What’s For Lunch?

1. What’s For Lunch?

2. Monday French Bread Pizza Chef Salad w/ Ham and Turkey Spinach Salad Glazed Carrots Fresh Orange

3. Tuesday Beef Fingers Poppin Chicken Salad Mashed Potatoes Celery/Cucumber/Tomato Honey Wheat Roll Fresh Apple

4. Wednesday Meatball Sub Asian Chicken Salad Green Beans Jicama Fresh Banana

5. Thursday Dried Cranberry Oven Crispy Chicken Taco Salad Garlic Broccoli Baby Carrots Mandarin Oranges

6. Friday Mini Corn Dog Southwest Chicken Salad Cinnamon Graham Cracker Bean & Corn Salad Sweet Potato Bites Diced Peaches

7. Nutritional Benefits

8. Jicama

9. What is Jicama? • Round, bulbous root vegetable (tuber) • Part of the legume family • Grows on vines • From Central & South America • Nicknames: • Mexican potato • Mexican yam bean • Mexican water chestnut

10. Health Benefits • Low in calories • High in vital nutrients • ¼ daily fiber per serving • Excellent Vitamin C source • Prebiotic role in the body • Provides healthy amount of Potassium • Can help promote heart health

11. Health Benefits • Powerful antioxidant • Contains inulin • Promotes bone health • Contains: • Folate • Riboflavin • Thiamin • Iron • Magnesium

12. How to eat Jicama • Raw or cooked • Stir fry • In a salad • Add to soup *Favorite Recipe: • Chilled jicama slices w/ chili powder, salt, and lime juice

13. Plum

14. What is a Plum? • Relative of the peach, nectarine, and almond • “Drupe”: fruit with a hard stone pit surrounding the seeds • Over 2,000 varieties exist • 6 general categories • Size, shape, and color vary • In season May-October • Dried plum = Prune

15. Health Benefits • High content of 2 phytonutrients (phenols) • Neochlorogenic acid • Chlorogenic acid • Great antioxidants • Very good source of Vitamin C • Increases Iron absorption • Good source of: • Vitamin A • Dietary Fiber • Potassium

16. Orange

17. What is an Orange? • Fruit of a tropical/semitropical evergreen tree • “Citrus fruit” • Grapefruit, pomelo, tangerine • 2 types: sweet and bitter • Variety of colors and sizes • In season: October-February

18. Health Benefits • High Vitamin C content • Primary water-soluble antioxidant in the body • Reduces severity of inflammation • Low in calories • Rich in dietary fiber (pectin) • Wide variety of phytonutrient compounds: citrusflavanones

19. Health Benefits • Good source of: • Thiamin • Pyridoxine • Folate • Vitamin A • Potassium • Calcium • Helps prevent kidney stones and stomach ulcers

20. Banana

21. What is a Banana? • Fruit of the banana plant • Largest herbaceous flowering plant • Grown in tropical regions • Only tri-segmented fruit in the world • Grow in hanging clusters • 2 types: sweet and plantain • Around 100 different species • ~3/4 water

22. Health Benefits • One of the best sources of Potassium • May help promote bone health • May reduce risk of kidney cancer • Very good source of Vitamin B6 • Good source of: • Vitamin C • Manganese

23. Health Benefits • Antacid • Protects against stomach ulcers and damage • Help eliminate bacteria in stomach • Contains pectin (soluble fiber) • Help movement through GI tract • Rich source of fructooligosaccharide (prebiotic) • Contains flavonoid poly-phenolic antioxidants

24. Tomato

25. What is a Tomato? • Nutritious fruit of the tomato plant • Commonly used as a vegetable • Belongs to ‘nightshade’ family of common vegetables • Related to chili peppers, potato, and eggplant • Native to Central America • First cultivated by the Aztecs • Many varieties: • Heirloom, Cherry, Roma, Beefsteak, Grape • Red, Yellow, Orange, Purple, Green

26. Health Benefits • Low-calorie • Excellent source of dietary fiber • Antioxidants • Protect against certain types of cancer • Lycopene- unique phytochemical that prevents skin damage from UV rays • Good source of Vitamin C • Good source of Potassium

27. Health Benefits • Good levels of: • Vitamin A • α and βcarotenes • Contributes B Vitamins and Minerals • Help lower: • Total cholesterol • LDL • Triglycerides

28. Spinach

29. What is Spinach? • Green-leafy vegetable • One of the “functional foods” • Scientific name: Spinaciaoleracea • 2 main types: crinkle leaves and flat leaves • In season March-May

30. Health Benefits • Provides good amount of soluble dietary fiber • Rich source of Vitamins A & C • Excellent source of Vitamin K • Plays a vital role in strengthening bone mass • Helps with Alzheimer’s disease • Rich source of omega-3-fatty acids • Provides key minerals

31. Health Benefits • Provides 5 Vitamin B complexes: • B6 • Thiamin • Riboflavin • Folate • Niacin • Helps prevent/protect from: • Osteoporosis • Iron-deficiency anemia • Cardiovascular disease

32. How to eat Spinach • In a salad • On a sandwich • Add to a smoothie • In an omelet • On a pizza *Traditional Recipe: • India/Pakistan: cooked spinach with cubed cheese (“palakpaneer”)

33. Carrots

34. What are Carrots? • Belong to the Umbelliferae family • Related to parsnips, fennel, parsley, cumin, caraway, and dill • Grow underground • Roots: crunchy texture, sweet and minty aromatic taste • Greens: fresh tasting and slightly bitter • Come in a variety of colors

35. Health Benefits • Lowers risk of cardiovascular disease • High β-carotene content (carotenoid) • Good source of Vitamin C • Rich in B-complexes: • Folic acid • B6 • Pantothenic acid • thiamin

36. Health Benefits • Healthy levels of: • Copper • Calcium • Manganese • Phosphorus • Polyacetylenes • Phytonutrients help inhibit growth of cancer • Work together with carotenoids