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Red foods give you a stroke of health |
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Written by McClatchy-Tribune
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Thursday, 29 March 2007 |
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 Red is the color of love and of good health, too.
Add red to your plate and you’re adding the phytochemicals lycopene and anthocyanin. Phytochemicals are naturally occurring protective components found in plants, believed to contribute to both plant health and human health.
Lycopene is found in tomatoes, particularly cooked tomatoes. It is thought to play a role in protecting the body from different forms of cancer, including cancer of the cervix, colon, bladder, stomach and prostate. Lycopene also promotes heart health, keeping your cardiovascular system running well. Anthocyanins, found in red foods such as apples and in red wines, might be responsible for improving cardiovascular health as well.
Add splashes of red to your plate and truly take care of those you love.
RED PEPPER
Blend strips or dices of red pepper into a pasta dish, slice it plain and serve it as an appetizer with a tasty dip, or stuff a pepper with the tomato, rice, corn and cheese mixture offered here.
RADICCHIO
How about going the route of the exotic with your true love? Brush some radicchio leaves or chicory with olive oil or wrap medallions of goat cheese with the beautiful crimson leaves, and then grill the bundles for a tangy appetizer.
Radicchio, the bitter-tasting, reddish, burgundy cousin of endive, is gaining popularity among nutritionists because of research that shows its high capacity for absorbing oxygen-free radicals, or the substances naturally produced in our bodies that can attack and damage healthy cells. (For more information, visit radicchio.com.)
Radicchio has been shown to have as much punch against free radicals as blueberries and strawberries, two other super foods touted for their healing qualities.
STRAWBERRIES
Lucky for us, they are available almost year round. Those coming in from other parts of the world or Florida hot houses don’t have the same sweetness of a locally grown strawberry on a summer day, but they are still lovely.
Eat them plain, drop them in champagne or fold them into this peach and strawberry sauce and spoon its peachy-red splendor over a piece of homemade pound cake.
Add red to your palate and you’re on your way to improving your health and the health of those you love.
OTHER RED FOODS
• Red apples
• Beets
• Blood oranges
• Cherries
• Cranberries
• Pomegranates
• Raspberries
• Red grapes
• Red onions
• Red potatoes
• Ruby red grapefruit
• Watermelon
For more about eating healthy colors, go to: www.pbhfoundation.org
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SOUTHWESTERN PEPPER CUPS (10 servings)
ingredients:
5 medium red peppers, halved and seeded
1/3 cup onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 ½ teaspoons olive oil
3 cups cooked rice
1 can (10.5 ounces) tomatoes with chilis, diced and undrained
1 can (8.5 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
Vegetable cooking spray
1/3 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Blanch peppers in boiling water, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain, set aside.
Cook onion and garlic in oil in medium skillet over medium-high heat three minutes.
Combine rice and tomatoes with chilis, corn and onion mixture; mix well. Spoon in pepper halves; place on baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for five to 10 minutes or until hot and cheese melts.
PEACH STRAWBERRY SAUCE (4 servings)
ingredients:
1 can (15 ounces) peaches or 1 ½ cups fresh peaches, adding peach nectar to substitute for peach juice in canned peaches (about ¼ cup)
¼ cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
½ teaspoon almond flavoring
4 to 6 large fresh strawberries, sliced
Drain juice from peaches into saucepan. Combine sugar and cornstarch. Stir into juice. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until thickened. Add almond flavoring, reserved peach slices and sliced strawberries. Heat through.
Serve over pound cake, vanilla ice cream or shortcake.
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