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Heart-healthy food easy to add to diet

By Lisa Ryckman, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published December 18, 2007 at 12:05 a.m.

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My father and grandfather both died of heart disease. What can I eat to help cut my risk?

Try a polymeal, a yummy combo of foods that can keep your heart happy and your arteries clear.

Dr. Ruth Chambers, author of 52 Brilliant Ideas: Boost Your Heart Health, recommends a quarter- pound of fish four times a week, along with the following foods daily:

* 2/3 cup of wine

* 3 to 4 ounces of dark chocolate

* 1 pound of fruits and veggies

* 1 clove of fresh garlic

* 1/2 cup of almonds

No need to throw them all into the same meal. Chambers has these suggestions for integrating them into your usual foods throughout the day:

* Add chopped almonds to your box of cereal so you eat them every day.

* Sprinkle almonds on salads, yogurts and curries.

* Chop garlic with salt or microwave it to soften it.

* Dip fruit chunks into dark chocolate that's been melted in the microwave.

* Make hot chocolate with melted dark chocolate, nonfat milk and honey.

Polymeals can come in all kinds of flavors. Chambers says for a French version, start with raw salmon marinated in lemon juice with lettuce, tomato, kiwi slices, olive and canola oils, garlic and balsamic vinegar.

Make fresh roasted cod with garlic seasoning, tomato, potato slivers and spinach leaves for the main course, and serve a white Bordeaux wine. Finish off with chocolate cake with almonds.

Here are some other polymeal menus from Chambers:

* Start with warm chili crab cakes in fresh garlic dressing, followed by trout with an almond crust poached in red wine and accompanied by zucchini in garlic butter and baby carrots, snow peas and new potatoes basted in olive oil. For dessert, try a dark chocolate mousse with chocolate-dipped strawberries. Have a glass of red wine.

* Baked tuna, flounder or snapper basted with olive oil and garlic with veggies of your choice and a glass of wine. For dessert, have poached pears in melted chocolate sauce sprinkled with almonds.

Here's a quick and yummy salmon dish from SuperFoods HealthStyle, by Steven G. Pratt and Kathy Matthews.

Garlic and Pepper 10-Minute Marinated Salmon

Serves 4

3 minced garlic cloves

1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon paprika

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon cayenne (optional)

Four 5- to 6-ounce pieces wild salmon

* Whisk together all ingredients except the salmon.

* Arrange the salmon in a pan, coat each piece with the sauce and allow to marinate for 10 minutes.

* Shake off any excess sauce and broil or grill for 5 to 8 minutes.

Nutritional information per serving: 208 calories, 32.7 g protein, 6 g fat (0.9 g sat.), 4.6 carbohydrates, 79 g cholesterol, 228 g sodium