H'Art and Soul of Dining - New Menus with Delicious Recipes!

We are proud to announce that on April 5th our revitalized spring/summer menus will begin for our H’Art and Soul of Dining Signature Program at all of our communities.  This new signature program will help us improve quality of life and whole person wellness for the individuals that call Juniper Village home.  We are very excited this season since the offerings will feature a delicious 5-week entrée select option featuring fabulous new choices using some of the fresh products available through our food vendors. Also, on our updated menus, we have added many lighter alternatives as well as recipes specific to each community that take into account special diets, regional tastes, food committee requests and our resident’s special needs and personal requests.  These changes to our meal plans significantly increase the variety of selections provided for our residents while focusing upon scratch made offerings and heart-healthy meals.  Furthermore, in celebration of our AIAS spring quarter “Healthy Aging,” our Grill Menus will be re-vamped to highlight healthier offerings throughout the season. In addition we will be implementing an innovative hydration assurance program served from our “Oasis Carts,” featuring a variety of flavored waters using citrus or mint or cucumbers, fresh brewed iced tea, lemonade, punch, smoothies and juices as well as nutritious snacks.

Below are some of the recipes featured on our new menu:

Carrot-Currant Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour (to measure, spoon into a cup and level)
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup carrot juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup shredded carrots

1/2 cup dried currants
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In another bowl whisk together butter, egg, milk, carrot juice and vanilla. Pour the egg mixture over the dry ingredients and gently fold just until moistened. Fold carrots and dried currants into the mix. Scoop batter into the muffin pan and bake until golden brown and firm to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from pan (cool on a wire rack if you have one).

Yellow Squash Soup

Cooking Spray

1/2 cup diced yellow onion

1 cup diced zucchini

1 cup diced yellow squash

3 cups low-sodium vegetable stock

1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasonings

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 (15 ounce) can Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 (15 ounce) can diced no-salt-added tomatoes

Coat a large saucepan with cooking spray. Heat over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes. Add zucchini and yellow squash; sauté 3 minutes. Add all other ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes.

Night at the Oscars

A Night at the Oscars couples two aspects of our Connections Juniper signature program; our Alive in All Seasons monthly themed Dinners and our Best Friends program.  Each Resident of Juniper Village is awarded an Oscar for a special attribute.  Tom Korn, resident family member, stated “this is the best thing you do all year long! This is great!”  Chatter from the crowd could be heard and the talk was jovial, belly shaking laughter over many of the awards.  Margaret Rudler’s “best friend”, Monica Blood (Wellness Director), encompassed Margaret best with her Oscar: Doilie Do!   Margaret crochets doilies daily!

Best friend associates enjoyed the task of creating those special awards for their resident best friends.  This annual event is held the Second Thursday in March at 5:30pm.  Don’t miss it next year!

We’re Welcoming Spring and All Things New

“Spring is the time of plans and projects.” 
― Leo Tolstoy in Anna Karenina

We here at Juniper Village at Meadville have been making some dramatic changes recently. Last winter, we installed luxurious new carpet. This spring, we got beautiful new furniture; see the pictures below. Stop in today to check out our updates and just maybe get in on things still to come. 

Art Month Draws to a Close

February was a month of intensely tapping into our creative capacities.  Residents enjoyed many opportunities to express themselves.  Our Art History and Painting Studio sessions will continue throughout the year due to popular demand!  The fruits of our labors in February have been transformed into note cards that will be shared with our families, friends, affiliates and the community at large.  The artistic renderings that were realized in February can now be enjoyed for years to come.  Continue to check out our Blog and Facebook page to see how wonderful the artistic experiences were.  Here are a few photos . . .

Your Treasure is Within: March Events

Our Alive in All Seasons program is alive and well at Juniper Village. This quarter’s seasonal theme is on Creative Expression: “Explore Your Creativity” and serves to promote our philosophy of encouraging an active body, an engaged mind and a fulfilled spirit. For March, we will turn our focus to Performance: “Your Treasure is Within”.

This month on March 2, 2014 we look forward to the 86^th celebration of the Academy Awards. As we watch popular comedian and talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres host the festivities while the beautiful stars dressed in their finery walk the red carpet we can’t help to stop, to pause and reminisce of all of the great performances of past years. Katherine Hepburn, Bette Davis, Marlon Brando, Robert DeNiro, Tom Hanks, Jack Nicholson, Vivien Leigh, Meryl Streep, Peter Ustinov and Dustin Hoffman; the list goes on! In addition to guessing who might win the Oscars for 2014, this month we will be learning about and experiencing all different types of great performance art, enjoying cultural events and trying our hand at acting in drama club.

It’s going to be a theatrical month at Juniper Village at Meadville filled with creativity, great experiences and memorable performances! You are cordially invited to attend a performance by Magician Vance McCarthy on March 2^nd at 2:00 pm, our Night at the Oscars Dinner on March 13^th at 5:30 pm (RSVP by March 11^th), our St. Patty’s Pub and Grub Party with Z Entertainment on March 19^th at 4:00 pm, our Birthday Bash with guitarist Kenton Kovich on March 26^th at 2:00 pm, or any of our other activities (see our Newsletter for a complete listing).

So come in, and join in on the act to find that “Your Treasure is Within”.

Week 3 Evokes Artistic Expression Beyond our Expectations!

Week 3 evoked the creative artist in everyone!  Finished pieces will be on display at the Art show reception on February 21^st at 3pm, and then following will continue to make an appearance in the community for friends and families to boast throughout the month of February.

Tami Hrizay, instructor,  adds: “Today we talked about Monochromatic colors.  Resident Artists created visions of the images they would put to brush strokes.  Then . . . the magic began . . .

I helped the artists mix colors and offered brief snippets of instruction, then stepped back to allow imaginations to unfold.  Images appeared—took on shape, form and color.

Sunsets, lighthouses, storms and beach scenes came into being.  Smiles emerged causing my own.  It was a good day.”

We can all hardly wait to see how week 4 unfolds! 

 
 

Juniper Jinglers Video

Our own Juniper Jinglers made their concert debut with a performance at January's monthly alive in all seasons Friends and Family Dinner. To see more from the group check out the Juniper Jinglers blog post in January or come visit us for their next performance.