Veggies make a great snack or side dish for any dinner. Your family probably likes them slathered in butter or -- gulp -- fried, but you know that those preparations just don't fly with limiting fat intake. So what's the best way to serve up veggies that aren't objectionable? Here are a few tips:

• Choose vegetables that are acceptable to everyone. We all have foods that we just don't like, and some people are very sensitive to the bitter-tasting chemical contained in some vegetables. If everyone moans over spinach, pick something else. Beans, carrots, corn, and peas agree with most kids' taste buds, so give them a try.
• Go raw. Raw veggies are excellent because they're full of nutrients and easy to serve. Carrot or celery sticks served as a side dish with a low-fat or yogurt-based dressing may just satisfy everyone at the dinner table.
• Resist the urge to cut veggies into teeny-tiny pieces before you cook them. While it takes less time to cook chopped veggies, leaving them in large pieces helps to keep their nutrients intact.
• Leave the peels on whenever possible; they're packed with nutrients. Leave the skins on potatoes when you mash them, and serve snap peas in their shells.
• Steaming veggies in a double boiler or microwave basket is the best way to preserve their nutrients.

If you boil vegetables, use just enough water to cover the veggies, and boil just until they become tender. Overcooking causes vegetables to lose vitamins and minerals.