Quinoa, Black Bean and Corn Tacos

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa 
1 Tbsp olive oil 
1 medium yellow onion, diced 
3 cloves garlic, finely minced 
1 cup vegetable broth or chicken broth 
1 (14.5) oz can diced tomatoes with green chilis, undrained 
1 1/2 tsp chili powder 
1 tsp ground cumin 
1/2 tsp paprika 
1/4 - 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 
1/4 tsp ground coriander 
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 
1 1/2 cups frozen corn 
2 (15 oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed 
juice of 1 lime 
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped 

Serve with: 
corn or wheat tortillas 
chopped lettuce 
Monterey Jack, cheddar or cottage cheese 
diced avocados 
diced tomatoes 
hot sauce 

Directions
Heat olive oil in a large non-stick saucepan over medium high heat. Once hot, add onion and saute until golden and tender, about 3 minutes. Add in garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. Stir in broth, diced tomatoes, cooked quinoa, chili powder, cumin, paprika, cayenne, coriander and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat, cover saucepan with lid and simmer about 20 minutes, until mixture has thickened. 
Stir in corn and black beans and simmer, uncovered 5 - 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mix in lime juice and cilantro. Serve warm over tortillas with desired toppings. 
(Recipe Source: recipe adapted slightly from a ward cookbook, recipe submitted by Kelli Price)

Thanks to Tonya Christensen for submitting this recipe! Keep submitting your favorite healthy recipes by emailing them to ucwell4life@gmail.com (feel free to include a picture as well) or through this link here. 

It's National Sleep Awareness Week!

What happens when you sleep?

While sleep needs vary with individuals, most healthy adults need between 7 to 9 hours.  During a proper night’s sleep you will have 4-5 sleep cycles. One sleep cycle looks like this:

Non-REM sleep has four stages, each about 5-15 minutes each. The first stage is a transition stage where brain waves slow down, and you can be awakened without difficulty. Next, you enter into a light sleep. Heart rate decreases, body temperature decreases, and your body prepares for deep sleep. Then, in stages three and four you enter into deep sleep. During this time your body is busy repairing and regenerating tissues, building bone and muscle, and strengthening the immune system.

After about 90 minutes of sleep onset, you enter into REM sleep. REM stands for “Rapid Eye Movement” because at this time your eyes move rapidly. This is when you dream. Brain activity is heightened and brainwave activity to similar to wakefulness. However, paralysis occurs as well, so REM sleep is sometimes referred to as paradoxical sleep. 

Learn more at:  http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/excessive-sleepiness-10/sleep-101

There are many benefits to a proper night's sleep!

• better ability to manage stress
• helps cognitive function (memory, learning, judgment, decision-making)
• allows body to repair and regenerate
• boosts immune system 
• more energy and alertness
• combats feelings of depression and fatigue

Did You Know?

• Sleep helps you learn more effectively! Many of us think that we are being more productive working late into the night, but we would actually be more productive if we had a proper night’s sleep. Sleep allows our brain sorts new information into memory banks, solidifying information and skills that you learned during the day. As this video clips says, sleep “clears our hard drive” so to speak, so that we are ready to learn more. Although this video is targeted towards students, it is excellent information for us all to remember!

• Sleep is important for safe driving!  “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has estimated more than 100,000 auto crashes annually are fatigue related.” (sleep foundation)
• Sleep may play a role in weight loss!  Dr. Michael Breus explains, “Exactly how lack of sleep affects our ability to lose weight has a lot to do with our nightly hormones...Ghrelin is the ‘go’ hormone that tells you when to eat, and when you are sleep-deprived, you have more ghrelin. Leptin is the hormone that tells you to stop eating, and when you are sleep deprived, you have less leptin.” (Webmd)

Interesting clip from 60 Minutes: "Science of Sleep" 

10 Tips to a Better Nights Sleep

1. Stick to a consistent sleep schedule.

2. Practice a relaxing bedtime ritual.

3. Avoid naps, especially in the afternoon (keep naps brief, 20 minutes or less)

4. Exercise daily (aim to finish any vigorous exercise 3-4 hours before bedtime)

5. Evaluate your room. Optimal sleeping conditions are free from noise, light (especially be careful with blue lights in your bedroom from computer and TV screens), and have cooler temperatures (60-67 degrees).

6. Avoid heavy meals in evening. Complex carbs and dairy food are good light evening snacks. Try to finish any snack at least an hour before bed.

7. Don’t drink anything within two hours of sleep.

8. Lower the lights. This signals to your brain to produce melatonin.

9.  If you can’t sleep, go into another room and do something relaxing until you feel tired.

10. Have a “winding down” time in the evening.

Tips collected from:
http://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-tools-tips/healthy-sleep-tips
http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-benefits-10/slideshow-sleep-tips
http://www.helpguide.org/life/sleep_tips.htm

Happy Sleep Awareness Week! 

Remember sleep is an important part of health 

& get a good night's sleep tonight!!

Tried, Tasty, and True....New Healthy, Recipes for You!

In honor of National Nutrition Month, let’s try some new, healthy recipes! Submit your favorite recipe(s) & we will share them here on the blog.  Expand your recipe collection by trying out your co-workers “Tried and True” recipes this month (and earn 5 quarterly points)!

Then come sample your co-workers favorite healthy recipes at our upcoming TASTE TESTING event!  All registered participants will receive a free copy our of “Tried & True” Recipe Book and will be entered into a raffle to win some fun prizes. Let’s make nutrition fun again!  

Submit a recipe and/or register for the Taste Testing HERE. Registration ends March 19th.

Tried & True Taste Testing

March 24th

12:00 pm

1600-1601 HJB