Pep me up

Getting fresh vegetables into children at 6pm feels about as turbulent as an AGM for thirsty vampires. This week’s recipe should help.

Given that schools and creches are like Petri dishes this time of year, it might be worth mainlining this red pepper sauce into all the family — not just fussy childer. Tumble it through their favourite pasta or meatballs. (And if you can get milled pumpkin seeds into your meatball recipe for extra zinc, all the better, MacGyver!)

Did you know that all peppers start off green? As they mature, their colour and nutritional powers develop (yellow, orange, red, and even black). Groovy, huh? Within these colours, lurk some radical health-boosting compounds to fuel us through this crazy winter weather.

Orange and red peppers are particularly rich in carotenoids (sounds like a haemorrhoid gone very wrong. Stick with me). Research tells us that carotenoids are useful for strengthening our immune system and psyching up our frontline defences. Bravo! There’s also a great splash of vitamin C in fresh peppers to help heal lousy spots and snotty noses. Yep — peppers are definitely our allies on our journey towards good health and a buzzing body. They’re not called ‘peppers’ for nothing!

Most of the toxins that invade our bodies produce oxidation reactions (free radicals to you and me). Scientists warn that these pesky radicals raid our immune system and rob our mojo. They do so by causing oxidative stress. Antioxidants found in fresh vegetables like peppers help fight the damage done by these marauding free radicals. You won’t meet a sausage or a chop that can boast the same. Let’s hear it for the veggie kingdom!