We hope that everyone will join us as our Pathfinder Produce Market
reopens this Thursday, Dec. 4, for the freshest tastes around. We’re open
from 2 to 5 p.m. and hope to see you during the holiday season!
***
Each
Thanksgiving many pledge to avoid over-eating during this season of
plenty. But with so many holiday meals, parties and other celebrations,
it’s always difficult to toe the line. I managed to not over load my
plate during recent meals, opted out of the extra slice of pie, and made sure
to take some extra walks over Thanksgiving weekend. During the weeks
between now and Christmas, I will try to keep walking during my lunch break,
and maybe hop on the stationary bike that sits neglected in the garage.
Of
course, with so many treats tempting our sweet-tooth, it’s also a good idea to
intentionally add more fruits and vegetables to our diets. I’ve been
seeing some photos on Facebook and Pinterest
with festive fruit and veggie trays. One friend shared an imaginative
tray arranged as a Thanksgiving gobbler; it featured lots of raw veggies like
cauliflower, broccoli and celery.
Celery
is a vegetable that was always part of our holiday celebrations when I was a
kid, however the way we served it – packed with regular cream cheese - is a
modern no-no. A better variation on this is to serve celery sticks with a
healthy ranch dressing made out of Greek-style yogurt. A healthy recipe
may be found at the blog, Wellness
Mama.
Celery has long been
turned to by dieters (and comedians needing a visual representation of dieting)
because of its high fiber, low calories, and many other health benefits.
According to the World’s
Healthiest Foods website, “Recent research has greatly bolstered our
knowledge about celery's anti-inflammatory health benefits, including its
protection against inflammation in the digestive tract itself…. In addition to
well-known antioxidants like vitamin C and flavonoids, scientists have now
identified at least a dozen other types of antioxidant nutrients in
celery.” These antioxidants have been shown to prevent oxygen damage to
our cells, blood vessels, and organ systems.
If you have concerns about
sodium intake, you need to factor in that celery is naturally sodium rich (35
milligrams of sodium per stalk). The folks at World's Heathiest Foods recommend using celery within five
to seven days of purchase, storing it in the refrigerator as to retain its
healthful nutrients. They also add that to get the maximum benefit from
cooked celery, it is best to steam it for 10 minutes.
A
quick cruise around the internet reveals some innovative and delicious sounding
celery-rich recipes, but celery is one ingredient that can be added to most
soups, stews, or cut up raw and added to green, fruit or tuna or chicken
salads. Here’s a link to the New York Times Well
Blog that offers a sampling of menu ideas, including a hearty minestrone,
and a broccoli and celery soup.
Until
next week, eat well and be well!
Lori
