Eating enough vegetables

I know, I know... it sounds like something your parents would say but I've been asking myself, am I eating enough vegetables? 

Vegetables are, as we all know, an important part of a well rounded and healthy diet. It wasn't until recently that I looked long and hard into my fridge and thought, 'I'm definitely lacking in the vegetable department'. That is when it occurred to me, maybe some of the most common recipes that we all cook and assume have large volumes of vegetables actually don't. 

How many of the recipes that I cook are top heavy on vegetable? I certainly cook some delicious vegetable curries and salsas and salads and that is all well and good, but am I eating those every night? 

Some nights I will just eat pasta with some form of white or red sauce, or a simple tomato cheese toasty if I am tired. The thing about a lot of these recipes is that they do have some vegetables in them but do they have the big serving that I need to keep a healthy lifestyle? Chances are that they don't. As I have become more aware of this, I have realised that even when I eat a delicious bowl of spaghetti or a tomato cheese toasty, it is only a very small part of that meal that contains fresh vegetables. This is just my dinner that I am analysing. When I look at my breakfasts and lunches, there aren't a lot of vegetables present. 

Now that I am more aware of this, I am trying to do better. This doesn't mean that I need to add a whole head of broccoli to my spaghetti. Instead, I am have a big ol' serving on the side or a salad. Alternatively, if I am in doubt about how many vegetables I have in my meal, I look for ways to bulk it up and add flavour. For my spaghetti, I add mushrooms, carrots and fresh tomatoes and I try to make sure I have a generous ratio of bolognase to pasta noodle. Even for a tomato toasty, I am trying to add a handful of spinach, red onion and herbs. I think keeping track of just how many vegetables I am using in a recipe is a good way to know if I am getting enough and if I need to add more. 

For my lunches, I find that carrots are the vegetable equivalent of a banana. They're portable, a go to snack and good for your tum tum. I am simply going to the shops each week and buying a big bag of fresh carrots. I add one to my lunch box and am finding its a good way to get a serving of vegetables during the day. 

Oddly, I may be turning into my dad but I have been really enjoying a head of broccoli chopped up, blanched and then simply served with some salt and a drizzle of olive oil. Ten-year-old me would have turned their nose up to it but I have found it oddly refreshing and wholesome. With this in mind, I am always looking for new ways to add some fresh vegetables to my daily routine. 

How do you get enough vegetables every day?