HealthyU Recipes - Portobello Penne Pasta Casserole

When the weather outside is wet and nasty, stay in and enjoy the comfort of a casserole.  This one, from Melanie G, boast a heaping helping of flavor!
Do you have a recipe you'd like the share?  Please do! Any member of the HealthyU committee would be happy to hear from you!! (Click to enlarge)

Learning @ Lunch - Pilates

Green Tea Arrival

Remember this post about the benefits of Green Tea?  Well HealthyU has gotten some Green Tea cups for the Keurig in the kitchen!  Enjoy while supplies last - and if you like them, tell your friendly neighborhood HealthyU member (we'll try to keep them in stock permanently). 

HealthyU Recipes - Devil's Food Cake

There always seems to be a party to attend or to host: You can still have delicious desserts and enjoy a party without the sugar high at the end of the festivities.
Today Weight Watchers visited the office for an informational session - there's still time to join before the first meeting on September 12th at noon in Conference Room A.
Weight Watchers is about learning simple ways to make healthy choices that fit into your life...
(click to enlarge)

Did You Know? - Salt & Sugar

Cutting Down on Salt and Sugar? That's Great!
But not all the troubles lie in your salt shaker or candy jar...
Find out what's lurking in your food --
(Click the images for full size)

HealthyU Recipes - Broccoli and Bell Pepper Salad

With only four minutes of cook time, and ten minutes of prep overall, this is a perfect recipe that keeps you out of the HOT kitchen.
 
INGREDIENTS
2 heads broccoli (about 2 lbs.)
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
2 bell peppers, cored, seeded, cut into thin slices

PREPARATION
1. Cut florets from broccoli. Trim florets into 1-inch pieces; trim stems, peel and cut into 1-inch pieces.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add broccoli and cook until tender but not mushy, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain in a colander under cold running water. Pat broccoli dry with paper towels.
3. In a large bowl, combine mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper. Whisk together until salt is dissolved and then slowly add oil, whisking constantly until blended and thickened.
4. Just before serving, add broccoli and peppers to bowl with vinaigrette. Toss until vegetables are thoroughly coated with dressing. Season with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature, or cover and refrigerate to serve cold.
Amount per serving -- Calories: 127 Fat: 10g Saturated fat: 1g Protein: 4g Carbohydrate: 10g Fiber: 4g Cholesterol: 0.0mg Sodium: 215mg COST PER SERVING:$1.03 YIELD: Serves 8 Source: ALL YOU Magazine

Link Love

Here's some helpful tips on staying hydrated this summer!

Pack your own 100 calorie snacks.

How Diabetes can affect your ability to stay cool.

Smiling can save your life!

Blood Drive

Visit this link to register online for the blood drive!

In Season: Zucchini

Click on the image to learn everything you need to know to enjoy some delicious zucchini while it's in season!  Complete with a delicious recipe to try!

Link Love

How to navigate buying farm-fresh

Earn prizes for donating blood

Register for the August 4th blood drive at Hudson Square!

Did You Know: Green Tea

It's difficult not to gush about green tea.
More than a decade's worth of research about green tea's health benefits -- particularly its potential to fight cancer and heart disease -- has been more than intriguing, as have limited studies about green tea's role in lowering cholesterol, burning fat, preventing diabetes and stroke, and staving off dementia.
"I believe in green tea based on everything written about it," says Katherine Tallmadge, RD, LD, a nutritionist and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. -- From WebMD

Click the image to learn more about the goodness of green tea!

Food Safety

Click on the image to test your food-safety knowledge!

Eating Well

Click on the image to enlarge this fascinating article on Eating by Color!

Meditation

Click on the image to enlarge this great article on how meditation can give your health a boost!  Thought to fight cancer, reduce stress and be an anti-aging agent - find out how 15 minutes of meditation a day can change your life!










Related, but unrelated - if you're interested in acupuncture check out this link for an "Open House" at an acupuncture studio!

HealthyU Recipes - Banana Bread

Markets and Relaxation

To market, to market!

Visit GrowNYC for a list of all the open-air markets in the 5 boroughs! (Union Square has one that's open 4 days a week!!) Buying at open-air markets not only supports local farms, it ensures your food is fresh and organic.

Relaxation Station

New York hosts a plethora of free events and activities that range from kayaking to ping-pong to yoga!  Here's a few of our favorite events, along with links to pages with more information!

Events:
Dancing Under the Stars
Sunset on the Hudson (with jazz!)
Kayaking (Manhattan)
Kayaking (Brooklyn)
Ping-Pong
Yoga (uptown)
Yoga (Washington Sq Park)
Mat Pilates
Tai Chi
Wiffle Ball

Event Lists:
NYC Parks Event Page
Free Summer Movies
McCarren Park Summer Screen (Brooklyn)
Hudson River Park Events
Brokelyn Free Summer

(If none of these spark your interest, you can always go do some gardening at Maureen M. or Mike P.'s homes!) 

Have other suggestions?  Leave them in the comments below (please sign your first name to any comments)!

Links

Sources for Bulletin Board info:
Prevent Eye Damage
Picking a good sunscreen via AMF
Avoiding bug bites
Know your body's "cooling spots"
Real or rumor mosquito bite prevention
Green activity can boost your self-esteem
Ten tips for a healthy summer
Summer health tips
Tips for a more pleasant summer

Canceling Cancer - Learning @ Lunch

The following slides are from Mark B.'s Learning @ Lunch presentation "Canceling Cancer".  Many thanks to Mark for putting this together and sharing his knowledge with us!

Click on a slide to see it full screen.

 Click "read more" below to see the entire presentation.

Eat This Not That - Yogurt

Clubs - Walking & Running

Tuesday Link Day - Office Edition

Here's an interesting info-graph about sitting, and how it's effecting our lifespan.

How to combat blurry vision and headaches from staring at the computer screen.

Eat This Not That - Breakfast Cereal

Learning at Lunch - Canceling Cancer

Foods that Cure - Work Out Fuel & Brain Boosts

HealthyU Recipes - Deviled Eggs

EDIBLE EASTER EGGS

(Deviled Eggs with Chives)

This snack or appetizer is not only quick and easy; it's good for you, too.

What you'll need:

1 hard-boiled egg

1 teaspoon low-fat plain yogurt

1 teaspoon yellow mustard

1 tablespoon fresh chives, diced (ALT. Use scallions instead for a boost in flavor)

Dash of black pepper

What you'll do:

Cut hard-boiled egg in half and gently scoop yolk into bowl.

Mix yogurt, mustard, chives and pepper with yolk.

Spoon yolk mixture back into egg white. Garnish with chive pieces.

Why you'll love this snack: 
Deviled eggs are the first things to go at a party. Now, with this easy recipe, you can enjoy them any day!

Health-conscious people are often too chicken to eat egg yolks (the yellow part) because they're loaded with calories, cholesterol and fat. A single yolk clucks in at 55 calories, 210 mg of cholesterol (a lot, considering you're only supposed to eat 300 mg per day) and 4.5 g of fat (although about two-thirds of the fat comes from healthy unsaturated fats). In comparison, an egg white has only 17 calories, 0 mg of cholesterol and 0 g of fat. Don't put all your egg yolks in the wastebasket, though — they contain plenty of healthy stuff, such as vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. The rule of thumb is to eat one egg yolk per day and the rest egg whites (for example, an omelet with one whole egg and two egg whites).

--Copy by Dawn Jackson Blatner, RD, LDN

As posted on mylifetime.com recipes

Per serving: 86 calories, 6 g fat (2 g saturated), 1 g carbs, 0 g fiber, 7 g protein, 283 mg sodium, 212 mg cholesterol

Blood Drive

Foods That Cure - Sickness & Energy

HealthyU Recipes - Pumpkin Cake

Got an upcoming event and in need of a tasty dessert minus the guilt? Why make a cake with eggs and oil when there are better options?

Here’s a simple, two-ingredient recipe. No one will suspect that you’ve offered a tasty alternative that was light on the wallet and easy on the effort… now you can serve ‘em cake and enjoy it too!!

Cake Mix + Canned Pure Pumpkin

PER SERVING (1 piece, 1/12th of cake): 183 calories, 3.5g fat, 301mg sodium, 37g carbs, 1.25g fiber, 20.5g sugars, 2g protein

Ingredients:
1- 18.25oz box moist-style cake mix
1- 15oz can pure pumpkin

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Combine ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Mix thoroughly – batter will be VERY thick – and transfer to a baking pan sprayed with nonstick spray; bake in oven until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. (Refer to cake-mix box for pan size and approximate bake time.)
-Makes 12 Servings

Comments:
The texture is thick and dense in the BEST possible way. Spice cake has a WOW factor. Yellow and white don’t fair quite as well, but Devil’s food cake is another classic choice. The HealthyU team sampled pumpkin spice cakes made in a mini Bundt pan, which gave the cakes an old-fashioned donut appearance – this was a big hit! -- Hope this becomes a classic from your kitchen!

Foods that Cure - Stressed & Depressed

HealthyU Recipes - Vegitarian Chili