BEAUTIFUL NEW FOOD OF LOVE NOW

New studies, including Natural Aphrodisiacs—A Review of Selected Sexual Enhancers, conducted by Elizabeth West MD and Michael Krychman MD, published recently in the journal of the International Society for Sexual Medicine, offers new insights into the food of love.

We’ve checked them out (of course!) and are sharing the delicious findings with you below.

1. CHOCOLATE

Chocolate is a notorious aphrodisiac. Besides the fact that deep dark silky velvety chocolates start by seducing our mouths, they contain anandamide and phenylethylamine, which boost serotonin levels - the feel-good hormone.

Marta Marcakova -- The Story of Cake

Marta Marcakova is a lawyer, but her heart belongs to something sweeter and far more romantic -- The Story of Cake, her beautiful dessert blog. Marcakova’s chocolate cakes are extraordinary. Her recipes are indulgent, seducing every tastebud, caressing every gaze.

Marcakova’s Torta Čierny les s Makom a Čerešňami (Black Forest Cake with Poppy Seeds & Cherries), takes a traditional old fashioned cake and sexes it up, quite a bit. The body is made of deep dark moist layers of chocolate genoise, layered with amped-up poppy-seed dotted mascarpone filling and luscious fresh cherries and berries.

Get the recipe here.

Marcakova’s Black & White Chocolate Summer Cake (Black & White Čokoládová Torta) looks like a sweet from a fairytale, where prince and would-be princess fall passionately in love with each other sometime during a Midsummer Night’s Dream. A black chocolate and white cream affair, does a bipolar extreme, with 3 different kinds of dark chocolate and 3 different kinds of decadent cream.

Get the recipe here.

Marcakova’s Poppy Cake with Dulce de Leche & Chocolate Ganache (Maková Torta s Dulce de Leche a Čokoládovou Ganache) is a delightful play of sexy cream with delicate crunch, dripping with dark chocolate, and doused with rum.

Get the recipe here.

SONALI GHOSH -- SUGAR ET AL

Chocolate and raspberries have been lovers for eons. They always make magic together. And Chocolate Fudge Cake with Red Berry Ganache, by Sonali Ghosh, of Sugar et al, is a simple, yet luxurious rendition of that sweet pas a deux.

Dripping with fruity pink ganache, topped with gorgeous fresh raspberries and pretty pink sprinkles, this rich dark chocolate cake will make any taster swoon.

LAGUSTA LUSCIOUS-- CHOCOLATE BARK WITH EDIBLE FLOWERS

Try Lagusta’s Luscious artisanal dark chocolate bark with edible flowers. All organic, locavore, fair-trade and vegan, of course. They ship!

2. POMEGRANATE

Pomegranates, aka “love apples,” have many aphrodisiacal qualities. Their centers are like clusters of ruby red jewels, each ready to burst into juice. They’ve also been found to boost blood flow, therby increasing genital sensitivity, thanks to their super-high antioxidant content.

Thierry Rautureau, of The Chef In The Hat, created a simple, divine Pomegranate Dressing that can turn any salad into a work of love.

Check out the recipe here.

3. BANANA

Bananas are suggestive, no doubt, but their contribution to better sex is mainly their high potassium levels. Potassium increases muscle strength, which, in turn, intensifies orgasms.

4. WATERMELON

Watermelon! Who knew? We just learned that these heavily blushing juicy melons contain citrulline, which delivers a Viagra effect to blood vessels.

5. CHILI PEPPERS

Chili peppers get you hot. Bite into a spicy habanero, for example, and your heart will start pumping harder, your blood flow will increase, and your nerve endings start to fire up. Another bite, and you are well on your way...

6. OYSTERS

Oysters are another food that taste, look, and feel sexy, but recent studies show that their high zinc levels can boost semen production and regulate sexual hormones.

7. GINKGO BILOBA

Ginkgo biloba is an ancient Chinese remedy that, among other things, treats sexual dysfunction. The recent studies found significant improvement in both men and women who were dealing with sexual problems related to use of selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRI), a kind of antidepressant.

8. MACA

Maca, a root vegetable, grows high in the Andes Mountains of Peru. It tastes like a cross between a radish and a potato. It has traditionally been used to treat fertility, sexual arousal and hot flashes in indigenous populations. And recent studies in humans have shown that the use of maca boosted sexual desire and improved sexual function in both men and women.

Natur-Produkt can set you up with maca supplements in case you can’t find the roots available.

9. GINSENG

Ginseng, a root long used for medicinal purposes in ancient Korean and Chinese traditions, has recently been found to serve as a particularly good placebo for erectile dysfunction drugs. And Korean red ginseng has found to improve sexual arousal in menopausal women.

Hawaii-Pharm can hook you up with excellent ginseng extracts and supplements.

10. CELERY

Celery, sexy? We wouldn’t normally put those 2 words in the same sentence. But, recent studies have found that celery contains phyto-androgens, similar to testosterone, that can increase sexual desire, particularly in women.

Read more about Beautiful Valentines, as it relates to Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact including The Book of Love is in Our Eyes...See BN Valentines Picks and These Flowers Make Hearts Beat Faster Now.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Marta Marcakova, of The Story of a Cake. Torta Čierny les s Makom a Čerešňami.
2. Image: by Denis Dervisevic. Chocolate Fondue.
3. Image: by Marta Marcakova, of The Story of a Cake. Torta Čierny les s Makom a Čerešňami.
4. Image: by Marta Marcakova, of The Story of a Cake. Torta Čierny les s Makom a Čerešňami.
5. Image: by Marta Marcakova, of The Story of a Cake.  Black & White Čokoládová Torta | Black & White Chocolate Summer Cake.
6. Image: Courtesy of The Story of Cake. Maková Torta s Dulce de Leche a Čokoládovou Ganache | Poppy Cake with Dulce de Leche & Chocolate Ganache, by Marta Marcakova.
7. Image: by Sonali Ghosh, of Sugar et al. Chocolate Fudge Cake with Red Berry Ganache.
8. Image: Courtesy of Lagusta’s Luscious. Chocolate Bark with Edible Flowers.
9. Image: by Thierry Rautureau, of The Chef In The Hat. Pomegranate Dressing.
10. Image: by Zeetz Jones. Going Bananas.
11. Image: by Tim Sackton. Watermelon.
12. Image: by Robert Couse-Baker. Hot.
13. Image: by Erik Anestad. Virgina Beach-Catch31 Restaurant - Oysters Rockefeller.
14. Image: by T Sea. Ginkgo Kiss.
15. Image: Courtesy of Natur-Produkt. Maca.
16. Image: Courtesy of Hawaii-Pharm. Ginseng.
17. Image: by Ben Rogers. Celery Spirals.
18. Image: by Daniel Hoherd. 32::338 - Coldplay's Got Nothin' on This.
19. Image: Courtesy of Sugary Winzy. Salted Caramel Buttercream & Ganache on Banana Chip Cake.
20. Image: by BN App - Download now!
21. Image: Courtesy of Biodiversity Institute & Natural History Museum. Musa velutina, an introduced ornamental banana growing in Costa Rica.