Choc and awe - the way to a woman's heart and imagination

The Telegraph

Belinda Richardson on the Valentine's Day gift that offers richly romantic rewards.
Whatever the origins of February the 14th, most of us would agree it has become far more than a simple day for exchanging love messages.
Box of tricks: chocolate has long been associated with aphrodisiac qualities
Now a multi-million pound industry, with an overwhelming number of cards, presents, over-priced red roses and pink teddy bears being sold the world over to celebrate the occasion, the concept of another Valentine's Day understandably makes some of us reach for the proverbial sick bucket.

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A true grenade with an explosion of scarlet

The Telegraph

By Xanthe Clay

The sparkling seeds of the pomegranate add an exotic, healthy kick to dishes of every kind.
If ever a fruit has a powerful reputation, it is the pomegranate.
It was a pomegranate that tempted Persephone in the Underworld, and by eating just four seeds she condemned herself to spending four months a year in hell.
In classical and medieval times it was the ultimate symbol of fertility, because of its many seeds and lascivious red interior. Later, it gave its French name - grenade - to an explosive device.
More recently, it has been celebrated as a new superfood, packed full of powerful antioxidants. A regular intake of pomegranate juice is also said to guard against hardening of the arteries and slow the growth of prostate cancer.
There’s even a suggestion that pregnant women who drink pomegranate juice will help their babies’ brains develop.

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