Can I add Vegetables to This?

Making Vegetables Delicious — For Every Body

Fun recipes for the whole family, and gentle ideas for tummies that have been through a lot.

For my friend Lisa, who was given a few months to live, looked those odds dead in the eye, and is still here more than a decade later with her sass fully intact. Lisa, you've survived things that would flatten most of us, and you did it without an ounce of self-pity. So if a plate of vegetables is giving you grief these days, well… that's a pretty small dragon next to the ones you've already slain. (And a hello to your now-grown kids, and to mine, including the one who once asked to add vegetables to a plate of vegetables, and the daughter who still puts red chili flakes on cucumbers.)

Vegetables can be a struggle at any age, and for all kinds of reasons. Sometimes it's a picky little one who's sure broccoli is the enemy. Sometimes it's a grown body that's been through surgery or illness and just doesn't digest the way it used to. If vegetables and your family are in a daily standoff, I promise you're in good company. And I promise it doesn't have to stay that way. So much of the battle isn't the vegetable at all. It's how we make it, how we serve it, and how much fun we let it be.

This post is for both. It's the same good food, served two ways. Let me start with a little story, then the recipes, and then how to make them gentle for a tender tummy.

The lunch that still makes me laugh

Let me set the scene. I'd made big, beautiful salads for lunch (pictured above). Plates for the kids, a bowl for me. I set them down, called everyone to the table, and my oldest son looked at his plate and asked me, completely sincere, "Mom, can I add some vegetables to this?"

I told him, a little sarcastically, that his plate was already overflowing with vegetables. "No!" he said. "Vegetables like cauliflower and cucumbers!"

Well. He had me there. I'd forgotten to set out the crunchy add-ins he loves best. My bad! He happily chopped up his "vegetables," piled them on top, and we all devoured our salads. And honestly? That little moment holds the whole secret.

He didn't just want vegetables. He wanted to build his own.

Here are some veggie recipes our family enjoys

Spiralized "Asian Flair" Cucumbers (our family's favorite)

Serves 2–4 as a side

2 cucumbers, spiralized

1/4 cup liquid aminos (or gluten-free tamari)

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1–2 tsp toasted sesame oil

1 tsp minced fresh ginger

1 tsp garlic, minced

1 tsp sesame seeds

1 tbsp maple syrup

Whisk the aminos, vinegar, sesame oil, ginger, maple syrup and garlic together. Pour it over the spiralized cucumbers and toss. Let it sit 10 to 15 minutes so the flavors soak in, then scatter the sesame seeds on top. It's bright, tangy, and just a little nutty, and it disappears fast around here. There is something magic about spiralizing the cucumbers in this recipe. They just taste better that way. 

Simple Sliced Cucumbers

Serves 2–4

2 cucumbers, thinly sliced

1–2 tbsp liquid aminos (or gluten-free tamari)

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Sesame seeds, to finish

Optional: red chili flakes

Same idea, even simpler. Toss the sliced cucumbers with the aminos, vinegar, and sesame oil, and let them marinate a few minutes before serving.

My daughter's way: she adds a good pinch of red chili flakes for a little heat. If your family likes some kick, don't be shy with them.

Garlic-Salt Broccoli & Cauliflower

Serves 4

1 head broccoli and/or cauliflower, cut into florets

Water to cover

2–3 cloves garlic, smashed

Sea salt, to taste

Bring a pot of water to a boil with the garlic and a good pinch of salt. Add the florets and simmer until tender. For most of the family, a few minutes to crisp-tender is lovely. For anyone with a sensitive stomach, cook them longer, until they're genuinely soft. The softer they are, the easier they go down. (More on that just below.)

For the little ones

With kids, the trick is almost never the vegetable itself. It's the fun around it. A few things that reliably work for us:

Let them build their own. A bowl of dip and a pile of cut veggies beats a fixed plate every time.

Roast for sweetness. Cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots turn golden and sweet at 425°F. It's a whole different food than steamed.

Give them a job. Kids eat what they help make, even if the "help" is just tearing lettuce or sprinkling on the sesame seeds.

Keep it pressure-free. No bribes, no "three more bites." Make it delicious, offer it again another day, and let them come around. The tension is usually the real problem.

For grown-ups, especially tender tummies

Now for the part I most wanted to get right, for Lisa and for anyone whose gut has been through surgery, illness, or years of trouble. When part of the digestive system has been removed or damaged, eating really does change. There's less surface area to absorb nutrients. Food can move through faster. Certain enzymes may be in short supply. And the tough fiber that's so good for the rest of us can suddenly be too much. Raw, crunchy, and high-fiber, the very things we usually cheer for, can become the hardest to handle.

I know a smaller version of this feeling myself. After surgery to repair a hernia, and for years afterward, I had almost no desire to eat salads. For the longest time I couldn't figure out why. Eventually I understood that my body probably wasn't breaking all that raw roughage down very well. Once I started cooking my vegetables instead of eating them raw, they sat so much easier, and adding a little good fat to them helped me even more. It was only a small taste of what so many people live with every day, but it's a big part of why I wanted to write this section with real care.

The good news is that a few gentle changes make vegetables friendly again.

Often easier to digest

Well-cooked, soft vegetables

Peeled and de-seeded (cucumbers, zucchini, squash)

Baked or mashed sweet potato

Cooked carrots, beets, spinach, green beans

Pureed vegetable soups

Smoothies (no seeds or skins)

Often harder to digest

Raw vegetables in general

Raw cruciferous (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts)

Beans and legumes

Tough skins, stalks, and seeds

Stringy or very crunchy pieces (celery, raw carrot)

Fried, greasy, or very spicy dishes

A few more small kindnesses that help a lot: cook things until they're truly soft, peel and remove seeds, blend or puree when you can, eat small amounts more often instead of one big plate, and chew each bite well. You'll notice our cucumber recipes above land squarely in the "raw" column, so for a tender gut, peel and de-seed the cucumbers, or lean on the softer options instead.

A careful word about fats and oils

I've always loved adding good fats to a meal. Olive oil, avocado, a little coconut oil. And there's real wisdom in it. Healthy fats carry calories when weight is hard to keep on, and they help the body absorb the fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K). But I want to be honest here, because for a gut like Lisa's it isn't as simple as "add oil to help digestion." Fat is actually one of the harder things to digest when the pancreas has been altered, because that's the organ that makes the enzyme for breaking fat down. Too much fat, or anything fried and greasy, can cause real misery. (One interesting exception is the kind of fat in coconut oil, called MCTs. It's absorbed a little differently, and some people handle it more easily.) How much fat is right, and whether enzyme support is needed, is different for every body. So for anyone who's had this kind of surgery, this is a conversation for your medical team, not a blog. When it's worked out with a doctor's help, good fats can be a real friend.

So here's my honest note for you, Lisa. Adding a little fat to my vegetables helped me, but it may not be your answer, because your body handles fat differently than mine does. And here's the encouraging part. As I understand it, you already work with your team on enzymes and bile support, and that's exactly what helps a body break fat down in the first place. So this isn't a closed door for you. It's just one your team gets to open, at the right pace and in the right amount, with you.

A gentle "pre-digested" green drink or veggie soup

What about a blended, easy-to-absorb veggie drink, or a soup, for a gut that struggles with the whole, fibrous version? Honestly, the gentlest and safest answer is the simplest one. A smoothie or a pureed vegetable soup made from the well-tolerated foods above. Blending does much of the chewing and breaking down ahead of time, so a tender gut gets the nourishment without all the hard work. That's the real win, and it's food, not a supplement.

Here is a favorite way our family uses up vegetables

This soup changes a little every time. In my family the vegetables were always whatever needed using up in the fridge, and the constants were simple: a good broth and browned hamburger. The tomatoes tell the whole story. My grandma didn't care for them, so she left them out. My mom loved them, so she left them in. Same soup, two cooks, two little signatures. Now it's your turn.

Mom's Hamburger & Vegetable Soup

A big pot — 6 to 8 servings

The constants

1 lb ground beef / hamburger (I like pasture-raised)

1 onion, diced, and 2–3 cloves garlic, minced

6–8 cups gluten-free beef broth

Whatever needs using up

Carrots, celery, potatoes; green beans, corn, peas; cabbage, zucchini, squash. A handful or two of each.

Tomatoes (Mom's way, optional, per Grandma)

1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes and/or 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

Seasoning

Sea salt, pepper, and extra garlic if you love it

And maybe a little oregano, thyme, sage, basil, or herbes de Provence

Brown the hamburger with the onion and garlic, and drain the excess fat.

Add the firmer vegetables (carrots, celery, potatoes) and stir a minute.

Pour in the broth, plus the tomatoes if you're Team Mom, and season.

Simmer, uncovered, 25 to 30 minutes, until the sturdy vegetables are tender.

Add the quicker vegetables (green beans, corn, peas, zucchini) and simmer 10 more minutes.

Taste, adjust the salt, and serve. It's even better the next day, and it freezes beautifully.

For those of us who struggle

Eating a few more vegetables really is within reach. Softened, blended, seasoned, and made delicious, a little at a time. Lean on the people who know your body, take what works, leave what doesn't, and let the rest of us cheer you on. We are so glad, and so grateful, that you're still here to be fed.

Lots of love,

Steffanie

Shared with love. This is encouragement and general ideas, not medical or nutrition advice, and it hasn't been evaluated by the FDA. If you're recovering from surgery or serious illness, please let your doctor and a registered dietitian be your real guides. They know your body in ways a blog never can. And any new supplement, especially algae like spirulina or chlorella, should be cleared with your medical team before you try it.