{"id":16870,"date":"2019-01-28T10:41:19","date_gmt":"2019-01-28T15:41:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/caloriecontrol.org\/blending-more-fiber-into-meals\/"},"modified":"2020-09-02T14:57:05","modified_gmt":"2020-09-02T18:57:05","slug":"blending-more-fiber-into-meals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/caloriecontrol.org\/blending-more-fiber-into-meals\/","title":{"rendered":"Blending More Fiber into Meals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Robyn Flipse, MS, MA, RDN \u2014 January 28, 2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve all seen the child who refuses to take even one bite of the steamed carrots on his or her plate, yet gobbles up the macaroni and cheese right next to it made with mashed carrots in the sauce. For many parents, this may feel like a nutrition success story, but is it really?  When children will only eat vegetables if they are hidden in something they like, they are missing an important lesson about the foods that make up a balanced diet. That is why I\u2019ve always recommended \u201cblending\u201d instead of hiding foods to help children recognize and appreciate the contributions made by every food group to their health.  This lesson applies to teens and adults, as well.<\/p>\n

Blending more vegetables (or other nutrient-dense food) into a recipe isn\u2019t just a good way to enhance the nutritional value of a meal, it\u2019s also a great way to extend the yield or lower the cost without significantly changing the look, texture or taste of the dish. It is also a valuable way to reduce food waste, like blending the heels of white and whole wheat bread to make bread crumbs for a meatloaf.<\/p>\n

Another big benefit of blending is the way it can help close the gap in our intake of dietary fiber since many higher fiber foods blend well with the foods people regularly eat, such as smoothies, hamburgers and brownies. And since eating habits are so hard to change, blending a new food into an existing dietary pattern is a practical way to get more fiber into meals and snacks without having to give up the foods you already enjoy.<\/p>\n

REVISE THE RATIO
\n<\/strong>A simple way to use blending to add more fiber to your diet is to increase the amount of one or more of the high fiber ingredients called for in a recipe while using a little less of something else that is lower in fiber. For example, you can \u201crevise the ratio\u201d by adding:<\/p>\n