Quiz Answer

The answers are...
1. Oatmeal: Grains (specifically whole grain)
2. Almonds: Meat and Beans AND Oils
3. Ice Cream: Milk AND Discretionary Calories*
4. Beer: Discretionary Calories**
5. Corn: Vegetables (specifically starchy vegetables)***
6. Avocado: Fruits and Oils
7. Peanut Butter: Meat and Beans AND Oils AND Discretionary Calories if it contains added sugar or fats.
8. Eggs: Meat and Beans
9. Black Beans: Meat and Beans OR Vegetables (specifically dry beans and peas)****
10. Bananas: Fruits

* You know that ice cream is full of fat.  Sadly this fat does not count as oils.  The fat in ice cream, when separated from the water and other components is solid a room temperature - think butter.  Oils are fats that are liquid at room temperature and contain essential fatty acids.  They are found mainly in plant foods and in fish.  Because these oils are necessary for health, there is an allowance for them in the food guide, separate from the discretionary calorie allowance.  Fats, such as those found in ice cream, count toward discretionary calories.  Fooducate wrote a great post yesterday explaining the ins and outs of oils so I'm not going to bother reinventing the wheel here, but check it out.

**I love that you guys tried to count beer as a grain.  It is not.  Although beer generally contains barley (a grain) and hops (a vegetable), these ingredients are in small enough quantities that counting them would be plain old furterating - a 12oz bottle of beer probably contains 1/100oz of barley - not worth counting.  But that doesn't mean that is isn't totally okay for occasional consumption, assuming you are healthy.  You just have to remember that it does count toward discretionary calories. 

***Corn and potatoes are both considered starchy vegetables, not grains, even though they often serve similar purposes to grains because of their high starch content. 

****Legumes such as black beans can count toward the Meat and Beans group or the Vegetables group - you can decide depending on what else you eat that day.  This is because although they are technically vegetables, cooked dry beans and peas are excellent sources of plant protein, and provide other nutrients such as iron and zinc like meats, poultry, and fish. Many people consider dry beans and peas as vegetarian alternatives for meat. However, they are also excellent sources of dietary fiber and nutrients such as folate that are found in vegetables.

And the winner is...
Dad, with a total of 10 correct answers - this is assuming I did a good job of correcting, but there is a reason I'm not a teacher.