By Rachel Mau, MS, RD, CD

‘Tis the season for a string a holiday gatherings with loved ones, often centered around a festive meal. Cherished family recipes return to our tables, and holiday parties offer an enticing array of sweets and treats. So how to enjoy the season while still maintaining a healthy lifestyle? Here are a few tips:

• Pick the best and leave the rest: When faced with a dizzying spread, ignore the foods you could have anytime and choose a few of the foods that are special holiday favorites. Serve yourself a reasonable portion and savor every bite.
• Practice premeditated laziness: Stock your fridge and pantry with healthful foods for easy meals and snacks at home during the busy holiday season. Try pre-chopping your vegetables as soon as you return from the grocery store so that they’re ready for an easy snack (raw or blanched with hummus) or meal (stir-fried with a lean meat or cubed tofu, served with your favorite whole grain like brown rice or quinoa).
• Portion control and recipe roundup: Avoid overindulgence by knowing that you can have more another time. If you discover a special new food, rather than over-eating in the moment, see if you can get the recipe so that you could have another taste at another time.
• Incorporate physical activity into your gatherings: get your group walking (indoors or out), ice skating, snow shoeing, skiing, or dancing.
• Eat with gratitude: pause and give thanks for the food and the company.
• And finally…contribute your own fabulous, healthy dish to your next gathering. For one example, see below.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Pecans and Mustard Seeds

Brussels sprouts are high in dietary fiber, beta-carotene, potassium, folate, and Vitamins C and K. Cooking them lightly, as in the recipe below, helps preserve isothicyanates (which act in anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and anti-oxidant pathways) to maximize the benefits they can provide. Quick and easy, this recipe has converted many self-proclaimed Brussels sprouts haters.

Ingredients

1/3 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

2 containers (10 ounces each) fresh Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed

½ Tbs butter

2 tsp olive oil

1 Tbs yellow mustard seeds

1 to 2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Coarse salt and ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until fragrant and lightly browned, about 10 minutes; set aside.
2. Meanwhile, with the shredding disk of a food processor, shred Brussels sprouts (if you don’t have a food processor, halve and thinly slice with a chef’s knife). In a large nonstick skillet, heat butter and oil over medium-high heat. Add mustard seeds and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add Brussels sprouts and cook, tossing occasionally until tender and beginning to brown, 7 to 9 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in lemon juice, and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with pecans.

Recipe from Body+Soul Magazine

http://www.wholeliving.com/recipe/shredded-brussels-sprouts-with-pecans-and-mustard-seeds

As always, our mission is to provide quality healthcare at affordable rates, making acupuncture accessible to everyone in our community. You can continue to expect the same level of care you have always received but we wanted you to know a few changes we’ve made to your clinic experience:

• Patients may come directly back to the treatment room 5- 10 minutes before treatment time.
• Help yourself to pillows, blankets, and hand towels available for you at the entrance to the treatment room.
• Sit in any chair with a basket on the seat.
• Ready yourself by placing personal belongings in the basket and by placing your shoes and socks alongside the chair.
• You may also now schedule your appointments for acupuncture, nutrition counseling, massage, and chiropractic from our receptionists or our website.
• Our wheelchair accessible restroom is located on the first floor.
• To use the lift, use the intercom just outside the lift to call a receptionist who will come down to assist you.

Thank you for continuing to support community acupuncture. We look forward to working with you to improve and maintain your health.

In order to continue providing the best care we can to our patients, Milwaukee Community Acupuncture will soon be moving to a larger location!  Beginning October 3, 2011, we will be taking all appointments at our new location: 435 E. Lincoln Ave. We will be on the second floor, above Cafe Central.

We are also pleased to announce that joining us in our space will be Saffron Yoga Studio as well as Cream City Chiropractic.  Both Saffron Yoga and Cream City Chiropractic offer their services on a sliding scale.

You can continue to book appointments with Stefanie Melo at Lagom Therapeutic Massage as well as Nutrition Consultations with Rachel Mau, as they will be sharing our space as well.

We are excited to offer you a larger treatment space as well as these other services in one location.  More information regarding our move will be available soon.  We look forward to continue working with you to improve and maintain your health.

Accepting Furniture Donations
With our upcoming move we are currently looking for a few items.  If you or anyone you know have any of the following and would be interested in donating, please send us an email with a picture attached.

-  Clean, Functional Recliners
-  Dark Wood End Tables
-  Refrigerator
-  Rolling Stools
-  Laundry Hampers
-  House Plants
-  Plant Stands
-  File cabinets
-  Desk
-  Floor Lamps
-  Area Rugs

Hello and happy winter! Our clinic is growing, and with growth comes change. We have a few changes here at the clinic that we’d like to share with you.

We are sad to say that Denise, our front desk receptionist is leaving us. She will be moving back to Chicago at the end of this month and will be pursuing some very exciting new opportunities with her art. We will really miss her and know you will too.

With that said, we would like to introduce our newest receptionist, Haley. Haley is a fellow Bay Viewer who will be joining Kate up at the front desk to help with all of your scheduling needs.

Our team here at MCA is growing in other ways as well. With our ever increasing demand for appointments, we have decided it’s time to add another acupuncturist to the team. We are currently taking resumes. If you know anyone who is interested, please send them our way!

If you haven’t noticed the special offer box on the website, January is our Patient Appreciation month. From now until the end of the month we are offering one complimentary treatment for those patients who have been with us since 2009. This offer expires February 1^st, so make sure to schedule your appointment as soon as possible as we’ve been filling up in advance!

Be well,

The staff at Milwaukee Community Acupuncture

To help things run smoothly and insure the maximum comfort of all of our clients, please observe the following guidelines:

• Arrive on time to your appointment, or notify us if you will be more than 5 minutes late.
• Speak in a soft voice while in the waiting area and the treatment room.
• Keep your shoes on until you are seated in the treatment room.
• Turn off all cell phones when you enter the clinic.
• Avoid wearing perfumes or heavily scented lotions.

We thank you in advance for your cooperation!

The staff at Milwaukee Community Acupuncture

Amy is back at MCA and available for appointments.

Here is our updated schedule:

Monday 4-8pm with Olivia

Tuesday 9am-1pm with Amy; 4-8pm with Olivia

Wednesday 4-8pm with Amy (11/3 covered by Olivia)

Thursday 9am-1pm with Olivia; 4-8pm with Amy

Friday 12-4pm with Olivia

Saturday 10am-2pm with Amy; 12-4pm with Olivia

If you have a preference of who you see, you can select your acupuncturist’s schedule while scheduling online, or you can tell the receptionist when scheduling in the office or on the phone.

Cold and flu season has started early this year!  Did you know that acupuncture and Chinese Medicine can treat colds and flus?  There are certain acupuncture points and herbal formulas that can help the body recover from an illness faster.  It is beneficial to come in right away so if you think you’re coming down with something make an appointment as soon as possible.  A lot of people wonder how acupuncture can treat these ailments.  Check out this article called “A Sneeze from the Breeze: Colds and Influenza According to Chinese Medicine” for a brief explanation.

Tuesday October 19th is your last chance to sign up for Two for One Tuesdays, as we will no longer be offering this promotion. New patients receive a free treatment when they arrive with a returning client. Bring in your friends, family, neighbors, or co-workers!