All That Sexy Food

Want to serve up a really special dinner tonight to get your special someone "in the mood?" Why not include some natural aphrodisiacs? Sexy, safe, and without any side-effects!

A Little Bit of Background Information
Unisex Aphrodisiacs
Cooking for Her
Cooking for Him
The Final Touch

A Little Bit of Background Information

The term aphrodisiac comes from the Greek goddess of love, beauty, and desire, Aphrodite. Aphrodisiacs developed as humans throughout history have sought ways to improve their love lives. This search has led people to consume all sorts of foods. Lion blood, ground elephant tusks, pig genitals, and Mediterranean cantharis beetles.

The sea has also long been recognized as a great source for aphrodisiacs, with eels, raw oysters, and anchovies being eaten in pursuit of better sexual experiences.
Why food from the sea? Typically, sea creatures have a significant amount of zinc in their bodies, which is a vital mineral for men's sexual performance.

Don't worry, I'm not about to suggest you serve ground elephant tusks in place of Parmesan cheese on your spaghetti or sip lion's blood instead of red wine. Thanks to advancements in science (and human taste buds), several wonderfully appetizing food alternatives have been discovered, many of which work even better than the beetles!

Unisex Aphrodisiacs

While some foods have a stronger affect on men than women, and vice versa, here are some great foods that you can enjoy together.

Chocolate is a common, and favorite aphrodisiac which affects the body by releasing serotonin and phenylethylamine. A bonus is that you can combine chocolate with many other aphrodisiacs to strengthen the affect. Making chocolate covered bananas, strawberries, or raspberries not only gives you two aphrodisiacs in one, and is a great looking, romantic dessert. Add a sprinkle of vanilla to the melted chocolate before dipping the fruit for a third aphrodisiac in one bite size, delicious serving!

Honey is another great aphrodisiac. Honey itself is a symbol of procreation as it comes from pollination. Serve it with fresh bread for an appetizer or in tea after the meal. Cooking the main course with spices such as ginger, garlic, and fennel seed are all touted to stimulate your libido, or sexual desire and anticipation. Aniseed is another spice that is believed to increase sexual desire. Spicy foods have a similar affect by increasing the body's endorphins.

Cooking for Her

Think of fragrant fruits to begin your dinner. Create an exotic fruit salad with figs, pear, kiwi, mangoes, passion fruit, and a salad dressing that includes pomegranate juice. Peaches would also be a great choice.

For a main course, include clams, mussels, or oysters with a vegetable side dish of artichoke hearts. Wine, while it may have the affect of making your love a little tipsy, is not considered an aphrodisiac.

Cooking for Him

Unlike aphrodisiacs that stimulate women, men are considered stimulated more by certain vegetables. A vegetable salad that includes carrots, turnips, celery, cucumbers, and zucchini would be an ideal way to start out the dinner.

Serve eel for the main course for the perfect aphrodisiacal dinner, with a side dish of leek or leek soup.

Be sure to include licorice extract or vanilla beans (such as in vanilla bean ice cream) for dessert to end the dinner on a great note and give your evening an ideal start.

The Final Touch

Even though you are spending quite a bit of time preparing the perfect dinner, don't forget about creating the right scene as well.

By lighting a few candles (be sure they are vanilla scented, as that fragrance increases the libido), turning the lights low, and maybe even put a bouquet of flowers as a centerpiece, you can strengthen the affects of the aphrodisiacs in your meal.