overjoyed: Celebration of the Senses Day

painting available in my store.

Today, June 24 is Celebration of the Senses Day! I know there is pretty much a day to celebrate for every day of the year, but this is a unique blog topic. :) Taste. Touch. Look. Listen. Smell. Taste a fresh strawberry. Give a foot rub. Gaze at a painting. Listen to music with your eyes closed. Smell the flowers. How fun! Today I walked in the grass barefoot and taught Will how to smell our blooming zenias outside. One of Will's favorite books right now is Green Start:The Five Senses. I also came across an interesting article in a Body & Soul Magazine that I checked out from the library about expanding your palette and turning whole foods into a full sensory experience. Amanda Archibald,a dietitian, food educator, and step-daughter of a U.K. wine importer explored and discovered a method of sensory association with food. The average persons diet consists of about 15 foods. What?!?! That is crazy considering how much variety we have been given! According to Archibald there are fruit and veggie flavor families that she has given names for below. She said that eating foods in the same family can help expand your palate of food and help you gradually gain a liking for new foods. That makes sense. For example, she would cut up 3 veggies of the same flavor group into small cubes and toss together. This would be especially helpful for those who are picky eaters. I just thought this was really interesting. Below are the flavor families... I don't think there is a single fruit that I do not like, but the veggies on the other hand I did not have a taste for until the last 4-5 years and are gradually liking more. Adding new veggies in my smoothies with lots of fruit has helps to like new tastes as well. I may start with the tart and bitter families. :)

Fruit Flavor Families

tart-papayas, blueberries, kumquats, grapes, cherries, pineapple, kiwis.

sweet- watermelon, clementines, peaches, dates, oranges, figs, mangoes, honeydew melon.

mild- apricots, strawberries, bananas, cantaloupe, pears, plums, pluots.

crisp-honeydew melons, asian pears, apples, pears.

smooth-mangoes, bananas, dates, figs, apricots.

Veggie Flavor Families

grassy- celery, asparagus, chard, spinach, mizuna, cucumbers, green beans.

sweet-bell peppers, snap peas, beets, carrots, fennel, sweet potatoes, parsnips

spicy- radishes, onions, turnips, watercress, arugula, leeks, chile peppers, basil.

bitter- chicory, dandelion leaves, eggplant, escarole.

earthy/pungent- beets, broccoli, cabbage, collards, kohlrabi, chard, mushrooms, rutabagas.