March 28, 2024

How well do you know your veggies?

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010 recommend eating at least 2.5 cups of vegetables daily, based on a 2,000-calorie diet.

Read the descriptions below and guess which vegetable it is. The answers are at the end of the article.

Veggie 1:

• Excellent source of protein, high in dietary fiber, potassium, and folate

• Often eaten cold in salads or hot in soups

• The type sold in the United States is usually cream-colored and relatively round

• Main ingredient in hummus

Veggie 2:

• The French call them “love apples”

• High in lycopene, an antioxidant that may help lower the risk of certain cancers and other conditions such as cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis

• Taste best when stored at room temperature

• Botanically, they are a fruit

Veggie 3:

• A dark green lettuce

• High in vitamin A

• Started as a Mediterranean weed

• Has a long, loaf-shaped head of sturdy leaves

Veggie 4:

• Contains phytochemicals that may help reduce the risk of certain cancers

• Its four-petaled flowers bear a resemblance to a Greek cross, resulting in it frequently referred to as a crucifer or cruciferous vegetable

• Mark Twain called this vegetable “a cabbage with a college education.”

• Creamy white in color

Veggie 5:

• The leading vegetable crop in the United States

• A medium (5.3 oz.) skin-on serving has just 110 calories

• High in potassium, a nutrient the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend Americans increase in their diet

• A model of this vegetable serves as the basis for a toy named after it

Answers:

Veggie 1: Garbanzo beans; also called chickpeas

Additional vegetables in this subgroup include all cooked and canned beans and peas — for example, kidney beans, lentils, chickpeas, and pinto beans. Does not include green beans or green peas.

Veggie 2: Tomato

Additional vegetables in this subgroup include all fresh, frozen, and canned red and orange vegetables, cooked or raw — for example, red peppers, carrots, sweet potatoes, winter squash, and pumpkin.

Veggie 3: Romaine Lettuce

Additional vegetables in this subgroup include all fresh, frozen, and canned dark-green leafy vegetables and broccoli, cooked or raw — for example, broccoli, spinach, collard, turnip, and mustard greens.

Veggie 4: Cauliflower

Additional vegetables in this subgroup include all fresh, frozen, and canned other vegetables, cooked or raw -- for example, iceberg lettuce, green beans, and onions.

Veggie 5: White Potatoes

Additional vegetables in this subgroup include all fresh, frozen, and canned starchy vegetables - for example, corn, and green peas.