It's Love, love, love...

I Choo-choo-choose You!

Valentine's Day: a holiday celebrated by consuming mass quantities of sugar and chocolate; a.k.a., Diet Kryptonite. February can get awfully dreary, so it's understandable that the 14th was chosen, to perk things up with an absolutely inane holiday. Nevertheless, when you've got Bikini Season firmly in your sights, it's harrowing to walk through grocery stores bursting at the seams with boxes of chocolate.

Indulging on Valentine's Day is not only acceptable, it's healthy. The occasional piece of chocolate is always cool. The problems only develop when one brownie turns into seven. That's why the Pink Patch Blog has created a brand-new list of sweet treats that are healthier versions of indulgent delights, like the Chocolate-Ginger Panini. 

* Granny Smith apple slices with 1 -2 tablespoons Nutella (chocolate-hazelnut spread)

* Fresh Anjou pears with part-skim ricotta and chopped pecans

* Strawberries with low-fat, low sugar chocolate pudding

* Dried apricots or plums dipped in melted dark chocolate

* Pineapple rounds coated with non-fat yogurt and sprinkled with cinnamon, broiled until golden

* Creamy Greek-style non-fat yogurt topped with honey-mashed blueberries

* * * Ginger-Chocolate Paninis: make a sandwich with two slices whole grain bread, chopped dark chocolate and minced crystallized-ginger. Grill using a sandwich press or hot grill pan.  Cut in wedges and serve! (Based on the famous "chocolate sandwich" served at Diner, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn)

Rubyfruit Sass

Grapefruit has been the iconic diet food since the Scarsdale Diet, which was all the rage back in the '70s. The truth is, there's much more to this beauty than the "half a grapefruit with black coffee and a hardboiled egg" diet breakfast. Though very tart, grapefruit is highly addictive once you've acquired the taste for it. Full of vitamin C and antioxidants, and possessing a low glycemic index, grapefruit can help lower cholesterol and boost metabolism (thus it's popularity with diets). And like it's sweeter sister, the orange, it's endlessly versatile. Try:

Chicken Salad with Avocado and Grapefruit

Mix grilled chicken strips (boneless and skinless, of course) with some low-fat mayo and a bit of Dijon mustard. Serve on a bed of baby spinach tossed with with avocado slices and grapefruit segments.

Grapefruit Caprese

Top grapefruit rounds with part-skim mozzarella slices. Drizzle with a little extra-virgin olive oil, sprinkle with chopped fresh basil and ground black pepper, and serve. *Very good as a brunch side or first course.

Grapefruit Bellini

Add 1 part grapefruit juice to 2 parts Prosecco, champagne, or other sparkling wine. Add 1 grapefruit segment to each glass, and serve. *You can make a non-alcoholic version by substituting a fruit-flavored seltzer, such as lemon or raspberry, for the wine.

Grapefruit-Coconut Parfait

In a blender or food processor, combine part-skim ricotta cheese and unsweetened flaked coconut, and if you like, a pinch of a good quality sugar substitute (such as Splenda). Cut grapefruit into segments and roughly chop. Cut 1 slice angel food cake into cubes. In a tall glass, layer a bit of cake, a spoonful of ricotta mixture, and some chopped grapefruit. Repeat (you should have 2 layers of each ingredient.) Dust with a little cocoa powder, and serve.