Glowing food colours on our plates

Now that nature has pampered us with its invigorating autumn colors, we could take note of with what kind of colors we could pamper ourselves with during our meals. Adding vegetables, berries and fruits to the diet clearly improves its quality; we get more protective nutrients necessary for health as well as flavonoids and dietary fiber that maintains satiety and is also loved by intestinal bacteria. Vegetables also make our diets lighter. Below is my list of tips for adding glowing food colors to your plate. Is one of these already your favorite or would you like to add some insight of your own?

The delicacies of the harvest season. Pears, apples, satsuma, lingonberries, swiss chard (try raw and grated), different varieties of cabbage and pumpkins are now in season.

Roasted root vegetables. Cut carrot, sweet potato, beetroot, yellow beetroot, turnip greens, brussels sprouts, or cauliflower into bite-sized pieces. First season the roots with pepper, fresh or dried thyme, rosemary or tarragon, and only then add oil to them. Bake at 200 C for 25 - 30 min, turn once. Vegetables such as zucchini, onion and pepper need less time, about a quarter of an hour. Reserve a kilo of root vegetables and vegetables for 4 people.

Strong color. The stronger the color, the more protective nutrients. Choose red cabbage, spinach, kale, black cabbage, Swiss chard. Eat as is or lightly steam and enjoy with canola or walnut oil and wine vinegar/lime juice. Red, yellow, and green peppers. Red and yellow peppers contain more vitamin C than green peppers, and red peppers contain more carotenoids than yellow and green peppers. Different colored berries. Sea buckthorn, blueberry, redcurrant, blackcurrant, and strawberry on top of porridge or yogurt and curd portions. Different berries have different nutrient composition. Beetroot or kale hummus (homemade or prepared). On bread or for dipping cucumber, radish, fennel, and cherry tomatoes. From hummus, you get legumes (chickpeas) in a very tasty form.

Fresh herbs. Add (red) basil, wine salt grass, parsley, lemon balm or coriander to bread, to salads, to warm food, even before serving. Vegetables first. First fill half of the plate with vegetables and only then add the rest of the food. Enjoy different vegetables, berries and fruits with every meal and snack. Replace meat with vegetables. Replace half of the meat with vegetables or a vegetable protein preparation (tofu, tempe, quorn, rolled oats) or try a new vegetarian recipe for yourself.

Vegetables first. First fill half of the plate with vegetables and only then add the rest of the food. Something from plants at every meal. Enjoy different vegetables, berries and fruits with every meal and snack. 

Replace meat with vegetables. Replace half of the meat with vegetables or a vegetable protein preparation (tofu, tempe, quorn, rolled oats) or try a new vegetarian recipe for yourself.

And if colours aren't your thing, you'll surely enjoy the symphony of flavors on your plate after adding a variety of root and leafy vegetables to it!

Outi Atkin
Voimaantumispaikka Zona