Broccoli is a nutrition-packed cruciferous vegetable that is one of the few vegetables in the United States that can be purchased fresh year-round. However, as winter turns to spring and summer, grocery stores and farmer's markets become flooded with summer vegetables, which can replace the vitamin and minerals provided by broccoli in your favorite recipes.
Step 1
Include more summer vegetables marked high in vitamin C to replace the vitamin C found in broccoli. This list includes bell peppers, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, collard greens, radishes, summer squash and tomatoes of all types.
Step 2
Replace the vitamin K found in broccoli with summer vegetables like endive, spinach, turnips, kale, mustard greens, parsley and Brussels sprouts.
Step 3
Use summer vegetables like cabbage, carrots, collard greens, hot chili peppers, asparagus, tomatoes, sweet potatoes and okra to replace the vitamin A found in broccoli.
Step 4
Include potassium in your diet from other vegetable sources than broccoli, such as sweet potatoes and asparagus. Look for pumpkins later in the summer as well for a healthy dose of potassium.
Step 5
Include summer vegetables with omega-3 fatty acids. Like broccoli, many summer green vegetables help increase your intake of omega-3 fatty acids, including salad greens, spinach, kale and Brussels sprouts.
Step 6
Find summer vegetables to replace the iron in broccoli. Use vegetables like spinach, turnip greens, Swiss chard, beet greens, peas, Brussels sprouts, bok choy and kale.
Step 7
Look for vegetables with easily absorbed calcium to replace broccoli, such as bok choy, collard greens, mustard greens, Chinese cabbage, okra and kale.
Tips and Warnings
- Summer marks the time when farmer's markets provide fresh locally grown vegetables for affordable prices. Skip the grocery store and go straight to the source for the freshest summer vegetables, while supporting your local economy at the same time.
References
- Produce for Better Health Foundation: Best of Vitamin A
- Right Health: High Potassium Vegetables
- Harvard School of Public Health: Ask the Expert: Omega-3 Fatty Acids
- Produce for Better Health Foundation: Best of Vitamin C
- The Vegetarian Resource Group: Iron in the Vegan Diet
- The Vegetarian Resource Group: Calcium in the Vegan Diet
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