Late last year I had an interview with a major news network on the topic of New Years’ Resolutions. I decided not to talk about the popular though self-defeating goals that are nearly impossible to sustain and end up making people feel badly about themselves and their efforts. I didn’t discuss limiting calories, denying yourself things that bring you joy, joining a gym, or signing up for a yoga class. Instead I decided to talk about being kind to yourself. Continue reading
Category Archives: Fruits
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Greens-and-Grains Winter Salad
I love eating food in season, and many of the ingredients for this recipe have winter written all over them. Leftover nuts and dried fruit from the holidays. Quinoa, a staple in the cabinet. Some fall apples and a few leftover stalks of celery in the fridge. And a sweet memory of the large box of oranges sent every year to my parents by friends who used to spend their winters in Florida. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Red Lentil Soup for Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, begins tonight at sundown. High Holiday foods tend toward the sweet and the circular: sweet to represent our wishes for a sweet new year, and circular to symbolize the seasons that run one into the next, round and round, year after year.
So it is traditional to eat many different kinds of fruits, especially apples, prunes, pomegranates, dates and apricots; and sweet vegetables such as beets, carrots, sweet potatoes, and leeks (sliced into rounds, of course), as well as black-eyed peas and lentils. And lots of honey, especially for dipping bread and apples. Continue reading
Dieting: It’s Not for the Birds and It’s Not for You
This week I’m sharing a conversation that I have had with a lot of patients lately. They want to weigh less, they know that it’s better for their health, but they cannot figure out how to make it work. I tell them that making it work requires a frame shift, a change in the way you think about food. When we talk about what that means for them, I see the lights go on in their eyes and their expressions. It’s slightly magical, every time. They leave with renewed faith and self-confidence, not to mention relief. It was never about dieting. It was about the food. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Pumpkin Harvest Rice
Take all your favorite fall flavors, mix them up together, and serve in a big beautiful bowl! This is a wonderful dish for company, but the leftovers the next day — if there are any, that is — are even better. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTH PLATE: Coffee Nice Cream
Inasmuch as it’s going to be around 90F out there tomorrow, I am sharing a recipe that will be perfect for the weather. It’s like a smoothie but a lot thicker. You can eat it as is, or as the base for a smoothie bowl. It’s not ice cream; it’s “nice cream.” And it is delicious. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PANDEMIC: Homemade Orange Juice
This is a special recipe for when you’ve had enough but the pandemic has not. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Tsimmes
Preparing for the holidays with my mom was a major highlight of my childhood. Like many other special dishes that we ate on dedicated holidays throughout the calendar, we made tsimmes twice a year, in the fall for Rosh Hashanah (it is traditional to eat sweet foods on Rosh Hashanah), and in the spring for Passover. My mom never used recipes, preferring to combine ingredients as her grandmother and mother-in-law did, but, truthfully, tsimmes is one of those dishes that probably doesn’t really need much of a recipe anyway. Continue reading
The Origin of “Granola”
It will probably surprise you to learn that the term granola was coined way back in the 1870s by one Dr. John Kellogg, late of Battle Creek, Michigan, where he ran a famous health sanitarium to which patrons flocked in pursuit of health and wellness. Among his many prescient recommendations was one that should be familiar to you, dear reader — that food be prepared the old-fashioned way, using whole grains instead of stripped ones like white flour or corn syrup. Continue reading
YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Celebrate Summer with a Green Smoothie!
It’s the beginning of August, it’s a hot and sunny day, and nothing tastes as good as a freezing cold smoothie on a hot summer day! Make it green with spinach, and sweet with tropical fruit, and absolutely wonderful to share with everyone who comes through the kitchen to see what’s going on when they hear the blender whirring away. The color of this smoothie is gorgeous, the spinach is invisible, and the children will love it as much as you do. Enjoy! Continue reading