Spice up your plate with these summer vegetables

With the help of abundant sunshine and plentiful rains, summer brings a wide variety of produce options to the fields and gardens.
Strong evidence does show benefits from including lots of plant foods with natural antioxidants. Antioxidants are vitamins and other plant chemicals which help to neutralize harmful byproducts of daily living and are found in ample amounts in many of our local vegetables and fruits. Fruit Baskets Unlimited,NY includes healthy fruit and exotic fruit in each of our fruit baskets delivered in New York City. Call Fruit Baskets Unlimited,NY call us at (917) 963-8100 for same day delivery.

Tomato

Most would agree that these little spheres of pure summer sunshine are best picked warm and eaten straight from the vine right in your own backyard. Is it a fruit? Is a vegetable? Who cares, as long as you include these high potassium, high vitamin C beauties regularly in family menus.

Although tomatoes are just a little bit higher in sodium than other vegetables, they're extremely low compared to other items in the typical American diet. An entire medium fresh tomato contains only 9 milligrams of sodium! When concentrated into tomato juice, sauce or ketchup, the amount consumed may need to be limited by individuals with heart or kidney failure.



Corn

For vegetable haters, there's one that is often acceptable to their taste buds as a side dish. Frequently mentioned by many York County residents' as their favorite "vegetable," corn — in actuality — is really a grain. Unbelievable? The amount of sugar which ends up in our blood steam for a half a cup of corn would be similar to a piece of bread or half a cup of pasta. If a meal already contains another high carbohydrate vegetable like mashed potatoes, a dinner plate would be more nutritionally balanced if paired with green beans or broccoli rather than corn.

As the fresh locally grown sweet corn season hits its peak, consider limiting portions to one ear along with another vegetable if corn doesn't sit well with your digestive system. Notoriously hard to digest in its whole form, things may be better tolerated if you slow down your eating speed, chew well and enjoy that one ear rather than gobbling the first two down and moving on to a third.


Zucchini

Bland, mushy, tastelessness — how many diners' opinions of zucchini have been ruined by a cook who didn't prepare zucchini in an awesome, appealing way?

Portioning out half the amount of crackers typically used as a snack and eating the raw zucchini first can improve the nutritional quality of the snack without totally eliminating the favorite option.

The skin of a zucchini can sometimes develop an odd flavor when immersed in cooking liquids, which is a turnoff for some palates. If you haven't been a zucchini fan in the past, roasting it or grilling it are two ways to give it another chance. Chop zucchini into wide, one inch slices and then quarter those to make chunks. Toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 teaspoon chopped garlic and add some salt and pepper to taste. Or, opt for a Greek salad dressing, such as the local favorite Gazebo Room, instead of the other ingredients.

Roast at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. For a crunchier or softer zucchini adjust your roasting time.



Fruit Baskets Unlimited, New York
8 E 48th St New York, NY 10017
call us at (917) 963-8100 for same day delivery
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Joan Diamond