Picky Eater Tip Tuesday- Serve Vegetables that Taste Good!

Many kids and adults have the mistaken impression that vegetables are something that we have to eat because they're healthy, but that they're not anything that anyone would ever want to eat.

It's simply not true. Vegetables are delicious when they are prepared in the right ways.

If you want your kids to like vegetables, I suggest that you serve vegetables that taste really good!

My favorite delicious vegetable recipe is Lemon Garlic Broccoli.  Whenever I make a meal for someone who has had a baby, this is always the vegetable that I include, and it's always a hit. No matter what else I've made, people always ask about the broccoli.

My only problem is that I rarely make enough. My neighbor told me she made extra broccoli just to dip in the sauce after the broccoli I gave her ran out. Although I was glad that she liked it, I felt bad that I hadn't made enough!!

 Lemon Garlic Broccoli

* I hesitate to share this recipe only because it is a very inexact science. If you make it and it's too lemony or not lemony enough, please adjust!!

Ingredients

1 bunch of broccoli (or one bag frozen- tops only, ugh, who wants to eat only stems which is what you get if you buy most bagged frozen broccoli!)

Butter 

Olive Oil (I'm thinking of trying coconut oil- let me know if you do!)

Garlic

Lemon Juice

Salt/ Pepper

Start by cutting broccoli into bite sized pieces.

Toss with 1-2 T olive oil (enough to lightly coat) and sprinkle with salt and pepper (I told you it was an inexact science!!)

Spread broccoli evenly on a baking tray.

Cook at 400 degrees fro 5-10 minutes. Watch it carefully. You want the broccoli to be slightly tender/ slightly crunchy and it is usually best if it's starting to get just a tinge of brown.

Meanwhile... Heat 2 T butter (or more olive oil, but honestly it's so much better with butter) in a small pan. Add 1 T chopped garlic and sauté until butter is melted and garlic is just starting to brown. Remove from heat and add 1-2 T lemon.

Remove broccoli from oven and put it in a serving bowl. 

Pour lemon/ garlic/ butter mixture on top and stir to distribute the sauce. 

Use Vegetarian cookbooks or search vegetarian websites for good vegetable recipes. I figure that vegetarians eat vegetables all the time so they have surely mastered the art of making them taste good.

Here are a few other suggestion for vegetables that taste really good!

Sweet Potato Fries
Guacamole (with chips- or for all veg, dip carrots in guac)
Asparagus tossed with olive oil and garlic salt and then lightly grilled (a Forman grill or grill pan)
Zucchini sautéed with *Penzey's Fox Point Seasoning
Sautéed Radishes with butter and salt

**My mom got me hooked on this a few years ago... put it on any vegetable (or meat, or with eggs) and cook with a little olive oil, the flavor will be wonderfully enhanced!!

How do you make vegetables that taste REALLY good??! Please share your ideas and recipes in the comments.  Also, if you try this recipe and think I should adjust my amounts, please let me know. I've made it so many times that I just kind of toss it all in and it works out :)