Last week we talked about some healthier options for all the pumpkin delectables that are coming out as Fall continues in all it’s glory. This week we’re going to keep with the same theme and talk about Fall Food and how to maximize your nutrition based on season.
It doesn’t matter what type of healthcare practitioner you see, chances are nearly every one of them will agree that nutrition the foundation of health – what you put into your body is one of the strongest determinants for your health and well being; indeed, we are what we eat! However, what’s becoming clearer is that proper nutrition is not uniform from person to person. Based on the fact that everybody has a unique constitution, what’s nutritionally ideal for one person may not be what’s nutritionally ideal for another. My rule of thumb has always been to incorporate lots of colors into your diet, and more importantly, to listen to your body. Your body is very intelligent, and it will tell you what it needs at any given moment to function optimally, you just need to listen and figure out the language of your body (we’ll delve into that more in another blog).
Besides your constitution, there is also another very important factor that goes into how to eat for health and wellness, and that’s the season! In Traditional Chinese Medicine, food (like our environment) has climate-like properties that give us insight into what’s healthy from season to season. What’s good for you in the summer is not the same is what’s good for you in the winter. The good news is that you don’t necessarily need to read a large book to learn about what foods are seasonally appropriate; Mother Nature does that for you! Just go to your local farmer’s market and see what’s naturally coming out of the earth at this time of year. Last time I checked, the farmer’s market here in Lexington is packed with delicious Fall foods, so next time you’re venturing down to one of them, consider some of these options:
Winter Squash: Winter Squash, Acorn Squash, Butternut Squash – all of these delicious gourds are warming and energizing for your Qi. I particularly enjoy roasting and stuffing squash, or mashing them into a delicious soup.
Potatoes or Sweet Potatoes: these delicious bulbs are more neutral in property, however they are great for nourishing your spleen and stomach Qi while they digest food and transform it into Qi.
Leeks, Onion, & Garlic: all of these are hot in nature and can be great additives to any dish to warm your Qi and keep it flowing smoothly when the weather outside is cold.
Apples: Now, apples are actually a bit cool in nature, but they make up for it in their ability to nourish our yin, and pears are the same. To make up for their cool nature, I’m a fan of baking them with warmer spices like cinnamon, cloves, or nutmeg. So head over to the apple orchard with your friends and family and make a day out of it!
Other: Brussels Sprouts, Root Veggies (beets, parsnips, turnips etc), Pears, Rutabaga, Pomegranates, Dates.
In general, warmer foods are great to start eating right now and these are a few of my favorites:
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Potato Leek Soup
- Stuffed Acorn Squash or Peppers (I like to use a Quinoa based stuffing)
- Baked apples with cinnamon
- Hot Spiced Cider with cinnamon & nutmeg
