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com/

5/19/2011
Fresh Italian Cooking: Vitamins & You
By Will Blesch

I am a big fan of Italian food in general. Some of my favorite restaurants include mom-
and-pop Italian places where the food seems homemade, and the staff like family. Force
me and I’ll break down and go to some of the chain Italian eateries like Romano’s
Macaroni Grill, Carrabba’s Italian Grill, or even Olive Garden.

Making, and eating, Italian food at home can be really nice though if one likes to cook. I
happen to love cooking. I never thought that I would since I hated working in my
grandparent’s restaurant as a teenager. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to realize many
lessons learned in their kitchen were pretty beneficial.

Still, it was the cooking my grandmother did at home that I believe brought out her
genius as a chef. The style and relative healthiness of the meals she prepared there were
much different than those served in the restaurant. I know one thing for sure…I much
preferred the fresh, whole foods used at home to the prepackaged things bought from
companies like Ben E. Keith.

Anyway! I figured I would share a regular, spaghetti recipe with you all. I’m sharing it
because I want to briefly run-down some of its ingredients and how, in moderate
portions, this meal is really quite healthy.

ITALIAN SPAGHETTI WITH MEAT SAUCE

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef or Italian sausage

1 med. onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped (optional)
2 (15 oz.) cans tomato sauce
2 (12 oz.) cans tomato paste
3 c. water
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. parsley flakes
2 cloves garlic or 2 tsp. garlic salt
1 bay leaf
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5/19/2011

Starting at the top, and then going down the list:

1. Beef. Protein! Muscle building blocks. Grrr…me man. Me love meat.

2. Onion: This guy contains large amounts of Quercetin, a flavanoid “found to be

more abundant in the onion peel than in the flesh or core” which is antiviral in
nature. When peeling, make sure to only peel the outermost layer…don’t dig too
deep and throw out the upper layers. When cooking, cook on low heat so as not to
destroy the quercetin the onion naturally contains.

3. Green peppers: while not antiviral per se, they do have a lot of other vitamin
nutrients “including vitamin C, beta carotene (a type of vitamin A), folate, and
vitamin K.”

4. I don’t recommend the tomato paste or tomato sauce…especially if they come in

a can. This is because the tomato’s natural acidity can leech too much of the can’s
minerals. This includes aluminum. Bad for you. Very bad. When putting tomatos
into spaghetti…try using fresh ones that you cut up and maybe puree yourself.

5. Oregano, Parsley and Bay Leaves all contain significant antioxidants…even in the
dried forms normally used as cooking spices. “…processed herbs contribute
significant amounts of AC to the diet.”

It’s important for me to shop somewhere that provides fresh, whole produce. Many
regular supermarkets carry foods that are genetically modified, covered in pesticide
and that ultimately are not good for your body. Whatever health benefits they
normally might have are outweighed by the bad things the big agricultural companies
knowingly stick into YOUR food supply.

Growing your own veggies is best. But, since many of us can’t do that, local farmer’s
markets that use organically grown stuff are good second options. Finally, if you live
in a place where there just aren’t any farmer’s markets…finding a nearby, Whole
Foods supermarket and then shopping there is an option you should definitely
consider.

With healthy, fresh products that contain all kinds of yummy, nutritious, antiviral, and
antibacterial goodness the recipe above is gonna taste great…and your body will
thank you for it.
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5/19/2011

References:

Xue YL, Ahiko T, Miyakawa T, Amino H, Hu F, Furihata K, Kita K, Shirasawa

T, Sawano Y, Tanokura M., “Isolation and Caenorhabditis elegans Lifespan Assay of
Flavonoids from Onion.”, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 12, May 2011

“Green Pepper: Load Up on Antioxidants” Everyday Health, www.everydayhealth.com

WEB

Henning SM, Zhang Y, Seeram NP, Lee RP, Wang P, Bowerman S, Heber D.,
“Antioxidant capacity and phytochemical content of herbs and spices in dry, fresh and
blended herb paste form.” International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, May
2011