooms to a small bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan cheese.

Stir in spinach and pesto into the mushrooms in the skillet; cook for about 2 minutes, or until heated through. Set aside. Cook the polenta according to the package directions. Remove the heat and stir in the remaining cheese.

Spread half of the polenta in the prepared pie plate. Spoon the mushroom-spinach mixture over the polenta. With a narrow metal spatula, evenly spread the remaining polenta on top. Cover with the reserved mixture.

Bake for about 10 minutes, or until heated through. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting into wedges. Serve on a bed of tomato sauce or top with a dollop of pesto, if desired.

Shopping List

• olive oil
• 1 pound white mushrooms
• fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1 package (10 ounces) chopped spinach
• prepared pesto
• instant polenta or yellow cornmeal
• Tomato sauce, for serving

Make-Ahead Tip

Cover the lasagna with aluminum foil; refrigerate up to 24 hours. To reheat, bake in a preheated 375 degrees oven for about 30 minutes or until heated through.

Watermelon-Blueberry Banana Split

Per Serving: 186 calories, 4 grams protein, 1 gram of fat, 44 grams of CHO, 3 grams of fiber, 66 mg sodium.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 2 large ripe bananas
• 8 scoops seedless watermelon (see Cooking Tip, below)
• 1 pint blueberries
• ½ cup low-fat vanilla yogurt
• ¼ cup crunchy cereal nuggets

Instructions

Cut the bananas crosswise in half; cut each piece lengthwise in half. For each serving, place 2 pieces of banana against the sides of a long shallow dessert dish. Place a scoop of watermelon at each end of the dish. Fill the center with blueberries. Stir the yogurt until smooth; spoon over the watermelon. Sprinkle with the cereal nuggets.

Shopping List

• 2 large ripe bananas
• seedless watermelon
• 1 pint blueberries
• low-fat vanilla yogurt
• crunchy cereal nuggets like Grapenuts®

Cooking Tip

Use an ice-cream scoop to scoop out the watermelon balls. Remove the seeds if necessary.

Berries Year-Round

The summer season brings a bounty of luscious, sweet, and reasonably priced berries, but alas, the season is short. Why not freeze this fruit which is rich in antioxidants? Wash the berries and pat dry with paper towels. Spread out berries in a jelly-roll pan and place in the freezer until hard. Return them to their original containers, wrap in heavy-duty aluminum foil, and place in zip-top freezer bags. Label and date the bags and freeze the berries up to 6 months. When frozen this way, the berries will not stick together.

*With permission from, 5 a day the better health cookbook. Elizabeth Pivonka, R.D., Ph.D., and Barbara Berry. ISBN 1-57954-528-9.

Barbara Day, M.S., R.D., C.N., is a nutritionist with a masters degree in clinical nutrition who is also registered dietitian and has over 30 years of experience in promoting healthy active lifestyles to consumers. Barbara Day, M.S., R.D., C.N., is the publisher and nutrition editor of Kentuckiana HealthFitness and Kentuckiana Healthy Woman and a runner, cyclist and hiker.