Valentine’s Gifts for Every Body (that includes YOU!)
Remember the Valentine mailbox you made each year in grade school? Decorated with red and pink hearts and other symbols of love, it was ready to receive the little white envelopes with a candy or two taped to the outside from your classmates. Before long, the innocence of giving a caring message to everyone was replaced with a romantic appeal to that special someone. Maybe you and your special someone still exchange gifts, the traditional roses or box of candy.

Ragen Chastain will join Darryl Roberts, director and producer, for the screening of America the Beautiful 2: The Thin Commandments on Wednesday, February 15 at 7:30, B117 Wells Hall. Free admission!
This year on the MSU campus, Valentine’s Day occurs during Eating Disorders Awareness Week. That happenstance makes the messages that every body is beautiful, every body is important, and every body is deserving of wellness care particularly meaningful.
The one person who really knows what you need to lovingly care for yourself is you. So what are you doing for you this Valentine’s Day? Here are some ways you can care for yourself like no one else can:
- Self-compassion—When you start with self-compassion, everything else will seem more achievable. By acknowledging your humanness, you are better able to accept yourself and the imperfections that make you interesting and unique—that is, human! In her book, Self-Compassion: Stop Beating Yourself Up and Leave Insecurity Behind, Kristin Neff, associate professor of human development at the University of Texas at Austin, suggests writing a letter to yourself from the perspective of an imaginary friend who loves you unconditionally despite your weaknesses and in celebration of your strengths.
- Rest—Sleep is a necessity and can seem like a gift when you get enough of it. Rest has more to do with mental renewal, for example, taking time for your hobbies, connecting with family and friends, performing a service for others or just being with nature.
- Movement—Discover what you enjoy doing, or maybe you already know. Your amazing body does so much for you. It just needs a little movement each day to keep on performing at its best.
- Nourishment—The “how” of eating is so much more of a gift than the “what” or the “how much.” Start off with a plan—whether preparing a meal for yourself, going to the store for the food that has been on your mind, or taking yourself to a restaurant with a relaxed atmosphere—you will feel cared for by the planning process itself. Once the meal is in front of you, take a cleansing breath to bring your mind to the present and to the pleasure of the experience. You just may decide to eat all of your meals this way!
- Check-up—A visit to your health care provider for a routine check-up and recommended health screenings is one of the best ways to love your body. Find out which health screenings you need at HealthWise Knowldege Base (enter “interactive tool for health screenings” in search box). Then give your health care provider’s office a call and schedule an appointment for a routine physical exam.
Today is a great day to begin taking the best care of the person you will be with for the rest of your life—you!
Add a comment to expand the list or to share how you showed love and compassion for yourself this Valentine’s Day (or any day).
References:
- Neff, K. (2011). Self-compassion: Stop Beating Yourself Up and Leave Insecurity Behind. HarperCollins: New York.
- Davidson, L., & Novello, J. (2006). 10 Factors That Contribute to Our Emotional Wellness. http://eap.msu.edu/mission/10factors.html accessed February 13, 2012.
- Satter, E. (2008). Secrets of Feeding a Healthy Family: How To Eat, How To Raise Good Eaters, How To Cook. Kelcy Press: Madison, WI.
- HealthWise Knowledge Base. Interactive Tool: Which Health Screenings Do You Need? http://www.healthwise.net/health4u/Content/StdDocument.aspx?DOCHWID=ug3267 accessed February 14, 2012.
My Plate is My Plate
Most likely, you’ve seen USDA’s new food guide, MyPlate. I agree that it was high time to move away from the ancient pyramids. Choosing a plate as the new symbol of healthful eating makes a lot of sense. A plate suggests a meal; meals lead you to eating at regular intervals and more variety. But then come the rules telling you what and how much to put on your plate. They even tell you to “enjoy your food, but eat less.” In the end, MyPlate is the same old pyramid, just a new shape. Ellyn Satter had some advice for the policy makers (if only they would ask) in her recent newsletter.
Speaking of plates, I still hear the advice to serve food on a smaller one to help with weight loss. Like so many well-meaning suggestions, it really doesn’t work that way.
Researcher Barbara Rolls and her colleagues at Pennsylvania State University looked at the effect of plate size on food consumption. In each of the three study variations, participants were remarkably consistent in eating the same amount whether they ate from a dinner plate or a smaller plate. Participants rated hunger and food taste as the primary influences on their food intake.
“Use a smaller plate” and “make half your plate fruits and vegetables” are two examples of the many control messages aimed at getting you to eat less than your body needs or desires.
You have internal regulators to guide you in your food selections and amounts. Give yourself trust messages: “My food looks appealing on a dinner plate,” “I like my fruit in a separate bowl,” “I enjoy my food the most when I ____________.” You’ll know a trust message when you hear it–it will bring pleasure to your meal.
Rolls B, Roe L, Halverson K, Meengs J. Using a smaller plate did not reduce energy intake at meals. Appetite. 2007;49:652-660.
Graceful
Principal Dancer for New York City Ballet, Jenifer Ringer, maintained her poise and charm as she responded to remarks about her body by a New York Times critic. In her conversation with Oprah Winfrey, aired last week, Jenifer recalled, “It was horrible to read something like that. It made me feel bad…it was embarrassing.”
Jenifer talked about her struggle with eating disorder. “I’m not sure where it started but somewhere in my teenage years, I started hating my body. I think it was because I knew I had curves and that is not what I should look like as a dancer.” At that time, her response to not fitting the stereotypical mold of a ballerina was to vacillate between not eating and eating compulsively.
Now as a 34-year-old mother at the height of her career as a ballerina, Jenifer admitted, “My first thought was, ‘It’s happened—this is my worst nightmare. Someone has called me heavy in the press. And lots of people are going to read about it.’ But my next thought was, ‘It’s happened and I’m okay, and I’m fine the way I am and I have survived it.’” Jennifer had evolved from self-loathing to self-loving.
You don’t have to be a celebrity to be the target of wounding words. Body criticism, rampant in the media, has become commonplace. We do it to others and ourselves.
I was grateful for Jenifer Ringer’s public response. She demonstrated for all to hear how she reacted initially and then how she responded thoughtfully. She countered the remark with positive self-talk. The criticism was out there. That could not be undone. But the power of words was broken in terms of the influence she allowed them to have. Bravo, Ms. Ringer!
Eating Disorders Awareness Week is February 20-27, 2011. One of the featured events is the showing of America the Beautiful: Health for Sale. Join filmmaker Darryl Roberts as he previews his sequel to America the Beautiful–right here at MSU! Darryl examines “all things health,” most specifically targeting the American obsession with dieting. This is an opportunity to consider the question “do we really understand what it means to be healthy?”
Join us Thursday February 24 in South Kedzie Hall S-107 at 8 pm. Admission is free, seating is limited–doors open at 7:30 pm.
Herbs and other flavor boosters
The University Club was the happening place to eat on Tuesday. Culinary Cooking and Concepts was going on and featured a tasty gourmet meal and yours truly as the speaker. The topic was “Marinades and sauces and rubs, oh my!” Here’s what one participant e-mailed to her friend who wasn’t able to attend this month:
You missed a very delicious lunch today. The salad could have been the meal as far as I’m concerned. Sort of like a VERY fancy BLT. HAHA, I’m not doing it justice. And I WANT that dressing which was basil leaves, olive oil, vinegar and salt & pepper but I have never had anything like it. They should bottle it and sell it! Looked like a green goddess. Chix breast was nice and moist, but the mushroom risotto was the star, along with fresh green beans and carrots, and the dessert was a simple vanilla ice cream with fresh berries and a Cabernet sauce.
Next month is BERRIES!!!
That salad was a work of art–the way they wrapped the thin slice of cucumber around the baby lettuce leaves along side the stack of tomato slices alternating with fresh mozzarella. You can find the recipes on the Health4U website–unfortunately, not the “green goddess” salad dressing yet. Still trying to wrestle it out of the Chef! We’ll post it as soon as we have it.
I always learn so much when I’m preparing for one of these programs. For instance, to get the most “life” out of your herbs, trim the stems, place them in a container of water, cover loosely with plastic and set it in the frig. To make a sturdy, tip-resistant containter, cut down a half gallon (plastic) milk jug, leaving the handle intact. Those complementary shower caps you get in your hotel room make a really great plastic cover for your new herb vase.
The time to wash your herbs is just before you’re ready to use them. If you have a lettuce spinner, give it double duty. Leave the basket inside it, place your herbs and cool water in it, swish the herbs well, then lift out the basket, dump the water and spin the herbs dry.
I’ve been making a really delicious salad this summer using the produce from my garden. This salad will work with whatever vegetables you have–cucumbers, tomatoes, sweet peppers, hot peppers, red onion, green onion, zucchini, green beans, carrots, cauliflower–did I miss anything? Peel, chop and mince until you like the looks of it. Make a dressing by whisking together 1 to 2 Tablespoons of white wine vinegar, 5 Tablespoons of olive oil, salt, pepper and chopped herbs–parsley, cilantro, basil or mint in whatever combination you like. The tomatoes, and the other vegetables to some extent, release their juices and make that simple dressing really tasty! I love to add a few olives and a sprinkle of feta just before serving.
Did you know that tomatoes have their best flavor if you never refrigerate them? Well, not until you cut or cook them, that is. Even after you cut them, you can let tomatoes “rest” at room temperature for a couple of hours.
I walked down to the MSU Student Organic Farm Stand just after they opened today. I made a list and Julie posted their offerings on the Health4U website: http://health4u.msu.edu/ During the height of the harvest, we’ll try to update our website each week to let you know what you can find there. If you need herbs to make some of our new recipes, the SOF Stand has them!
Dressing Your Salad for Dinner
My local farmers’ market has made the transition from seedlings to produce. The early spring greens are still available, and now the offerings include other vegetables to toss in the salad bowl. I happily went home with red leaf and Bibb lettuces, spinach, early English cucumbers, sugar snap peas, radishes and green onions. The fresh herbs were there, too. I selected some cilantro since I don’t have it in my herb garden.
I took all of this lovely produce home and I washed, dried and chopped it into a beautiful salad. Then came the dilemma. How to dress it for dinner?
The person I share dinner with has his favorite salad dressings. He is happiest with his salad if I just stay out of his way and let him use one of the bottles from the door of the frig. As for me, I have never found a bottled dressing that suits my taste—they’re too sweet or too creamy or too vinegary. Yet my homemade dressings sometimes are just as problem-ridden.
So I’ve done some “research” on salad dressings. It seems to me that there must be a ratio of vinegar to oil to make the perfect dressing. The “rule of thumb” for basic vinaigrette which calls for 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar may be too sour (acidic) for some people. If this is the case, you could use part citrus juice, add a little sugar, or increase the oil. When using all or part citrus juice, or when using a mild or sweet vinegar, you may need less oil to balance the flavors. Here’s a mix and match chart to get you started, but remember to adjust the ratios to suit your salad ingredients and your taste:
Vinaigrette
OIL | VINEGAR |
3 to 5 parts olive oil | 1 part red wine or cider vinegar |
3 parts nut oil (e.g. walnut oil) | 1 part white wine or sherry vinegar |
2 parts canola, corn or safflower oil | 1 part flavored vinegar (e.g. Balsamic or raspberry vinegar) |
2 parts peanut oil + a drizzle of sesame oil | 1 part rice vinegar |
1 to 2 parts olive oil | 1 part citrus (lemon, lime or orange) juice |
For the most basic vinaigrette, mix the vinegar/juice with salt and pepper, then slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking. To give your dressing some extra personality and zip, add in diced garlic, onion, red pepper, or herbs. Or add other spices such as cumin or ceyenne pepper. If your salad ingredients call for a sweeter dressing, add sugar, honey or maple syrup to taste.
The secret to keeping your vinaigrette from separating is to add an emulsifier. There are a couple of really convenient emulsifiers found in most kitchens: mayonnaise and mustard. It’s actually the egg yolk in the mayo and the seed coat in the mustard that bonds with the oil to keep it from repelling the water in the vinegar and juice. For each cup of vinaigrette, add 1 teaspoon mayo or ground mustard, or 4 teaspoons Dijon-type mustard.
The final step before adding your fresh homemade vinaigrette to the salad is to taste it. Dip in a vegetable from your salad and give it a try. Adjust the ingredients until it suits you.
Still want the convenience of bottled dressing? A favorite resource of mine, America’s Test Kitchen, did a taste test of supermarket salad dressings. The winner of their “bottled” vinaigrette taste test was Good Seasons Italian All Natural Salad Dressing Mix (you add your own vinegar and oil) with a close runner-up being Kraft Seven Seas Viva Italian Dressing. In the creamy salad dressing category, their tasters found Marzetti Creamy Italian Dressing with Cracked Peppercorns to be “decent all around” and “passable in a pinch.”
However you dress your salad, take it to dinner and enjoy!
Saucing up your grains
We had a great turn-out for the cooking session of Vegetarianism 101. I gave the participants the chance to test their knowledge of some unusual grains. Can you tell the difference between millet and quinoa, or kasha and bulgur?
One of the participants suggested spending an evening or weekend day making several sauces then freezing them for easy family meals. She said this is a great way of assuring great taste and variety for quick weeknight dinners. Simply add the sauce to the grain or legume and voilá–dinner!
This got me to thinking–what sauces would be good to make for the freezer? Aside from a traditional tomato sauce or pesto, Romesco sauce would be delicious. Deborah Madison has an entire section on sauces in her classic book, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. She suggests serving sesame sauce over grains or grilled vegies, peanut sauce with tofu and curry sauce with rice or as a base for curried vegetable soup.
Here’s a great marinara sauce recipe to get you started:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium onions, chopped fine
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 4-28 oz cans crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
- salt and sugar to taste
Heat oil in large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions and cook unti golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, oregano and pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds. Add tomato paste and wine; cook until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and water; simmer over low heat until the sauce is thickened, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir in cheese and basil. Taste, then season with salt and sugar as needed.
How easy is that? You may want to give these recipes a trial run then double or triple them to store in your freezer. Once your sauce has cooled, ladle it into plastic freezer bags or containers in 1- or 2-cup portions, label with recipe name and date, then lay the bags flat on a sheet tray to freeze. Once they’re frozen solid, you can remove them from the tray and stack them to save on freezer space.
When you come home hungry, you’ll be glad your dinner is nearly done.