Nutcracker Nutrition

How one ballerina fuels the holiday season

By Grace Huseth

The most wonderful time of the year can also be the most stressful when it comes to eating. Goodies lead to guilt, sweets lead to shame and dinners can be a disaster to navigate. One of the most unlikely advocates for holiday indulgence during the holiday season is Atlanta Ballet dancer Ashley Wegmann. Even during the busy Nutcracker season, Wegmann allows visions of sugarplums to dance in her head.

“The holidays are a time to celebrate and enjoy,” Wegmann said. After a full day of dancing, she’s not afraid to have a cookie or toast a performance well done with a cocktail. “Don’t feel guilty about that, judge yourself or make it a bad thing. It’s a wonderful thing and the holidays are great for that exact reason.”

Wegmann eats luxuriously because she understands balance. She’s quick to warn people against an “all or nothing” mentality to prevent overindulging in a moment of weakness. Since the Nutcracker is so physically demanding, she knows she has to fuel her body with an arsenal of healthy food to keep her hands off sugar. She grounds herself by doing prep work on her days off, creating meals for the entire week so that she has healthy, wholesome meals ready to go with her to the studio.

“Make choices you are going to feel good about in the long run. I try to eat intuitively. If I want something I’m going to eat it, but I also make decisions so that I won’t feel bad later on,” she said.

Chia seed pudding is one of Wegmann’s favorite snacks. When soaked, superfood chia seeds form a thick gel, or pudding, with a texture similar to tapioca and can be used as a healthier alternative to pudding made using milk and eggs. It’s her go-to, filling but not heavy, snack that satisfies her sweet tooth. Sometimes she’ll even add pumpkin for a seasonal flair.

“There has been a lot more awareness and education on healthy eating as opposed to a time in the dance world when there was a mentality of restriction,” Wegmann said. She credits social media for making body image much more transparent and encouraging dancers to identify as athletes. After all, dancers typically spend eight hours a day in the studio. Wegmann’s pro tip is to eat small things throughout the day to keep her energy levels up. She’s known for having a snack at every five-minute break, carrying jars of food with her in the studio. “We try to make it look as easy as we can on the stage, but it is very physically demanding.”

This is Wegmann’s third season with the Atlanta Ballet. She studied at the Princeton Ballet School on scholarship and previously danced with BalletMet in Columbus, Ohio. Through the years, Wegmann has danced in the Nutcracker as a snowflake, Mrs. Petrov, the shepherdess, dewdrop and a Spanish dancer. With so many different roles, ballerinas of all ages play a part in the nostalgic Nutcracker.

“Nutcracker is special because it is such a tradition for so many people,” Wegmann said. Her own path to becoming a ballerina was sparked by seeing the Nutcracker, her very first introduction to dance. “My mom took me and my dad to the Nutcracker, saw all the kids on stage and thought, ‘I want my daughter to do that!’ She put me in lessons that following year and the rest is history.”

Atlanta Ballet’s Nutcracker runs Dec. 8-28 at the Fox Theatre. Visit atlantaballet.com for tickets and information.

Back by popular demand, Christmas pop-up bar Miracle is now in two locations. Miracle on Monroe returns to the Midtown Promenade restaurant Tapa Tapa, while a new location pops up at The Shops Buckhead Atlanta for Miracle Two. Both locations will feature the Miracle staff decked out in seasonal flair, classic holiday décor and jolly good beverages to match. For opening times and more information, visit miraclebaratlanta.com.

A member of the Maloof Family – owners of the iconic Manuel’s Tavern in PonceyHighland – will open Manny’s Grant Park Pub in a new Paces Property development at 588 Woodward Ave. Featuring more than 5,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space, Paces Properties purchased the Grant Park development, located at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Boulevard, in early 2016 with long-term plans to add additional neighborhood dining and conveniences to the area. Manny’s, set to open next year, will feature a family-friendly dining room with a wide variety of options and availablity for private parties, a patio area featuring TVs to catch Atlanta sports including football, soccer and baseball, and a small game room with darts and other pub favorites. The bar will take center stage and carry an extensive wine list, 20 plus beers on draft and even feature Moscow Mule slushies.

Plans are in place for a third expansion at Scofflaw Brewing Company, the Atlanta brewery growing at a rapid pace and known for its IPAs and barrel-aged stouts. The brewery has a new 50-barrel, four-vessel brewhouse under construction, which will be installed early next year at the current brewing facility in the Bolton neighborhood on the city’s Westside. Eight additional 100-barrel fermentation tanks plus new bright tanks are being installed now. The third expansion in the first 18 months of operation will double the brewery’s current capacity to 30,000 barrels per year. For more information, visit scofflawbeer.com.

Bella Cucina, the award-winning Italian-inspired food and lifestyle brand, has opened a new retail storefront at The Shops Buckhead Atlanta. Started as a small café in Atlanta in 1993 by chef and owner Alisa Barry, Bella Cucina’s offerings include pestos, olive oils, savory salts, citrus spreads, Italian flatbreads and crackers and Dolci desserts. There’s also a curated selection of ceramic ware and wooden utensils. For more information, visit bellacucina.com.

Restaurateur and bar aficionado Billy Streck of Hampton + Hudson and Cypress Street Pint + Plate and Anthony Spina of O4W Pizza are bringing the Grandma Pie home to Old Fourth Ward. The two have teamed up to open a new restaurant and bar, which has not yet been named, in the new phase of Studioplex at 659 Auburn Ave., expected to open mid-2018.

Krog Street Market in Inman Park has welcomed Sweet Inman’s Candies, a new concept from The Daniel Richards Group, the retail team behind The Merchant, Archer Paper Goods and Read Shop. The 1,000 square foot stall features old school sweets like jelly beans, hard candies, multiple flavors of cotton candy and a selection of classic Boylan sodas and other sweet finds. For more information, visit krogstreetmarket.com.