Today's high-protein lunch: Tuna and Bean Salad

Quick, flavorful and pairs well with winter storage foods like the side of roasted root vegetables at today's lunch at home. I could see myself eating this on a bed of lettuce or sprouts, or with a side of some fresh pear or apple slices. The Meyer lemons I purchased this time were pretty orange, so the color contrast of parsley and lemon zest was attractive.

Tuna and White Bean Salad with Lemon and Parsley
serves 2 as main dish, 4 as small plate with greens/sprouts

30 oz cooked white beans or 2 15-oz cans cannelini beans, rinsed and drained
1 5-oz can tuna
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
zest and juice of one Meyer lemon
olive oil, salt and pepper to taste
1 very small clove garlic, minced (optional)

Combine beans, tuna and chopped parsley in a bowl. Whisk together the lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper (and garlic, if using). Taste for seasoning and adjust if desired, then pour the dressing over the bean mixture and toss.

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This one's not edible

To start, a bit of whining. My hands have been very dry and scaly during this winter, which has been longer and colder than others I've spent in Illinois. Also not helpful: we changed to a harsher soap in the kitchen at work, and several of us have been complaining a little about how rough our skin is. I guess that should, in a way, be reassuring to the public to know that I and my colleagues wash our hands frequently enough in the kitchen for it to be hard on our skin. 

I can't solve the problem by washing my hands less often, and my favorite go-to heavy-duty moisturizer, straight shea butter, has not been cutting it this year. My friend Grace turned me on to the idea of making sugar scrub at home for exfoliating. She had some simple recipes she tried using olive and coconut oils with regular table/baking sugar. Her hands looked great and felt soft, so I thought I'd give the idea a try. 

Turns out I'm not the only person from work trying homemade sugar scrub. My colleague Paige came in on her off-duty hours to purchase some ingredients for making hers with honey and olive oil. Putting together the ideas I got from these two ladies with some pieces of recipes from the Internet and a splash of some favorite oils I had around the house, I've devised a sugar scrub that has been a success. My hands are smooth again and less irritated.

Cedar-Orange Sugar Scrub with Argan Oil
Yield: about 1 1/2 cups sugar scrub

Note: this may sound and smell delicious, but the sugar scrub is not edible.

1/2 cup olive oil
1 tsp argan oil
1 cup sugar (special coarse sugar not required, just use ordinary white sugar)
1 Tbsp honey
8 drops cedarwood essential oil
20 drops sweet orange essential oil

Adjust the amounts of essential oil to suit your sense of smell. I like mine more orangey. These are essential oils straight from the plants, not scented oil, which is another oil mixed with the essential oil.

Stir all the ingredients together in a bowl with a spoon or spatula. Package in a clean, dry, airtight container. Fill a very small container to store in the bathroom and refill it from the larger quantity stored in a cool, dry place somewhere else in the house. 
When you use the scrub, stir it around with your fingers, take up a small lump, rub it for several seconds on your hand/other dry skin area and rinse off the sugar with warm water. Dry by patting, not rubbing, with your towel. Follow up with another moisturizer just before bedtime for extra hydrating. Careful of using this scrub in the shower/bathtub. The oil can make your shower floor/bath slippery. 

Variations: use alternative essential oils to find the scent you like. Relax with lavender or ylang-ylang, wake up with citrus or lemongrass, get woodsy with cedar or patchouli. You could even copy kitchen scents with vanilla extract or coffee powder or ground spices from your own kitchen shelves.

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