Pastor SJ

We all know studies show that people who consume more plants have better health outcomes. 

So how do we motivate ourselves and our families to do that? 

I heard Dr Ana Marie Temple challenge kids and their families to have a competition of plant points. 

There’s nothing like a little competition to motivate folks to make positive change. 

Like my cross country coach in school emphasized, each year we aim for a personal best. I hope that each year we expand our pallets. 

In order to count as a plant point, every person in the family had to have 1 bite of this food in this calendar year. (I’ll also list in bullets what foods we’ve had in previous years in case your family enjoys it more than mine does.) 

As we get older, I hope our kids will track their own plant points. 

(You can see Dr Ana Marie Temple’s original plant points blog post here.) 

I’d love your help to find some sources of foods that I’ve lost as well (whether from moving or my source disappeared!). 

Vegetable Plant Points

I get most of these from our local farmers markets and grocery stores. 

1. Acorn squash
2. Arrowroot
3. Artichoke 
4. Arugula
5. Avocado 
6. Asparagus 
7. Banana squash 
8. Basil
9. Batata – let me know if you have a source of this without inflammatory oils  
10. Bok choy 
11. Broccoli 
12. Broccolini 
13. Brussels sprout
14. Butter lettuce 
15. Butternut squash 
16. Carnival squash 
17. Cassava 
18. Cauliflower 
19. Cherry tomato
20. Chives 
21. Cucumber 
22. Curly kale 
23. Daikon radish 
24. Delicata 
25. Dill
26. Endive 
27. Flat kale
28. French bean
29. Garlic chive
30. Garlic scape
31. Grape tomato
32. Green bell pepper 
33. Green cabbage 
34. Green bean
35. Golden beet 
36. Honey nut squash 
37. Hubbard squash 
38. Iceberg lettuce 
39. Jalapeno 
40. Japanese sweet potato 
41. Kabocha squash
42. Kelp
43. Kohlrabi 
44. Konjac  
45. Leek 
46. Mustard greens 
47. Napa cabbage 
48. Nori 
49. Orange bell pepper 
50. Orange carrot 
51. Orange tomato 
52. Patty pan squash 
53. Parsnip
54. Pea
55. Purple asparagus 
56. Purple cauliflower 
57. Purple kale 
58. Purple kohlrabi 
59. Purple string bean
60. Purple sweet potato 
61. Radicchio 
62. Radish 
63. Rainbow carrots
64. Red beet 
65. Red bell pepper 
66. Red cabbage 
67. Red onion 
68. Scallion
69. Shallot
70. Spinach
71. Taro – Let me know if you have a source without seed oils  
72. Tatsoi 
73. Turnip
74. Watermelon 
75. Watermelon radish 
76. Wax bean
77. Yellow bell pepper 
78. Yellow onion 
79. Yellow pea 
80. Yuca  
81. White onion 
82. Zephyr squash 
83. Zucchini

What we haven’t had this year that we’ve had in previous years: 

• Black olives
• Black radish 
• Celeriac 
• Chard 
• Chili pepper
• Eggplant 
• Green olives 
• Jicama – The brand I used to get chips from discontinued. Let me know if you know of any organic sources of this! 
• Jerusalem artichoke 
• Kalamata olives 
• Okra 
• Pie pumpkin
• Savoy cabbage – I haven’t seen this anywhere locally 
• Water chestnuts 
• Watercress

Fruit Plant Points

84. Asian pear
85. Banana 
86. Bartlett pear 
87. Black grape
88. Blood orange 
89. Blueberry
90. Camu camu 
91. Cherry
92. Cranberry
93. Date
94. Elderberry 
95. Fig
96. Fuji apple 
97. Gala apple
98. Golden delicious apple
99. Green grape 
100. Lemon 
101. Lime
102. Mango
103. Mulberry
104. Orange 
105. Pineapple 
106. Pink lady apply 
107. Plantain 
108. Plum
109. Pomegranate 
110. Raspberry 
111. Red grape 
112. Strawberry
113. Tangerine
114. Watermelon

What we haven’t had this year that we’ve had in previous years: 

• Goji berry
• Golden kiwi
• Grapefruit
• Guava
• Jackfruit 
• Peach
• Plum

Nuts Plant Points

I get the majority of my non perishables from Thrive Market.

Use my link to get 40% off and a free gift with your first order. 

I like to build my cart up to $49 for free shipping. And then I wait to check out for when there’s a free gift that we already use. 

I’ll link which products are cheaper to buy on Amazon. (It’s usually when they’re available in bulk.) 

I buy almost all of our nuts from Thrive Market.

115. Almond
116. Baru  
117. Brazil 
118. Cashew
119. Chia seeds 
120. Chestnut 
121. Coconut 
122. Hazelnut 
123. Macadamia 
124. Peanut
125. Pecan
126. Pistachios 
127. Pumpkin seeds 
128. Sunflower seeds 
129. Walnut

What we haven’t had this year that we’ve had in previous years: 

• Pine nuts 
• Hemp seeds 

Bean Plant Points

I buy most of our beans from Thrive Market. Occasionally I’ll find an heirloom bean on sale at a local health foods store. 

130. Adzuki 
131. Black
132. Black lentils 
133. Cannellini 
134. Chickpea / Garbanzo 
135. Black eyed pea 
136. Borlotti 
137. Dark red kidney 
138. Great northern 
139. Green lentils 
140. Kidney 
141. Mung 
142. Navy 
143. Pinto 
144. Red lentils 
145. Toor dal  

What we haven’t had this year that we’ve had in previous years: 

• Fava 
• Lima 
• Soy

Herbal Teas Plant Points

I haven’t gotten all my family to appreciate tea yet so this is my bonus personal list. See the links for where I buy them in bulk. I try to buy loose leaf or brands that don’t have plastic in the tea bags. We don’t need any more micro plastics in our diet! 

146. Chamomile  
147. Dandelion  
148. Ginger (I only like this one fresh cut from the root!) 
149. Hibiscus flower  
150. Lemon balm  
151. Nettle  
152. Passionflower  
153. Red clover  
154. Red raspberry leaf  
155. Tulsi  
156. Valerian  

I share all of this to inspire you and your family on your health journeys. May we all nourish our bodies well. 

If you’ve never tried Thrive Market, I’d encourage you to give it a try. I love shopping on the app for our non perishables. Check it out here! 

What weird food has your family tried recently? I’d love to hear about it.

More Healthy Inspiration

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