Spice Up Your Diet By Adding These Tasty Spices To Your Foods

Parsley is not to expensive, easy to grow and a few of the most common fresh variety are the flat leave also known as Italian or Chinese parsley and there is the curly leaf version which many only see as garnish. Parsley is full of antioxidants and often used in juicing. It helps clean your stomach and is nice for fat loss or should I say water loss.

You should add parsley to all your meals, its not overpowering yet packs a punch filled with phytochemicals. Dry parsley is also useful and I suggest drying your own if you can but if not, you can get it bulk affordably. This spice can be added to any type of cooking no matter what part of the world.

Sage is a beautiful plant which grows like a small tree showing leaves which have some softness to them and a white shimmer. The leaves are a dark almost blue gray green and the flowers that come out in the warmer seasons are a welcome surprise. Again I suggest you dry them yourself so you can use dry and fresh for cooking but otherwise you can find it bulk for affordable costs. Try some recipes with sage if you are not familiar with it. You would be surprised at the many uses this plant has for medicine topically and as teas. Ingested with foods you are then benefiting from the phytochemicals. Sage is common in Mediterranean and classic cooking.

Oregano is common in Italian, French, Greek and Spanish cooking. Another herb which can be used fresh or dried, you can find several varieties. Common types of oregano are Greek, Italian and lemon. This herb works well with cream bases and especially tomato bases. Salad dressings and bread vinaigrettes are well complimented with oregano.

A small amount is very effective. Oregano oil is sold in health food stores for body benefits, why not just eat more of the herb itself?

Basil can grow easy or it can be difficult. There are many strains of this herb such as lemon, Thai, sweet and Italian. Like oregano it is used widely in European recipes but with the varieties found it is also common in Asian, Middle Eastern and Caribbean dishes. You can find basil dry or fresh in most markets. Rich in vitamins and minerals basil can be added to dressings and marinades to add flair to lean cooking.

Thyme is bursting out in the cooking trends and being used more bringing about its awareness. This herb is best applied to dishes comprised of legumes, eggs, vegetables and soups. This herb was commonly used for respiratory problems and like most herbs is full of phytochemicals beneficial to health risk reduction. I like to add this herb to roasted veggies and potatoes.

Cheyenne is a red pepper which packs a bit more of a punch compared to white or black pepper. This spice is used to help fight colds and is also common in hot spiced foods leaving a reddish coloring to the dish. Curries are a prime example. It is also believed that this herb helps with fat burning. Cheyenne is very high in Vitamin A. It is a great spice you can add directly on to our plate of food to bring out the flavors.

By Linda Cusmano