November 2007 Newsletter from Your Favorite Holistic Health Counselor

“If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” Anne Bradstreet

Hmmm, might you not enjoy spring as much as you do if you didn’t have to go through winter? To get that delicious sensation of being warmed through to your bones, requires getting really cold first. Jumping from the cold shower to the sauna & back into to the cold shower & back into the steam room & back into the cold shower. Doing this often enough while drinking plenty of water will eliminate any stress you might be feeling. It will also leave you so relaxed the only option is a cup of something warm & bed for a truly restful night of sleep.

Moving through Fall & Winter

Bradstreet’s quote could be considered an encouragement to keep ourselves physically active in the colder months. For those of you who spend all year too hot, you’re reveling in the cold weather. The rest of us are thinking the bears might be onto something with the whole hibernation thing. While it is completely normal to want to eat more heavier, warming food & shiver under the covers with a cup of something warm, it makes for an awfully long winter. You might find yourself getting fidgety, impatient along with fearing the winter time weight gain.

With proper preparation, any physical activity that happens during the warmer months, can happen during cooler months. Walking, hiking, jogging are still good ideas in the cold. With the proper clothes, a fairly tropical environment can develop inside your clothes, keeping you nice & toasty. Layers is the key with natural fibers & something to wik away moisture close to the skin with a substantial outer layer to break the wind. Fill in the gaps with hats, scarves, and gloves and make sure boots don’t leak and you have good socks. Now that you’re wrapped up well, get outside. Walking in snow burns more calories than on flat surfaces. You’ll also be exposed to sunlight, needed to generate vitamin D. The best part of getting exercise out in the cold is, as Bradstreet points out, that delicious sensation of getting warm when you come in.

Indulge that luxurious feel of being cold & tired, moving into a cozy warm place with a warm cup of something & feel the stress of the day vanish.

Food Focus – One Pot Meals

It’s normal to want to eat more in this time of year, because eating & digesting generate heat. Getting yourself out and about during this time of year will help fend off boredom based snacking by burning off the extra calories your body craves now. Soups and stews are perfect because they are filling, but not in a high calorie way, and warming. In addition to helping with that cozy transition from cold to warm, the aroma of a pot of soup on the stove is very comforting.

This month’s recipe is good, it makes a lot & can be frozen. Yes it takes awhile to prepare, but it’s the unattended kind of cooking, some of which make your apartment smell particularly soothing. Soaking beans can be done while you sleep. Simmering can be done while you’re puttering around your apartment on a weekend. The smell of simmering vegetables in stock with our without a ham hock is a great aroma to greet you when coming in from a bit of outdoor exercise.

Recipe of the Month: White Bean, Wheat Berry, and Escarole Soup
www.epicurious.com
Prep time: 20 minutes (not including pre-soaking beans)
Cooking time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
Serves: 8-10

Ingredients:
1 pound dried baby lima beans or other dried white beans, picked over for stones or anything you don’t like the look of
2 ham hocks (optional)
2/3 cup wheat berries* (substitute brown rice & add with beans rather than ham hock, if using)
8 cups water
2 cups chicken broth
2 medium onions, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
3 celery ribs, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled
1 head escarole (about 1 pound), chopped coarse
3 garlic cloves, minced

*available at natural foods stores and some specialty foods shops
Directions:
In a bowl soak beans in water to cover by 2 inches overnight or quick-soak (procedure follows) and drain.

In a heavy kettle (at least 5 quarts) simmer ham hocks and wheat berries in water and broth, covered, 1 hour. Add drained beans and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and skim froth. Add onions, carrots, celery, bay leaf, and rosemary and simmer, covered, until beans are tender, about 1 hour.

Transfer ham hocks with a slotted spoon to a cutting board. Discard fat and bones and chop meat.

In a blender or food processor purée 3 cups soup. Stir purée into soup with chopped meat and escarole and simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes. Stir in garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Soup may be made 4 days ahead (cool uncovered before chilling covered.)

To quick-soak dried beans:
In a large saucepan combine dried beans, picked over and rinsed, with triple, their volume of cold water. Bring the water to a boil and cook beans, uncovered, over moderate heat 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and let beans soak 1 hour.

Send This On!
I hope you have found this newsletter to be as informative and inspiring to read as it has been for me to share it with you. Please feel free to forward it to those friends, family and colleagues in your life that you think might also be interested and inspired by it. If you refer someone who signs up, it’s $100 in your pocket or a free exercise session.

Toni Taylor
Holistic Nutritional & Exercise Consultant
212-586-0681