There are many kinds of fruits and vegetables to eat. However, you are supposed to eat different kinds to get the best combination of nutrition and stay healthy. Organizing a meal plan for the week can be frustrating when you think of all that work to do. Why not make it more fun by selecting fruits and veggies based on color? Orange is such a vibrant and energizing color and looks like the rays of the sunrise. Plus, there are so many orange colored foods to choose from that you are sure to find your favourites to eat.
Orange colored veggies and fruits are blessed with Vitamin C, Beta Carotene and Zeaxanthin. These nutrients are important for healthy joints, fighting free radicals, lowering cholesterol and blood pressure, and maintaining healthy eyes. To get these nutrients, you need to add these foods to your meal plans, for example, breakfast, dessert and snacks. This allows you to spread out your choices over the entire day or week and still get the nutrition you need.
Examples of vegetables are butternut squash, carrots, pumpkin and sweet potatoes. Butternut squash and pumpkin are great for making soups and pies. Carrots are great in salads, juices, cakes, cupcakes, and soups. Sweet potatoes are great as french fries, wedges, soups, puddings and cakes. For lunch, try baked sweet potatoes and beans. For an entree eat butternut squash soup. Later for dinner you can add a roasted carrot salad and, finally, eat pumpkin pie for dessert.
Examples of fruits are apricots, mangos, oranges, peaches, tangerines and papayas. These can be combined into pies, fruit salads, drinks and juices. They can also be made into jams and dried to eat as snacks. For breakfast you can drink a mango orange smoothie. For lunch you can eat fresh peaches, tangerines or papayas. Finally, dried apricots are great snacks.
As you can see, adding nutritious foods to your meal plans are easier than you first thought. Select your favourite orange colored fruits and veggies to eat throughout the day and week. Do this by creating meal plans for various meal times, such as breakfast and lunch. This way you get to add color to your meals and still get healthy amounts of Vitamin C, Beta Carotene and Zeaxanthin to keep you healthy. Next time you go to the supermarket remember to keep your eyes open and look out for those delicious rays of sunrise.
