If you are eating just eggs for breakfast and fast food and steaks for dinner, you are missing the true spice and color that vegetables may bring to both your plate and your life. You must be familiar with veggies but let us play our part in elaborating a little. The word vegetable is used broadly for edible parts of plants: their leaves, roots, or seeds. Vegetables are grown worldwide as an important part of agriculture.
Categories of Vegetables
Vegetables are divided into five groups based on their nutritional values:
- Dark green
- Red and orange
- Beans, peas, and lentils
- Starchy
- Other vegetables
Each of these groups has its benefits and a unique taste as well.
Vegetables are a Treasure Full of Benefits
Vegetables are rich in many nutrients. People who include vegetables in their daily diet have a reduced risk of developing chronic diseases. Vegetables are rich in fibers, vitamins, and folic acid.
It is the nature of mankind to seek something new all the time. The same happens when it comes to food. We often get bored eating the same food repeatedly for some days. Nowadays, an infinite array of vegetables, grains, fruits, herbs are available at your fingertips. You don’t need to eat junk all the time when a variety of vegetable appetizers and snacks are available. Healthier options must always be prioritized.
The majority of people assume that healthy food can never be tasty. Let us bust this myth once and for all. We will show you how to transform your nutrient-rich, healthy food into the most luscious one on your dining table.
Snacks vs. Appetizers
Appetizers are meant to increase the appetite, and they are served as a small meal before the main course, while snacks are any small amount of food eaten when you feel hungry between meals. There are a large variety of food items that are used as snacks and appetizers. Vegetables can be used both as snacks and appetizers.
Health benefits of Vegetables as Snacks and Appetizers:
1. Wholesome and Nutritious
Vegetables provide a variety of nutrients. For example, vitamin A, vitamin C, carotene, folic acid, potassium, magnesium, antioxidants, and fibers. People consuming a vegetarian diet get twice as many fibers as omnivores. Vegetable snacks are low in fat and calories than junk food used as snacks.
If a person has a high cholesterol level, vegetables can do wonders for them. They just have to note their cholesterol level at the start and then at the end of two weeks of a vegetarian diet. They will surely notice a huge difference in the values before and after this diet.
2. Repel Diseases
Vegetables promote the health of young children and reduce the risk of heart diseases, stroke, and many other chronic diseases in adults. Moreover, veggies are also very good for gastrointestinal health and reduce the risk of constipation. Potassium, present in spinach and many other green leafy vegetables, helps reduce your blood pressure by filtering sodium out of the kidneys.
3. Assist in Weight loss
Most importantly, vegetables help with healthy weight management. As vegetables have lower calories and higher nutritional value, nutritionists recommend their use every day. Consuming vegetables as snacks will result in lower calorie intake because vegetables have a lower per cup calorie value than junk foods.
Therefore, a vegetable diet is very helpful, especially if you are struggling to reduce weight. You only have to replace your unhealthy junk foods and snacks with healthy vegetable snacks, and that’s it.
How to Make Your Children Eat Vegetables?
Most parents worry about is how to make their children eat vegetables. Children don’t care how healthy or unhealthy their food is – all they want is their food to be appetizing, tasty, and flavorful.
To develop the habit of eating vegetables in young children, you must take some steps. This habit can be developed in young children by increasing their exposure to and interest in vegetables. To do so, you can order a vegetable salad when dining out and accompany your children when buying fruits and vegetables. Also, you can simply replace unhealthy snacks with vegetables.
How to Make Vegetables Tasty?
Vegetarian foods are often considered boring and tasteless. You can make our veg food and snacks tasty and flavorful by adding various seasonings and vegan condiments. These condiments are essential to make any food delicious.
We often use some common vegan condiments in our daily life. While some of these have a real taste, others do not have the same taste as traditional ketchup or sauce.
Vegetables as Appetizers and Snacks
Vegetable appetizers are perfect to be served before a delicious meal. Such appetizers are easy to make and are not time-taking. You don’t need to cook or boil the vegetables always. Just cut the vegetables into small pieces and organize them in different styles and serve to your guests.
These dishes are not only simple and healthy but also look very colorful and delicious. Below are some vegetable appetizers you can serve to your children and guests, and they will devour them.
1. Greek Salad Skewers
Classic Greek salad can be served differently on a small stick as an appetizer. The pleasant and neat presentation is easy to make and looks colorful with tomatoes, onions, cucumber, olives and served with a Greek salad dressing for dipping.
2. Vegan Cauliflower Buffalo Bites
If you are looking for a super healthy appetizer for your guests or any casual get-together, vegan cauliflower buffalo bites are perfect for you. They are tender from the inside and crispy from the outside as coated with breadcrumbs and spices. The recipe is super delicious, and no one will be able to resist it.
3. Loaded Cauliflower Bites
As an alternative to loaded French fries, crispy slices of roasted cauliflower topped with cheese, sour cream, and anything you want can be used. They are low in carbs and healthy than the classic fried potatoes.
4. Cucumber Rolls
This one makes a simple and healthy appetizer; you just have to peel the cucumbers into long slices, top them with vegan white cheese, finely chopped red bell pepper, and fresh dill. Then roll them up and serve!
5. Curried Butternut Squash Dip
If you do not like hummus, this is the best alternative to it. It is a healthy squash dip, spiced with curry and made creamy with coconut milk. In place of butternut squash, you can also use pumpkin, other types of winter squash, and sweet potatoes. It can be served with crispy raw or roasted vegetables.
Conclusion
Using vegetables as appetizers and snacks is not only beneficial for health but also has many other benefits. They are very easy to make and consume less time and energy. Vegetable snacks and appetizers are very economic as compared to other expensive snacks and appetizers.
You can easily make vegetable snacks with only simple vegetables that can even be grown in your home’s backyard. They also take less time; in case of sudden and unexpected guests, you don’t have to worry – you can serve them with vegetable appetizers until the main meal is ready. And you will see everyone adoring the fresh and appetizing veggies.