Did anyone else here grow up in a family that rarely had fresh veggies?

[Lisa0825]

My mom used to garden... not every year, but maybe every third summer. She usually grew tomatoes and corn... I don't remember anything else specific. Other than that, we generally had canned vegetables. Canned corn, green beans, and peas mostly. Usually instant mashed potatoes. Real potatoes were for holidays.

As an adult, I don't have a lot of appetite for veggies, and I am sure it is because I didn't develop a palate for them. That is why I wanted to try gardening. I thought maybe I'd like veggies more if I grew them and had them fresh. The few tomatoes I have had from my garden have been excellent, as well as the banana peppers I picked in the fridge. I only wish I'd grown more so far, but I at least feel I have learned a lot. I planted another crop of corn and beans last month, and they are thriving much better than my last set. I have dozens of blooms on the beans, so I anticipate actually having enough to have as a side dish, as opposed to picking one or two at a time!

Believe it or not, I never ever had broccoli until I went away to college... or brussel sprouts.... or squash or so many others. I like broccoli. I haven't figured out if I like brussel sprouts yet. Squash... it depends on how it's prepared... I didn't plan it for my garden because I wasn't sure I liked it enough.

OK, enough of the pre-ramble... I was curious if anyone else grew up without many veggies around, if it affected your like/dislike of veggies, and if so, have you expanded your palate since growing your own?

I am looking at what to plant for the fall. Do you have any suggestions for what I should try?

[hippywife]

1. We usually had canned, too.

Or frozen in some cases such as brussel sprouts. There were six kids and not a lot of income so whatever was cheap was what we had. Of course, as kids we hated most of it except for the corn. LOL I can only recall ever having corn, peas, green beans, and brussel sprouts. Never had broccoli or cauliflower until I was in my twenties and ranch dip came out. The only fresh veggies I can recall having were iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cukes, and onions because we had a salad every dinner that consisted of just those things, cabbage, and my mom bought fresh green peppers to make stuffed peppers (Italian hand grenades - I still hate them!)

Now I love all kinds of fresh veggies. Even before we started growing our own I learned that fresh tasted ever so much better than canned. I can't abide canned corn at all. I hate that cloying sweetness that develops in the can. I've even tried and loved things I never thought I ever would. Most recently, I've found that I love eggplant, turnips, beets, and rutabagas. All those scary vegetables that have weird names and look even weirder. LOL

I think it is because until we taste fresh vegetables, properly prepared, we never really know how good they can be. So, I've learned to not close the door on any of them until I try them that way. Although I still can't seem to like okra.

Our late summer for fall plantings will definitely include more spinach and lettuce, peas, broccoli, and butternut squash plus anything else I can come up with to try. With the desire to attempt a four season harvest, different greens will probably be prominent.

[MuseRider]

2. I grew up just like both of you.

I never knew there was any kind of cheese except Velveeta. LOL, not only was I stunted in my taste palate (I always hated Velveeta so I thought I hated cheese) I never knew most of this stuff even existed. Brussel sprouts? Broccoli? Squash? Very sheltered and controlled. Now I am out planting my fool heart out and will try anything. My kids two favorite veggies as little ones? Brussel Sprouts (Mean green mothers) and Broccoli. :)

[knitter4democracy]

3. My husband did. I grew up with gardens.

My stepmom is practically a master gardener (and I don't say that lightly), and she froze and canned enough every summer to keep us in sauce and such all year long. I'll never forget the year of 43 tomato plants. *sigh* Anyway, I grew up here in Michigan with farm stands and u-pick and our own gardens. Hubby grew up with everything out of a bag or box. He prefers our way of life. ;)

[BOSSHOG]

4. In your part of the country

you can have another planting of tomatoes and peppers. I planted our second crop of Creoles this past weekend along with Okra and a hodge podge of peppers. I often buy plants in the spring and then save the seeds from the first tomatoes we eat and plant them around the fourth of July. Home grown tomatoes into October?? Priceless. Good Luck.

[Blue Gardener]

5. Just the opposite

We had an acre of garden, plus fruit trees. I don't know how she did it all.