Carrots Galore, Chains Of Habit And Veggie Up
This past week has been all about graduation in my world.
We have a newly graduated Occupational Therapist in the household (very proud) and my students at Murdoch University, graduated with their Nutrition and Food Science degree (also very proud). There has been a lot of clapping, a lot of adjusting of mortar boards and plenty of wonderful photos.
It is always positive to be reminded what a privilege it is to have such high quality education in Australia, and that persistence and endurance are very underrated. It is no small feat to complete any training or study and I commend all that do.
If you have someone in your world that has been swanning about in a gown and stylish hat over the past few weeks – well done indeed!
Something to Think About
“Chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken.” – Warren Buffet
Something to Make
Roasted Carrots Salad
Love, love, love carrots! Full of vitamins A and C and a great source of fibre, this carrot dish is one of my absolute favourites.
Ingredients
1 bag carrots or 1 large bunch multi-coloured or 1/2 bag orange plus 1/2 bag purple carrots
2 x red onions, quartered
1 cup plain Greek yoghurt
1 bunch fresh dill, chopped finely
1/2 cup currants
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp honey
Olive oil
Method
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
- Wash and trim carrots (but keep whole) and peel and quarter onions. Place all onto a lined baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and roast for approximately 40 minutes or until tender.
- While the vegetables are cooking, combine the yoghurt, cumin and honey.
- Using a large platter, spread the dressing over the base of the platter and top evenly with the currants and dill.
- Arrange the roasted carrots stylishly over the dressing and enjoy!
Something to Do
Australian statistics show that 96% of children and adolescents aged 2-17 and 94% of adults aged 18 and over do not eat the recommended servings of vegetables each day.
We REALLY need to do better. Eating more vegetables reduces the risk of almost of all of our major lifestyle diseases. So simple and yet, so apparently difficult.
For a reality check, if you are not consuming at least 2.5-3 cups vegetables and salad each day, then you are one of these statistics. The fact is, having vegetables only at dinner time will not be enough for anyone.
Some easy ways to increase your vegetable intake:
- Think about grabbing whole carrots, baby cucumber, handful of cherry tomatoes or a sliced sweet red capsicum as a snack to go with some cheese or hummus.
- Keep a stash of frozen vegetables as a quick, easy and nutritious alternative to fresh.
- Grate and chop vegetables into sauces and casseroles.
- Add legumes to meat dishes to extend the meal and boost the fibre.
- Use the portion plate model when preparing your meal to ensure that vegetables are a feature.
- Use a little delicious dressing to make your vegetables and salad interesting.
