In December, I needed to stock up on fruits and vegetables and was totally surprised at how much I got for less than 15 Euros (about $16!)
In Salamanca, Spain, where I’ve been living for a few months, it’s really fun to shop for fruits and vegetables because they are affordable, plentiful, and everyone – vendors and customers – puts an emphasis on fresh. I can shop at a very small street market, a regular grocery store, or the large Central Market, over 100 years old, which is adjacent to beautiful Plaza Major. Whatever is in season like tomatoes, sweet red peppers, and melon in the summer, or hard squash, pears, and cabbage in the fall is what most people purchase. Eating seasonally is something very normal here in Spain and it is also very colorful as you can see in my photo above.
We all have different ideas about colors and isn’t it true that ‘we eat with our eyes?‘ Think of it as your nutrition color palette while remembering that a palette is what an artistic painter holds to keep her/his colors handy. If you are a red-pink-orange fan then you might enjoy different fruits and vegetables than someone who is a green-blue-purple fan or a white-beige-yellow fan.
If you are a rainbow fan – and I hope you are – then the best approach is to adopt all the colorful fruits and vegetables as you eat them meal-by-meal and day-by-day. Stir fry, roast, or grill your vegetables as you enjoy their colors. Then, choose a colorful, seasonal fruit for dessert.
In an earlier blog, there are tips for how to season vegetables with extra virgin olive oil.
What’s Your Nutrition Color Palette & What Fruits & Vegetables Match Up?
- Red-pink-orange: apples, beets, oranges, seedless tangerines, butternut squash, pumpkin, radishes, red Bell peppers, carrots, apricots, grapefruit, pomegranates, cranberries, strawberries
- Green-blue-purple: broccoli, green and purple cabbage, green beans, blueberries, zucchini, parsley, cilantro, basil, eggplant, spinach, Romaine lettuce, Swiss chard, kale, purple grapes
- White-beige-yellow: corn, yellow kiwifruit, parsnips, mushrooms, turnips, rutabagas, bananas, lemons, garlic, plantains, cauliflower
How Will You Mix Colors on Your Plate?
In the most recent report on global nutrition and health in 2019, Spain has been recognized as the healthiest country of the world with the highest life expectancy. Read the article here. I think this award must be related to all the colorful nutrition I’ve experienced in Spain. It is definitely inspiration for all of us.
If you are inspired to eat more colorful fruits and vegetables and to feel better, then here’s a free copy of my Easy Mediterranean Menus. They will help you mix colors on your plate, starting today!
What colors of fruits and vegetables are your favorites and do you venture outside your normal color palette?