Monday, February 1, 2010

Spice Up Your Life with Antioxidants!

Did you know that one teaspoon of cinnamon has more antioxidants than half a cup of blueberries? I sure didn’t! Who knew that such a small amount of spice could pack that many antioxidants in addition to other health benefits? Adding these seasonings to the foods you eat every day cannot only spice them up, but also protect your cells from free radicals that may cause cancer!

Try these simple tips to boost your antioxidants with these seven seasonings:

Cinnamon:
·      Add one teaspoon of ground cinnamon to your oatmeal.
·      Spice up your morning coffee by sprinkling half a
teaspoon of ground cinnamon over ground coffee before
brewing.

Ginger:
·      Add ground ginger to your hot tea, iced tea, or lemonade.
·      For something new, try lightly sprinkling ground ginger
on peaches, pears, pineapple, or cantaloupe.

Oregano:
·      Add ¼ teaspoon oregano leaves to your grilled cheese for some added flavor.
·      Make your frozen pizza more exciting by sprinkling oregano leaves on the pizza right out of the oven.
Red Pepper:
·      Add a kick of flavor to your hummus by stirring in ¼
teaspoon ground or crushed red pepper.
·      Sprinkle some red pepper over grilled meat, fish, or poultry.

Rosemary:
·      Spice up those ready-to-bake rolls by brushing them with
olive oil and then sprinkling crushed rosemary leaves and
sea salt right before baking.
·      Add some to crushed rosemary leaves to mashed potatoes.

Thyme:
·      For something different in the morning beat 1/8 teaspoon thyme leaves into 2 eggs before scrambling.
·      Add ¼ teaspoon thyme leaves to soups.

Yellow Curry:
·      Lightly dust your hot popcorn with curry powder.
·      Add some pizzazz to your snack mix with a sprinkle of curry powder.

Getting plenty of antioxidants can be easier than you think!
Source: McCormick & Company, Inc.
             Spices For Health: 7 Super Spices

Add spices to your next meal!
Edible Nutrition's Intern, Sarah Franz

4 comments:

Meal Makeover Mom Janice said...

Great ideas! It is amazing how many antioxidants there are in spices.

Kellie said...

Yes! I love cinnamon!! now I can feel guilt free when dip my apple in my yogurt that is sprinkled with that little brown sweet taste of delight...ahhh yes I imagine its apple pie..but my thighs are saying thank you cinnamon :)

Nutritious Foodie said...

wow all of my favorits :) I use most of the items listed almost daily... I am very cinnamon happy so if I think it can use a little flavor I add it on :)

Elizabeth said...

I have heard a lot of good things about cinnamon lately and it's great to see more information supporting it! Thanks for the great post!