Staying fresh in December

It's that time of year when the heavy comfort food is getting old, the number of layers one needs to wear to stay warm indoors sizeably increases one's bulk, and the necessity of end-of-year productivity limits physical activity. In addition, I'm on a running hiatus right now not due to weather but due to exacerbation of an old injury -- I don't want talk about it.

So how to eat in a way that helps you to feel fresh, despite the chronic dry skin and static? I think citrus helps, but I'm not yet ready to bid goodbye to apple season. So I tried this quite simple salad, which is not exactly seasonal but is also not too appallingly unseasonal either (no miserable unripe tomatoes!).

Fresh winter salad:

• butter lettuce, arugula, or both
• radishes, quartered
• toasted walnuts*
• goat cheese (optional, I skipped it)
• juice of half a lemon
• olive oil

Toss all together and dress with lemon and olive oil. Serve with a hard boiled egg, cheese on toast, a yogurt, etc. for a more substantial meal.

*I've been craving walnuts since their health benefits were all over the yuppie and medical news last week.

Blog-worthy fall salad

My farm share arrived today, and rather than let the veggies rot at the bottom of my fridge, I decided to chop and wash them all now. Not a bad antidote to learning about leukemia and lymphoma all day: it's all very interesting, until you fall asleep wondering what it would be like to receive such a diagnosis.

Fall harvest salad:

• 2-3 small beets, washed and sliced thin (see use for beet greens below)
• 1 small sweet potato, washed and sliced thin
• thyme, rosemary, or other herb
• handful of toasted almonds or walnuts
• salad greens (farm share gave me frisee and lettuce)
• olive oil, salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar
• garlic or shallot optional

Toss the beets and sweet potato with olive oil, thyme, salt, and pepper in a roasting pan, then roast at 400 degrees until soft with crisped edges (move them around a few times to prevent burning).

Meanwhile, wash greens (three times, if yours have as much dirt as mine!) and toast nuts. Making a salad dressing of olive oil, balsamic, plus garlic or shallot is optional.

Serve everything warm over the greens. Add goat cheese or lentils or chicken breast or sausage, etc. for protein! I will be having a white bean soup with beet greens (from above) on the side.

Don't stress eat!

Last night I had one of those horrible nights where bacteria- and virus-laden nonsense raced through my head as I lay in bed, in powerful mockery of my lame attempts at meditation and mind-clearing. Once an hour this was punctuated by becoming fully awake, getting up, and then laying down once again to the same as soon as my head hit the pillow.

I've been trying to do everything right, too: yoga, running, studying, dinner out, tea with a friend, reading David Sedaris stories before bed. Despite all this, the stress of having an exam every two weeks is overpowering.

So today I am allowing myself to bake a pie, make a fresh salad for lunch, and then resume studying. I will beat these pathogens!

Simple Greek salad: one chopped tomato, crumbled feta, some chickpeas, toasted almonds, romaine lettuce, oil and vinegar dressing. Each bite gives a satisfying crunch!