[sidebar]According to the CDC, you should be eating about 2 cups of fruit and 2 1/2 cups of veggies each day (1 cup is about the size of a baseball). Fortunately, hitting the mark is easier than you may think. Just 12 frozen baby carrots equal a cup, and with no washing or chopping required, your veggies are ready in no time. From freezer to fork, most veggie side dishes take less than 10 minutes. Here’s how to select and prepare ’em:
Pick US Grade A
For quality, generic is just as good as name brands, if you choose US Grade A (also known as Fancy) varieties. This ranking means the produce was carefully selected for color and tenderness and is free from blemishes. It’ll be more flavorful, compared with Grade B (also called Extra Standard), which is slightly more mature, or C (Standard), which is not uniform in color or flavor. Grade C veggies are the least expensive, and though they still provide nutrients, they can be stringy, tough, even bitter. It’s best to use them in recipes that don’t feature them prominently, such as soups, stews, and casseroles. Grades usually appear on the back of the package, inside a symbol that looks like a shield. More from Prevention: 16 Freezer-Friendly Meals[pagebreak]
Skip Added Sauces
When sauces and seasonings are included, fat, sodium, and sugar levels typically skyrocket. The healthiest choices are bags and boxes with zero additives. That means selecting products with only vegetables listed in the ingredients. Many shoppers think frozen goods are heavily processed. They can be, but not in this case. Freezing itself is enough to preserve produce without the addition of salts (which can raise blood pressure) or sugars (which spike blood sugar). Though some manufacturers claim their sauce is light or low fat, that doesn’t mean it’s healthy. A 10-ounce package of broccoli in low-fat white Cheddar cheese sauce provides nearly 15 times as much sodium as an entire 12-ounce bag of plain broccoli florets. A 16-ounce package of strawberries in sauce contains 285 more calories and an additional 77 g of sugar, compared with a 20-ounce bag of frozen whole strawberries; that’s nearly 20 teaspoons’ worth. Bottom line: Eating frozen produce in sauces is definitely better than eating none, but I strongly recommend sticking with unseasoned vegetables, especially because you can easily (and healthfully) dress them yourself.
Add Flavor without Lots of Calories
Pick the right topping and you can have low-cal, low-sodium veggie side dishes in minutes. Just add jarred vegetable tapenades or pestos. They are rich in flavor and coat vegetables perfectly, and most add a mere 40 calories and almost no sodium. Microwave or steam your favorite frozen vegetable, and toss with 1 tablespoon per cup of vegetables. My favorite combos include:
Sun-dried tomato pesto with cut broccoli florets or spinachOlive pesto with green beansArtichoke tapenade with yellow wax beansWild mushroom pesto with Brussels sproutsButternut pesto with carrotsGinger glaze with Oriental veggies or shelled edamame
My Favorite Frozen Fruit Meals
The farmers’ market may be closed for the season, but you can still fit frozen fruits into your meals. Add these summer favorites to warm winter recipes for a healthy dose of nutrients with minimal calories: More from Prevention: How To Keep Your Food From Spoiling
