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gina_w_gw

Lost my taste for vegetables

18 years ago

I notice the past few weeks, or the last couple of months, I've lost my appetite for veggies. This is not good. I need to eat the horrible things -- I mean -- the delectable, healthful and beautiful fruits of the earth, LOL.

All I want to eat is meats and starches. We make a salad for every home-cooked meal, but I've even lost interest in those.

So starting tonight, I will make a concerted effort to eat leafy greens and other healthy veggies every day. (Choke, gak.) I will go to the market after work and pick up broccoli, chard, asparagus, etc. and make a go of it.

Sigh. Wish me luck!

Comments (34)

  • 18 years ago

    Try chopping some of that chard into fried rice!! Yum!

    If ya hafta................put some cheese sauce over the broccoli.

    Make colesalw instead of 'lettuce' type salad.

    Here's one I'm making tonight.

    Yummy Broccoli Salad

    2 crowns of broccoli, chopped into bite-sized pieces (peel and use the stem parts too).
    about 10 slices of bacon, fried and crumbled.
    1/2-3/4 cup raisins
    1/4 cup chopped onions

    Dressing:
    1 c. mayo
    1/2 c. sugar (or honey if you prefer)
    1 T. cider vineagr

    Or just use a bottled coleslaw dressing.

    Chill and let flavors blend at least 2 hours.

    Deanna (waiting NOT so patiently for FRESH veggies...)

  • 18 years ago

    Deanna, thanks for reminding me - I must buy bacon too. Bacon helps the "medicine go down" - LOL!

    I'll experiment with vegie dishes and report here.

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  • 18 years ago

    Deanna, I have that exact recipe! Unfortunatly now that I want some I don't have any broccoli and it is practically a monsoon outside! Sigh.

    Gina, don't feel too bad, I have the same problem right now! I'm sure once there are some decent look veggies available in my area (instead of the disgusting looking, withered things sitting in the produce department right now) I'll feel differently. Maybe a frozen veggie would be more appealing right now, they are just as nutritious.

    Joanne

  • 18 years ago

    Hey Gina!

    I go through stages like that too....don't feel bad, it will pass. You might also try vegetable soup, stews, or even a V-8!

    Good luck and let us know what sort of things *might* be appealing - there are lots of veggie lovers on here that can provide recipe ideas!

    Alexa

  • 18 years ago

    Odawalla Superfood is a great way to get your veggies down.
    Tastes like fruit juice..looks like green sludge..but it's really good....and veggie packed!

  • 18 years ago

    Gina, I'll leave it to you to fight the good fight and report back.

    I am so NOT into veggies right now. I'm eating extra "from god knows where" fruits to make up for it, but veggies just don't do it for me and either do salads. I want to love them, I really do .....but I don't.

    The summer is much better for me, when things are fresh and local and yummy.....but hey girl I live in Canada and have winter for an excuse.

  • 18 years ago

    LOL Sharon. I just got back from lunch. I walked the dog and it was so gorgeous out. On the way back to the office I wondered what I could get for lunch and stopped at a sandwich and boba tea place. I got a Korean shaved ice and OMG! you should see this thing. It is shaved ice, sweet red beans, strawberries, banana, kiwi, boba (tapioca pearls) and a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a cherry on top! Might be more stuff in here, I can't see yet.

    No vegies - oh well!

  • 18 years ago

    I think it is natural to not be into veggies in the winter, except for the root veggies, cabbage...potatoes ...carrots ..etc.

    I have been remiss in eating as much as I should as well. With summer coming and fresh veggies (Tomatoes !..Cukes..Peppers..etc) that will change. We all go into our phases. About two years ago I ate pasta almost every night in one configuration or another. Couldn't get enough. Lately I have been loving crunchy corn taco's with a variety of ingredients. I found a local mexican store with fresh corn tortillas's....50 for $1.09! They are so good..so I stuff them with beef, chicken, beans, cheeses ..whatever! Great fast and delicious meals!

    Can't wait for the garden tomatoes and peppers to start rolling in!


    Duane

  • 18 years ago

    So - give yourself a break from veges, say for a week or two.

    Years ago, some group or other did an experiment with children. I forget all the details, but remember the important bits. Food was set out on a table - all sorts of food from absolute rubbish like chips and lollies, to plates of fruit, veges cooked and raw, meat, fish, bread, dairy etc. Drinks were likewise offered - from cordials to milk drinks or fruit juices or just plain water. The children were allowed to select whatever they wanted from the table, and records were kept of what each child selected at every meal. The experiment lasted for something like 6 months.

    When the results were calculated, experimenters were astonished to discover that each and every child had had a completely balanced diet over the period of the experiment.

    They might eat nothing but rubbish for a few days, then nothing but fruit, then nothing but meat (or whatever) - but over the longer period, their diets were completely healthy and adequate for their needs.

    There's a lesson in that for all of us, I think. Our bodies dictate to us what is needed. I know I get cravings for a particular food or food-type for a while, and go off others. At the moment, I'm eating lots of wholegrain bread, but I might go another few months without any bread at all.

    And right now, I'm thoroughly sick and tired of the little salad that accompanies each of my Meals on Wheels, and I've requested that it be omitted until further notice. Give me a month or so, and I'll want it back again.

    I suggest keeping a record of what you eat over a period of time - and if you think you might be lacking in certain nutrients, take some multi-vitamins for a while. Also, if you're concerned about doing without veges - go for something totally new and different! For instance, if you normally have tomato with your salad, try something else like grated fennel, or grated carrot, or grated beetroot instead.

    You can always change the flavour of things by using different sauces and dressings - and it's an opportunity to experiment with herbs. Try sprinkling your salad with some Sumac, for instance, or sesame seeds or whatever.

  • 18 years ago

    Daisy,

    I did that with my son when he was a toddler & picky about eating. I put a bite of 6-10 different foods in cupcake papers & sat them on his highchair tray then left him to eat what he wanted. He's pick around at the various bites. I'd give him 1/2" cube of cheese, 1 banana slice, 1 orange segment, 1 green bean, maybe 2-3 peas, 1 cracker, etc. That was the end of his refusing to eat. He rarely left any empty paper cups.

    /tricia

  • 18 years ago

    Smart Tricia - yup - maybe I just need to hit the buffet every day for 6 months and eat whatever I feel like, LOL.

    I'm glad I'm not the only one who's not on the veggie train right now. But I will try. I'm generally pretty good about the balanced, healthy meals, but I noticed the greens-resistance lately.

  • 18 years ago

    When I eat pasta I put 3/4 steamed cauliflower to 1/4 pasta with tomato sauce/meat sauce and parmasan. I can't tell a difference - don't overcook the cauliflower though. Oh yeah, also try the baked cauliflower, it's so good.

  • 18 years ago

    I work with a lady that's the same way, she hates vegetables. She just doesn't understand why I like them. She will eat yellow and orange vegetables, but that's it. She does eat a lot of fruit, though.

    Are salads the only way you're eating vegetables? I eat salads nearly every day, but I would get really tired of them if they were the only way I ate vegetables. Why not check out a good vegetable cookbook from the library and experiment with vegetables you haven't thought to try, or recipes you haven't thought to try. Didn't Seinfeld's wife come out with a cookbook for people/kids that don't like vegetables? I remember it being discussed on this forum a while back. Apparently she manages to disguise vegetables in ways they don't taste like vegetables, or something like that. I haven't seen the cookbook, so I'm going on vague memory of the thread.

    Go to a good vegetarian restaurant and ask for suggestions of what to order, maybe a child's plate or appetizer size serving so you don't waste too much if you don't like it. If you do like it, it may give you some ideas of how to prepare vegetables that you like.

    Just some random thoughts.

    Sally

  • 18 years ago

    I was blessed to have a really special pediatrician to care for my children. The first (and only) time I raised a question about my slightly picky #2 son, he immediately told me basically what that study Daisy cited found: that children will eat it if and when their bodies need it. Because I had the utmost trust in him, I never worried about it again. I didn't fret or nag -- just ignored. If they didn't want what was put before them, well, fix a PB&J or go hungry! I've always credited his good advice for the fact that all my kids will now eat virtually anything. (Well, except for mushrooms. That was the one food phobia DS#2 never recovered from. lol) And I don't see why adults would be any different, gina. It's just a basic survival instinct. If you really "need" it to stay healthy, you'll probably start to want it. In the meantime, just chalk it up to the winter blahs and enjoy your steak and potatoes! Hey, when it's cold, you need more blubber to stay warm and survive, so maybe this is just another part of Mother Nature's plan. :)

    tricia, your approach was pure genius!

    Deanna, broccoli salad is a huge favorite around here. My recipe is a tiny bit healthier. 1/2 lb. bacon instead of 10 strips. 3/4 cup red onion. 1 cup dried cranberries instead of raisins. Dressing is 1-1/2 cups mayo, 3 T. sugar, 3 T. red wine vinegar. Divine!

    Oh, and I so agree with cookie8 -- taking a new approach, like baking or roasting veggies can really add a new appeal.

    sm

  • 18 years ago

    I'm going through the same blah for about two weeks, Gina. Tonight, I convinced myself that a BLT could be called dinner and double the L and T just to sneak some in on myself. (Although I seriously don't believe romaine lettuce and a tomato were as good for me as that bunch of asparagus and squash would have been.)

  • 18 years ago

    I have had a passion for veggies ever since I was a baby, really. If I don't have at least two different kinds of vegetable with dinner, I feel deprived. Even if I'm feeling lazy and it's just a salad and boiled frozen peas.

    I do prepare vegetables in a very wide variety of ways. I do a lot of Indian and Asian cooking, and these cuisines have a terrific way with vegetables.

    I don't think it's a good thing to force yourself to eat something you really don't want. That's only going to reinforce the antipathy you feel towards it. Instead, take vitamins and find ways to sneak a few veggies into your diet until you want them again.

    You know, if you want starch...make corn muffins, but put some real corn in the batter. Mashed potatoes? Make bubble & squeak. Rice? Chop up parsley or cilantro and toss it into the rice with a generous hand. Spaghetti? Make sure your sauce as mushrooms, celery, onions...take the acid edge off the tomatoes with grated carrot instead of sugar. Add some eggplant, zucchini or fennel to the sauce.

    Soups are great for making veggies seem "meatier".

  • 18 years ago

    I thought this thread was about comatose people

  • 18 years ago

    I've never had a taste for veggies, so I can't identify with losing it... I can identify with not having it though.

    Getting a juicer helped me down my veggies for a week. I felt like I was being healthy. Mixing them with fruit juice really helps the taste. Now I have to force myself to use the juicer as clean up simply dreadful.

    I've stir fried them in rice as well, but I only do things I like anyway like carrots, peas, and corn.

    Boba tea is good, isn't it!? :-)

    Good luck. I wonder if you will get back into veggies again!

  • 18 years ago

    Jessy:
    It is !!!!! Or Menatose ???

    Gina:
    I don't eat very many veggies myself. That's why I've been making a lot of stir fries.
    I put them in Calsones , Stromboli and anything else I can think of, Because they are good.
    Add Sausage, Shrimp, Sharp Provolone, etc. Use your imagination.
    I think you have one !!! Make a sauce Stir Fries and throw it on Spaghetti.

    Time out! I think the Bear is on the back deck.

    False Alarm!!!
    Ok ,Gina do it to it.
    LOU

  • 18 years ago

    I've had that happen a few times in my life, so I just don't eat veggies until my taste for them returns. It usually returns after an especially appealing vegetable dish that I have at a family/friend's dinner party. That usually gets me thinking in new ways about veggies.

    My BIL made a wonderful veggie dish (a Mexican Squash casserole) a few weeks ago and I've made it twice now (with some modifications), and even found a few new (to me) veggies to use, including some new summer squash and jalapeno peppers, which I have never used before - seeded and deveined - they are very good, just a sparkle of spicy.

    Don't worry about it, you'll get your taste for them back soon enough. If you need fiber - eat oatmeal.

  • 18 years ago

    Gina, I'll eat your veggies, as long as they are cooked, not carrots or in salad form. And you can have my fruit. I could care less if I ever ate fruit, but I love vegetables.

    Ann

  • 18 years ago

    I'm with Ann about fruit - don't particularly care for it (and that's longstanding with me for some reason). I don't like raw broccoli for some reason so the broccoli salad recipes posted here aren't appealing to me. I used to slip my carrots under the table to our dog when I was a kid, but I like carrots now.

    I don't eat many raw vegetables in the winter. When the weather warms up, salads will make it back on our table in a flash. I love grilled vegetables, as well. I had my first taste of grilled radicchio on a trip to Sicily in January - it was part of a grilled vegetable platter - and I'll be adding that to my list. You would wonder "why would someone grill their salad?" but it was delicious.

    I would be really be bummed out if I lost my taste for veggies! Hope you find a way to revive yours.

    seagrass

  • 18 years ago

    Salads with lettuce and tomato just don't taste as good in the winter to me. My favorite winter salad is napa cabbage, with sliced celery, and a Granny Smith apple. Cut the apple in small pieces and toss in a bowl with the juice of a lemon or lime to keep the color from darkening. That's it. Two veggies, two fruits. You can serve with cole slaw dressing but I prefer a vinigrette. Those veggies are good and crisp even in the winter.

    My DH and I both love veggies so they are no problem for us.

  • 18 years ago

    Last night we had a homeowners assoc. meeting so we had Thai food beforehand. I had vegetable curry!

    ...and beef sate

  • 18 years ago

    [Lou: I ALMOST typed 'I thought this thread was about husbands' but I've met Gina's DH and he ain't no vegetable.]

  • 18 years ago

    Oh, it's normal for your appetite for different things to change from time to time. If you think you have it bad just because you don't wanna eat your greens, just listen to this clinically depressed youngster:

    "I have of late,Âbut wherefore I know not,Âlost all my mirth, forgone all custom of exercises; and indeed, it goes so heavily with my disposition that this goodly frame, the earth, seems to me a sterile promontory; this most excellent canopy, the air, look you, this brave oÂerhanging firmament, this majestical roof fretted with golden fire,Âwhy, it appears no other thing to me than a foul and pestilent congregation of vapours. What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! how infinite in faculties! in form and moving, how express and admirable! in action how like an angel! in apprehension, how like a god! the beauty of the world! the paragon of animals! And yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust?"

    Of course, things didn't turn out too well for that guy. So if all you have a distaste for is green leafy vegetables, be thankful (grin)

  • 18 years ago

    You know what's freaky about that Arley? I can sing that Hamlet soliloquy to "What a Piece of Work is Man" as it was written for the musical HAIR. But don't try to date me, LOL!

  • 18 years ago

    Like Ann T and Seagrass, you can have all my fruit. I'll eat them, I don't hate them, but I don't really care about them. I'll eat fresh sweet cherries every year while I can pick them locally but the ones that are shipped from other places aren't worth eating. I like apples, will eat a handful of grapes or melon, an occasional orange, I detest bananas. Raisins, dried cherries or cranberries are acceptable in muffins.

    I don't care for raw broccoli, except in that salad that Deanna posted, and I make it with half broccoli and half cauliflower. Other than that, I love vegetables, all vegetables. I don't eat tomatoes unless I can get them fresh and locally, but they're really a fruit anyway. Other than that I'll eat vegetables any time. Frozen, canned, fresh, dried, reconstituted, in soup, roasted, raw, whatever.

    I will say, however, that I want them either cooked or raw, none of that half cooked nonsense and I'm not a huge fan of the green salad. Give me a big plate full of collard greens, though, maybe with caramelized onions and some smoked pork hocks or a ham bone and I'm happy. Add some cornbread and put some whole kernel corn and chopped green chilies into the cornbread and I'm extra happy!

    My favorite supper is to take parsnips, sweet potaotes, beets, onions and nearly anything else I can find, cut them up, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast 'em. A big roasting pan full will last me for a week's worth of lunches!

    I sneak vegetables into gnocchi and soup, into omelettes and sandwiches, into bread and pot pies and stew. I sneak them in because I love them and Ashley doesn't so much, but she'll eat them if they are "in" something else.

    Annie

  • 18 years ago

    I've been the same way lately Gina. I don't think you have anything to worry about. I wouldn't force myself to eat them because I think your appetite for them will return if you don't worry about it.

  • 18 years ago

    Maybe Gina's just PREGNANT!!! (Yes, I know Gina, that thought would make you want to be comatose!). When I was pregnant I craved meat and didn't want any veggies in any form -- just beef at every meal. I gagged at the thought of stir-fry.

  • 18 years ago

    That thought crossed my mind, too - changes in appetite or the taste buds might be a sign of a change in body chemistry.

    Sally

  • 18 years ago

    I'm the same way at this time of year. The thought of a salad makes me feel YUK! However, I hide my vegetables in soup or added to a hot or cold pasta dish. If I eat a salad, it has to have feta, bleu, or goat cheese on it for some reason. For lunch, I've been putting some veggies into a pita pocket sandwich with a veggie burger. I guess that counts!

    I made a veggie soup with tri-color swiss chard. It was very yummy mixed with other vegetables and broth.

    Kari

  • 18 years ago

    Preg---very funny!

    I like roast veggies too. Good idea. I'm out all day tomorrow but Sunday I'll roast up some.

  • 18 years ago

    It worked, you're planning to eat them Sunday --- I thought maybe just the mention of pregnancy would be enough to make you want those veggies again. I love grilled veggies.