If you're back yard garden is flourishing this year, you are likely experiencing a plentiful harvest about now.

As those fresh fruits and vegetables begin to stack up, the University of Illinois Nutrition Educator Caitlin Mellendorf has some ideas of incorporating those into your meals. Adding a zucchini squash to a grilled cheese is one of the creative ideas she has recently put out on a blog she publishes. 

Working with 4-H-ers, Mellendorf has helped them come up with creative smoothie ideas. While she prefers frozen berries, her idea works just as well with fresh berries. Added with the fruit, again, zucchini squash is a great option for the nutrition from vegetables.

Clinton's grocery stores offer homegrown produce from many local vendors, but Mellendorf also encourages finding other producers in your area that grow fresh produce and helping them out if they sell what they harvest. She says this time of year has so many options, among them sweet corn, tomatoes, green beans, and all sorts of varieties of peppers. 

You can also do a search for your local University of Illinois Extension office for a list of resources they have on nutrition information and gardening resources.