Hide & Seek with Vegetables - Week 4 update

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I just wrapped up week 4 of my 2012 fruit and veggie resolution.  I'd like to say it's gotten easier but while some of these changes are becoming habits (like eating a healthy afternoon snack) others are starting to see their novelty wear off (like counting my daily servings).  I'm still trying to get a grasp on what constitutes one cup of all these fruits and vegetables.  And then I'm working on raising the motivation to actually CONSUME a cup of carrots or grapes or whatever - on a repeated basis. 

I'm averaging about 4 servings a weekday (calling it a cup might be a stretch).  A lot of it is pairing the healthy foods with the other foods that I love (chocolate, cheese, crackers), working to make these choices a habit, and then hiding vegetables where I can.  For example, loading up my spaghetti sauce with extra veggies, making fresh banana bread, putting peppers and onions in with my chicken enchiladas, and adding fresh tomatoes into pasta dishes.

I'd say it's working out well so far.  But it still requires weekly planning to make sure I have the right food in my house and then focus during the day to make sure I'm not making an impulse grab but instead going for the fruits and veggies.

I know I'm going to have to get more creative to keep this rolling for the next 4 weeks.  I have the added challenge of a very busy March coming up so it will be interesting to see how this progresses.

For now, here are some of the things I've been eating to keep the fruit and veggie count up.

For snacks...

• Apple and Cheddar - where has this combo been all my life!  I'm loving sliced apples and cubed cheese.  I typically grab prepackaged cheese sticks at the store so I can just throw them in my bag.  Super easy.
• Cheese, grapes and Rosemary Garlic Triscuits - speaking of those cheese sticks... grab one with a handful of Rosemary Garlic Triscuits (thank you Carey for bringing those into my life, they're DELICIOUS), and then a handful of grapes. 
• Banana Nutella Toast - this is really good when I'm craving something sweet and chocolatey.
• Guacamole and Chips - avocados are full of good fat and Lord knows I can eat enough guacamole to make this count as a serving.

For dinner...

• Spaghetti sauce - add chopped bell peppers, mushrooms, and onions to your normal sauce.  I'll post my version of this later this week. 
• Chicken enchiladas - add chopped bell peppers and onions to your normal chicken and cheese mixture.
• Stirfry - pick your favorite fresh veggies or grab one of the bags of pre-chopped frozen veggies at the store.  A 12 ounce bag of chopped red bell pepper, broccoli, onion, mushroom and watercress is $1.99 and cheaper than you could possibly buy everything fresh.  And so easy!
• Veggie meatloaf - I have an amazing recipe from Bobby Flay that I'll share soon, it's got balsamic vinegar and is not your momma's meatloaf!
• Chicken Nachos - making it completely acceptable to eat nachos for dinner and still have a balanced meal.
• Make your own pizza - Bobboli dough, canned pizza sauce and whatever veggies and toppings you prefer.  Switch it up and use BBQ sauce, red onion and chicken for a different take.

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