Veggies

This is by far my favourite way to cook and serve broccoli. It’s super-simple, super-speedy and super-tasty and because you’re not boiling the broccoli and leaching away nutrients and flavour, it’s also super-healthy.

As the broccoli steams it’s perfumed – but not overwhelmed – with garlic. You can also add your favourite flavours. After trying this method once or twice you’ll quickly realize how easy it is to modify with your own ideas. Feel free to experiment because this will always be the best way to get a head of steaming broccoli on the table in ten minutes flat!

One of the best ways to fill Half Your Plate (and all of your soup bowl) is with a simple pureed soup. They’re a time-honoured and super-simple way to get a whole lot of vegetable flavour on the table in a hurry – maybe even hide vegetables from finicky eaters. This one was custom created by the Honourable Lawrence MacAulay with Chef Michael Smith’s coaching!

One of the best ways to fill Half Your Plate (and all of your soup bowl) is with a simple pureed soup. They’re a time-honoured and super-simple way to get a whole lot of vegetable flavour on the table in a hurry – maybe even hide vegetables from finicky eaters. This one was custom created by MP Bruce Stanton with Chef Michael Smith’s coaching!

One of the best ways to fill Half Your Plate (and all of your soup bowl) is with a simple pureed soup. They’re a time-honoured and super-simple way to get a whole lot of vegetable flavour on the table in a hurry – maybe even hide vegetables from finicky eaters. This one was custom created by MP Celina Caesar-Chavannes with Chef Michael Smith’s coaching!

Leeks are the easiest-to-get-along-with members of the onion family. They’re deliciously sweet, mildly pungent and simple to prepare. In this recipe they’re paired with apples and thyme. They easily fill Half Your Plate with flavour so you can fill the other half with any simple pork, chicken or fish dish!

I will admit that I was not a big fan of brussels sprouts as a kid but now that I’ve discovered pan-roasting I’m seriously hooked on them. This easy method is by far my favourite way to cook them. They’re so durable that you can easily caramelize them as they cook through. In this recipe they’re deliciously joined by bright orange and crunchy cashews.

You can enjoy the bright red flavours and intense nutritional density of these two harvest ingredients brought together in one distinctive dish. In this recipe they serve both as a delicious side dish and a tasty condiment. Red Cabbage has an amazing ability to absorb other flavours while retaining its texture. Cranberry and the traditional flavours of cranberry sauce make this the perfect side dish for holiday turkey or everyday chicken or pork!

Sweet potatoes are undeniably healthy being packed full of micronutrients, betacarotene and fibre. They're guaranteed nutritional powerhouses, even when you make one of my favourite holiday treats from south of the border, covered with a thick layer of marshmallows. I'm convinced this classic was created by parents whose kids weren't the least bit interested in how healthy sweet potatoes are, until they showed up at the table covered in marshmallows.

There are a lot of reasons to eat asparagus. It's green, it's healthy, it's tasty and delicious. And perhaps the best reason to eat these tender, slender stalks is because they're traditionally served with Hollandaise sauce. Here's everything you need to simply steam asparagus and extravagantly transform butter into the richest, silkiest, smoothest sauce known to man.

Steaming asparagus and other green vegetables is always a better option to boiling. Boiling takes away texture and leaches away flavour, colour, and nutrients.

In India, aloo gobi means “potato cauliflower”: it’s one of their most common vegetable dishes. It’s one of my family’s favourites too, partly because it’s so easy to make, but mostly because it’s full of so much addictive bright flavour. It’s normally made with plain white potatoes and cauliflower, but, for even more colour, flavour and nutrition, this version uses sweet potatoes instead.

Ratatouille is one of the world’s great vegetable dishes. It’s a brightly flavoured rustic dish of stewed vegetables that traces its roots to the sunny south of France. It’s simple to make and simple to vary and usually includes tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, eggplant and zucchini slowly cooked together with olive oil.

Nothing tastes better than grilled vegetables. Nothing! These are one of the best ways I know to encourage mass vegetable consumption. The smoky charred aroma of your grill is always a crowd-pleaser.