World Famous Veggie Plate

Ok, the whole world might be a bit of exaggeration, but it seems wherever John and I go, we have a reputation for having our fresh veggies with us.  Oh, yeah, even when we went to Rome, we found a wonderful little organic market a few blocks from our hotel and made a crudité platter for my sister, B-I-L and ourselves to munch on.  So that’s sort of world famous, right?

We cannot go very long before our bodies cry out for fresh veggies.  When entertaining, you can count on us to have a plate of healthy choices out for you (and possibly a couple that might not be considered quite so healthy). If we go on a picnic, a long car ride or even on a plane, we’ll have a big Ziploc full of our favorite veggies.  It seems as though many of our friends ask us to bring them as appetizers to get-togethers and we are happy to oblige.

I’m sure it seems simple and not such a fancy thing to do, but we think purchasing the vegetables individually and preparing them makes all the difference.  And what makes them world famous!

Here are our secrets:

Sprouts

If at all possible we shop for our vegetables at Sprouts.  They stay fresher longer, they’re far less expensive and they always have everything we like.  If prices are similar, we opt for organic, but it’s not a deal killer if we can’t find it.

Prep Soon

It’s important to prepare the vegetables as soon after purchasing as possible.  When they stay in their store plastic bags in the fridge drawers, they get lost in the shuffle and sometimes go bad.  There is nothing in the world that makes me feel worse than throwing food away.

Compartmentalized Container

We have two containers – a smaller one and a larger one – we use for storing our prepped veggies.  If we’re entertaining, we fill the larger one and serve off a pretty platter.  When one or another veggie gets low, we can easily refill from the big container in the fridge without having to have everything out at once.  If we need veggies for a road trip, we transfer what we want into a Ziploc for the cooler.

A hysterical note. When I was looking for a shopping link for a Tupperware container, the ones like mine are “vintage.” Oh, dear!

Separate Out Strong Veggies

We are pretty boring in the selection of veggies we use on a platter.  For instance, I love red peppers, but their flavor and odor is too strong to store with the rest of the veggies and will taint everything.  Therefore when I’m using peppers, I store them in a separate container and bring them out when I’m serving them.

Dip

Bottled dressing or premade dip is not good to me.  I don’t like a mayo-based dip.  We have found the perfect dip “recipe” for us:

• 1 Tbsp Hidden Valley Dip Mix (not the dressing mix)
• ½ cup Light Sour Cream (for dairy-free, there are options such as IMO)

Mix together very will and refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving.

NOTE: Do not use the entire envelope of dip mix. It will be way too strong and thick.

I like hummus for a dip too, but John doesn’t like it and I’m not really supposed to eat it on the SIBO diet. Frankly, the dip is not strictly necessary.

Use Pretty Dishes

I admit.  Many times we take that plastic container out of the fridge and just eat right from it.  If we have last-minute happy hour hosted at our house, we might do the same.  But it always seems more special to serve on a pretty plate and I love every opportunity to use my adorbs Kate Spade china appetizer dishes my sister Monique gave me years ago.  In fact, I have lots of pretty appetizer dishes that were gifted to me covering all the holiday themes.  Using them makes me remember the giver and blesses me all over again.

That’s the sum total of our routine and it has become one of the healthier habits we have.

Speaking of healthy habits, many of mine have slipped lately and this week I’m committing to getting back on track with eating, exercise, etc. No excuses: My injury is mostly healed, the hot weather is only bad after 8 a.m., a closed gym doesn’t mean the weights in my closet can’t be lifted.

This is going to be an awesome week and I wish you one too!