HEALTHY EGGS: EASY WAYS TO ADD NUTRITION

Eggs are wonderfully healthy, but eating them with these other good-for-you foods unlocks even more benefits for your bones, brain, energy levels, and more.

Perfect Pair: Eggs + Spinach

Why it’s healthy: Boost bone health
One cup of cooked spinach contains over 1,000 percent of your daily recommended intake of vitamin K, which is important for bone health. Vitamin K is fat soluble, which means your body absorbs it best with other foods that contain a little fat, like that in eggs. Spinach is also an excellent source of other bone-supporting nutrients like calcium and magnesium.

Enjoy them together: Whip up this Mushroom and Spinach Frittata recipe from the NYTimes.com as a hearty breakfast-for-dinner option, or enjoy this Egg Florentine recipe from WomensHealthMag.com.

Perfect Pair: Eggs + Cantaloupe

Why it’s healthy: Boost energy levels
Group these foods together at breakfast and you could keep your energy levels high until lunch. According to MensHealth.com, protein from the egg slows the absorption of carbohydrate in the cantaloupe, says nutritionist Stacy Kennedy of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. "This synergy helps by minimizing insulin and blood-sugar spikes, which are followed by a crash, zapping energy,” says Kennedy. “High insulin levels are connected with inflammation, diabetes, cancer, and other diseases. By slowing the absorption of glucose, your body can better read the cues that you are full. This helps prevent everything from overeating to indigestion."

Enjoy them together: Pair a fried egg with sliced cantaloupe as part of your morning meal, or have a hard-boiled egg and cantaloupe balls for an afternoon snack.

Perfect Pair: Egg + Banana

Why it’s healthy: Help your body recover post workout
After a tough sweat session, it’s important to replace carbohydrates, potassium, and other nutrients you lose during exercise. You may also need protein to help muscles recover. A banana and egg combo makes this simple: the banana supplies plenty of carbs and potassium and the egg’s protein can help repair muscles while also stunting a blood sugar spike from the carbs.

Enjoy them together: Bag a hard-boiled egg and a banana for after your workout. Another tasty option: Make a smoothie with eggs, banana, blueberries, and almond milk.

Perfect Pair: Eggs + Cheese

Why it’s healthy: Reduce PMS
You’ve probably always loved this combo, but the duo packs a powerful nutrition punch. The vitamin D in egg yolks helps your body absorb the cheese's bone- and heart-protecting calcium, according to RodaleNews.com. Calcium and vitamin D together may make women feel better during that time of the month, research shows. Women with the highest intakes of both nutrients had significantly fewer PMS symptoms than those who ate less.

Enjoy them together: Add cheese to your scrambled eggs, as in Sunny's Perfect Scrambled Cheesy Eggs on FoodNetwork.com, or top a sunny-side up egg with a slice of cheese on whole grain roll for a breakfast sandwich.

THE HEALTHIEST VEGETABLES FOR YOU

Move this antioxidant-rich produce to the top of your shopping list.

Onions

You'll get the most out of this veggie's cancer-fighting antioxidants by eating it raw; cooking onions at a high heat significantly reduces the benefits of phytochemicals that protect against lung and prostate cancer. Try combining chopped raw onions with tomatoes, avocado, and jalapeño peppers for a blood sugar–friendly chip dip. Finish with a splash of lime juice.

Corn

On the cob or off, just make sure you eat your corn cooked! A study in the Journal of Agricultural Food and Chemistry found that the longer corn was cooked, the higher the level of antioxidants like lutein, which combats blindness in older adults. Try this recipe for coconut grilled corn.

Peas

Tiny but mighty, one study in the International Journal of Cancer found that daily consumption of green peas along with other legumes lowered the risk of stomach cancer. Try a brown rice risotto with lemon and green peas.

Kale

This veggie's curly green leaves are chock full of vitamin C, an antioxidant that may reduce the risk of heart disease by lowering levels of LDL, or "bad" cholesterol. Try one of these easy kale recipes.

Broccoli

Broccoli is full of cancer-fighting antioxidants. One study found men who ate 5 servings or more per week of cruciferous veggies (broccoli's one of them!) were half as likely to develop bladder cancers over a 10-year period as men who rarely ate them. Enjoy with some broccoli cheddar soup.

Red bell pepper

One medium pepper is light on calories (only 32!) but heavy on vitamin C, providing 150 percent of your recommended daily value and warding off atherosclerosis, which can lead to heart disease. Try one of these recipes for stuffed peppers.

Spinach

Spinach is packed with carotenoids—antioxidants that promote healthy eyes and help prevent macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in older adults. Cooking the green helps make lutein (a carotenoid) more absorbable by your body. Try this spinach and goat cheese omelet.

Alfalfa sprouts

This tiny powerhouse is rich in beta-carotene, an antioxidant that protects against lung cancer and helps maintain healthy skin, hair, nails, gums, glands, bones, and teeth. It's also a good source of vitamin E, which may help prevent heart attacks, stokes, and lower the risk of death from bladder cancer. Try this chicken, avocado, alfalfa sprouts sandwich.

Brussels sprouts

These balls of antioxidants can help detoxify cancer-causing free radicals, and with 80 percent of your daily vitamin C in just 1/2 cup, also help fight heart disease and ward off cataracts. Try sautéing them with a little bacon or olive oil and mustard for a smoky kick.

Beets

Roasted or pickled, this root vegetable contains high levels of antioxidants that fight cancer, as well as lutein, which protects the eyes. Don't throw out those leaves! Beet greens are the most nutritious part of the vegetable and can be cooked like any other dark leafy green. Try one of these recipes where beets are the star.