Using fresh local ingredients in cooking is not only healthy but also supports the community. Locally grown fruits and vegetables are picked at peak ripeness which means they are full of flavor and nutrients. These ingredients have not traveled long distances so they are fresher and more sustainable.
Cooking with local produce also helps connect you with the seasons. You enjoy mangoes when they are sweetest and avocados when they are creamiest. This creates a natural rhythm in your kitchen and encourages creativity with what is available.
Cooking with fresh local ingredients is not just about taste. It is a celebration of the land, the seasons, and the people who grow our food.”
Feeding children a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains can often feel like a challenging task that requires patience and persistence. You might have experienced those days when your little one can’t get enough of bananas, eagerly reaching for one each time they see the fruit bowl, only to push them away the next day as if they don’t want to touch them. While fruit tends to be popular among kids, vegetables are often a tougher sell.
As children grow, their vegetable needs increase significantly. Infants require only about two-thirds of a cup of vegetables daily, but by the time they reach 18 years of age, their intake should rise to three to four cups per day. Although that might sound like a lot, understanding what a cup of vegetables looks like can make it easier to manage. For example, one large sweet potato, an ear of corn, a dozen raw baby carrots, or two cups of raw spinach each count as one cup. Even a half-cup serving—like five broccoli florets, five asparagus stalks, or half a cup of mashed potatoes—is quite reasonable. As Melanie Marcus, a registered dietitian at Dole, explains, “It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by vegetable servings if you’re unfamiliar with portion sizes. But once you start using a measuring cup, you’ll realize it’s not as much as you think. And don’t expect kids to eat adult-sized portions!”
So, how can we encourage kids to eat more vegetables? Research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition offers an insightful approach: increasing portion sizes. In a study involving 53 children aged 3 to 5, participants were split into three groups. The control group received standard food portions, the “addition” group was given 50% more fruits and vegetables, and the “substitution” group received 50% more fruits and vegetables while other parts of their meals were reduced. The outcome was promising: the addition group increased their fruit and vegetable intake by 24%, while the substitution group boosted their intake by 41%.
Even with these increases, children still did not meet the recommended daily vegetable intake, but the fruit intake improved significantly. The addition and substitution groups met their fruit recommendations 45% and 57% of the time, respectively.
Ready to try these strategies at home? When serving dishes like macaroni and cheese with chicken and broccoli, try the substitution method by adding a few extra broccoli florets while slightly reducing the macaroni portion. Alternatively, when making frozen pizza, use the addition method—pile on sliced mushrooms, bell peppers, and onions, and serve it with a side Caesar salad. These simple adjustments can have a big impact on your child’s diet and help foster healthier eating habits that last a lifetime.