Alright, so there I was happily preparing to eat too much, blame the turkey and take a big old nap, and now it looks like I will just have to take a nap with no excuse at all, or at least not the “too much turkey” one. I know, bummer right? Sad truth, – there is tryptophan in turkey but not more than in other poultry. So what is the deal with The Thanksgiving snoozes?

Turkey does play a part, but it is actually the combination of carbs from all the other entrees, – potatoes, stuffing, bread and pies that are responsible for the sleepy feeling we often get after any big meal. The carbs stimulate your body to release insulin, helping clear other amino acids from the bloodstream so tryptophan can get to the brain.

Why does that make you sleepy? It doesn’t. (Stay with me,) Tryptophan is a component of the brain chemical serotonin, which gets converted into the hormone melatonin. It’s that melatonin that is actually responsible for making you feel sleepy.

If you need a nap after that explanation be my guest.

Meanwhile here is a link to a list of other foods high in Tryptophan. Live Strong – Foods high in tryptophan

Since Tryptophan is not produced in the body and is the least available amino acid, it’s worth knowing who is working for you if you  do want to snooze.

Psychology Today – tryptophan, what does it do?

Web MD – The truth about tryptophan

Dairy Nutrition – sleep and tryptophan

NBC News – eating turkey won’t make you sleepy

OK folks, this is fresh off the press from the American Heart Association  …  “Trans fat consumption is linked to diminished memory in working-aged adults.”  I’ll give you some of the details of this study in a moment but first, we should talk about trans fats in general.

I’m sure you’ve heard something about trans fats.  Even the labels that you see at the grocery store saying …“contains no trans fats” …. give a clue that trans fats are probably not good for you.  The reality is that all indications point to trans fats being bad for our health, especially in creating dangerous fat buildup in our arteries … just the thing to increase our risk of heart attack and stroke.  Trans fats are partially hydrogenated oils that convert the liquid oil into a solid.  Since these oils are usually vegetable oils, it sounds pretty healthy.  Sounds OK but not OK.

Read fellow Oatie Linda’s great post on the evils of trans fats!  The first trans fat product was introduced in 1911 (old-fashioned Crisco) and many more followed.  It was 80 years later that studies starting documenting the unhealthy effects of trans fats.  Denmark banned them in 2003, and many other countries followed!  Finally, in 2013, the FDA had proposed a regulation that would declare partially hydrogenated oils unsafe.

The link between trans fats and heart disease is well established.  Now, this new study  shows a direct association between high trans fat consumption and poor performance on a word memory test.  The higher the trans fat intake, the poorer the memory  …. and this was independent of education, ethnicity and age.  The researchers feel that trans fats decrease the production of cell energy and that effect was the cause of the impaired memory.

The American Heart Association recommends limiting trans fats to less than 1% of our daily calories. A recent study shows that men still eat about 1.9% of daily calories from trans fats and the number is 1.7% for women.   The most common sources of trans fats are margarine, fast foods, baked goods, snack foods, frozen pizza, coffee creamers and some refrigerated doughs.

We want good memory.  We want healthy hearts.  Trans fats are not good for either one!  We’ve heard it before, you are what you eat! Let’s eat healthy and avoid the trans fats!

Oh, and yes, there are no trans fats in any Wild Oats product!  Why am I not surprised?

Additional Resource:

New England Journal of Medicine article

Squash, that strange and versatile fruit, is a many splendored thing; the range of colors, shapes and sizes make it an aesthetically pleasing contribution to a table long after we have overloaded on its cousin, pumpkin. It brings a host of nutritional benefits with it, and can be used in a dazzlingly wide range of ways (spaghetti squash instead of spaghetti, anyone?).  It can also be great food for thought… when it comes to experimenting in the kitchen.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to do just that, after being given a giant squash from a friend’s garden and challenged to make a meal out of it. Had it been smaller, I might have simply roasted  or baked it, perhaps turned it into soup. Given its gigantism, however, I was tempted to make a whole meal out of it. A bit of recipe perusing later, and I found a tantalizing template– Squash gratin.

Given a few “what’s in the fridge” tweaks, and with additional cook time for the sheer volume of squash, this culinary experiment was a smashing success (so much so, in fact, that it was gobbled up in no time). Here is the altered recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 giant squash (roughly 4 lbs)
• 1 small turnip
• 3 sweet Italian turkey sausages
• 4 garlic cloves (peeled and crushed)
• 1 sprig of rosemary
• sea salt
• Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

• Peel and seed the squash, and cut into small cubes
• Peel and cube the turnip
• Preheat the oven to 450°F
• In a large casserole dish, slice the sausage open and cook for 5 minutes
• Remove the dish, and cut the sausage into small pieces
• Add the garlic, rosemary, squash, and a few pinches of salt
• Cover with parchment paper and cook for 40 minutes
• Lower oven temperature to 350°F
• Remove parchment paper, cook for an additional 30 minutes
• Remove dish from oven, mash the squash with a fork and stir the ingredients
• Shave your parmesan with a vegetable peeler, enough to cover the top of your dish
• Turn on the broiler; place your cheese-topped dish back in the oven for 2-4 minutes to brown the top
• Remove and serve

Notes on preparation:

• Though Winter squash can prove somewhat more intimidating than the thinner-skinned summer varietals, the preparation is decidedly more memorable; peeling, seeding and chopping this Jurassic-looking plant felt like both a throwback to an earlier time and an accomplishment. Remember, peelers are your friend, and sharp knives make all the difference.
• It may take longer to cook than anticipated, so snack accordingly
• If you have friends or family in the house while you cook, they will pester you to hurry up as the smells coming from the oven are drool-worthy

So the next time you see an unlikely looking gourd at the farmers market, the grocery store, or arriving in your CSA box, get excited- it’s time to get experimental with it.

Arctic vortex.
The very name stuck fear into the hearts of people in much of the country last week. Those fears were justified for folks struggling to pay heating bills, or working outside. I certainly didn’t greet the arrival of the vortex with cheer last Monday as I felt the thermometer plunge from 58° to 27° while I was helping string fence on a windswept section of Eastern Colorado.
But the prolonged blast of brutal temperatures may be a very good thing come next spring.
Bugs, you see, don’t really do well when the weather turns from a warm fall day to mid-winter over the course of a few hours. They do even worse when those arctic temperatures hang around for a long spell.
As winter temperatures have warmed incrementally over the past few years, farmers have faced additional challenges each growing season because increasing numbers of bugs have over-wintered. And, it’s not just farmers who are impacted. Pine beetles have devastated forests across much of the West over the past decade. Forest biologists blame much of the problem on the fact that temperatures in the western forests have been milder than average.
So, there’s reason to smile just a bit when the forecasters predict that last week’s vortex may be a foreshadowing of the winter ahead.
Just bundle up and stay warm.

Are you looking for some new, delicious recipes that will be a hit with your family this holiday? Who isn’t?! Check out this amazing Raspberry Oatmeal Cookie Bar Recipe created by one of our blogger friends, Censie. She’s using Wild Oats Marketplace Organic Raspberry Fruit Spread and her recipe is full of healthful fiber and whole grains.

If you haven’t tried the WO Raspberry Fruit Spread yet, it’s a treat for the senses. The organic raspberries add just the right amount of tang and its subtle and natural tasting sweetness makes it a great choice for sandwiches, desserts and toppings. Plus, there are no unnecessary ingredients, it’s USDA Certified Organic AND it’s just $2.28 at local Walmart stores.

Here is what Censie has to say about Wild Oats products:

“Currently, we can enjoy Wild Oats products by heading to either Walmart or Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market.  Now you CAN afford to eat right!  The products are high quality and yummy!   All of us have been impressed with the food, and now that I know about the products I have found them at my local Walmart and guess what?  We CAN afford them!”

Head to Censie’s Blog, Building Our Story, to get her dazzling Raspberry Oatmeal Cookie recipe and learn more about her experience with Wild Oats products!