Posted 2 days ago
Cooking Therapy
So, What Is Cooking Therapy?
Cooking therapy/culinary therapy has been defined by experts as “the therapeutic technique that uses arts, cooking, gastronomy, and an individual’s personal, cultural, and familial relationship with food to address emotional, physical and psychological problems.”
Cooking therapy can improve your mood and general well-being by:
– Requires concentration, so can act a healthy distraction that allows you to slow down and “get out of your head.”
– Can serve as a form of mindfulness. Cooking is a kind of meditation with the promise of a good meal afterward.
– Awakens your senses, requiring you to pay attention to the present moment.
– Can help you get into a “flow state,” since it’s both challenging and enjoyable at the same time.
– Encourages you to learn new skills and expand your knowledge base.
– Provides an “escape” and breaks up the monotony of your daily routine, since there are always new recipes to try.
– Can improve quality of life among people coping with addictions and serious illnesses, such as cancer.
– May help you feel less anxious, depressed or overwhelmed, since cooking gives you a feeling of accomplishment and can also provide pleasure. Additionally, it’s a way to practice gratitude for the food available to you and can give you a boost in self-esteem if you take the time to appreciate and enjoy what you’ve made.
Both baking and cooking give you outlets to express yourself and produce something tangible of substance. It’s an added bonus that you can eat and share your work of art!
Healthy Foods to Include
One way to take the benefits of kitchen therapy to the next level is by preparing healthy, nourishing recipes that you can feel good about eating and sharing. Nutrient-dense foods are also supportive of cognitive/mental and physical health. Try to include these in your family recipes…
– Vegetables: spinach, kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, peppers, tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms, green beans.
– Fresh fruit, especially all types of berries, including strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cherries, cranberries.
– Nuts and seeds, such as walnuts, almonds, chia seeds and flaxseeds
– Beans and legumes, such as chickpeas, black beans, lentils.
– Whole grains, such as oatmeal, quinoa, brown rice, barley, farro, 100 percent whole-wheat breads.
– Fish, particularly wild-caught, fatty fish like salmon, sardines, halibut, trout, tuna and mackerel, which are the best sources of omega-3 fats.
– Lean meats like poultry, ideally that are pasture-raised and not breaded or fried.
– Olive oil, which is used as the “main cooking oil” and can also be drizzled over salad, veggies.
– Bone broth (can be used in soups, stews, marinades, omelets and even baked goods)
– Beetroot powder (great in smoothies, sauces, salad dressings and gravy)
– Cassava, tiger nut, banana and chickpea flours (try these gluten-free flours in baked goods, flat breads and more)
– Freekeh (an ancient grain that can sub in for buckwheat, quinoa or farro)
– Kombu (a type of seaweed used in soups, stews and salads)
– Natto (similar to miso, used in mostly Japanese dishes)
– Medicinal mushrooms (can be used to brew tea or make broths)
Get Competitive and Have Fun with It!
What family doesn’t have a little healthy competition? Why not have a family cooking competition for dinner? You can save money from not eating out and enjoy a bit of quality time together.
Family Cooking Competition Ideas
Pick the cooking challenge:
– You can plan on picking a theme in advance so that any items a family member may need for a recipe can be picked up from the store or farmers market.
– You can make it additionally challenging by only using items you currently have in your pantry, fridge, and freezer right now.
– You can pick a theme, like Tex-Mex night, Plant basing, Burgers, or an Italian Cuisine Night.
– You can add in a secret ingredient that no one was prepared for.
– You will have to decide on teams, depending on the size of your family.
Competition Themes
– Mediterranean Cooking
– Hawaiian Luau
– Around the World
– Homemade Pizza
– Breakfast Cook off
– Best Taco in Town
– Clean Eats
– Mom’s Spaghetti
– How the Cookie Crumbles
Set a time limit for the cooking challenge:
– This time limit will include the time needed to make the dish as well as plate it. I recommend keeping the time to an hour or less so that no one is spending all day preparing.
Judging Time:
Once the dishes are plated, everyone can taste test and give their opinion on the meals. You can write results on a piece of paper and fold it up so no one sees. Or you can have one family member does not participate be the “judge”.
Prizes!
Everyone likes to win something. Have a small prize ready for the winner. This can be a $5 gift card, a back rub or a night off from doing the dishes.
Brenda Gridley, RD
Brenda is originally from Los Angeles, CA where she attended California State University of Los Angeles for her undergraduate degree in Nutritional Science. She began her career with Kaiser Permanente in 2004. Throughout her professional development, she has worked in Cardiology and open-heart surgery, Renal/Dialysis, organ transplants and Oncology, including chemotherapy, radiation and head and neck. Brenda has extensive experience with weight management programs, including Bariatric and finally eating disorders and mindful eating. She went on to specialize in the Pediatric population and has maintained her Certification in Pediatric Nutrition since 2011. Areas she has managed include pediatric and neonatal intensive care units where she was responsible for individualizing therapeutic diets and alternate nutrition support based on specific metabolic needs, medical conditions, and cultural preferences.
Her passion for nutrition was developed at a young age and reared by her grandmother who always instilled the importance of a healthy diet and active lifestyle. When her grandmother became ill, Brenda became aware of the impact nutrition plays in disease prevention and maintaining overall mind and body health. She cared for grandmother until she passed and has made it her goal to help others achieve their full “nutrition potential” with using a culturally sensitive holistic approach.
She is married with two beautiful daughters and in her spare time she enjoys watching movies with her children, experimenting with new recipes, reading mystery novels, running and Yoga.
Please ask your Ironwood Cancer & Research Centers provider for a referral to see our dietary counselors.