- Vegetables provide a variety of vitamins, minerals, and fiber that give us many health benefits. They help us grow and maintain strong and healthy bodies. They also help us fight off infections and chronic disease, and reduce our risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
- Naturally low in fat and calories, vegetables are low/no cholesterol foods. They are important sources of many nutrients, including potassium, dietary fiber, folate (folic acid), vitamin A and vitamin C.
- Everyone should eat three or more servings per day. Vegetables are a vital part of a healthy diet for people of all ages. It is also important to eat vegetables that are different colors and from different groups: dark-green vegetables, starchy vegetables, red and orange vegetables, beans and peas, and other vegetables.
- Many families struggle to get their children to eat enough vegetables. It may take several times serving new foods to get kids or adults to try them. Sometimes it helps to include a new food into a family favorite recipe.
Who doesn’t like chips and dip? They are tasty and fun to eat. You can make salsa and chips out of a wide variety of vegetables and fruits. So, let’s make them a healthy addition to your family meals and snacks.
Baked Veggie Chips
1 fresh beet
1 medium potato or sweet potato
1 medium zucchini or yellow summer squash
1 medium parsnip or carrot
2 tablespoons canola or olive oil
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, optional
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon garlic powder, optional
½ teaspoon dried oregano, optional
Dash black pepper
Wash and peel vegetables. Cut into 1/8-inch slices using a mandolin or handheld slicer, or sharp knife. Place in a large bowl. Drizzle with oil.
Combine the remaining ingredients; sprinkle over the vegetables and stir to coat all the slices.
Arrange in a single layer on two un-greased 15 x 10-inch baking sheets. Using parchment paper liner on the baking sheets makes for an easy clean up.
Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and crisp, turning once with a spatula. Cool and serve. Store in an air-tight container.
Makes 7 servings.
Nutritional Facts: ½ cup equals 108 calories, 5 g fat, 1 mg cholesterol, 220 mg sodium, 15 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 2 g protein.
Salsa
Pair these amazing chips with your favorite salsa. You can also head out to the garden or local farmers’ market to get some fresh ingredients to create a new family favorite fresh salsa.
Karen says
What a great way to serve more veggies. Thanks!
Sheila says
Yum, now I’m wanting some vegetable chips! I’ll wait for a cool day or evening to turn the oven on. Thanks for the inspiration.