Spring Greens - Adding Nutrients to Your Diet

After a long winter of grey skies, white snow, and brown grass, we long for the fresh colors and tastes of spring!  Our ancestors tired of stored potatoes, onions, and apples over the winter and cooked many wild greens as soon as they appeared.  This added not only vital nutrients but also variety to their limited diet.  While modern grocery stores sell produce from around the world and we are not quite so restricted, the price, taste, and quality of these imported foods often leave something to be desired.

In Central New York where I live (and earlier in warmer climates), the month of May brings fresh asparagus, rhubarb, spinach, and broccoli to the market.  Now is the time when they will have the best value, taste and texture.  No need to resist their perky, colorful allure!  These vegetables are packed with nutrients and phytochemicals.  For example, asparagus is high in folic acid and potassium, rhubarb is a good source of calcium, spinach is sky-high in vitamin A and provides vitamin C, and broccoli is a great source of vitamin C and good source of vitamin A.

Most vegetables are best enjoyed with limited heat and water, such as steaming and microwaving. However asparagus keeps its texture better when quickly roasted over high heat in a dry pan.  Leftover vegetables (if there are any!) are great when tossed into a frittata, added to a cold salad, or stirred into soup.  Enjoy each fresh vegetable frequently while it is in season and, when the next crop comes in, you will be ready for a change!

Darlene Endy, MS, RD, CDN

www.nutritionbydarlene.com

Are You Mindfully Eating? How to Tell

When learning how to eat mindfully, often we begin by focusing on obvious behaviors such as not watching television or driving while eating.  The more subtle aspects come later when we have mastered these and are more in tune with our own bodies and our environment.  However, suggestions to “focus on your food” may seem too vague to be sure we are eating mindfully.  What is most helpful is a checklist to evaluate our own eating awareness.

The acronym A.F.T.E.R.  is a checklist developed by K. Katrina, N. King, and D. Hayes in their book, “Moving Away From Diets”.  Although the acronym suggests its use when you finish your meal, it is actually more useful during the meal.  Keep this checklist handy wherever you eat so that you can be sure to get the full enjoyment from your meal.  Achieving most of the characteristics of A.F.T.E.R. will help insure that you are satisfied with your meal emotionally, as well as physically.  But don’t worry if EVERY meal does not measure up.  Sometimes we eat just to meet our hunger need even if the food isn’t as appealing as we would prefer.

A stands for appearance of your food.  You are encouraged to notice the color, shape, and design of the foods.  Pay attention to how it is served—attractively on a plate?  With a garnish?  With a tablecloth or placemat? It isn’t hard to make your food look good enough to eat!

F is for flavor.  Notice if there is one dominant flavor or do they all meld together?  How does it smell?  Are there certain spices or herbs that you can identify?

T is for temperature and texture.  Is the food warm or cold enough?  If not, you should correct the temperature before you eat it.  What about the texture?  Can you think of four adjectives to describe it?  How about crunchy, smooth, tender, chewy?  Is there a nice balance or contrast in textures?

E is for the overall experience.  Was it pleasant?  If so, what made it so?  Was the background noise conducive to enjoying your food?  How about the lighting, company, etc.?  Make a note of what improved your experience and be sure to repeat it.

R is for results.  When the meal ends, do you feel satisfied?  What other feelings do you experience?  Relaxed?  Pleased? Nurtured?  Did the food sustain you until the next time you ate?

Use the A.F.T.E.R. acronym checklist for your next meal and see if it improves your enjoyment and ultimate satisfaction with the experience.  Learning to respond to our own needs is a journey that takes many steps but is worth it!

Darlene Endy, MS, RD, CDN

www.nutritionbydarlene.com