Fruits and Vegetables in the Holidays

Tis the season for EATING! Warm comfort foods like casseroles and creamy dips fill our kitchen and our dens while friends and family wine and dine in our presence. During this time, do you ever feel like it is impossible to do anything right as far as diet goes? I do! I want to enjoy all the tasty foods but I don't want to get way off kilter. One thing you can do is try to continue consuming high amounts of fruits and veggies. And I don't mean the ones smothered in butter and cheese! Below are some tips from a fellow RD that I couldn't agree with more: 

Look for seasonal produce
Stick with produce that is in season, as much as possible. The following fruits and vegetables are abundant and fresh during the winter months:
Fruits                                 Vegetables
Bananas                             Artichokes
Clementines                        Avocados
Cranberries                         Beets
Grapefruit                           Broccoli
Grapes                               Brussels sprouts
Guava                                Cabbage
Kiwi                                   Carrots
Kumquat                            Cauliflower
Lemons                              Kale
Limes                                 Leeks
Mandarin oranges                Lettuce
Oranges                             Parsnips
Pears                                 Potatoes
Persimmons                        Radishes
Pomegranates                     Rhubarb
Tangerines                         Rutabaga
                                         Turnips
                                         Snow peas
                                         Sweet potatoes
                                         Watercress
                                         Winter squashFill up on fruits and vegetables first
One of the main reasons that people eat fewer fruits and vegetables during the winter months, and particularly during the holidays, is because they fill up on other types of food first. Make eating fruits and vegetables first a priority, and then eat other types of food afterward.
Keep it simple
Do not overthink the idea of including fruits and vegetables—just work it into your daily plan. Try these ideas:

• Add a handful of frozen berries to your oatmeal
• Put mushrooms, onion, spinach, pineapple, or peppers on your pizza
• Add banana slices to your peanut butter toast

Look at every time that you eat as a challenge and an opportunity for creativity. Work some produce into the mix, even if it is not a full serving.
Choose from all forms
You do not need to always use fresh fruits and vegetables. Frozen, canned, and dried fruits and vegetables count just the same as fresh ones. If the fruit is canned in heavy syrup, drain it well. If vegetables are canned with salt, drain and rinse them before eating. 
Make it appetizing
Some people notice that their appetite changes during the winter months. Warm food and spices may seem more appealing. You can make most fruits and vegetables suit your need for comfort foods during the cold months. For example: 

• Baked fruit, such as pears or apples, are great with a little honey and cinnamon sprinkled on top. 
• Add applesauce, diced banana, raisins, and diced pears to oatmeal, serve them on top of pancakes or waffles, or fold them into a muffin batter.
• Roast butternut squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, cauliflower, beets, or carrots and make them either savory or sweet, depending on the herbs and spices you choose. 
• Soups are a great way to add vegetables to your diet. Buy lower-sodium canned soup and add extra veggies to it, or make your own soups and add more veggies than the recipe calls for.

Do not give the idea of a cold salad another thought if it does not appeal to you, but if it does, add some diced apples or pears, toasted pecans, and warm chicken strips to that salad, and top it with a nice warmed maple vinaigrette or other seasonal dressing.