Discussion: Best Fruit (or vegetable)

Mapgirl suggests this is a silly question that doesn’t need an answer and while I agree to some extent I tell her that the human race would never have progressed if questions that didn’t need an answer were never asked so here it is…….

If for some bizarre reason my total food intake was to be restricted to just water and a single variety of fruit or vegetable, what would be the best selection to sustain me for the longest period.

Presumably I’d eventually have some sort of disorder related to a lack of something essential, say for example, an iron deficiency, so what one type of fruit or vegetable would give me the best ‘balanced’ diet.

Anybody have any medically based idea?
Any guesses.
It’d be sad if it were Brussel Sprouts.

My totally non-scientific guess would be bananas, but many of you will claim I’m ‘bananas’ just for asking such a question.

Pizza. Sure it is.

I've heard that potatoes are supposed to be one of the best foods in that regards... no idea if it's true or not

Quinoa? If you count it as a fruit.

I think I've seen the claim or claims that either potatoes or rice would be the "single" food that someone could survive on for the longest. I suspect though there would be a difference between the food that keeps you alive the longest (ie regardless of mineral/vitamin deficiencies) or the food that keeps you healthy for the longest.

I've read claims that wheatgrass (juiced) might be the one.

Sprouts of some sort (alfalfa?) might be high up on the list as well.

Alfafa sprouts would definitely be way up there, but think of the sheer volume of sprouts you'd have to eat...

Potatoes are certainly vegetables, but what about a grain like rice? Are we searching for the best single food item, or the best fruit or vegetable? Or is the fact that I asked that question a sign that I'm just taking this too seriously? ;-)

Somewhere I read (and I'm not saying it wasn't a spoof) that you could get all your daily nutritional requirements from 2 pints of Guinness and a ridiculous number of glasses of grapefruit juice; 47 I think it was! My partner at the time was quite fond of both substances but I never got to try out the theory to save on cooking...

donuts (fruit filled)

Are we searching for the best single food item?

Already up there on the board. Pizza.

Ice cream beats pizza in my book.

I cheated and googled it... don't know if the info is accurate.

I could deal with sweet potatos for a while perhaps, but broccoli everyday from not 'til the end would be a grim fate. Almost as bad as brussel sprouts.

"According to Dr. Everett Koop (former US Surgeon General) and to Health magazine, 10 of the most nutritious vegetables in the world are:

1. Broccoli
2. Spinach
3. Brussels sprouts
4. Lima beans
5. Peas
6. Asparagus
7. Artichokes
8. Cauliflower
9. Sweet potatoes
10. Carrots"

"The best 5 fruits to be consumed because of their high content of nutritious elements are:

Blueberries
Kiwi
Strawberries
Guava
Cranberries
"
But then another source claims differently:

"The higher the score, the more nutritious the food.

Sweet potato baked 184
Potato, baked 83
Spinach 76
Kale 55
Mixed Vegetables 52
Broccoli 52
Winter Squash, Baked 44
Brussels Sprouts 37
Cabbage, Raw 34
Green Peas 33
Carrot 30
Okra 30
Corn on the Cob 27
Tomato 27
Green Pepper 26
Cauliflower 25
Artichoke 24
Romaine Lettuce 24
The Center for Science in the Public Interest, Washington D.C. copyright 1992

The reasons the sweet potato took first place? Dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars, complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium."

From a lecture by the Swedish national team doctor 25+ years ago I remember only one thing:

He said you could survive by eating only raw cabbage and still get most of your nutritional needs filled. The only drawback being you had to eat 25 kg of it each day - bringing also some other unwanted bi-effects...

Don´t really know if this would be true, but it sounded funny :)

I always thought Cauliflower was a bit of a useless vegetable, but it doesn't actually do too badly on those lists.

Nothing quite beats a big pot of boiled potatoes after a hard days training

Makkara. Yes, it is vegetable (The national vegetable of Finland)

Of course, the two most common toppings on the pizza I get are broccoli and spinach. I wonder which one I'll go for today...

Makarra covered with turun sinappi (finnish mustard).
A Two vegetables meal.

Jagge, doesn't Boris still owe you a makkara? I hope you are charging interest! It is the mercantile way.

I decided on spinach. And pepperoni.

I'm definitely going to have to vote for pizza if it counts, for several reasons. Think about it: on the old school food pyramid, bread is the main ingredient, on the bottom of the pyramid, cheese is the second ingredient, which is (I think - correct me) the second thing on the food pyramid, and tomatoes are the third ingredient, which is on the third level on the pyramid. The toppings fill in on all the other categories on the pyramid, plus provide the variety to keep you motivated if you really did try to eat just one food. I know that the food pyramid probably has some errors, but it can't be really far off.

Then I saw an ad for this at the bottom of the attackpoint home page...

http://www.firebakedpizza.com/

Rex

Revealed: the food pyramid is actually a pizza construction diagram which has been hopelessly misinterpreted over the years

AP notices what you are talking about and tries to get inside your mind by coming up with ads which match the discussion topic! It's fascinating...

It is uncanny. How did it know that I was thinking of Elvis Karaoke?

Nothing quite beats a big pot of boiled peanuts after a hard days training.