Your parents probably always told you to eat your veggies. While we won’t put you in time out if you don’t, we do understand it can be tough to incorporate vegetables into your diet without feeling like you’re eating rabbit food.

Don’t worry. There are plenty of ways to mix veggies into the meals you already love. Nourishing your body with vegetables doesn’t have to be bland or expensive. We’re here to show you just how easy it is to sneak some fresh vegetables in your diet on a budget and in fun ways!

Make veggie soup

Source: Gimme Some Oven

Vegetable soups are an easy way to squeeze in your servings of veggies without crunching on raw carrots like your life depends on it. Adding a few extra vegetables to your diet in unexpected places can make a huge difference for your fiber and vitamin intake.

If you like creamy chicken soups, try a creamy cauliflower soup. All you have to do is blend it all up to make a soup that’s rich in fiber. It’s the perfect way to use any cauliflower, onions and herbs you’re growing in your garden.

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• Vegetable stock or chicken broth

• Milk

• Parmesan cheese

• Olive oil

• Garbanzo beans

• Cauliflower

• Minced garlic

• Thyme

• White onion

Add vegetables to eggs

Source: Taste of Home

If you’re into eggs for breakfast, vegetable scrambled eggs are a super simple way to get your vegetable fix and you can customize it however you want! If you don’t like certain vegetables, no worries. Substitute them out for something you do like. Start slowly by adding one or two vegetables and working your way up. You can add shredded cheese to this recipe, too, for some added deliciousness and vitamins. 

This dish is perfect for Sunday brunch or a quick weekday morning breakfast with your cup of coffee.

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• Eggs or liquid eggs

• Milk

• Veggies (tomato, green onion, spinach, peppers)

Make smoothies

Source: SkinnyMs.

This is one of the best ways to sneak vegetables in because you can easily hide the flavors with fruit. There are plenty of veggie-packed smoothies, but many of them are too green for a vegetable disliker’s taste.

If you use flavorful fruits like pineapple, mango or strawberry as your base in a fruit and veggie smoothie, it will do a better job at masking your greens. Think strawberry, banana and kale or pineapple, mango and spinach. Getting a serving of green vegetables in smoothies is a lot easier than you think!

Pro tip: Some better-for-you fruits like pumpkin and other squash are considered vegetables. Pumpkin spice smoothie, anyone?

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• Almond milk

• Maple syrup

• Cinnamon

• Pumpkin puree, fresh or canned

• Banana

• Vanilla

• Nutmeg

• Allspice

Add them to foods you already like

Source: Downshiftology

Or substitute out other ingredients for veggies! The most important part of cooking and eating is finding things you like. It shouldn’t feel like a chore to add in veggies, but it can be a unique experience that requires a little bit of an adventurous spirit.

If you’re super into pasta, consider changing up what you consider to be a noodle. Ever heard of zoodles? Zucchini noodles, or zoodles, have become a staple in many pasta lovers’ homes. If you’re just starting to explore them, consider adding them into your regular pasta dish for a new texture.

How about cauliflower gnocchi? Instead of a potato-based gnocchi, this one’s first ingredient is cauliflower. And it tastes almost exactly the same. Throw some of your usual sauce on top and you’re good to go!

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• Sauce

• Zucchini noodles or cauliflower gnocchi

Try it with dessert

Source: The Castaway Kitchen

We know this sounds weird, but hear us out. You can incorporate some vegetables into your dessert. We’re not going to tell you adding kale to your brownie recipe won’t taste a little green, but we’ve got some ideas that are a little subtler to keep your sweet tooth, well, sweet.

Subbing out butter for avocado (another fruit that’s been promoted to veggie status) in a cake or brownie recipe is a great start. You’ll get some added good fat and an even creamier, fudgier brownie than you would otherwise. The chocolate overpowers the avocado flavor, so all you’ll taste is the true brownie flavor. If you want to make them from scratch without the box, most recipes are flourless to give you that super fudgy brownie everyone loves.

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• Brownie mix

• Eggs

• Avocado

It can be intimidating to try new foods or incorporate foods into your diet that you don’t particularly love. Starting slow and steady is the key here. Start with adding a little bit of spinach into your smoothie in the morning or trying a new dessert that can hide a veggie without you noticing. You can grow most of these veggies in your own backyard, balcony, windowsill or wherever plants thrive in your space! 

Vegetables are an important part of a balanced diet, but you should consult a dietitian or nutritionist before making changes to your diet. Get cookin’ and have some fun!