In the season of resolutions, lots of people resolve to stop doing things—stop smoking, stop eating deep fried foods, stop spending money. Ceasing a behavior can be very difficult to do, let alone turn it into a regular habit. This year I am resolving to add rather than take away; I am resolving to add more fruits and vegetables and to try to find innovative ways to do so.
When it comes to make changes, I am the type of person who inches toward rather than runs toward it, so I like to make incremental change, even if it is a bit of fruit and veg here and there. This past weekend my husband and I had friends over for dinner. I made it my goal to add nutrients through fruit and vegetables to the dishes I had planned. We had Vermont Salad (mixed greens, pecans, sharp Cheddar chunks)—so I sliced up pear very thinly with a mandoline and tossed it with the salad. Then, we had pumpkin soup, and since I prefer a little texture in my soup rather than it being perfectly smooth, I added grated squash when I sautéed the onions as I began the dish. We also made Chicken Roulades—butterflied chicken breasts stuffed with bread crumbs, Cheddar cheese, and diced apples. My finest achievement was the cake I made. As you gathered, I did quite a lot of cooking, and decided that I would get a little help from Betty Crocker to make a showstopper dessert. I bought a Carrot Cake cake mix, and added in about a cup of shredded carrots. A great dessert with a good boost of betacarotene!
I also substituted applesauce for about a third of the oil. This year I also hope to experiment more with this and other substitutes like fruit puree, prune butter and even baby food.
Do you have experience with these techniques? Tell us about your successes.