Milwaukee Mental Health Training, North Pole Facts, Food Friday: Restorative Foods

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Ever wondered what happens when you try to use a compass at the North Pole, or who explored the region first? We discuss these and other lesser-known facts about the place Santa Claus calls home. We also learn about a new mental health training program for Milwaukee police officers, and hear about restorative foods to help you get through the holiday season.

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  • Restorative Foods To Give One A Break During The Holidays

    In between a rich dinner at the in-laws’ and too many Christmas cookies, a break from the gluttony of the holidays might be in order.

    This month, WPR music host and Food Friday regular Lori Skelton set out to find simple, fresh recipes that work as a kind of “reset button” for people immersed in holiday excess.

    “What I was really focusing on for this afternoon was what do you eat … to get yourself completely off on a clean slate in terms of how you feel physically, and, you know, get ready for the next round of excess,” Skelton said.

    Skelton said the basic principle of a so-called “oasis food” is to keep it simple. Examples of oasis foods include pasta with chopped fresh tomato and lightly sauteed seafood, an Asian soup like hot-and-sour, or warm grain cereal with lots of fruit and flax or chia seeds.

    Skelton also said that vegetables were something that came up a lot as she was talking about the concept of restorative foods with others. She nevertheless added: “You do need some protein, though.” She advised adding cheese or peanut butter to a snack of fruits or vegetables to give it more substance.

    Skelton said that one of her WPR colleagues shared her favorite restorative food trick: lots and lots of water. Her suggestion was to make a pitcher made with sliced cucumber, mint, and lemon or lime.

    One of the recipes Skelton made as an oasis food experiment is from “Bon Apetit” magazine: spicy beans With wilted greens. She said the recipe surprised her because she’d never made anything with wilted greens without some kind of pork product. This recipe didn’t call for any meat, but it does need a parmesan rind for the stock.

    Skelton said it was the saving grace of the recipe.

    “I was amazed as how tasty this was, Skelton said. So simple, so easy, and really really inexpensive. Beans and greens, you really don’t need that much more. And it was stunning. We had people coming back for seconds.”

  • 20 Things You Didn't Know About The North Pole

    With Christmas right around the corner, a lot of people are talking about the North Pole–the home of Santa Claus. But did you know there are actually four North Poles? Our science guru shares some fun facts about the polar region.

  • Food Friday: Oasis Foods, Or What To Eat In The Midst Of Holiday Food And Beverage Excess

    In the midst of the holiday craze–you’re probably being bombarded with parties, dinners, and family gatherings. Food Friday regular Lori Skelton shares her favorite “oasis foods”: the foods she makes for herself in the middle of all this food and beverage excess.

  • Milwaukee To Become National Leader In Mental Health Training For Police Officers

    Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett announced Thursday that Milwaukee will become a national leader in preparing police officers to deal with the mentally ill. By 2018, every officer will go through 40 hours of Crisis Intervention Team training, which is considered the gold standard for mental health training.

    Mayor Barrett made the announcement alongside the family of Dontre Hamilton, who suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, and was shot and killed by a Milwaukee Police officer in a park across the street from city hall in April. The family met with Mayor Barrett on Monday, urging him to improve training.

    The expanded training speeds up a pledge made in 2004 by the mayor and police chief after a similar police shooting and comes amid continued protests over the shooting of Dontre Hamilton. The Milwaukee County District Attorney has yet to make a decision on whether to indict the officer who killed Hamilton.

Episode Credits

  • Rob Ferrett Host
  • Veronica Rueckert Host
  • Amanda Magnus Producer
  • Galen Druke Producer
  • Gemma Tarlach Guest
  • Tom Barrett Guest

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