Great for: Mountaineering

Special features: It offers maximum protection in extreme conditions against harsh sunlight with its anti-reflective coating. It also protects 100% against UVA, B and C rays.

Why we like them: Julba mixes the old-school steel and leather mountaineering frame style with 21st-century technology that is light on your face and durable.

Julbousa.com

Great for: Baseball

Special features: An adjustable ventilated nose for stability and reduced fogging for when you work up a sweat. It also features interchangeable lenses that adjust to any outdoor condition, adjustable temples and precise views at all angles, thanks to Nike's patented design.

Why we like them: Baseball pros Mark Teixeira and Evan Longoria have worn the Show-X2's during the playoffs. If they're good enough for the pros, they're good enough for us!

Nikevision.com

Great for: Running

Special features: No matter how far you run, your eyes will not strain as the lenses reduce glare from asphalt. You won't have to back-step to pick up your glasses as the secure-wrap temples add grip, stability and comfort.

Why we like them: We love the rose tint! Not only does it look good, but it will also keep everything in sharp, crisp focus, whether you're running in high- or low-light conditions.

Nike.com

Great for: Multisport

Special features: It's like the Swiss Army knife of sport sunglasses. It features interchangeable lens technology for fast and easy lens changing; you can choose from two different lens shapes; and it comes with a photochromic lens option (that darkens automatically in response to sunlight) and earsocks that increase grip when you sweat. Awesome!

Why we like them: Oakley never skimps on quality or style. They look great and they're super functional!

Oakley.com

Great for: Multisport for women

Special features: Created specifically with the female athlete in mind, this lightweight design will fit on your head so perfectly you may never take them off. Interchangeable lenses are given a permanent coating that repels dust while maintaining a smudge-resistant barrier against skin oils, fingerprints, lotions and sunscreens — it even repels water to prevent streaks and sheens from corrupting your vision.

Why we like them: If the special features weren't enough, they're also available with Oakley prescription lenses.

Oakley.com

Great for: Tennis

Special features: Don't be afraid to go after each tennis ball — the Rydons WILL stay on your face. It features 360-degree adjustable temple tips and nosepiece. Need a quick lens change? No problem. Rudy Project's QuickChange system will have you up and running for any light condition in a jiffy.

Why we like them: The ventilation system allows you to sweat as much as you need to.

Rudyproject.com

Great for: Active women

Special features: It has a lightweight, compact frame that's designed to fit snugly but comfortably on a woman's head. Great for an outdoor yoga class.

Why we like them: These sunglasses are great for those less intense days where you don't want to give up style but still need some performance (e.g., running after your toddler in the park and then heading over to a friend's place for lunch.)

Smithoptics.com

Great for: Multisport (unisex)

Special features: These classy sunglasses are more than just a good-looking accessory. They're flexible, durable and designed to take a beating.

Why we like them: Like we've said in the past, we absolutely love this brand. We just can't get enough of its snarky marketing campaigns and make-you-drool designs. VonZipper's Ether Collection features five frame styles that will help you improve your game on and off the field.

VonZipper.com

Great for: Water sports and triathlons

Special features: Repels water and features anti-impact protection. You can easily exchange yellow and dark lenses. It also comes with an adjustable, non-elastic head strap that fits snugly even through the toughest wipeouts.

Why we like them: It has an open frame that instantly drains water and will not fog when a breeze is present.

Oceanglasses.com

In this recipe from 101 Cookbooks, you make your own breadcrumbs from a thin day-old baguette, toss the chopped cauliflower with olive oil, bake the cauliflower and top it with a mixture of breadcrumbs, garlic and red chile pepper. If only this was an option at the local movie theater.
 
Photo: 101Cookbooks.com

Combine raw cauliflower, processed to the size of couscous, with shredded mozzarella and eggs, and bake, and you’ve got yourself an irresistibly cheesy, low-carb pizza crust! Get the recipe from Your Lighter Side.
 
Photo: YourLighterSide.com

Key Ingredient’s “cheese sticks” are made in a similar way as the pizza crust, only these are topped with more cheese and dipped in marinara sauce.
 
Photo: KeyIngredient.com

Pin this to your “Party Snacks” Pinterest board immediately. Cauliflower subs for chicken in this healthy take on a traditional comfort food. The florets are battered and baked, then brushed with hot sauce and baked again until crispy. Get the recipe from FitChicLA.net.
 
Photo: FitChicLA.net

Oh yes. Cauliflower can sub for ingredients in Asian-style cuisine, too. Those little florets have no limits. Get the recipe from the Mom, What’s For Dinner? blog.
 
Photo: WhatsForDinner-MomWhatsForDinner.blogspot.com

If you can make fake mashed potatoes from cauliflower, it only makes sense that you can make cauliflower tater tots, right? These crispy puffs of cheddar and cauliflower from What2Cook are insanely addictive. … You’ve been warned.
 
Photo: Whats2Cook.net

Cauliflower alfredo sauce? Why not? This creamy sauce from The Skinny Fork contains cauliflower, fat-free milk, fat-free cream cheese, flour, butter, garlic and a 2%-milk Italian cheese blend. No heavy cream!
 
Photo: TheSkinnyFork.com

Not that chickpeas are unhealthy, but if you’re looking for a new way to switch up your snacks, try this hummus from OhMyVeggies.com that uses cauliflower instead of chickpeas.
 
Photo: OhMyVeggies.com

Wait, what? Bon Appetit took this a little too far. A) It’s just wrong to try to spin a sliced head of cauliflower as a juicy steak — no matter how you cook it. B) Cauliflower on cauliflower? We love the stuff, but come on, guys! That’s a little much. Anyway, if you have a crazy, out-of-control craving for cauliflower, go nuts with this recipe.
 
Photo: Lisa Hubbard, Bon Appetit

What it’s about: This film features an uptight ice skater who is in need of a partner to complete her ice-skating duo. When a former hockey player is recruited, viewers watch as the two exercise, train and face life challenges in order to qualify for the Olympic team.

How it can motivate you: Watching the grueling practices that help the aggressive hockey player transform into an agile ice skater may inspire you to opt for that yoga or swimming class this summer.

What it’s about: Who doesn’t love this classic? Rocky Balboa is a boxer who wants to make it big but struggles with work and paying his bills. He has a chance to transition from "a nobody to a somebody” when he is scheduled in Philadelphia to box against the champion, Apollo Creed. Watch as training, sacrifice and determination allow Rocky Balboa to earn a fighting chance.

How it can motivate you: With lines like, “every champion was once a contender that refused to give up” and “if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth,” it’s hard not to run to the gym and test your physical limits.

What it’s about: For anyone who can appreciate a nice set of abs, “Magic Mike” centers around a roofer who becomes the main attraction at a strip club. He takes a young protégé under his wing and teaches him how to succeed as a male stripper.

How it can motivate you: This movie may advertise rock hard abs with shirtless men in just about every scene, but it’s not just for the ladies. Matthew McConaughey’s ripped physique has inspired an abs workout for both men and women, and other fitness plans.

What it’s about: “Enter The Dragon” is for martial arts enthusiasts, or anyone who enjoys a good crime-fighting movie. The film centers around three main characters: Lee, Rogers and Williams. Each man is registered for a martial arts competition. Deemed to be one of the greatest martial arts movies ever, this flick allows the viewers to watch the athleticism, power, agility and sheer talent martial artists posses.

How it can motivate you: This movie showcases strong bodies, determination and plenty of training scenes. Merely watching the talent of each martial artist is enough to inspire greater fitness.

• Level of threat: IUCN says near threatened; U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service says endangered
• Where they’re found: Arctic Ocean, and seas and coasts around North America, Russia and Greenland
• Biggest threats: Mainly, hunting for human consumption. Other threats include oil and gas development, expansion of fisheries, hydroelectric development, industrial and urban pollution, and climate change.
• Estimated population: More than 150,000
• Fun fact: Beluga whales’ whitish skin evolved as a way for them to camouflage themselves in the polar ice caps, protecting them from predators like polar bears and killer whales.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

 
Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, Ecos.fws.gov, Cogsci.ucsd.edu

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss, reduced prey populations — they prey on prairie dogs, which were persecuted as agricultural pests during most of the 20th century — and non-native disease (e.g., Plague)
• Estimated population: 1,300
• Fun fact: They are the only ferret species native to North America.
• Learn about recovery efforts here, and click here to find out how you can help.

 
Sources: WorldWildlife.org, Ecos.fws.gov, IUCNRedlist.org
Photo credit: J. Michael Lockhart/USFWS

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: South-central China
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss due to tree removal for logging operations and farming
• Estimated population: 1,600
• Fun fact: Giant pandas eat between 26 and 84 pounds of bamboo every day.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

 
Sources: WorldWildlife.org, IUCNRedlist.org

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: West Africa
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss, due to the destruction of forests for logging, farming and developing
• Estimated population: 2,000 to 3,000
• Fun fact: The pygmy hippo’s skin oozes out a pink fluid called “blood sweat” that helps protect it from sunburn.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, SandiegoZoo.org

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Central and southwestern Sri Lanka
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss, road kill and hunting for the pet trade, traditional “medicine” and superstitious killing
• Estimated population: 1,500
• Fun fact: The slender loris’s huge eyes enable it to see in the dark and hunt insects at night.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, EdgeOfExistence.org

• Level of threat: IUCN says least concern; U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service says endangered
• Where they’re found: Great Basin, Washington and Idaho
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss due to fires and conversion for farming
• Estimated population: N/A
• Fun fact: The pygmy rabbit is the smallest rabbit in North America, weighing less than 1 pound.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, Ecos.fws.gov, OregonZoo.org
Photo credit: OregonZoo.org

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Coasts of the northern and eastern North Pacific Ocean
• Biggest threats: Oil spills
• Estimated population: 106,822
• Fun fact: Sea otters sometimes “hold hands” so they don’t drift apart.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, NWF.org

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Northeastern Borneo
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss — their forests are being destroyed for commercial plantations, logging and expanding agriculture
• Estimated population: 1,500
• Fun fact: Borneo elephants evolved from Asian elephants, after being isolated from those in Asia and Sumatra. They eventually became smaller with somewhat larger ears, longer tails and straighter tusks.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: WorldWildlife.org

• Level of threat: Critically endangered
• Where they’re found: China
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss due to deforestation; climate change
• Estimated population: N/A
• Fun fact: Silver pikas are endemic to a single forest in the Helan-Shan range, occupying a total area of 3 square kilometers.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Galapagos Archipelago, Ecuador
• Biggest threats: Pollution, bycatch, climate change and non-native disease
• Estimated population: 1,800
• Fun fact: Galapagos penguins are monogamous, choosing one mate for life.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, WorldWildlife.org

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: South and southwestern Australia
• Biggest threats: Australian aborigines and early European colonists killed these sea lions for food, and 17th- and 18th-century sealers further reduced the population. Today, their main threat is getting trapped in fishing nets.
• Estimated population: 13,790
• Fun fact: Adult male Australian sea lions are approximately 2.5 to 3.5 times heavier than adult females.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org

• Level of threat: Critically endangered
• Where they’re found: New Guinea
• Biggest threats: Hunting for human consumption, and habitat loss through conversion of forest to cultivated land
• Estimated population: N/A
• Fun fact: The most recently discovered tree kangaroo, the golden-mantled tree kangaroo was found in 1993.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org

• Level of threat: Vulnerable
• Where they’re found: Nepal, India, Bhutan, Myanmar and southern China
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss due to deforestation, and poaching
• Estimated population: Fewer than 10,000
• Fun fact: The red panda inspired the Firefox logo.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, WorldWildlife.org

• Level of threat: Vulnerable
• Where they’re found: Arctic Ocean
• Biggest threats: Loss of sea ice habitat from climate change, conflicts between polar bears and humans, industrial development, and unsustainable hunting
• Estimated population: 20,000 to 25,000
• Fun fact: Polar bears apparently caught on to Eskimo kisses — they use nose-to-nose interactions to “ask” other polar bears for something, such as food.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, WorldWildlife.org, PolarBearsInternational.org

• Level of threat: Critically endangered
• Where they’re found: Isla Escudo de Veraguas, in the islands of Bocas del Toro, Panama
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss and poaching
• Estimated population: Most likely fewer than 100
• Fun fact: Pygmy three-toed sloths can turn their heads approximately 270 degrees horizontally to observe their surroundings without moving the rest of their bodies.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, EdgeOfExistence.org, Discovery.com

• Level of threat: Critically endangered
• Where they’re found: Egypt and Israel
• Biggest threats: National and international pet trade (now illegal); plus agricultural, developmental and industrial pressures
• Estimated population: 7,470
• Fun fact: Kleinmann’s tortoise is the smallest tortoise in the northern hemisphere.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, DailyMail.co.uk
Photo credit: TigerTailFoods.com

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Eastern Bangladesh, southwestern China, northeastern India, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and northern Vietnam
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss and disturbance due to the establishment of tea gardens and paper mills, timber plantations, livestock ranching, shifting agriculture, firewood collection, charcoal production and human settlement; other threats include pollution, inbreeding and a local animal trade for zoos and for food
• Estimated population: N/A
• Fun fact: When a group of Phayre’s leaf monkeys is disturbed, the females pick up their young and escape into the forest, while the males remain to bark at the intruders.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, BBC.co.uk
Photo credit: BBC.co.uk

• Level of threat: Critically endangered
• Where they’re found: Australia
• Biggest threats: Decline due to habitat loss and competition with cattle and sheep, particularly during droughts; currently threatened by native competitors and introduced predators, and by its small colony size, which makes it extra vulnerable to disease and wildfire, inbreeding and loss of genetic variation
• Estimated population: 115
• Fun fact: Its weird-looking nose is key to survival, since they’re nocturnal animals and their poor eyesight means they have to be able to smell their food in the dark.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org

• Level of threat: Critically endangered
• Where they’re found: Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
• Biggest threats: IUCNRedlist.org states that “no obvious threats have been identified, although long-term environmental changes, prehistoric hunting and recent forestry activities could have impacted populations. Predation on so small a population is considered a significant threat."
• Estimated population: 130
• Fun fact: Adults mark their territories by rubbing the scent glands located on their cheeks against rocks and stumps.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, British Columbia Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks
Photo credit: Zooborns.com

• Level of threat: Critically endangered
• Where they’re found: Central Mexico
• Biggest threats: Desiccation and pollution of the canal system and lakes in Xochimilco and Chalco, as a result of urbanization, as well as the traditional consumption of the species by local people
• Estimated population: Fewer than 100
• Fun fact: Adult axolotl salamanders can regenerate many body structures, including the whole limb and tail, the central nervous system, and eye and heart tissues.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, CSHProtocols.cshlp.org
Photo credit: TheRoyalOctopus.com

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Southern Utah
• Biggest threats: Decline was mainly due to intensive poisoning efforts; current threats include habitat loss due to residential and agricultural development on private lands, plague outbreaks, deliberate (illegal) poisoning and shooting by ranchers and farmers concerned about agricultural damage
• Estimated population: 8,000
• Fun fact: These prairie dogs live in large, underground colonies that sometimes contain thousands of residents.
• Click here to read about conservation efforts for this species.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, Arkive.org

• Level of threat: Endangered
• Where they’re found: Philippines
• Biggest threats: Habitat loss due to logging, firewood collection and mining of nickel and chromite
• Estimated population: N/A
• Fun fact: This species only exists on three islands: Dinagat, Siargao and Bucas Grande.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, EdgeOfExistence.org
Photo credit: En.academic.ru

• Level of threat: Least concern
• Where they’re found: Arctic tundra
• Biggest threats: Declined due to fur trade; current threats include scarcity of prey, disease, genetic pollution and climate change
• Estimated population: Several hundred thousand animals
• Fun fact: The Arctic fox can survive temperatures as low as -58 degrees.
• Click here to find out how you can help.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, WorldWildlife.org, NationalGeographic.com

• Level of threat: Near threatened
• Where they’re found: Deserts of northern Africa and southwest and central Asia
• Biggest threats: Habitat degradation due to human settlement and activity, especially livestock grazing
• Estimated population: N/A
• Fun fact: Sand cats have large, furry pads between their toes, which allow them to hop around the hot sand. Their oversized ears act like radiators to disperse heat.
• Click here to read about conservation efforts for this species.

Sources: IUCNRedlist.org, ZooBorns.com
Photo credit: Wikipedia.com

This is not your average running vest. The RoadNoise version allows you to listen to your music and your surroundings so you stay safe without giving up your jams. Lightweight speakers are mounted on the shoulder straps and a front pocket lets you story your iPod and keys leaving you hands-free. Of course, it's made out of 3M Scotchlite refective material.

Roadnoise.com/

These tights are super stylish, and engineered to keep you dry and visible on your hardest night time run.

Nike.com

Use the vents in the back of your helmet to attach this girlish bow in place. Bows fit most helmets and can be adjusted to fit; just cut off the extra velcro, and you're ready to go!


Onetwothreespeed.com

Buff performance headwear is a versatile tube of fabric that can serve many functions and be worn in a bunch of different ways — or as their website says, think of it as a "multitasking bandana." They are designed to offer technical performance and protection from the elements. Buff's reflective headgear will keep the sweat out of your eyes, and the cars away from your body. Have fun finding new ways to wear it!


Buffusa.com/

OK, so you have all these great-quality workout clothes, but your schedule just changed and you have to get your workout during after-hours. Instead of spending even more money on reflective gear, iron on these cool transfers from iON. They come in a variety of designs!


iondesigns.ca

Running with your dog? Keep her safe, too! Pick up a reflective collar, like the ones shown at DarkdogOutfitters, and your dog will be just as flashy as you.

Etsy.com/shop/DarkdogOutfitters

Better Homes and Gardens had a foolproof idea for an inexpensive, beautiful headboard: Buy two or three large picture frames from a thrift shop or garage sale, remove the glass and frame a fabric that complements the bedroom décor. Hang them side by side behind the bed.
 
Photo: BHG.com

This one requires some time and patience, but anyone is capable of making a fabric headboard. AllThingsThrifty.com offers a step-by-step tutorial (with photos!) to guide you through the process.
 
Photo: AllThingsThrifty.com

Refinish an old door for an inexpensive and stylish headboard. Martha Stewart’s tutorial involves trimming, sanding, priming and painting the door, mounting it on the wall and topping it off by nailing on a miltered crown molding. But if you’re looking for something easier, the Dimples and Pigtales blog shows that a door headboard can be as simple as finding a couple of cool doors, removing the loose paint and just setting them up behind the bed.
 
Photo: DimplesAndPigtales.blogspot.com

This one takes Martha’s simpler door headboard idea to a whole new level. Like Martha’s, this one requires trimming, sanding and painting, but it also involves adding fabric-covered foam to the door’s panels. Note: The tutorial site, Buildipedia.com, considers a handsaw with a miter box a “basic DIY tool.” If you do not, or if you have no freaking clue what a miter box even is, this project is probably not for you. If you can handle the challenge, though, it really does make for one gorgeous headboard.
 
Photo: Buildipedia.com

If you’re looking for a headboard that’s cheap, doesn’t involve using power tools or paint, and isn’t a wall decal, this one’s for you. All you need is a bench cushion, some buttons, ribbon and some over-door molding you can find at a home center — plus the nails and hammer to hang it above the bed. No upholstering required! Check out the tutorial here.
 
Photo: BHG.com

For the DIY amateur: The Sometimes On A Tuesday blog shows how you can buy Styrofoam ceiling tiles for about $20, paint them the color of your choosing and attach them to the wall with sticky adhesive squares. Though we love this concept, we’re concerned about how well Styrofoam will hold up with everyday use, so it might be a good idea to consider using tin ceiling tiles instead.
 
Photo: SometimesOnATuesday.blogspot.com

Put the power tools away. All you need for this headboard is shutters and maybe some paint. Maya at Completely-Coastal.com simply propped them up against the wall, but we’d recommend grabbing some nails and a hammer and securely hanging them behind the bed.
 
Photo: Completely-Coastal.com

In a stroke of creative genius, Jessica at MadInCrafts.com had the idea to weave vertical blinds across a handmade wooden frame — and attach hand-painted lamps to the top of it. This project can seem a little overwhelming, but the step-by-step photos help guide you through the entire process.
 
Photo: MadInCrafts.com

For the pattern-obsessed, check out this patchwork headboard project from Better Homes & Gardens. Like the other fabric headboards, you’ll need foam, wood and fabric. Don’t be intimidated — the tutorial is actually easier than you’d expect.
 
Photo: BHG.com

We're jealous we're not creative enough to come up with something like this. The Kara Paslay Designs blog illustrates how cheap rubber doormats can be converted into a ridiculously attractive headboard. All you need to do is spray paint the mats, cut and paint a piece of plywood, attach the mats to the plywood and trim out the piece. We like this even more than the West Elm headboard that inspired it.
 
Photo: KaraPaslayDesigns.blogspot.com

For the ultimate bookworm, create a headboard out of books. According to Shelterness.com, all you need is a bunch of hardcover books (all the same size), a piece of wood and nails. Place the open books on the wooden board, and secure them with tiny nails, leaving some pages loose.
 
Photo: Shelterness.com

Pose with a salad. It’s just as good as eating one.

Hug an old woman.

Bring your tea into the woods and breathe deeply.

Find an army of doctors, get them to stand in a “Grey's Anatomy”-like stance and have one cross his/her arms. You’ll feel really confident in their ability to heal you.

Safety first! Always wear your snorkeling gear when chopping onions.

Get your carb fix — sans calories — with a spaghetti bath.

Set yourself up for greatness. Wear a cape wherever you go.

Hold a heart in your hand. Not figuratively. Just get a heart-shaped object and cup it like this.

Stand on a scale. But don't look at the number. Just contort your body in a cute pose and stare into the distance.

It's been a long winter. Treat yourself to a pedicure.

Want to make a statement with house numbers that are also environmentally friendly? Try these, which are made of recycled aluminum from Etsy shop ModernDwell.

Incorporate flowers and plants in flowerpots painted with your house number, as seen at Shelterness.com.

Holly, on Down to Earth Style, used her house number as part of her Christmas decorations, hanging an old, wooden sleigh between her garage doors. Other holiday shapes — try a giant mitten or snowman — could also be used.

Don’t forget Halloween! Here, Southern Living magazine etched a house number into the front of a pumpkin on the front stairs. Another idea is to fully carve the number into the pumpkin and see it glow at night with candles.

Take a natural slab of wood, paint the center with chalkboard paint and add the house number in chalk — like Andrea at the Simple Craft Diaries did. This will give a rustic, homey feeling to your front porch.

LBsWreathsAndMore on Etsy sells country-style wreaths decorated with flowers, ribbons and other materials and adorned with your house number.

We love these gorgeous green and purple stalks, which are best in spring and early summer, depending on your location. The nutrients in asparagus have been linked to anti-aging and anti-cancer benefits, among others. Drizzle ‘em with olive oil, salt and pepper before roasting in the oven for a quick and delicious side dish.

We admit it — we’re hooked on kale. This hearty, vitamin-packed winter veggie has been shown to improve heart health, lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of certain cancers. Our favorite way to eat kale right now is Caesar-style — with sun-dried tomatoes, focaccia croutons and a dollop of creamy Caesar dressing that clings to the kale beautifully.

For us, a little spice is always a good thing. Loaded with vitamins A, B6 and C, jalapenos are a surefire way to add some kick to your meal, especially if you leave the seeds in. Not to mention, these little green guys offer versatility in the kitchen, whether you feel like making corn salsa, chili or banh mi.

This bright green citrus fruit is bursting with vitamin C, which serves as a powerful antioxidant, supports the immune system and has been shown to help prevent cancer and heart disease. We try to keep limes on hand at all times, since they add a zesty finish to any number of dishes, from broiled salmon to veggie fajitas.

We never say no to a good spinach salad. And it’s a good thing, too, since this leafy green is brimming with dozens of nutrients that help guard against inflammatory, heart and bone problems, as well as cancers. The greener and more vibrant the spinach leaves, the more vitamin C you’re getting.

Broccoli stands as one of our all-time, tried-and-true vegetables. Classic and crisp, it’s a perfect accompaniment to almost any meal — we like it lightly steamed (still crunchy) with a squeeze of lemon and a dash of butter. Lucky for us, this nutrient rock star has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and detoxification benefits, in addition to supporting heart and digestive health.

An often-overlooked member of the garlic and onion family, leeks rock our world. These cylindrical green and white veggies pack a punch when it comes to protecting cardiovascular health and are a great escape from your usual veggie routine. Sweeter and less potent than onions, leeks taste fabulous sautéed and served with chicken.

This creamy green vegetable contains almost 20 vitamins and minerals, including potassium, fiber, B vitamins and vitamin E. And not only are they good for you, but they’re also incredibly versatile — we’ve tried them in everything from dips to dressings to desserts.

OK, it’s not even close to being a health food. But everyone needs a guilty pleasure now and then, right? Undeniably one of the best ice cream flavors of all time, mint chocolate chip boasts a refreshing smoothness that cools even the hottest of days. Moderation is key.