Do you eat your greens, purples and reds? Survey any dietitian and you will find that we eat well over the (fairly dismal) average vegetable serves a day. With many of us easily exceeding the 5+ recommended serves. So what’s our secret? And what on earth is a vegetable butcher?
Veg out
Just as Manhattan has the iconic “I love NY”. Dietitian’s t-shirt slogan would have to be “I love veggies”. But delve a little deeper and you will see that things didn’t always come naturally. Many colleagues of mine talk about hating veggies as kids, and how they didn’t start strolling down the garden path until they became nutrition students. Sure we can rhyme off jargon like lycopene and cruciferous. And it helps having an intimate relationship with research on the superior health and weightloss benefits of a diet rich in plant based foods. But the truth is we have worked at it. Through countless days, finding creative ways, to serve veggies up to boyfriends, husbands, kids, patients, diners and clients. We don’t just go for plain boiled potatoes. We pick vibrant orange and purple sweet potatoes & roast them with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, whole garlic cloves and fresh rosemary sprigs. We don’t just steam Brussel sprouts. We shred them finely and pan brown with a little oil and pinenuts or pear and white balsamic glaze. Ok you get the picture.
Veg up
One place to get inspiration is from eating out. Many forecasters have tipped vegetables to sprout ahead in 2011 as we see the continued rise of all things green, natural and local. Chicago based dietitian, colleague and blogger, Janet Helm RD, has written a great post on The Vegetable Trend on her blog Nutrition Unplugged. She quotes vegetables being dubbed the “new meat” by NY Magazine and research in the US revealing:
In cutting-edge fine-dining restaurants, asparagus, eggplant, peas, okra, corn on the cob, artichoke hearts and grilled vegetables are among the top vegetable sides on menus, according to the Foodservice Research Institute’s MenuMine database. Eggplant, plantain, Brussels sprouts, and Swiss Chard are among the gainers on the a la carte side dish list.
The Vegetable Butcher – Eataly NYC
Another option is to stop by and see The Vegetable Butcher, just like I did on my recent trip to NYC. The brainchild of celebrity chef Mario Batali and Jennifer Rubell, there is a fulltime chef on hand at the Italian gastrodome Eataly to wash, trim, chop and prepare your veggies right next to the produce aisle. Rubell has been quoted as saying:
“We can be a resource to help people. You don’t think about it, but people have an intense fear of vegetables,” she said. “You go into a supermarket and you know the characters selling you cereal, and there are thousands of ads selling you canned goods. So much time and effort goes into getting you to understand what they are. In the vegetable area, you’re on your own.”
New York dietitian Cynthia Sass RD and I chatted about the concept (and a whole lot more) over coffee. An indulgence yes? But what if everyone had this access? So I was thrilled to see the topic of her latest TV segment and now you can meet The Vegetable Butcher too.
So now it’s your turn clever readers and dietitians? Let’s get those veggie tips and recipe links going in the comments below.
