Published: Thursday, May 20, 2010
Martha Stewart: Ingredients for cold summer salads
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Tony Cenicola/The New York Times
For a perfect picnic salad, consider combining couscous with chopped celery or other types of raw, crunchy vegetables.
Q I had a wonderful barley and cucumber salad in Italy and would like to adjust the recipe for a picnic. What other ingredients do you suggest?
A: You can use barley, farro or couscous, all of which are great for cold salads. Chopped celery works well with barley, and I would also include any crunchy vegetables that taste good uncooked, such as jalapeno chili, yellow bell pepper, fennel or carrot. One more item: I had a salad recently and thought, “What is that odd ingredient?” It turned out to be finely chopped pineapple. Its sweet tartness made such a difference.
Q: My daughter doesn’t eat meat. What should she include in her diet to ensure she gets enough iron?
A: Iron plays a key role in transporting oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body and helps keep the immune system in working order. The recommended dietary allowance for 19- to 50-year-old women is 18 mg. This daily intake is especially important because iron is lost during menstruation.
There are plenty of iron-rich foods outside the animal kingdom, and a well-planned vegetarian diet can provide an ample amount. Spinach, kale, collard and similar leafy greens are all good sources, as are beans, nuts, eggs and whole grains, including quinoa and wild rice. Iron-fortified cereals and pastas are also worth seeking out.
With iron, though, the amount consumed does not necessarily equal the amount absorbed by the body. The type of iron found in vegetables and grains, called nonheme, is not as bioavailable as heme iron, found in meat, fish and poultry.
Plus, certain vegetarian staples, such as soy and legumes, contain a substance called phytate, which inhibits iron absorption. Calcium in dairy products and tannins in tea and coffee also interfere with absorption.
Fortunately, vitamin C in citrus and other foods helps counteract these inhibitory factors and converts iron into a form that is more usable by the body, as long as the vitamin C and iron are consumed in the same meal.
If advantageous pairings and diet planning don’t boost iron levels, consult a physician about taking iron supplements.
Q: I have a lot of houseplants, large and small, and need to put something underneath them to catch the drainage. Do you have an attractive alternative to unsightly plastic saucers?
A: At tag sales, I always look for inexpensive silver-plate dishes: service plates, chargers and bowls. They’re gorgeous. When you put potted plants on them, the dishes look like they are real silver. In another area, I use all pewter saucers that I’ve collected just for plants. And in yet another spot, I have all copper.
Plates are good because they come in a variety of sizes that fit different plants; I don’t like to see a lot of plate under a plant. Also, I put surface protectors underneath each saucer so that it doesn’t scratch the table or floor.
Q: I have fallen in love with a bright pea-green paint color and want to use it in my hallway, which already has white wainscoting. How can I incorporate this hue seamlessly into the adjacent living room?
A: You have to be careful if you’re going to use a bright color in the center of your house. If you go with the green, keep the wainscoting and other woodwork the same color in all rooms off the hallway.
You could paint the living room a different shade of white or a pale beige; a beautiful buttermilk color would go nicely with that pea green. Then use the green as an accent in the neutral living room, with some pillows and throws.
Address questions to Ask Martha, care of Letters Department, Martha Stewart Living, 601 W. 26th St., Ninth floor, New York, NY 10001. Send e-mail to mslletters@marthastewart.com.
© 2010 Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.
A: You can use barley, farro or couscous, all of which are great for cold salads. Chopped celery works well with barley, and I would also include any crunchy vegetables that taste good uncooked, such as jalapeno chili, yellow bell pepper, fennel or carrot. One more item: I had a salad recently and thought, “What is that odd ingredient?” It turned out to be finely chopped pineapple. Its sweet tartness made such a difference.
Q: My daughter doesn’t eat meat. What should she include in her diet to ensure she gets enough iron?
A: Iron plays a key role in transporting oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body and helps keep the immune system in working order. The recommended dietary allowance for 19- to 50-year-old women is 18 mg. This daily intake is especially important because iron is lost during menstruation.
There are plenty of iron-rich foods outside the animal kingdom, and a well-planned vegetarian diet can provide an ample amount. Spinach, kale, collard and similar leafy greens are all good sources, as are beans, nuts, eggs and whole grains, including quinoa and wild rice. Iron-fortified cereals and pastas are also worth seeking out.
With iron, though, the amount consumed does not necessarily equal the amount absorbed by the body. The type of iron found in vegetables and grains, called nonheme, is not as bioavailable as heme iron, found in meat, fish and poultry.
Plus, certain vegetarian staples, such as soy and legumes, contain a substance called phytate, which inhibits iron absorption. Calcium in dairy products and tannins in tea and coffee also interfere with absorption.
Fortunately, vitamin C in citrus and other foods helps counteract these inhibitory factors and converts iron into a form that is more usable by the body, as long as the vitamin C and iron are consumed in the same meal.
If advantageous pairings and diet planning don’t boost iron levels, consult a physician about taking iron supplements.
Q: I have a lot of houseplants, large and small, and need to put something underneath them to catch the drainage. Do you have an attractive alternative to unsightly plastic saucers?
A: At tag sales, I always look for inexpensive silver-plate dishes: service plates, chargers and bowls. They’re gorgeous. When you put potted plants on them, the dishes look like they are real silver. In another area, I use all pewter saucers that I’ve collected just for plants. And in yet another spot, I have all copper.
Plates are good because they come in a variety of sizes that fit different plants; I don’t like to see a lot of plate under a plant. Also, I put surface protectors underneath each saucer so that it doesn’t scratch the table or floor.
Q: I have fallen in love with a bright pea-green paint color and want to use it in my hallway, which already has white wainscoting. How can I incorporate this hue seamlessly into the adjacent living room?
A: You have to be careful if you’re going to use a bright color in the center of your house. If you go with the green, keep the wainscoting and other woodwork the same color in all rooms off the hallway.
You could paint the living room a different shade of white or a pale beige; a beautiful buttermilk color would go nicely with that pea green. Then use the green as an accent in the neutral living room, with some pillows and throws.
Address questions to Ask Martha, care of Letters Department, Martha Stewart Living, 601 W. 26th St., Ninth floor, New York, NY 10001. Send e-mail to mslletters@marthastewart.com.
© 2010 Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.
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