Whenever I have too little time and too few ingredients on hand — or when I’ve been eating too much meat — I cook up some broccoli pasta.

Which means I make it for dinner about once every 10 days! It’s delicious, healthful, inexpensive and easy to prepare. The recipe, in fact, is a cinch, consisting of just a few ingredients — pasta, chicken broth, Parmigiano-Reggiano, olive oil and a large head of the namesake crucifer. I always have four of those ingredients in house, so all I need to do is run out and pick up some broccoli and I’m good to go.

Another of this recipe’s charms is its flexibility. I can swap in vegetable broth for chicken broth, spaghetti for the angel hair pasta, and any other grated hard cheese for the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Sometimes I’ll even lose the broccoli in favor of roasted cauliflower or Brussels sprouts.

But what makes the dish so popular in my house is its comfort factor. I serve it soupy, so you can slurp the chicken broth along with the strands of pasta. I also make sure there’s some crusty bread within easy reach, which helps to mop up the broth not captured with a spoon.

In the original version of this recipe (I’ve been making it for years), I sauteed the broccoli in olive oil over very high heat until it was quite brown around the edges. The problem with this method is that the broccoli quickly soaked up all the olive oil and I always ended up having to add quite a bit more. I switched to oven-roasting it, which helps to decrease the amount of olive oil necessary. It also requires very little baby-sitting.

This dish is so economical it’s almost ecological. I use all of the broccoli, not just the florets. For years I used to trash the stems, but they are also plenty edible. Just peel off the skin, cut them up, and you’re ready.

COLD WEATHER

BROCCOLI PASTA

1 large head broccoli (about 1¼ to 1½ lbs.)

2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

1 to 2 tsp. red pepper flakes, or to taste

1 quart low-sodium chicken stock

½ lb. whole-wheat capellini pasta

1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Position one of the racks in the top third of the oven.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Cut the broccoli, including the stems, into 2-inch pieces. Peel any thick stem pieces to remove the thick skin.

On a rimmed baking sheet, arrange the broccoli in a single layer. Drizzle with the oil, then sprinkle with salt to taste and toss well. Place on the top oven rack and roast for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the broccoli is crisp-tender and slightly brown at the edges. Transfer the broccoli to a large skillet, add the pepper flakes and the chicken broth, then bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

When the water in the large pot comes to a boil, add a hefty pinch of salt and the pasta. Stir and cook for 2 minutes, or until the pasta is limp but not quite cooked through. Drain the pasta and transfer it to the broccoli pan. Simmer for 2 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente. Stir in the Parmigiano-Reggiano and salt to taste. Ladle into shallow soup bowls and serve with crusty bread.

Makes 4 servings.

Grinders Above and Beyond, which used to have a location in Stow, recently opened a new location in Hartville.

The Hartville eatery is at 1212 Maple St. (Route 619), phone 330-587-4280. Hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

The restaurant serves grinders, as well as soups, salads, burgers, dinner entrees and other family-friendly fare in a casual environment. Other Grinders locations are in Plain Township, Canton, Alliance, Dover, Louisville and Minerva.

Learn to paint at Hudson’s

Hudson’s Restaurant, 3900 Medina Road, Copley, is hosting a trendy event called Wine & Canvas.

It’s a painting class with cocktails that will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. Jan. 15.

The cost is $35 and participants receive everything they need to create a work of art, including canvas, paints and instruction. The featured painting for the event is called Park Bench.

Registration is required. Visit www.wineandcanvas.com and select the “events” tab to register or call 330-338-7744 for more information.

Fairlawn native has book

Fairlawn native Jackie Newgent has a new book out, 1,000 Low-Calorie Recipes (Wiley, hardcover, $35), that aims to teach readers the principles of a healthy diet and how to eat foods that are nutrient-rich.

The book includes advice on how to stock a low-calorie pantry, tips on maintaining a healthy weight, techniques on low-calorie cooking and substitutions for sweet and savory ingredients.

The New York City-based Newgent is a chef, registered dietitian and past national spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics. She’s also the author of The Big Green Cookbook and The All-Natural Diabetes Cookbook.

Newgent’s recipe makeovers, in which she lightens up favorites, can be found on her blog, Tasteovers by Jackie, at www.jackienewgent.com.

Warm toast to new year

National Hot Toddy Day is Jan. 11. Time to cozy up folks; January is here for another 29 days.

Lisa Abraham can be reached at 330-996-3737 or at labraham@thebeaconjournal.com. Find me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter @akronfoodie or visit my blog at www.ohio.com/blogs/lisa.

After hiding all that flavor and those nutrients inside them, nature certainly didn’t make hard-shell squashes easy to open. You could keep one of those pumpkin-carving kits around; the saw-tooth blade can help open a winter squash.

But an easier way to tackle hard but smooth-skinned winter squashes is to start with the microwave. Use a metal skewer, a strong fork or the tip of a small paring knife to poke several holes through the skin. Then put the squash in the microwave for about 3 minutes.

That will soften the skin a little, so it will be easier to cut it in half for roasting, or to use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin and dice the squash.

A spaghetti squash can be poked and microwaved the same way. Instead of peeling it, though, cut it in half, scrape out the seeds and either bake or steam the halves until it is soft enough to use a fork to release the long strands.

— Kathleen Purvis

Charlotte Observer

It’s the season for pies, savory chicken pot pies, sweet fruit or custard.

A Cup Pie Set by Chicago Metallic, with its nonstick surface, quartet of 4½-inch pie cavities and plastic dough cutter, takes the hassle out of making them. Small circular metal inserts help remove fragile pies and tarts from the pan.

It’s $24.95 at Sur La Table. For a store locator or to buy, go to www.surlatable.com.

— Judy Hevrdejs

Chicago Tribune

With my 20 years of experience as a food writer, I’ve learned the first week of January (really, the whole month) is all about low-calorie meals. New Year’s resolutions aside, after six weeks of mostly eating outside our normal guidelines, January needs to be a “slimmer” month. Since I eat what I write about, the readers’ needs become my personal needs, too.

But one problem I have always had in adjusting to the lower-fat recipes is that my body wants full-fat flavor after all the cakes, creamy drinks and buttery entrees I consume over the holidays.

I’ve found that Asian-inspired flavors are bold and mouth-popping and don’t usually have the high levels of fat and calories of cream, butter and sugar. Today’s recipe for Beefy Asian-Style Lettuce Wraps is perfect. There’s texture from the crisp lettuce, plenty of flavor from the spices and sauces, and appetite-gratifying protein from the lean beef. In short, this is the perfect light dinner for a cold January night.

I love to add some heat with just a splash of sriracha hot chili sauce. Traditional hot pepper sauces such as Tabasco can also be used. As for the rest of the ingredients, they are easily found in the Asian section of the grocery store. They will keep for up to six months in your refrigerator, so adding them to your dinnertime fare will not cost you a bundle. After all, it’s not just our waistlines that feel the tightening in January; it’s usually our wallets, too.

Beefy Asian-Style Lettuce Wraps

½ lb. 90 percent lean ground beef

½ cup chopped red bell pepper

¼ cup chopped onion

1 tbsp. minced garlic

1 tsp. minced fresh ginger

¼ cup duck sauce, or more for serving

2 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce, or more for serving

1 tsp. sriracha sauce, or more to taste

1 tsp. toasted sesame oil

6 medium romaine lettuce leaves

In a large nonstick skillet, crumble and stir the beef. Cook over medium heat until beef just begins to brown, about 4 minutes; add red bell pepper, onion, garlic and ginger. Stir and cook until beef is cooked through, onion is translucent and pepper is tender.

Reduce heat to low and stir in remaining ingredients, except lettuce. Simmer 5 minutes, or until ready to serve (can simmer up to 20 minutes).

Spoon beef filling into lettuce leaves and roll, or leave in a boat shape. Serve with additional duck sauce and soy sauce, if desired.

Makes 2 servings.

Each serving has about 277 calories, 9 grams fat (3 grams saturated), 101 milligrams cholesterol, 36 grams protein, 10 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams dietary fiber, 761 milligrams sodium.

Alicia Ross is the co-author of three cookbooks. Contact her c/o Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106, email tellus@kitchenscoop.com, or visit http://kitchenscoop.com.

How do you pronounce pecan?

Is it PEE-can or pah-CAHN?

Kathleen Purvis has heard all the pronunciations. And they don’t bother her a bit. It’s not the word but the flavor that has made the nut a favorite of hers. She tells the story of the pecan — and her love of it — in a charming new book by the University of North Carolina Press. Pecans: A Savor the South Cookbook ($18) is part of a new single-subject series that pays homage to the regional foods of the South.

Hers is a joyful — and very tasty — tribute to the ubiquitous Southern nut. Think pecan pie, pecan pralines, pecan tassies, sweet potatoes with pecans.

“It’s the No. 1 question I get at book signings,” she said with a laugh. “ ‘How do you pronounce pecan?’ I hear it within 10 to 15 seconds. People think it’s a regional difference, but it’s real­ly not at all. It’s urban versus rural.”

Purvis grew up in a household where pecans were ever-present, if not in the baked goods then in a dressing or cheese ball or served up as a snack. As a Georgia native (the state is the leader in growing pecans) and longtime food editor at the Charlotte Observer in North Carolina, she grew into her authority on the subject one taste at a time long before she honed her sights on the history of the nut.

American Indians used wild pecans for sustenance. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson planted the trees. Early efforts in propagating pecans didn’t take off commercially until after the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876 when a tree on display won a prize (in today’s terms, that would be like winning Top Chef). The Centennial pecan tree went on to become the basis for big-time production.

If there’s one pecan recipe to master, what would it be? “Pecan pie. It always makes people happy,” Purvis said in an interview. She offers four versions in her book: classic, crispy, cream and chocolate-maple. The crispy version uses cornmeal in the filling, an old Southern method, which adds a contrast — and nice buffer — to the intensely sweet flavor of the traditional pecan pie.

Pecan tips for cooks

• Toast pecans on top of the stove instead of the oven because they burn easily. Do so in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until they become fragrant. If there’s a burnt one in the bunch, discard it.

• If you plan to use a lot of pecans, buy them in the shell (they are significantly cheaper). Once shelled, though, they should be stored in the freezer in heavy-duty resealable bags; they will last up to a year. Shelled pecans quickly get rancid at room temperature. If you have a lot of pecans to shell, Purvis recommends the Reed’s Rocket, a simple nut cracker available in hardware stores or online.

• Go beyond desserts in your use of pecans, Purvis says. They are also great in salads, side dishes and main dishes.

BOURBON-ORANGE PECANS

½ cup sugar

½ tsp. salt

1 tbsp. grated orange zest

½ tsp. cayenne pepper

2 large egg whites

3 tbsp. bourbon

3 cups pecan halves

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix the sugar, salt, orange zest and cayenne pepper in a small bowl.

Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until soft peaks form (they should curl over when the beaters are lifted). Beat in the bourbon.

Fold in the pecans with a rubber spatula until well-coated. Add the sugar mixture and fold to coat well.

Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. The coating will foam up but will stir down, and the pecans will become crisp and separate as they bake.

Remove from the oven. Cool and break apart the individual nuts. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Makes 3 cups.

Note: Created as a nibble to go along with an Old-Fashioned. From Pecans, by Kathleen Purvis.

PECAN-STUFFED

CHICKEN BREASTS

⅓ cup Boursin-style cheese (see note)

¼ cup toasted, chopped pecans

1 tbsp. chopped green onion tops

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 tbsp. vegetable oil

Combine cheese, pecans and green onions in small bowl.

Place chicken breasts on a work surface. Slide a knife point horizontally along the thickest part of the breast, making a pocket without cutting all the way through. Divide the cheese and pecan mixture between the breasts, filling the pockets.

Bring chicken breast edges together and insert a toothpick through to hold the pocket closed. Sprinkle each breast with salt and pepper.

Combine butter and oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until butter is melted. Add chicken, top-down. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, turning carefully with tongs. Remove from pan. Cover and let stand for 1 minute before serving.

Makes 4 servings.

Note: Either the herb flavor or the garlic flavor of Boursin will work for this dish. From Pecans, by Kathleen Purvis.

MICROWAVE PECAN BRITTLE

Nonstick cooking spray

½ c. light corn syrup

1 c. sugar

1 ½ c. pecan halves

1 tsp. unsalted butter

1 tsp. vanilla

¼ tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

Spray a rimmed baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. (As long as you have the spray out, spray the inside of a ½ cup measuring cup, too — it makes it easier to get the corn syrup out.)

Combine corn syrup and sugar in a 1½-quart microwave-safe baking dish. Stir until blended. Microwave on high for 4 minutes. Remove from oven and stir in the nuts. (Use oven mitts and handle the dish carefully. It will get hot as you continue to microwave the sugar mixture.)

Return to the microwave and cook for 4 to 6 minutes on high, until sugar mixture is light brown. Stir in butter, vanilla and salt. Blend well. Microwave on high for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add baking soda, sprinkling it quickly over the hot sugar. Stir gently just until foamy. Quickly pour out onto the prepared baking sheet. Let stand until completely cool. Break into pieces and store in airtight container.

Makes about 2 dozen pieces.

Note: Baking soda gives this a lighter, crispier texture than boiled-sugar brittles. Make sure you have the pan prepared and waiting before you start because as soon as you add the soda, it needs to be spread quickly. From Pecans, by Kathleen Purvis.

Back in the days when peanut butter came in glass jars, my mom declared these the best of all savable jars because they were large, sturdy and reliable.

She used them for storing bacon grease, for orphan buttons, and in the summertime, my dad filled jars with homegrown cucumbers from his garden with vinegar and dill, and used them for storing nails and screws in the garage, too. I don’t think a jar was ever thrown out in our house.

Along with the Pierce family coffee addiction, I’ve also inherited the love of old jars.

It’s embarrassing to admit, but my boyfriend and I probably go through at least one jar of jam every week or so (he always puts a few big spoonfuls in his yogurt), and I save them all.

I’ve always used them for making vinaigrettes and storing leftovers, from chopped garlic and olive oil to extra pizza sauce, but after seeing one composed salad after another at some of Paris’ trendy to-go lunch spots, each one of them featuring layers of veggies, or grains, or legumes, artfully stuffed into clear plastic cups, I thought about an even more economical and environmentally friendly way to do the same thing: with repurposed old jars.

It seems so obvious, doesn’t it? Instead of going out to buy that perfect ramekin or cute little dish to make that recipe of chocolate mousse or pudding or whatever, just use your old jam jars. I say jam jars, because they’re often fat and squatty, and therefore easy to eat out of, but any old wide-mouth jar will do (some salsa jars are actually great for this).

I now use them for all sorts of things, from making single, portable servings of cold salads, like lentil salad with smoked salmon, to stuffing them with plums, cauliflower or chicken (all recipes below) and warming them through, like the mini-casseroles they are.

Pick your jars depending on what you plan to do with them. If you’re using them for stuffing and traveling (jars are great for picnics or lunches), any old jar will do, but if you’re using them to cook in, make sure they’re heat-resistant, as canning jars will be.

Besides the obvious money-saving appeal of using jars, they’re cute … especially the ones that I find at the flea markets in France. I like to think of it as recycling.

LENTIL SALAD WITH SMOKED SALMON

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 small onion, chopped into ¼-inch cubes

2 cloves garlic

1 stick celery, chopped into ¼-inch cubes

1 carrot, peeled and chopped into ¼-inch cubes

1 lb. lentils (du Puy if you can find them; small green French lentils if you can’t)

2 bay leaves

¼ cup tomato paste

1 quart vegetable stock

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

4 cups cooked quinoa

4 small handfuls arugula

6 oz. smoked salmon, chopped into small pieces

Put olive oil, onion and garlic in a large, deep pot, and turn the heat to medium-low. Let this cook until the onions become translucent, 5-10 minutes, then add celery. Let this cook, stirring every now and then, until the celery begins to just slightly soften, about 5 minutes.

Now toss in the carrot cubes. Let them cook for about 5 minutes, then add lentils, bay leaves, tomato paste and vegetable stock. You may need to add 2 to 4 cups of water at this point, to make sure you’ve got 4 inches of liquid over the lentils.

Cover, bring to a boil, and then reduce heat for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Taste lentils for doneness and seasonings. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let cool and refrigerate.

To make your jarred salads, put 1 cup of lentils in the bottom of each of 4 (2-cup) jars, topped with 1 cup of cooked quinoa. Now add a small handful of arugula to each, and ¼ serving of the smoked salmon (1½ ounces for each one).

Makes 4 servings.

CRUNCHY, CHEESY CHIPOTLE CHICKEN

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 chipotle chiles in adobo, finely chopped

4 cups shredded, cooked chicken (use leftovers or store-bought rotisserie chicken to save time)

1 cup cooked black beans (if using canned, drain and rinse them first)

1 (14.5-oz.) can chopped tomatoes with juices

¼ tsp. cumin

Pinch of sea salt and pepper

2 cups crushed tortilla chips or Fritos

5 oz. mozzarella cheese

1 chopped avocado, for serving

Big handful fresh cilantro, chopped, for serving

1 lime, cut into wedges, for serving

Preheat oven to broil and put six (2-cup) jars on a cookie sheet.

Drizzle the olive oil into a large skillet and add the onion and garlic. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook till the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the chiles, chicken, black beans, tomatoes, cumin, salt and pepper, and stir till warmed through. Taste for seasonings.

Put 1 cup of the chicken mixture in each of the jars and top with about 2 tablespoons of the tortilla chips and just enough cheese to cover. Slide into the oven and cook till the cheese is bubbly, about 10 minutes. Serve right away, with chopped avocado and cilantro on top and lime on the side.

Makes 6 servings.

GINGER-PLUM CRUMBLE WITH RICOTTA CREME

24 fat plums, chopped into eighths

1-inch piece fresh ginger, minced

½ cup sugar

Juice of 1 lemon

3 tbsp. butter

3 tbsp. brown sugar

3 tbsp. plus ⅓ cup sugar

3 tbsp. flour

3 tbsp. ground pistachios, plus more for garnish

¼ tsp. cinnamon

9 oz. ricotta

Zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a cookie sheet with foil.

Toss plums with the ginger, sugar and lemon juice and divide among 4 jam jars that’ll hold at least 2 cups’ worth of fruit.

Make crumble topping: With your fingers, mix the butter, brown sugar, 3 tablespoons sugar, flour, ground pistachios and cinnamon and sprinkle on top of the plum mixture. Pop into the oven for 30 to 45 minutes or until bubbly.

While the crumbles are baking, whisk together the ricotta, lemon zest and ⅓ cup sugar and refrigerate until time to serve.

Serve crumbles warm or at room temperature with a big spoonful of ricotta and a sprinkle of crushed pistachios.

Makes 4 servings.

CAULIFLOWER ’N’ CHEESE

1 head cauliflower florets

3 tbsp. olive oil

Sea salt and pepper

4 cups cooked grains (you may use barley, brown rice or a mixture)

8 tbsp. shredded Comte or Gruyere cheese

A few fresh chives, for garnish

Preheat oven to broil.

Put the cauliflower florets on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and drizzle them with olive oil, then lightly sprinkle with salt and pepper. Slide into the oven. After about 15 minutes, once the florets start to brown, pull them out of the oven and turn them over, so the other side gets brown, too. This will take about 10 more minutes. When browned on both sides, remove florets from the oven and let cool. (I often do this ahead of time.)

In a jam jar that’ll hold at least 2 cups, layer 1 cup of grains on the bottom and 1 cup of roasted cauliflower florets on the top. Add 2 tablespoons of cheese on top of each one, then pop into the oven for 20-30 minutes or until the cheese is nice and bubbly. Snip fresh chives on top and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

COLUMBUS: Ohio is prepared to move forward with certain Medicaid contracts after an appellate court ruled in the state’s favor in a lawsuit that had blocked officials from signing the agreements.

Amerigroup Corp. had sued the state, claiming the contract application process was flawed. The insurer was not among the top scorers.

The contract winners will provide health care services to roughly two-thirds of Ohio’s Medicaid population, or 1.6 million people. The contracts provide billions in government work to the winning companies.

The Franklin County Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s decision in a 2-1 ruling on Friday, saying Amerigroup failed to prove the state Department of Job and Family Services abused its discretion in awarding the contracts.

Messages seeking comment were left Wednesday with the Virginia Beach, Va.-based Amerigroup.

You can avoid the silent treatment from your power tools in the spring by providing some tender loving care now.

Gasoline-powered garden gear isn’t guaranteed to start when it’s left idle for extended periods of time, say 30 days or more. A thorough cleaning is essential.

“The first thing you want to do is take a blower and clean everything off — the leaves and debris that have built up over the growing season,” said Mike Ballou, a product manager with John Deere. “This is the time for maintenance.”

Don’t delay taking equipment to a dealer if you don’t have the time or inclination to do the work yourself, Ballou said. Not only will that extend its working life but it also will save you time and money.

“What a lot of dealers do is have service specials in the wintertime to attract customers,” he said. “Otherwise, there’s a two-week backup in the spring because everyone tends to put things off.”

Some steps you can take now to ensure your tools are ready when the weather warms up:

• Change the oil and spark plugs in gasoline-powered equipment before storing it.

• Dump leftover fuel into your vehicles. The shelf life for gasoline generally is 30 to 60 days, Ballou said. “Run your equipment until all the old fuel is gone, and then add fresh along with some fuel stabilizer. Let that run five minutes or so, giving it enough time to cycle through the carburetor. That prevents sludge from forming and gumming up the fuel system.”

• Disconnect the batteries. “Every two months, put them on a charger and charge them back to full,” Ballou said.

Here are some additional tips to ease seasonal garden chores:

• Buy an extra set of lawnmower blades and another chain for your chainsaw. “That way you’ll always have one on hand while the dull blades are being balanced and sharpened,” Ballou said.

• Clean or replace air filters to aid engine combustion.

• Store your equipment in a clean, dry place, said Randy Scully, national service manager for STIHL Inc., a manufacturer of chainsaws and other handheld equipment. “That helps prevent rust and corrosion.”

• Lubricate and tighten moving parts. That includes wheel bearings and throttle cables. Tillers, mowers, string-cutters and chain saws take terrible beatings and tend to loosen up over time. “Anything that’s not quite right or broken, get it repaired,” Scully said. “Clean away oil that’s dripped onto handles or working surfaces for safety.”

• Get to know your product instruction manual, Scully said. “It has complete listings of things in there about what should be checked and how often.”

John Deere, STIHL and many other manufacturers have begun emphasizing easier-to-maintain designs for do-it-yourself equipment operators.

“For example, no tools are needed for changing the oil in our newer garden tractors,” Ballou said. “We’re trying to make things simple to extend their working life.”

For more, see this University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service fact sheet: http://bioengr.ag.utk.edu/Extension/ExtProg/machinery/Articles/winterize.htm.

Some kitchens are beautiful. Some kitchens are functional. The best kitchens are both.

Those are the kitchens Jamie Gold highlights in New Kitchen Ideas That Work.

Gold, a kitchen and bath designer and an aging-in-place specialist, shares a wealth of ideas and information for creating the best kitchen for the money. Her suggestions cover everything from simple spruce-ups to full-scale remodels.

Gold helps readers determine the strengths and weaknesses of their current kitchens, make style and design choices, develop a budget and hire help. She also offers suggestions for layouts and features and schools her readers on elements such as cabinets, lighting and appliances.

New Kitchen Ideas That Work is published by the Taunton Press and is priced at $21.95 in softcover.

— Mary Beth Breckenridge

Author and perennials expert Stephanie Cohen will headline Design & Beyond 2013, a symposium presented by the Summit County Master Gardeners.

The symposium will be 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Jan. 19 at St. Sebastian Church’s Zwisler Hall, 348 Elmdale Ave. Check-in starts at 8 a.m.

Cohen, known for both her wit and her plant knowledge, will present two talks, Natives With Bling and Shrubaganza. She is the founder of the Landscape Arboretum at Temple University, a contributing editor for Fine Gardening magazine and author of the books The Perennial Gardener’s Design Primer, Fallscaping and The Non-Stop Garden.

Other speakers at the symposium will be conservationist Judy Semroc of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and urban homesteader Lorree Cummings of Stone Cottage Farm & Garden in Cuyahoga Falls.

Cost is $45 and includes a continental breakfast, lunch and materials. Registrations will be accepted until Jan. 12 as space allows.

A mail-in registration form is at www.summitmastergardeners.org.

For information, call Sherry Beam, 330-342-0969.

Making maple syrup

You can learn about producing maple syrup at the Ohio State University Extension’s Maple Days event from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Jan. 25 at Mennonite Christian Assembly Church, 10664 Fryburg Road, near Fredericksburg in Wayne County.

The event includes educational programs, a trade show, reports and testing of hydrometers and Vermont Temporary Maple Syrup Grading Kits.

Cost in advance is $30, including lunch. Advance registrations are due Jan. 18.

To register, send your name, contact information and a check or money order (payable to OSU Extension) to OSU Extension, 1680 Madison Ave., Wooster, OH 44691.

Participants can also pay $35 at the door, but they won’t receive lunch.

For information, call 330-674-3015 or email graham.124@osu.edu.

Maple Days events will also be held Jan. 24 in Morrow County and Jan. 26 in Geauga County.

Honors for builders

The Home Builders Association Serving Summit and Portage Counties has received the first Frank Horn Service Above Self Award from the Akron Rotary Club.

The award was presented at the annual HBA installation banquet in December.

The organization was honored for contributing time and labor to build two cabins at the Akron Rotary Camp for Children with Special Needs.

The award honors Horn, a Rotarian and volunteer with several organizations who died unexpectedly in 2011.

Events, programs

• Knitting and Crocheting Circle, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. today and Jan. 12, Highland Library, 4160 Ridge Road, Granger Township, Medina County. Call 330-278-4271 or 330-239-2674 for supply list.

• Knitting and Crocheting Circle, 10 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Brunswick Library, 3649 Center Road. www.mcdl.info or 330-273-4150.

• Warm Up Akron meetings, 3:30 and 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Mogadore Branch Library, 144 S. Cleveland Ave. Members knit and crochet rectangles that are used to make afghans for needy people in the Akron area, and they’ll teach others the skills. 330-699-3252 or http://warmupakron.webs.com.

• Greater Akron Innovation Network for Sustainability meeting, 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Musica, 51 E. Market St., Akron (entrance off Maiden Lane). Meeting of group interested in promoting sustainability. Architect Hallie Myers Bowie will give a presentation on home energy efficiency, and Cynthia Trotta of GoodCents will speak about energy audits and the Dominion East Ohio rebate program. Free parking in the city deck at High and Main streets for the first hour and after 6 p.m. Information: www.facebook.com/GAIN4Sustainability.

• Yarncrafters meetings, 1-3 and 6-8 p.m. Thursday, Medina Library, 210 S. Broadway. Knitting and crocheting group. www.mcdl.info or 330-725-0588.

• Needlework Circle meeting, 6 p.m. Thursdays, Seville Library, North Center Street. 330-769-2852.

Submit notices of classes, programs and events two weeks in advance to mbrecken@thebeaconjournal.com or Home and Garden News, Features Department, Akron Beacon Journal, P.O. Box 640, Akron, OH 44309-0640. Please include name and phone number. All events must be open to the public.

Mary Beth Breckenridge can be reached at 330-996-3756 or mbrecken@thebeaconjournal.com. You can also become a fan on Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/mbbreck, follow her on Twitter @MBBreckenridge and read her blog at www.ohio.com/blogs/mary-beth.

Wagner has introduced two paint sprayers designed for use indoors as well as outside.

The PaintReady Sprayer and PaintReady System both have a patented nozzle that requires no thinning of paint. They’re quiet and lightweight and can be used with interior or exterior latex paint, stains and sealers.

The PaintReady Sprayer is a handheld unit designed for midsize projects with larger surface areas, such as interior walls. The PaintReady System has a stationary base that connects to either of two handheld sprayers, one with the same capabilities as the PaintReady Sprayer and the other for fine finishes.

Both products are available at some Home Depot stores and at www.homedepot.com. The PaintReady sprayer sells for $99.99 and the PaintReady System for $148.97. Shipping is free.

— Mary Beth Breckenridge

It’s a new year, time to try out some new flavors.

Suzanne Husseini’s new book, Modern Flavors of Arabia: Recipes and Memories from My Middle Eastern Kitchen, (Random House, $27.95, softcover) is the perfect partner in the search for something new.

Unless, of course, like Husseini, you grew up with Middle Eastern cooking. In fact, the spices so prevalent in Husseini’s book — cinnamon, allspice, sumac, cumin — are about as ancient as they come.

But everything old will, at some point, be new again.

So for the new year, try out some old-world tastes in this recipe for Kofta Sandwiches that are packed with flavor and dressed with a creamy tahini yogurt sauce.

KOFTA SANDWICHES

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 cup parsley, finely chopped

2 tbsp. tahini (see note)

1 tsp. allspice

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. cardamom

½ tsp. ground coriander

2 tbsp. pomegranate molasses (available at Middle Eastern grocery stores or specialty stores)

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 lb. ground lamb

¼ cup peanut oil

6 small pita breads

Tahini and parsley sauce (recipe follows)

Sliced tomatoes

Sliced red onions

Fresh mint leaves, to garnish

Parsley leaves, to garnish

Put the chopped onion in a bowl along with the parsley. Add the tahini, spices and pomegranate molasses, salt and pepper, and mix well. Knead the meat into the flavorful mixture. Form into six oval patties and set aside until you’re ready to cook them.

Meanwhile, make the tahini sauce.

Heat the oil in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Fry the kofta patties about 4 minutes on each side until they’re cooked through.

To assemble, open up a pita pocket and place a kofta patty inside. Drizzle on the tahini sauce and add a slice of tomato, onion and some mint and parsley leaves.

Makes six servings.

Note: Tahini is ground sesame seed paste, available in most grocery stores.

TAHINI AND PARSLEY SAUCE

2 cloves garlic, mashed

Juice of 2 lemons

½ cup tahini

½ cup yogurt

½ cup chopped parsley, stalks removed

Sea salt

Mix the garlic, lemon juice, tahini, yogurt and parsley until smooth and creamy. Season with salt.

Makes about 1 cup.

Lisa Abraham can be reached at 330-996-3737 or at labraham@thebeaconjournal.com. Find me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter @akronfoodie or visit my blog at www.ohio.com/blogs/lisa.

Police cite rare DUI daily double

• Niles Gammons of Urbana, Ohio, apparently did some partying on Saturday night, Nov. 3, because he managed a rare DUI daily double.

He was first cited for DUI at 1:08 a.m. Sunday and then, 60 minutes later, he was again cited for DUI at 1:08 a.m. The first was during daylight saving time; the second was after the changeover.

• Guy Black, 76, was charged in Turbotville, Pa., in October with threatening housemate Ronald Tanner with a chainsaw. Tanner, defending himself with the only “weapon” within reach — an umbrella — managed to pin Black with it as the chain saw jammed. (Most people who bring an umbrella to a chain saw fight would be less successful.)

— News of the Weird

This is the year you will resolve to ditch the diets, the “all or nothing” mentality and the “no-pain, no-gain” fitness goals. This is the year you will resolve to use common sense to eat less junk food, move more — and have fun doing it.

Remember what it was like when you were a kid and you thought nothing of playing tag for hours on end? That spirit still lives. You just need to wake it up. Maybe with a high-energy Zumba workout or Shaun T’s Hip Hop Abs, done in the privacy of your own home. Or by walking your dog while listening to a Dan Brown thriller. Instead of embarking on yet another diet, why not try to lose roughly 1 pound a week by creating a modest 500-calorie deficit each day. That’s easily accomplished by slashing about 250 calories from your diet (the equivalent of five Oreos) and burning about 250 calories through exercise, such as a brisk two-to-three-mile walk. You can do that.

Here are 52 tips for each week of the year, but we know we’re just scratching the surface.

1. You “work” all week. No wonder you don’t want to “work” out. Find a way to move more and have fun doing it. Take a Zumba class. (Many studios will let you take your first class free.) Even if you never go back, it will redefine your definition of exercise.

2. You know that lazy, sluggish feeling you get when you drink alcohol? That’s your metabolism slowing to a halt.

3. Adopt an avatar. James Bond? Lara Croft? Put it in charge of slaying your food cravings. Or pretend you’re the Terminator and someone is standing between you and your workout.

4. Buy a pedometer. Slowly work your way up to 10,000 to 15,000 steps a day. Parents can make it a game: The person with the most steps for the day gets out of dish duty or earns more console time.

5. Gardening and heavy-duty housework, like cleaning out the garage, do count.

6. Write a loooong list of all the fun, sexy, sassy reasons you want to achieve your fitness goals. (“I want to rock a bikini!” “I want biceps worthy of Men’s Health.”) Make copies and stash them everywhere. Your wallet. Your car. Your kitchen. Review when weakness strikes.

7. Six packs are made in the kitchen, not the gym. If you have only 30 minutes, you’re better off using that time to prep the following day’s breakfast and lunch than working out. That’s right. We just gave you an excuse to skip a workout, but only if you use that time wisely.

8. Jump on the boutique gym bandwagon. Try a funky, fun fitness haven, where the low-impact, calorie-torching workout happens in a room full of cutting-edge elliptical machines. The classes fly by.

9. Eat all the raw, non-starchy vegetables you can stand.

10. Exercise while doing household chores. Put in a load of laundry before you press “play” on a fitness DVD, and pause partway through to make the washer-to-dryer transfer. Or plan dinner around a casserole that bakes while you work out.

11. Give up extreme thinking. Don’t, say, give up chocolate. How about: Give up bingeing on chocolate, and instead resolve to enjoy it in moderation.

12. Ask yourself: “How can I reach my health and fitness goals and enjoy the process?” You don’t need to answer the question. Let your brain percolate on it. (Credit motivational guru Tony Robbins.)

13. Got a tablet? Download a movie and prop it on a treadmill at the gym. The average movie should get you through four 30-minute walks.

14. Stop trying to be Julia Child. Store-bought rotisserie chicken + bagged salad equals dinner. A corn tortilla quesadilla + bagged salad equals dinner. A grilled steak + bagged salad equals dinner.

15. Use social media. Find fitness fanatics to follow and draft off their enthusiasm to bolster your resolve. Use Twitter to announce your goals and ask followers to hold you accountable.

16. Find more ways to move at work. Stand at your desk or while you’re on the phone. Instead of a stuffy meeting room, chat with a colleague during a brief walk.

17. Band together with some like-minded (and trustworthy) friends or co-workers, invest in a few workout DVDs and swap them every month to keep things interesting.

18. You absolutely, positively have no time to work out? How about a 10-minute walk — five minutes in one direction, then turn around — in the morning, at noon and when you get home at night?

19. Register to walk a half marathon. Download free training programs online.

20. Pay yourself. Put $5 in a jar every time you work out. Or every time you bring a healthful, delicious lunch to work. If you work out three times a week and take lunch two times a week, you’ll be sitting on a sweet $1,300 come the 2013 holiday shopping season.

21. Your two best fitness buddies: Your kids and your dog. Walk to parks and just have fun. Kick a soccer ball around. Play Frisbee. Tag. Fly a kite. You won’t just burn calories, you’ll model healthful habits for your kids.

22. Playing tourist in your hometown — crawling museums, hiking scenic trails, strolling sidewalks — is a blissful way to add steps to your pedometer.

23. Earn your dessert. Craving ice cream? Make it a single scoop that comes at the halfway point of a four-mile round-trip walk. And enjoy every creamy bite.

24. Create a private Daily Mug Shot account and commit to taking a picture of yourself every day in 2013. (Men go shirtless, women in a sports bra.) Take a spin through those photos when you need encouragement. And just imagine the photo gallery at year’s end.

25. Read fitness magazines that will inspire you with new workouts (and not depress you with ridiculously skinny models).

26. Scour the Web for fitness blogs written by people like you. The next time you feel like skipping a workout, tap into that community for motivation.

27. Parents: You do more for your children than for yourself. Use that to your advantage! When you find yourself reaching for a doughnut, think of your kids: Do you want to saddle them with a morbidly obese, Type 2 diabetic mom or dad? And step away from the doughnut.

28. Do some year-end, rear-end projections. If you slash your Oreo consumption in half from eight cookies a week to four, you’ll save more than 11,000 calories and lose nearly 4 pounds.

29. If you have a salad bar at work, use it. Bring a protein from home — grilled chicken, hard-boiled eggs, tuna — and drop it onto some salad bar greens.

30. Many people plan weekday meals and go wild over the weekend. Plan weekend meals too. If you are meeting friends for a celebratory dinner on Saturday night, make sure the rest of your weekend meals stick to your program.

31. Let co-workers take the elevator. You take the stairs. (Pretty soon they’ll be following you.)

32. Keep a food journal, but don’t beat yourself up. Instead, like a detective, use the journal to spot bad habits and find a way to gently correct them.

33. Do not skip meals. Ever. If you miss breakfast, there’s an extremely good chance you will end up overeating at some point during the day.

34. Prepare for the apocalypse. Have healthful snacks, such as almonds or beef jerky, in your desk drawer, your glove compartment, your purse, your gym bag.

35. Supermarket survival tips: Just don’t buy it, and don’t shop hungry. If you don’t put it in your cart, you can’t devour it at 3 a.m. And how many times have you purchased chips and scarfed half of them before you pulled the car into the driveway? (Or is that just me?)

36. When you hear the candy dish at work calling you, ask yourself, “Will that get me closer to my goals?”

37. I like to download books, especially thrillers and mysteries. But I have a rule: I cannot listen unless I am walking the dog. I’m so eager to find out what happens next that, more often than not, the dog gets a three-mile walk.

38. Get a good night’s rest. You are more likely to make poor food choices and skip workouts when you’re tired and cranky. Plus, your body needs the rest when it’s worked out regularly.

39. Most Americans eat 250 to 300 grams of carbohydrates a day, the equivalent of 1,000 to 1,200 calories. The national Institute of Medicine recommends 130 grams. Look for small, easy ways to cut carbs. Eat the burger with half the bun. Scoop up hummus with cucumber slices.

40. When you splurge, splurge smart. Those stale, store-bought cookies at work? Not worth it. Homemade cookies from Mom? Enjoy in moderation.

41. Don’t drink your calories. Reach for water instead of sugary drinks.

42. Find ways to relieve stress that do not involve food. Pray. Meditate. Exercise.

43. Take small, steady steps toward slashing your processed food. Read the labels of anything you’re considering buying. If you see ingredients you cannot pronounce, or lots of sweeteners, walk away.

44. Sugar makes you want more sugar. That has nothing to do with self-control. You’re not weak. You’re human. And ask yourself: Do you want to control what you eat or do you want what you eat to control you?

45. Get mad at all the ads that bombard you with enticements to eat and drink yourself silly. Get in the habit of noticing those cues, and come up with a mantra to silently repeat to yourself when you see them, such as, “I am not a billy goat. I don’t eat trash.”

46. What’s your favorite music? That’s what you should be working out to. Turn down the volume on the fitness DVD and work out to your own score.

47. If you don’t like running and weights, don’t do them. A perfectly good fitness regimen can revolve around yoga.

48. Would you like someone to scare you into eating fewer carbs? Read Wheat Belly by Dr. William Davis.

49. If you do a lot of casual or fast-food dining, read the calorie counts. Instant appetite suppressant.

50. If you tend to watch too much TV, make a deal with yourself: no screen time till the workout is done.

51. Consider your routines. How can you fit in some “flash fitness?” Can you ride your bike to work? Get your fruits and vegetables during a long stroll around the farmers market? Park your car two blocks from the dry cleaners?

52. Realize that maybe the real reason you eat too much junk food is because … you’re normal.

Our lives are filled with more stresses and demands than ever, and food is one enjoyable thing we can do for ourselves each day.

Maybe the best resolution of all for 2013 is to find a healthy way to bring more joy into your life.

That one should be easy to keep!

Cut clutter wisely

If clutter-busting is on your list of new year’s resolutions, resist the urge to rush out this weekend and stock up on baskets and bins. Instead, spend time first paring your possessions, assessing what’s left and planning where to put those things. Thinking that through will save you from wasting money on containers that aren’t right for the job.

Be sure to study and measure your storage space before you shop. That will ensure you use the space most efficiently and buy containers that fit.

Same show, new network

Cougar Town, the Courteney Cox comedy which spent three seasons on ABC, is finally back for a fourth — but now on TBS. The season premiere, at 10 p.m. Tuesday, picks up a week after the marriage of Jules (Cox) and Grayson (Josh Hopkins), with plenty of banter, wine and innuendo. And there is more than one reference to the show’s change of venue, including an onscreen graphic saying: “Thanks, TBS. Can we curse on TV now?”

Cabin fever reliever

Wondering about all the construction at the Akron Zoo? Grab the kids, get out for a few hours and learn about what’s happening at the zoo. Each Saturday in January, the zoo will offer crafts, stories, activities and hot chocolate for everyone.

Admission to the Cabin Fever Reliever, which runs between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., is free with admission to the zoo, 500 Edgewood Ave.

Rock cello concert

New York-based indie rock cellist Christopher Bell will perform music from his fourth full-length album, Cashing In On My Mistakes, along with Kent band Stuff It!alian at 9 p.m. Thursday at Buzzbin Art & Music Shop, 339 Cleveland Ave. NW, Canton. The show is free.

Cookbook club in Ellet

The Good Cook, the cookbook club at the Ellet Branch of the Akron-Summit County Public Library, meets the first Tuesday of every month from 7 to 8 p.m. at the library, 2470 E. Market St., Akron.

The upcoming book selections are Weight Watchers Food Talk (Tuesday) and Hungry Girl Meal-Mania (Feb. 5).

The club is free and open to the public. For more information, call 330-784-2019 or email mderr@akronlibrary.org.

New in your paper

Look in the Beacon Journal every Monday starting tomorrow for American Profile, a magazine focusing on hometown life in the Midwest.

Stories will focus on people, places, lifestyles and food of the region, health trends, current issues and celebrity news.

Housewarming presents
can also help our planet

Giving a housewarming present? It can be a gift for your friends and the planet at the same time.

If you usually get cut flowers, try a potted plant instead. They will last years instead of days and are usually grown in local nurseries.

Mushroom-growing kits or herb gardens are items the new homeowners can watch grow and use in recipes. Present packets of various seeds tied up in a ribbon or in small growing pots. Cute but useful food composting containers for the kitchen make an ideal gift.

Creating a green cleaning kit as a housewarming present is useful and unique. Make it super easy for the recipients by packing up everything you need including white vinegar for all-purpose cleaning, baking soda for non-abrasive scrubbing, borax for fighting mold, or plant-based cleaners off store shelves. Add in some reusable cloths or eco-friendly paper towel alternatives.

If you want to go a more traditional route, you can still choose safer and eco-friendly options. Soy candles are a much safer alternative to petroleum-based ones. A local wine is a better choice than a bottle from across the globe. And, a traditional gift basket with foods can be created with local and organic goodies of all kinds.

— Terri Bennett

McClatchy-Tribune

Hints from Heloise:

Wet-erase marker helps
with gift card balance

A reader writes via email: In response to a hint in your column about marking the balance on your gift card with a permanent marker:

Since I buy lots of gift cards at my grocery store to use for everyday purchases (I get great fuel perks by doing this), I may end up using one several times before it is used up. I keep track of the balance with a wet-erase marker that I keep in my car. I update the balance by wiping it clean with a baby towelette and printing the new balance as soon as I get back to the car.

— King Features

Survey finds Americans
are a bit too plugged-in

Americans are so attached to their cellphones that 29 percent of owners say they couldn’t imagine living without them, according to a recent study by the Pew Internet and American Life project.

Among smartphone owners — nearly half of American adults — the dependence is even greater, with 36 percent viewing the gadgets as key to their existence.

But they also worry about being a bit too plugged-in.

“They appreciate what [phones] can do in helping them navigate their daily lives,” said Aaron Smith, a Pew researcher. “But they also bring a certain amount of stress and anxiety.”

About a quarter of those surveyed said they dislike being reachable at all times, and 39 percent said they’ve heard complaints from others when they don’t immediately respond to calls and text messages.

Maybe that’s why 67 percent of adults surveyed said they check for messages or calls even when their phones aren’t ringing or vibrating.

Forty-four percent said they had slept with the cellphone next to the bed to avoid missing calls, texts or late-night updates.

— Katie Humphrey

Minneapolis Star Tribune

HARDCOVER FICTION

1. The Racketeer, John Grisham. Malcolm Bannister, an imprisoned ex-lawyer, knows who murdered a federal judge. He concocts a scheme to exchange this information for his freedom.

2. Gone Girl, Gillian Flynn. A woman disappears on her fifth anniversary; is her husband a killer?

3. Threat Vector, Tom Clancy with Mark Greaney. As China threatens to invade Taiwan, covert intelligence expert Jack Ryan Jr. aids the administration — but his agency is no longer secret.

4. Merry Christmas, Alex Cross, James Patterson. Detective Alex Cross confronts both a hostage situation and a terrorist act at Christmas.

5. The Casual Vacancy, J.K. Rowling. The sudden death of a parish councilman reveals bitter social divisions in an idyllic English town.

HARDCOVER NONFICTION

1. Killing Kennedy, Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard. The host of The O’Reilly Factor recounts the events surrounding the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

2. Thomas Jefferson, Jon Meacham. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist celebrates Jefferson’s skills as a politician.

3. Killing Lincoln, Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard. The host of The O’Reilly Factor recounts the events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

4. No Easy Day, Mark Owen with Kevin Maurer. An account by a former member of the Navy SEALs of the mission that killed Osama bin Laden.

5. America Again, Stephen Colbert, Richard Dahm, Paul Dinello, Barry Julien, Tom Purcell et al. The mock pundit of Comedy Central’s Colbert Report tells how to bring America back from the brink.

MASS-MARKET PAPER FICTION

1. Safe Haven, Nicholas Sparks. The arrival of a mysterious young woman in a small North Carolina town raises questions about her past.

2. One Shot, Lee Child. Former military investigator Jack Reacher teams with a young defense lawyer to search for a gunman who has killed five people and thrown a heartland city into a state of terror.

3. A Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin. In the frozen wastes north of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are mustering; Book 1 of A Song of Ice and Fire.

4. Kill Alex Cross, James Patterson. The president’s children are abducted, and Detective Alex Cross is one of the first on the scene. But someone is using the FBI, Secret Service and CIA to keep him off the case and in the dark.

5. Big Sky River, Linda Lael Miller. With his job, friends and a run-down but decent ranch in Montana, Sheriff Boone Taylor doesn’t want romance. But when a city woman buys the spread next door, his days of peace and quiet are over.

— New York Times

REDBOX TOP DVD RENTALS

1. The Dark Knight Rises

2. Trouble With the Curve

3. Total Recall

4. ParaNorman

5. The Watch

— McClatchy-Tribune

News Service

ITUNES TOP SONGS

1. I Knew You Were Trouble, Taylor Swift

2. Locked Out of Heaven, Bruno Mars

3. Ho Hey, The Lumineers

4. Gangnam Style, PSY

5. Home, Phillip Phillips

— www.apple.com

ITUNES TOP ALBUMS

1. Babel, Mumford & Sons

2. The World from the Side of the Moon, Phillip Phillips

3. Les Misérables: Highlights from the Motion Picture Soundtrack, various artists

4. Take Me Home, One Direction

5. The Lumineers, The Lumineers

— www.apple.com

Q: My 10-year-old daughter is having thoughts about other girls. She says she’s worried because she notices and admires other girls’ figures. I know this is normal, but I’m not really sure what to say to her. She seems to be obsessing about it. What’s your advice?

A: You should tell her what you already know to be true: It’s perfectly normal for a pre-teen girl to admire other girls’ bodies. Point out to her that adult men admire other men’s bodies and adult women admire other women’s bodies. Admiration and sexual attraction are two entirely different things.

It’s also fairly normal for pre-teens to experience a moderate amount of obsessive thinking about one thing or another. Their tendency to worry about themselves probably has to do with changes going on in brain chemistry and cognitive abilities as well as related changes in self-concept.

In that regard, it’s important that you not make this a topic of frequent conversation. The more you talk with her about it, no matter how understanding and reassuring you are, the more obsessing she’s likely to do. Say what you have to say, and then tell her something along these lines: “This is not something we need to keep talking about. In fact, the more we talk about it, the more you’re going to think about it, and the more you’re going to worry about it. I’ve said all I have to say, so let’s make an agreement that this is the last conversation we’re going to have about this.”

She’s looking to you for an indication of whether this is important or not. If you act like it’s not worth talking about, she’ll eventually stop worrying about it — eventually being the operative word. At that point, because she’s a pre-teen, she’ll probably start worrying about something else.

Q: My 5-year-old daughter loves to play with other kids her age, but has not yet asked me to invite any of her school friends over for a play date. According to her teacher, she’s a bit shy but plays well with the other girls in her class. And when the chance presents itself, she plays well with others in the neighborhood or friends from elsewhere. Should I go ahead and arrange play dates or let her make the first move on that?

A: I have two somewhat opposing thoughts about this.

First, if she were interested enough in play dates, she would ask you to arrange them. On the other hand, maybe she doesn’t know to ask or is a tad reluctant. Maybe she’s afraid she’ll be turned down.

Tell her that if she wants, you will arrange weekly play dates for her. If she agrees, do so until she feels comfortable enough to call and arrange them herself.

Family psychologist John Rosemond answers parents’ questions at www.rosemond.com.

It’s dinnertime, and 6-year-old Joaquin Hurtado is staying in his seat. He hasn’t stood up, run around the table or wrestled with his little brother. Good thing. It wouldn’t take much unruly behavior to shatter the dishware or the mood in this upscale restaurant.

“This is a place where you come to eat,” the boy says softly, explaining nice manners. “It’s not a place to play.”

The place is Chenery Park, a restaurant in San Francisco with low lights, cloth napkins, $24 grilled salmon and “family night” every Tuesday. Children are welcome, with a catch: They are expected to watch their manners, or learn them. Think upscale dining with training wheels.

Chenery Park has many allies in the fight to teach manners to a new generation of children. Around the country, there are classes with etiquette counselors teaching manners in a more decentralized and less formal way. A few restaurants and high-end hotels set aside space and time for families.

These etiquette experts say that new approaches are needed because parents no longer have the stomach, time or know-how to play bad cop and teach manners. Dinnertime can be a free-for-all, with packed family schedules, the television on and the belief of many parents that they should let children be children.

Some of these manners-minders acknowledge that they can sound like curmudgeons. But they also say that parents welcome outsourcing the hard work of teaching youngsters to follow rules.

During a recent family night at Chenery Park, Joseph Kowal, an owner, roamed among the regulars and newcomers. He’s got a twinkle in his eye but a steely commitment to having children at least sit politely and not scream or throw food.

“Some parents will say, ‘Uncle Joe’s going to come up here, and he’s going to be cross with you,’ ” Kowal said. “They use that to their advantage.” He recalled one child who wouldn’t settle down, and he threatened to tape the child’s mouth. The child told him to go ahead and try.

“I went to my office, got some blue painter’s tape, came back and ripped a piece off,” he said. The kid piped down. “The parents looked at me like, ‘We’re going to try that at home.’ ”

What are the best strategies for training children to be polite, to pay attention to the world around them, whether they are in dim lighting with fragile dishware or at home? Etiquette teachers, parents and people who spend time thinking about manners have some ideas.

“These days, you have to teach kids about return on investment,” said Robin Wells, founder of Etiquette Manor in Coral Gables, Fla., which holds classes on etiquette for adults and children. When it comes to children, she said, these days you can’t tell them they have to behave a certain way “just because.”

So, even as she imparts lessons about using forks and looking the waiter in the eye, she frames them in a constructively selfish way. She often exhorts her young students: Be polite to your mother because she’ll be happier, and if she’s happier, you’re happier.

On the first day of her five one-hour sessions, which cost $285, she tells the children to go home and do one unexpectedly kind thing so that they can see how impressed their parents will be. “It’s almost manipulation at its finest,” she said.

On the last day of class, the class dines at an upscale restaurant. (Among her lessons: she slams a clunky landline phone on the table and asks children if that seems OK. No, she responds, so don’t put your cellphone on the table either.)

Around the country, entrepreneurs teach versions of etiquette and manners classes, said Elena Neitlich, the founder of Moms On Edge, with offices in Osprey, Fla., that offers online certification for manners teachers through a course called Etiquette Moms, at prices from $250 to $1,250.

She believes that teaching manners has grown more challenging, and necessary, in part because of technology.

“Kids have stopped making eye contact at one another,” Neitlich said. “They bring their technology to the table.” She added that it is true of parents, too.

It all makes teaching manners at home challenging, said Faye de Muyshondt, the founder of Socialsklz, which teaches workshops in New York City on etiquette and social skills. Modern children seem to want no part of the conversation, she said: “Say the words ‘manners’ or ‘etiquette’ to kids these days, and they run the other direction.”

She thinks that one key aspect of her workshops, which take place in schools or with Brownie troops, is that they don’t happen in the home. “The casual nature of the home makes it difficult,” she said.

“A fancy restaurant gives off so many cues that this is a place for refined behavior,” said Ralph B. Taylor, a professor of criminal justice at Temple University who studies how environments influence behavior. And he and other people in the field say that the environment changes not just the youngsters. “The parents are changed,” he added. “You’re not talking loud; you’re not yakking on the cellphone. Everybody is with the program.”

Taylor and other experts said that parents can take some of the ecological psychology lessons from places like Chenery Park.

“Take parts of the restaurant home with you,” he advised. Use a tablecloth or nice napkins to simulate the environment that changed children’s behavior. Then introduce children to other environments — like highbrow concerts or museums.