February  2008

Red is the Color of Love

The color red is closely tied to love and Valentine’s Day. Red is also linked to some very helpful and healthful nutrients, the phytochemicals lycopene and anthocyanins. These nutrients can help reduce the risk of some cancers and help with heart health, urinary tract health, and even help brain function.

Some of the beautiful red fruits and vegetables are tomatoes (and all the products made from them), red peppers, red onions, beets, red cabbage, kidney beans, red potatoes,
red-skinned apples, pink grapefruit, red grapes, strawberries, cherries, raspberries, cranberries, watermelon and pomegranates.

Show your love by adding some red to your menu on Valentine’s Day or any day with these ideas:

• Include red peppers, cherry or grape tomatoes, red onion, red cabbage and pieces of beet in a tossed salad.

• Make cranberry bread with that bag of cranberries in your freezer left from when they were on sale earlier this winter.

• Top hot cereal with a heart made from dried cranberries or cherries.
  Make snack mix with dried cranberries or cherries, almonds and a few chocolate chips.

• Steam tiny red potatoes with the skins and season with a small amount of margarine and fresh chopped parsley.

• Make a heart shaped pizza from your own pizza dough. Or, use a large heart-shaped cookie cutter to make individual pizza dough hearts. Spread with pizza sauce and top with red onions and peppers or your other
  favorite toppings.