Vegetable Cousins

by Leslie Aronson — July 21, 2008

Tired of your veggie routine? While we know we're supposed to eat lots of veggies, and maybe already do, it's easy to fall into a vegetable rut. Try mixing up your vegetable choices with close cousins of your standby favorites, as suggested in the August edition of Runner's World:

• Instead of carrots try celeriac or beets. Celeriac is dense in vitamin K as well as iron, calcium, and potassium. Beets are high in potassium and can add a nice splash of color to your meal.
• Instead of standard tomatoes, choose tomatillos or ground cherries. Tomatillos add some extra zip to your meal and contain ixocarpalactone A, which could potentially halt cancer growth. Both alternatives contain significant amounts of vitamin C.
• Instead of spinach, try mustard greens, endive, or radicchio. Mustard greens have lots of beta carotene and phytochemicals that might help fight cancer. Endive is dense in vitamin A, and both endive and radicchio have vitamin K, which can help protect your bones.
• Instead of broccoli, try Romanesco cauliflower, purple cauliflower, or broccolini. All of these contain isothiocyanates, which are cancer-fighting compounds. Purple cauliflower, aside from adding a nice color, contains anthocyanins, which are antioxidants similar to those found in grapes. Broccolini (which is a cross between broccoli and Chinese kale) provide vitamins C and K. Romanesco and purple cauliflower have potassium and folate.
• Instead of onions, pick up some leeks or fennel. Leeks have iron and allicin, which is an antibiotic that might fight against tumors, lower cholesterol and blood pressure, and prevent blood clots. Fennel has anethole, which is an anti-inflammatory.