Cooking for heart health just got tastier! The American Heart Association recently published an article with tips on how to include dark chocolate and spicy chili peppers into your daily cooking.

Which chocolate should you be adding? Unsweetened cocoa powder, cacao nibs and extra dark is the way to go. Loaded with antioxidants, known as flavonoids, chocolate helps reduce oxidative stress in the body. You may ask “Why is that important?”. Oxidative stress can contribute to inflammation, development of cancer and other diseases. While chocolate will take of the sweet, try adding a punch to your meals with chili peppers! Take your pick from mild to very spicy. Each pepper is packed with vitamin C to boost your immune system and strengthen your heart.

Check out this article “Sweet Chocolate and Spicy Chilies Can Benefit the Heart” for tips on how to add these two ingredients to your daily recipes. Feel free to share with us how you cook with these two ingredients.