Take two veggies and call me in the morning

Don’t be surprised if your doctor “prescribes” a variety of vegetables and fruits to help reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and certain types of cancer. But to benefit you need to eat at least five to nine servings of fresh fruits and vegetables a day, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Guide Pyramid.
If you’re like most Americans, you don’t come close to meeting that goal. In fact, a recent government report shows less than 30 percent of American adults eat vegetables three or more times a day. So how do you beef up your intake? If a heaping pile of peas on your plate is off-putting, a little creative cooking might be in order. Besides, who says vegetables and fruits need to just be served on the side? Try this recipe to discreetly give your family a nutritional boost:

Carrot-raisin bread
1½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
1 egg, beaten
½ cup water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
½ teaspoon vanilla
1½ cups carrots, finely shredded
¼cup pecans, chopped
¼ cup golden raisins
Preheat the oven to 350° F. Lightly oil two 9- by 5-inch loaf pans. Stir together dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture. In a separate bowl, mix together remaining ingredients. Add mixture all at once to dry ingredients. Stir just enough to moisten and evenly distribute carrots. Turn into the prepared pans. Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for five minutes in the pans. Remove from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack before slicing. Makes two loaves.

Per ½-inch slice: 99 calories, 3 g fat (less than 1 g saturated), 12 mg cholesterol, 97 mg sodium, 17 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 2 g protein

Recipes reprinted from Keep the Beat: Heart Healthy Recipes from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. July 2003. Available for free download at www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/other/ktb_recipebk/index.htm, or in print by sending $4, plus $3.10 for shipping, to NHLBI Information Center at P.O. Box 30105, Bethesda, MD 20824-0105; or by calling 301-592-8573.