In my opinion the greatest problem nutritionally that keeps people from achieving and maintaining their ideal body size is the over consumption of processed carbohydrates. There are thousands of products that fall into this category but the ones that I am most concerned about are the pastas and rice. Pasta and rice are nowhere near as bad for you as other processed foods, however, in my experience a lot of people don’t realize that pasta and rice isn’t good for you. People will grossly over consume these highly glycemic carbohydrates without thinking twice. A typical meal for most people seems to be roughly 75 percent carbohydrates with only 25 percent protein and fats. This is an extreme reversal of what a healthy diet should be. In the past few years people have become more conscientious of their carbohydrate consumption and in a lot of cases gone to the opposite extreme. It’s important to consume a moderate portion of complex carbohydrates at every meal.

With the onset of carb-conscious diets the experts are advocating the consumption of brown rice and couscous. These two grains have much more fiber than your standard grain, making them much healthier for you. Unfortunately these two grains still lack the ingredient that is most likely to boost your metabolism and help you lose weight, protein. It is extremely important to consume a great source of protein with every meal, while limiting the consumption of processed carbohydrates. Another option for carbohydrate lovers has become popular recently and it offers much more nutritional benefit than brown rice or couscous. Quinoa (pronounced “KEEN-wah”) is a complete protein, which is hard to find in a grain, while also containing lots of essential vitamins and minerals. Quinoa should become the new staple for side-dishes and carbohydrates in every household.

In general, people seem to get carried away with the side-dishes they prepare for meals. Meat is usually pretty straightforward and hard to make extremely unhealthy, unless you deep-fry it. On the other hand side-dishes can have an endless amount of different ingredients that can add lots of calories and poor nutritional ingredients to a meal. Quinoa makes a great healthy side-dish. The recipe listed today also combines a few other extremely healthy ingredients to make a well-rounded side-dish, perfect for almost any occasion.

The three ingredients that add lots of nutritional value are olive oil, sweet potatoes, and black beans. Olive oil is a great source of monounsaturated fat, which is a healthy fat that your body needs to function properly. I recommend using olive oil as the main ingredient to cook your food in versus butter, or even worse margarine. I will use olive oil anytime I am cooking to help coat the pan and prevent sticking. The next ingredient is sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes have a lot more fiber, vitamins, and minerals than your standard white potato. This makes them a much healthier option when making a meal. I would recommend replacing standard baking potatoes with sweet potatoes every time you cook. Lastly black beans are a great source of protein and fiber. I put black beans in almost everything I eat. They add very little flavor to food, which allows them to be incorporated in almost any dish without notice. These three ingredients pack a lot of nutrition along with the quinoa making a great side-dish.

Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Sweet Potatoes

½ c quinoa

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced

1 scallion, thinly sliced

¼ tsp dried red chile flakes

1 c water

½ tsp salt

¾ c canned black beans, drained and thoroughly rinsed

Juice of one lime

2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

1.Place quinoa in a small-mesh sieve and rinse thoroughly. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a medium skillet with a tight-fitting lid. Add sweet potato, scallion, and chile and sauté until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

2.Add quinoa; toast for 2 minutes. Add water and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and cover. Simmer until quinoa and sweet potato are tender, about 10 to 12 minutes. If liquid remains unabsorbed in the pan, raise heat to high and cook for 2 minutes until it boils off.

3.Stir in black beans and lime juice. Serve warm or chilled, sprinkled with cilantro.

Makes two side-dish servings

Per Serving: 350 calories, 10 g fat (1 g sat.), 1,090 mg sodium, 62 g carbohydrates, 10 g fiber, 6 g sugar, 11 g protein.

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