Jaimie Lafferty, RD, CLC
Bachelor of Science in Dietetics | January 2016
University of Delaware Dietetic Internship | Class of 2017
Interests and Hobbies
Cooking
As a future dietitian, I love to cook. I am constantly exploring new cuisines as well as developing my own healthy recipes.
I am a huge fan of roasting vegetables in the oven. Here I have zucchini, yellow squash, carrot, sweet potato, garlic cloves, onion, asparagus, and mushroom in a little bit of olive oil seasoned with a pinch of salt, oregano, and rosemary.
Exploring New Cultures and Cuisines
Traveling
To the left is a salad recipe I created:
Quinoa, Chicken, Sweet Potato, and Black Bean Spinach Salad
1/4 cup chopped grilled chicken
1/4 cup drained and washed low sodium black beans
1/3 cup of sweet potatoes
1/2 cup of cooked red quinoa mixed with lime
2 cups of chopped fresh spinach
2 tsp of fresh lime juice
1 tsp of olive oil
1/2 tsp onion powder
pinch of salt
Instructions:
1. Chop spinach and place in bowl.
2. Open can of low sodium black beans and rinse,
measure out 1/4 cup and place over spinach.
3. Place 1/4 cup of quinoa cooked over spinach and squeeze 2 tsp of fresh lime juice over quinoa
4. Wash and peel a medium sweet potato and dice. In medium saucepan, place diced potato and add olive oil, onion powder and salt. Cook on high heat until the potatoes start to brown, then reduce heat and stir until fully cooked. Place over spinach.
Enjoy!
Being ever curious, I love to experiment with new cuisines. In the picture to the left, I am making a Vietnamese dish called Bahn Hoi. What holds the food together is rice paper. In order to eat the rice paper, it needs to be soaked in boiling water for a few seconds then taken out, put on the plate, and then filled with rice vermicelli. It often served with meat and greens, which can be included in the roll. Often times it is eaten with dipping sauces such as fish sauce and peanut sauce. It is delicious!
Growing up in the Armenian culture, my exposure to diversity began when I was an infant. My grandmother (mother's mother) passed away before I was born, and my grandfather remarried an Armenian woman. As a result, I attended an Armenian school where learned the language and culture for 9 years. I was the minority in an already minority culture, being the only blonde-haired green-eyed girl among the many dark-haired, dark-eyed, dark-skinned Armenians at the school. I learned to understand the hardships of their people as well as understand their values. This long term experience has made me very comfortable with people of different backgrounds, which is a key skill when interacting with a variety of diverse clients.
To the left is traditional Armenian bread called chureg.
When I traveled to Mexico with my family in June 2015, we stayed near a city called Merida located in the Yucatan Peninsula. There was a restaurant in the city that sold only traditional Yucatecan cuisine. The traditional meal I tried was called Panuchos, which translates to English as "stuffed tortillas." Panuchos (showed in the picture to the right) are fried tortillas stuffed with black smashed beans. It is served with baked turkey or pork, lettuce, tomato, marinated onion, and avocado.
Traveling is a huge part of my life and I am an adventurer at heart. I have been to 20 of the 50 states across the country. I traveled with my family to Europe in June of 2012 and saw Italy, Spain, Monaco, France, and Tunisia. In December of 2013, I visited the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, and the Florida Keys. My most recent adventure was to Mexico, where I was immersed in the culture for 16 days. It was a great experience that helped me to understand their ways of life, as well as a good way for me to practice speaking the Spanish language. Since the Hispanic population in the U.S. is greater than 54 million, I feel that it is essential that I learn about their culture.
My goal is explore as many different cultures and cuisines in order to understand the food habits of my future patients and clients. Even after I become a Registered Dietitian, I intend to continue exploring new cuisines.
Below is a picture of traditional Mexican garb displayed in a museum.
To the left is my family and I inside the Collosseum in Italy.
To the right is a picture of the Amalfi Coast in Italy.
To the left, I am standing in the ancient city of Carthage in Tunisia.
The picture to the right was taken when we entered the city of Tunis, Tunisia.
Dancing
Dance is a huge part of my life. I began taking ballet lessons at the age of 7 have been dancing ever since. I danced for 11 years at Touch of Class Dance Studio in Broomall, PA and the past 3 years at Mid Atlantic Ballet in Newark, DE. I learned to salsa dance in high school at a leadership conference run by the New Jersey Elks and have been hooked ever since. My most recent dance development is becoming a Licensed Zumba Fitness Dance Instructor. I enjoy staying active for the benefit of my own health but also am motivated to stay fit in order to be a good role model for others as a future Registered Dietitian.
Whether it is finding a new way to be more organized or hand making something, I thrive on the ability to be creative in my daily life. In April 2012 I created an online store on Etsy.com. Here I sell a few handmade hats, bracelets, and bows. I add items when I have time and find it fun because it is a no-stress, easy way to express myself. The title of my shop is "Keep La Paz" which is partly in Spanish, and translated to "Keep the Peace." If you would like to check out my store, please feel free to click the link below.
The purpose of including this is because I believe my creative abilities are applicable across the board. Being able to develop new ways of thinking and having an open mind is crucial as a dietitian, especially when problem-solving with clients. It is a skill that will serve useful in developing diet plans, developing nutrition education tools, as well as in nutrition counseling sessions.
Music is something I cannot live without. I have been playing the piano and the organ for 13 or more years and cannot see myself ever stopping. I only took lessons for 3 years, and have been self-taught for the past 10. It is a great stress reliever and a great way to connect with others.
Being Creative
Music
Languages
I have been studying the Spanish language for 8 years. I learned for 4 years in high school, a year in college, and the past 3 years I have been studying on my own. At the moment I have an intermediate level, which allows me to be conversational with native speakers.
I am currently studying on my own time for an advanced Spanish exam, called the DELE C2 level. DELE stands for "Diplomas de Español como Lengua Extranjera" which in English means "Diplomas of Spanish as a Foreign Language." The DELEs are official diplomas issued by the Spanish Instituto Cervantes on behalf of the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science to individuals who wish to prove their proficiency in the European Spanish language.
"DELE C2 is the highest and most advanced of the six learning levels established in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. It certifies the level of Mastery.
The DELE C2 certifies sufficient linguistic competence to perfectly handle any kind of situation, proving a spontaneous capacity of adaptation to any context, with a great deal of semantic and grammatical precision. The language users express themselves fluently, with a high degree of specialization and complexity."
http://dele.cervantes.es/en/information/levels/level_c2.html
