Beets

1. Beets Network for a Healthy California Tulare County Office of Education

2. Reasons to Eat Beets You can eat the root and the green leafy top. A ½ cup of cooked beet greens is an excellent source of vitamin K, vitamin C and vitamin A. A ½ cup of beets is a good source of folate, manganese, and riboflavin.

3. What is Riboflavin? • Riboflavin is also known as vitamin B2. • It is important for building healthy blood cells. • Riboflavin is water soluble, which means it is not stored in the body.

4. What is Riboflavin? • Riboflavin works with other B vitamins to help your body grow and release energy from the carbohydrates you eat. • Riboflavin is found in whole grain cereals, almonds, eggs, spinach, mushrooms, zucchini, and lowfat yogurt.

5. How Do Beets Grow? • Beets are a cool season crop. • They are frost hardy, but cannot endure extreme heat. • Growing beets adds minerals to the soil. • Beets do well when planted with onions, radishes, and garlic.

6. A Slice of Beet History • The wild beet is believed to have descended from the seabeet, which grows wild along the shores of Great Britain. • The beet has been cultivated since the third century - 200-300 A.D.

7. A Slice of Beet History • The leaves were used for medicine and then later as a potherb. • What is a potherb? • It was a term widely used in the 16th to 19th centuries to refer to any plant with stalks and leaves that could be boiled as greens or used in soups.

8. A Slice of Beet History • Romans were the first to grow and develop beets for their roots and used them to feed their animals. • The Greeks were the first to eat both roots and leaves.

9. A Slice of Beet History • The sugar beet (white beet) was developed in the 18th century. • In the early 1800s, the French began extracting the sugar. • What famous French aristocrat was reported to have said “Let them eat cake” when told the peasants were starving?

10. Marie Antoinette 1755-1793 Queen of France from 1774 to 1792 The phrase was probably “Let them eat brioche.” Brioche is a sweet bread, eaten by royalty and nobility in France. Unfortunately, there is no evidence she said anything like this.

11. Just the Facts • The color of beet root can range from dark purple to bright red, yellow, and white. • When cut transversely, the roots show light and dark rings.

12. Just the Facts • The Chioggia beet is red and white-striped, and nicknamed the “candy cane” beet.

13. Just the Facts • Beet juice is widely used as a natural dye to give pink or red color to processed foods. • Beets have the highest sugar content of any vegetable.

14. Beets are GREAT in a fresh, green salad.

15. Test Your Knowledge • Do not eat the green leafy tops of the beet. You can eat them. They are very good for you. • Riboflavin is known as vitamin _____. B2 • What are the four solid colors of beet roots. Dark purple, red, white, and yellow • Why was the Chioggia beet nicknamed the “candy cane” beet? Because it is red and white striped • Beets have the highest ________content of any vegetable. Sugar

16. Tasting TrioCheesy Beet Bites Ingredients: 2 cans (15oz) pickled beets 1 block (10oz) part-skim Panela cheese 1 bag (18oz) whole-wheat pita chips Preparation: Dice the cheese into ¼” squares. Using hand gloves, dice up the beets. Gently mix the beets and cheese together. Place one tablespoon of beets and cheese on top of a chip.

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18. You are AWESOME! For CalFresh information, call 1-877-847-3663. Funded by USDA SNAP, an equal opportunity provider and employer. Visit www.cachampionsforchange.net for healthy tips. •California Department of Public Healthealth