Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service. I am often reminded of their sacrifice not just from reading the news, but also from seeing many of our students in military attire. I am humbled by their selfless service to our country.

Remember the brave and fallen this Monday.

As many businesses, schools and other institutions are closed Memorial Day, it’s also a popular day for cookouts and picnics. Given the gallon-sized bag of radishes my parents recently delivered and my goal of serving stress-free, make-ahead sides to accompany whatever lands on our grill this weekend, I offer two options below.

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We continue to celebrate May as National Salad Month with our new pals at Noodles & Company, a franchise that feels like anything but. And we really celebrated yesterday at our local Noodles at Valley West Mall when Pete, the general manager and market training manager, and Christina, assistant manager, provided a tasting to some lucky colleagues and me.

“A tasting is a culinary global tour, so get your passports ready,” Pete told us.

Noodles salads - gorgeous enough to gorge upon.

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While our DMU campus is buzzing with commencement and the festivities of celebrating the work of our faculty and students, there is another holiday that falls at the end of the month:  Memorial Day. And for many families, Memorial Day is the official start of picnic season.

Keep picnic guests happy and healthy.

What’s the best way to take perishable foods to a picnic site or family get-together? Let’s begin by thinking about the ending: leftovers. Often we plan how to take food to a gathering safely, but after a long day of fun and sun, we don’t have a safe plan for getting the leftovers home, and it’s the leftovers that can pose a larger health risk of food-borne illness. The best advice is to plan enough food for the event so there will not be any left over.

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I like May for all sorts of reasons, including for its various “holiday” statuses. Did you know, for example, that May is National Foot Health Month, Mental Health Month, Correct Posture Month and Share a Story Month? For all you foodies out there, May is National Strawberry Month, Chocolate Custard Month, Egg Month, Artisan Gelato Month, Asparagus Month and – my personal favorite – National Salsa Month. May is a veritable smorgasbord of benefits!

It's May - time for salads!

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If you read the foodie blogs, or follow the food debates, it doesn’t take long to find someone who doesn’t want you to eat something.  Whether their reasons are passionate, personal or evidence–based, the volume and clutter of “don’t eat” messages sometimes are enough to drive even the most open-minded food consumer to the point of foodie exhaustion.

There are compelling reasons, including health, fitness, social responsibility and economic development to change things about the way we eat. But despite the number of clamoring voices for change, the reality is the typical family is not likely to completely reinvent their diet or buying habits. There are ways to make incremental changes that are important to you.

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Did your mother ever tell you to chew your food slowly and thoroughly? If so, it appears her advice was spot-on for weight control: A recent Iowa State University study found that chewing each bite 40 times before swallowing causes healthy young adults to eat less.

James Hollis, an ISU assistant professor of food science and human nutrition, and Yong Zhu, a doctoral research assistant, divided 20 ISU students into two groups, instructing one to chew their pizza 15 times per bite and the other group, 40 times per bite. They monitored the subjects’ appetites and took blood samples to study plasma glucose levels and hormones, reported an ISU news release.

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