ORANGE

Here’s how the Outrageous Oranges outplayed  the Banging Brussels Sprouts..

Unfortunately the Brussels Sprouts had a tough day, they were over cooked, lowering the amounts of their star nutrients allowing the quick attack of the oranges to dominate.  Oranges came through with a strong immune system, GI tract, and heart, while lowering risk of diabetes and cancer.

Once again, the fan support swayed the game.  By the looks of  it, 67% of the fans in attendance were cheering for the Oranges while only 33%  were rooting for the Brussels Sprouts.

Our FanCam spotted these Standout Supporters!

“Mmm. Brussels sprouts. Delicious steamed or roasted…”

“Go Sprouts!”

“Most definitely orange, orange everything!”

“Oranges! Again, I’m going with color!“

“Come on… How can you go against the orange?!!!”

These fans, and all the other participants who voted for their favorite team in the Oranges vs Brussels Sprouts head-to-head matchup, were entered into our favorite fan drawing for a Visa gift card.

VOTING CLOSED!

SWEET POTATO

Here’s how the Sweet Potatoes swept the Zucchinis..

The Sweet Potatoes – the Vitamin A powerhouse was just too much for the out of season zucchini.  Vitamin A had an outstanding game providing 438% of the daily value.  Lights out for Houdini!

Once again, the fan support swayed the game.  By the looks of  it, 75% of the fans in attendance were cheering for the Sweet Potatoes, while only 25%  were rooting for the Zucchinis.

Our FanCam spotted these Standout Supporters!

“How can you go wrong with sweet potatoes! Their current popularity alone gives them the fan base needed to defeat zucchini.”

“Sweat potato baby!!!! Yummy and so ver versatile l!!! The best!”

“While I think Sweet Potato will get the W, I’d like to root (no pun intended) for the Zucchini as it’s a personal favorite. Gooooooo Zucchini!”

“This was the battle royale…in the end…sweet potatoes…gotta love a vegetable that can be dinner or dessert!!!”

“Easy peasy (I hope)…sweet potatoes rock!!”

These fans, and all the other participants who voted for their favorite team in the Zucchini vs Sweet Potato head-to-head matchup, were entered into our favorite fan drawing for a Visa gift card.

VOTING IS CLOSED!

BEETS

The beets beat out the eggplants team with the phenomenal play of the phytonutrients and antioxidants, just too much for the low calorie eggplants to handle!

Once again, the fans support was heavily lopsided.  By the looks of  it, 71% of the fans in attendance were cheering for Beets, while only 29%  were rooting for the Eggplants.

Our FanCam spotted these Standout Supporters!

“Give me “B”…give me an “E”…give me another “E”….give me a “T”….what’s that spell? BEET…go Beets!”

“Anything that can be used to dye easter eggs gets my vote…so yummy beats it is!”

“Beets are the best!!!”

“Can’t give love to the beets so the more versatile, tastier eggplant gets my vote!”

“Down with the beets!”

“I am Russian, must I say more? I love eggplants but feel that they ways need too much oil to cook, while beets just good as they come!”

 

These fans, and all the other participants who voted for their favorite team in the Eggplant vs Beet head-to-head matchup, were entered into our favorite fan drawing for a Visa gift card.

VOTING CLOSED!

March Madness brings out the best of the best teams to compete in head-to-head matchups on the basketball court!  In honor of the march mayhem, Skinny Gene presents the Produce Playoffs!  Just like the big dance, anything can happen on any given day as these super foods go head-to-head!  Whatever the outcome, all of these foods are winners!

SEE RULES AND GIVEAWAYS!

DAY 3 MATCHUP: Zucchini versus Sweet Potato

(voting from March 27th – March 31st @ Midnight PST)

The next game in the produce playoff is the Houdini Zucchinis versus the ‘not so sweet’ Sweet Potatoes.  Here is the game day breakdown for the two teams:

Zucchini

Season: March may not be their best month, their strongest time of year is in the summer. 

Star players:  Vitamin C, A, and manganese, and other antioxidants

On the bench: pectin rich fiber and omega 3 fats

Offense:  The zucchini offense is as simple as a gentle steam.  This preserves their rich antioxidant properties.  Serve raw with hummus or steamed with seasoning for a quick side.  

Defense:  The Houdini Zucchini will surprise the opponent with their unusual amount of cholesterol lowering pectin in the skin of their veggie.  The pectin also provides protection against diabetes and improves insulin regulation.  As long as they keep their skin on, they are sure to give the sweet potato a good run.     

VERSUS

Sweet Potato 

Season: Lucky for the sweet potatoes, March is their best month!

Star players: No question, the star of this team is betacarotene!  In the shadows is another all star, Vitamin C.   

On the bench: sweet potato extracts that increase the body’s level of andiponectin, as well as fiber, potassium, Vitamin B6, manganese 

Offense: Sweet potatoes are extremely versatile, steam, bake, roast, or sautée and  season sweet with cinnamon and Splenda or savory with onions and garlic.    

Defense: The defense duo of Vitamin A and C provide the anti cancer antioxidants , as well as anti-inflammatory protection.  The increased levels of andiponectin and the fiber content help regulate a healthy insulin response improving blood sugars and reducing risk of diabetes. 

THE WINNER

This was an awesome matchup. Both teams played hard, but there could only be 1 winner. And  it was…. CLICK TO SEE THE ANSWER! 

March Madness brings out the best of the best teams to compete in head-to-head matchups on the basketball court!  In honor of the march mayhem, Skinny Gene presents the Produce Playoffs!  Just like the big dance, anything can happen on any given day as these super foods go head-to-head!  Whatever the outcome, all of these foods are winners!

SEE RULES AND GIVEAWAYS!

DAY 2 MATCHUP: Eggplant versus Beets

(voting from March 25th – March 27th @ Midnight PST)

The next matchup is the battle of the purple veggies, eggplant versus the mighty beets.  Not the most popular veggies, but these two snuck into the produce playoffs to show off their stuff.  Here is a breakdown of the two teams:

Eggplant

Season: Started the season out strong, but they may have hit their peak long before this tourney, August to October.

Star players:  fiber and manganese

On the bench: molybdenum, potassium, antioxidants

Offense:  The eggplant’s offense attack is based on their versatility.  The eggplant can be baked, roasted, or steamed and added to sandwiches, pizza, and lasagna for a low calorie filling.

Defense:  The eggplant’s defense is led by star player fiber, reducing the risk of heart disease, as well as the low calories fighting off the risk of obesity.  

VERSUS

Beets

Season: The beets peaked even earlier than the eggplant, June through October.  This is sure to be a good match up!

Star players: phytonutrients, folate, and fiber 

On the bench: dynamic duo of antioxidants, vitamin C and manganese

Offense: The beets are quick to cook, just steam for 15 minutes until soft.  Beets are a great addition to a salad bowl of greens or an easy side dish.  

Defense: The phytonutrients are the star defense players, providing some valuable antioxidant and anti-inflammatory components that are unique only to a few veggies.  The beets also match up well with the eggplants fiber defense.

THE WINNER

This was an awesome matchup. Both teams played hard, but there could only be 1 winner. And  it was…. CLICK TO SEE THE ANSWER!

ASPARAGUS

Great match up, but the antioxidant level and vitamin play of the Asparagus team dominated the Pears.  Fiber played great defense for both teams limiting spikes in blood sugars and keeping the hearts healthy!

Gotta say, the Asparagus fans really showed up for this one!  By the looks of  it, 76% of the fans in attendance were cheering for Asparagus, while only 24%  were rooting for the Pears.

Oh well, Pears; better luck next year!

Our FanCam spotted these Standout Supporters!

“Pears will edge them out because their wide bodies and multi-use skills trump the bland, one-trick pony asparagus.” -Carroll

“Pear, you know I love you (especially Bartletts)….but I had to choose Asparagus even though it makes my pee stink. Go Big Green!“- Katie

“Asparagus for sure! All that green! And, anything that cleans me out enough to make my pee smell funny must be good for me, right!?!“- Christina

These fans, and all the other participants who voted for their favorite team in the Pears vs Asparagus head-to-head matchup, were entered into our favorite fan drawing for a Visa gift card.

VOTING IS CLOSED!

March Madness brings out the best of the best teams to compete in head-to-head matchups on the basketball court!  In honor of the march mayhem, Skinny Gene presents the Produce Playoffs!  Just like the big dance, anything can happen on any given day as these super foods go head-to-head!  Whatever the outcome, all of these foods are winners!

SEE RULES AND GIVEAWAYS!

DAY 1 MATCHUP: Pears versus Asparagus

(voting from March 21st – March 22 @ Midnight PST)

This is sure to be a great matchup to kickoff the Produce Playoffs!  The Aspargus team brings a lot to the table besides their obvious height advantage.  Here are the scouting reports for the two teams:

Pears

Season: Peak from summer to early January, they may have peaked too soon for to make a run in this tourney!

Star players:  Fiber and vitamin C

On the bench: Antioxidants

Offense:  The pears offense is based on their speed.  The quick chopping and dicing allow the pears to be added to so many things!  Our favorite plays are adding diced pears to cereals and oatmeal, and adding slices to fresh spinach salads.

Defense:  The defense attack is led by the Pear’s bench play of the antioxidants.  The threesome of beta-carotene, lutein, and zea-xanthin are super protective against any free radicals reducing risk of colon and other cancers.  The star player, fiber, also provides a defensive edge lowering cholesterol and keeping the bowels moving nicely.

VERSUS

Asparagus 

Season: Lucky for the Asparagus team, they are peaking at just the right time for this match up, February through June!

Star players: Fiber, antioxidants, folic acid and B-vitamins

On the bench: Vitamin foursome – A, C, E, K

Offense: Aspargus is extremely versatile.  On the fast break they can be sautéed with olive oil, garlic, and pepper…a sure slam dunk!

Defense: A great matchup for the pears with fiber, keeping blood sugars stable, lowering cholesterol, and keeping the bowels moving.  Additional defense from the antioxidants and vitamins reducing risk of cancer and reduces inflammation!

THE WINNER

This was an awesome matchup. Both teams played hard, but there could only be 1 winner. And  it was…. CLICK TO SEE THE ANSWER!

HOW TO PLAY

Each week some of our favorite performing produce will go head-to-head. We will give you the scouting reports  for each produce team, including their offensive/defensive lineups. Using the information provided, simply guess which produce in each head-to-head matchup will prevail.  Just know that some produce are prone to pull an upset!   

To make your selection, simply cast your vote using the poll at the bottom of each matchup. Then, tell us who you voted for in the blog comments below.   For each matchup, you can only cast 1 vote, and once the winner is announced the voting for that matchup will be closed. Don’t worry if you miss one, there will be up to 4  matchups each week during March Madness and plenty of chances to earn points and prizes.

POINTS AND PRIZES

– For each head-to-head you guess correctly, you will get one (1) point.

– For each head-to- head, leave us a comment below telling us why you think your chosen produce will take the    prize, and you’ll earn two (2) additional points. {Keep it clean folks, or it won’t count.}

-If your comment is sooo good that we feature it on our Skinny Gene Facebook page, we will give you three (3) more points.

 But, the easiest way to win a prize is to GET SOCIAL!!  Here’s the deal… if your friend wins a prize, so will you.

At the end of the March Madness Produce Playoffs tournament, we will count up all the points. Each point counts as 1 entry in our prize drawing(s).

The more participants we have in our Produce Playoffs, the more prizes we will  give away!  So recruit your friends to play against you in the 2013 Skinny Gene Produce Playoffs.

So far,  UP FOR GRABS are….two (2) $25 Visa Gift Cards – 1 for the winner of the random drawing, 1 for the person who recruited them to the tournament.

Each entry counts as one chance to win.  US Only!  Winner will be announced April 9th. Winner will be chosen AT RANDOM by random.org.

READY TO PLAY!!!

(Click on the links below to pick your produce in the head-to-head matchups or to see the results)

DAY 1 : PEARS vs, ASPARAGUS  – voting is closed. Winner…ASPARAGUS!! See how they pulled it off!