The Great Veggie Debate

Yeah I know some of you are like wha? Debate? On vegetables?? Yeah well there are a few. And I'd like to take some time and some information to address the debates!

First of all, yeah I skipped the cute little story intro this time, (weird change up but hang with me - stories to come!) here are the biggest things I hear about vegetables. That fresh is better than frozen, vegetarians are healthier, if you use dressing it's not healthy anymore, and if you don't like hundreds of thousands of vegetables you're a weird loser. Yeah these are all totally legit!

Fresh is better than frozen. I think you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who is DIE HARD frozen vegetables. But when it comes right down to it, frozen is right up there man. New research has shown that frozen vegetables retain MOST of their valuable nutrients due to improved freezing processes. In fact, some people think they hold more because the vitamins and minerals are locked in (no this isn't a commercial it's real just bear with me!) during the freezing process making them much better for you at the table. Fresh veggies you buy in a typical grocery store have to be picked, processed, usually sprayed with something, travel and be put out for you to purchase. That's a long time off the vine my friends. Yes I am fully aware that not all veggies grow on a vine! It's just a turn of phrase. Don't argue with me you're making this post longer! GAH! So what many experts and scientifists (Not a typo just making the word scientist funny) say is that frozen is creeping up on the fresh veggie market! Plus the fact that frozen last so much longer and come in convenient self steaming bags! Bottom line, you're best bet is to buy fresh vegetables at a local farmers market. It helps support local and small business while giving you the freshest produce possible. But when we, in the real world, know that's not always possible. Don't be afraid to reach for the frozen every now and again. They're not as bad as you think!

Now, many of you have figured out, or are about to, that I am an omnivore. Yeah, I eat it all and am proud of it. I think that a healthy balance of meat and vegetables are what we are meant to eat. So it kind of pains me to hear that so many people are going vegetarian and vegan. Here's why. A woman on the Ellen Show is vegan and was talking about how unhealthy and weird it is that humans drink cow milk which was made for cows. Okay, she had me thinking. But THEN, they went to a segment where this woman was helping a family go vegan. They were preparing a meal of MEATLESS meat tips. Now for those of you not yet following me here's my concern. Cow's milk is naturally occurring in nature and it has desperately valuable nutrients that humans need like vitamin D and calcium. Meatless meat tips have to be made in a factory somewhere. Meatless meat doesn't happen naturally in nature. Period. I have heard that many people off the meaten path ... (yeah did ya catch that? not beaten but meaten. Whatever I'm hilarious.) say that they take plenty of supplements to get all the nutrients they need. Well here we go again. Not that taking a vitamin supplement here and there is bad. But relying on them to get in what you're not consuming on purpose is weird to me. (This is not taking into account people with digestive or other health concerns, I know some people can't eat certain things and that's not what I'm talking about so don't panic. Take a breath and keep reading!) Why are people afraid of things that are perfectly natural? What do you think humans did millions of years ago when we didn't have corn fields? Yeah they ate meat. Granted they didn't live as long, but they weren't exactly the brightest crayons in the box either. Remember when you were in elementary school and your health teachers talked about the Food Pyramid? Well it hasn't gone away. It's still around, modified, but around none the less. ( https://www.google.com/search?source=ig&rlz=&q=the+food+pyramid+2012&oq=The+food+pygs_l=igoogle.3.1.0l10.941.2257.0.5635.11.10.0.0.0.0.215.1672.0j8j2.10.0...0.0...1ac.1.Do9CAJfNy0Y ) There should be a balance. The fact of the matter is you're always going to have some people say this or some people say that. There are ALWAYS exceptions to every rule. But there are billions of people on the planet. What works for 5 of them might not work for you. Eat a balanced diet. Meat, vegetables, fruits and even fats.

This segment is short. Eating vegetables any which way is much better for you than not eating them at all. Me? I can hardly eat raw veggies. I need em cooked, I really do. So what? It's still better for me than not eating them at all. Is it best to eat my carrots plain? Of course! But who wants to do that when I can dip them in a little ranch and gobble them down. Now, I've explained in posts prior that everything in moderation. If you use more ranch than carrot we have a problem, but a tablespoon of ranch will easily slay 10-12 carrot sticks. And at the end of the day, it's better to eat them with ranch to get the value of the carrot than to not eat them at all.

Lastly, if you don't like 50 million vegetables you're a freak and a loser. Well lets just lay that one to rest right now. I'm awesome and I only like about 20 vegetables. Sorry some of them I just can't love. And it's not all genetic either. My mom would eat the world out of house and veggies if she could. But not I. I can't get on board with the sweet potato fad. I'm too attached to my regular taters, I just can't go sweet! It's like a contradiction in my mouth. Or mushrooms. Those things never shoulda been consumed in the first place. Everybody wants to put them in everything all the time then say you can't even taste them! THEN WHY PUT THEM IN THERE?! Most mushrooms are poisonous, why did someone go out and find the few safe to eat? Shoulda let it go man! But as a mom, I've tried my very best to buy every different kind of baby food, put every different vegetable in my kids mouth as she'll let me. It's not my job to tell her what's gross, she'll figure it out all on her own one day.

And I'd like to close with this. The unsung hero's of the vegetable world. Baby spinach, the fresh leaf kind. It's really good. Pair that with some good ole fashioned ice berg lettuce and you've got my attention my friend! Brussels sprouts. Man they get a bad wrap but they're actually quite delish. I like them cooked very thoroughly so they're soft. Either baked with some oil or a little melted butter and you've really got something! Broccoli and Cauliflower. These have got to be my two favorites and you never hear people talking about them! You can integrate them into so many dishes and they always taste so good. And lastly, the onion. Yes it is a vegetable. And it's good in almost anything (except eggs ... quit putting onions in eggs!). It is highly beneficial for your skin, believe it or not, and it's just good! I recommend - when you're not on a date or about to go on a date - chopped onion on tortilla chips. Now there's a snack!

So eat your vegetables any way you can. Dip that celery in peanut butter pal! I'm so glad you're branching out and eating things that are good for you! And don't believe all the hype about vegetarians. It's more work than it's worth and when it comes right down to it, I love me some chicken! Or lean turkey!

Omnivores unite! Lets eat it all and like it!