Aug. 14 - 20: It's Red Week!

Okay, yes, so red week is almost over you say. I know - and I promise to try to be better about getting these things up at the beginning of the week! - but that is why we have the calendar, and this one is pretty self-explanatory.

So, as I'm sure you have surmised, the goal for this week was to make something red. As you probably know, one of the easy tricks of healthy eating is having a wide variety of colors on your plate. Different colored foods have different health benefits, but rich natural colors are, as a general rule, a good thing. Since you can get great tomatoes and berries and other red foods around now, we figured red was as good a place to start as any!

Here are interesting facts about red food:

• Plant pigments known as anthocyanins, betalains and carotenoids give red foods their color and not only do they look gorgeous, but they are full of antioxidants.
• Red foods also contain lycopene, which has been tied to reducing the risks of developing prostate, lung, breast, and stomach cancers.
• The nutrients in these foods also help lower blood pressure and reduce UV damage.

But, the best thing about red foods? They're delicious! Here are a few ideas of lovely red produce (which may never make it into a dish in my house, as I'm constantly tempted to just snack on them by themselves):

• Red apples
• Red grapes
• Cranberries
• Cherries
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Watermelon
• Tomatoes
• Beets
• Red potatoes
• Red onions
• Radishes

You could really go anywhere with these - make gazpacho,

or give it a twist by trying this sangrita soup:

Or put some beets in your pesto, like this:

Or roast up some delicious red peppers and throw them in a tart:

The possibilities are endless, and delicious! Let us know what you come up with!