Celebrate the holiday & winter season with Ontario Tech’s Door Decorating Contest!

How it works:

1.  Gather your colleagues and select a door to decorate* for the holiday/winter season.
        *Please abide by the Guidelines for Office Decorations from the Office of Risk Management, including leaving windows beside doors unwrapped, to ensure everyone’s safety.
2. Decorate your door in celebration of the holiday and/or winter season.  Please be mindful that any decorations used do not damage the door upon removal.   
3. By Friday, December 13, email wellnessatwork@ontariotechu.ca the following:

• A photo of your door
• Names of decorating participants
• Your Department/Faculty

4. December 18-20 view photos of contest submissions on the Wellness Events webpage and vote for your favourite!
5. Please remove your decorations no later than Monday, December 23.
6. Winners will be announced in the January 8 issue of the Weekly Report and prizes distributed (yes, there are prizes!).

Thank you to all employees who participated in our Recipe Contest by sharing their favorite and nutritious main course and appetizer creations! Work is underway to create a 2025 Healthy Workplace Committee virtual recipe calendar which will highlight winning recipes along with others that were submitted.

Stay for further updates and in the meantime, why not try one of the winning recipes below? 

Category: Main Dish

First Place: Lentil Salad with Cherry Tomatoes and Feta, submitted by Jocelyn Pelletier

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked lentils
• Cherry tomatoes, sliced
• Cucumber, cubed
• Finely chopped dill
• 1 minced clove of garlic
• Crumbled feta cheese (to your liking)
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• Red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 freshly squeezed lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, combine freshly squeezed lemon juice, olive oil, minced garlic, salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine cooled cooked lentils, sliced cherry tomatoes, cubed cucumber, and thinly sliced red onion.
3. Add finely chopped dill and crumbled feta cheese to the bowl.
4. Pour lemon juice and olive oil dressing over the salad ingredients in the mixing bowl.
5. Stir well to combine all the ingredients thoroughly.
6. Chill the lentil salad in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

Second Place: Training Camp Crab Cakes, submitted by Catie Sahadath

I go to paddling training camp in Florida each spring, and our team makes these crab cakes every single year. It’s tradition! We started making these before air fryers existed, but I’m sure you could use one to make these even healthier.

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp super finely chopped onion (red, white, whatever you have)
• 5oz fresh crab meat, chopped (can replace with 1 can salmon, or 5oz any other fresh seafood)
• 1/3 cup mashed sweet potato (can replace with 1/3 cup mashed potato)
• ¾ cups quick oats
• 2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 3 hearty shakes of Tajin seasoning
• Juice from 1/3 of a lemon

Instructions:

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well combined.
2. Use a 1/3 measuring cup to scoop out the mixture; form into balls, then press down to create a patty shape.
3. Heat 1tbsp cooking oil (EVOO, vegetable oil, whatever is your preference) in a frying pan over medium heat
4. Cook the patties in pan for 3-4 minutes per side, or until cooked through.
5. Remove from pan and place on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil.
6. Serve with tartar sauce, or if you’re lazy like us, just serve with some plain yogurt and lemon juice.

Pro tip: Leftover crab cakes are great on salads!

Third Place: Vegetarian Sushi Bowl, submitted by Jenna Comstock

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (dry) rice of choice
• 2 cups water
• 400-450g firm or extra firm tofu
• 2 medium sized carrots
• 1/2 of a cucumber
• 1-2 cups shelled edamame
• 1-2 avocados
• 1 tbsp sesame oil or other cooking oil
• 4 tsp soy sauce or tamari sauce (divided)
• 6 tbsp rice vinegar (divided)
• 2 tbsp honey (divided)
• Spicy mayonnaise or aioli (or make your own using mayonnaise and hot sauce of choice)
• 1-2 Nori (seaweed) sheets
• White sesame seeds (optional)

Optional Prep:

1. Soak rice in a measuring cup or bowl for approximately 30 minutes.
2. While rice soaks, cut the block of tofu in half and cut each block into thirds to make 6 rectangles that are each about 1cm thick.
3. Fold 2 kitchen towels in half. Place tofu rectangles onto one towel, cover with second towel, and place a wooden cutting board or sheet pan on top.  Place a heavy object on top of this to press the tofu and remove excess water.
4. After 20-30 minutes, strain rice and rinse under cold water. Add the rice to a rice cooker or pot with water and cook as directed on package. 

Instructions:

1. Cook rice in a rice cooker or as directed on package.
2. Cut the tofu into cubes.
3. Add the cooking oil, 2 tsp soy sauce, 2 tbsp of rice vinegar, and 1 tbsp of honey to a pan over medium-high heat. Add the tofu and cook 5-7 minutes until crispy and golden.  
4. While tofu cooks, combine 2 tsp soy sauce, 4 tbsp rice vinegar, and 1 tbsp honey to a small saucepan over low-medium heat. Stir the mixture until the honey dissolves, then remove from heat and add to the cooked rice.
5. Peel and cut the carrots into ribbons or sticks (use a mandolin if available).
6. Cut the cucumber into matchsticks (use a mandolin if available).
7. Slice or cube the avocado.
8. Dilute spicy mayonnaise or aioli with water (omit this step if making your own).
9. Tear or shred the nori sheets.
10. Divide the rice into bowls, add the vegetables and tofu, and top with shredded nori. Drizzle the spicy mayonnaise on top and add sesame seeds to taste.

Category: Appetizer

First Place: Fakes, submitted by Isabel Savransky

Second Place: Hearty Minestrone Soup, submitted by Wendy Young

Ingredients:

• 4 x carrots diced or if small, cut into rounds
• 2 stalks of diced celery
• 1 Medium onion –  chopped
• 1 cup green beans, cut into bite size pieces
• 1 cup cabbage – chopped to smaller ¼ inch pieces (if you don’t like or have cabbage you can add baby spinach or kale during the last few minutes of cooking)
• 1 large white potato cut into small chunks
• 1 can of white (or red) kidney or cannelloni beans (white would work as well or other beans)
• 3/4 of a 945ml bottle of Garden Cocktail (V8 low sodium would work as well)
• 1 box of veggie broth or chicken
• 1 cup of water (more later if needed)
• Half a 456 ml can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup of cooked ground beef (optional, leave out for vegetarian style)
• Dash of Worst Name Sauce (Worcestershire)
• Half teaspoon of oregano
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1 cup of your favorite smaller sized pasta noodles

Instructions:

1. Add a small amount of olive oil to large stock pot and heat on med-low.  Add in ground beef, carrots, celery onion, spices and a dash of Worcestershire sauce then cook on low for three minutes.
2. Add in all other vegetables, Garden Cocktail and broth – bring to a low boil and cook for 15 mins.
3. Add in potato, green beans, cabbage and kidney beans and cook on a medium boil for 10-15 minutes partially cover with a lid. Ensure all vegetables are well covered with liquid, here is where you would add more water/garden cocktail or broth if necessary to taste and if you do add you will need to adjust the temperature to bring it back to a medium boil.
4. Add in pasta noodles – ensure boiling and cook for a further 10 minutes or until pasta is al dente.  Add baby spinach or kale at the very end if you choose. 
5. Feel free to add other vegetables, just be mindful of their cooking times, so zucchini for example would be added at the same time as pasta.

 Serve with a nice baguette and a sprinkle of parmesan, enjoy. Definitely a meal in itself!

Third Place: Mulligatawny Soup, submitted by Lia Van Wees

Ingredients:

• 6 cups low-sodium chicken stock
• 550g / 3 medium potatoes, chopped
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 454g / 1 medium eggplant, peeled and diced
• 134g / 1 cup frozen yellow corn
• 124g / ½ cup tomato sauce
• 58g / ½ cup shelled pistachios
• 56g / ½ cup roasted cashews
• ½ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 28g / 3 tablespoons sugar
• ½ teaspoon curry powder
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• 16 cups (4 quarts) water

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a large stockpot. Bring to a boil over high heat.
2. If you have a large enough pot, add all of the water. If your pot is not large enough (and most aren't), add whatever you can until there is about three inches of empty space on the pot for the soup to boil. Add any remaining water as the soup reduces. I highly recommend writing down how much you've added on a piece of scrap paper as you go so that you don't forget.
3. Reduce heat to medium and boil for 2 to 3 hours until soup has reduced significantly. Stir occasionally in the first few hours and frequently during the last hour. The edges of the potatoes will become rounded and the nuts will become soft and chewy. The soup will thicken and should have the consistency of chili.
4. Remove bay leaf. Serve hot. Keeps for up to a week in the fridge.

 Make sure to try out these amazing recipes and share them with your friends, family, and peers!

When the holiday season approaches, your Wellness at Work team appreciates that this may be a difficult time for many.

Participants will examine the process of grieving a loss (e.g., of a loved one, a job, a participant’s health, a child moving away, etc.) and be provided practical strategies for living through and beyond various types of losses. Participants will also gain insight into effective and proactive healing and rebuilding strategies and learn how to work through the changes caused by loss.

We are pleased to have our guest speaker, Phil Kaethler, a skilled psychotherapist and educator with a deep passion for resilience and mental health. With BRE, MA, and MA (Counselling and Psychology) degrees, he’s spent over 25 years helping individuals and organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, navigate challenges in addiction, leadership, and trauma. Phil is known for his hands-on, relatable approach, which he brings to his private practice, corporate training, and speaking engagements. He’s also the creator of the Natural Helper peer support program, which empowers employees to assist their peers. Whether through one-on-one counseling or large-scale workshops, Phil is dedicated to making a difference in the lives of those he works with.

Date: December 3, 2024
Time: noon to 1:00 p.m.
Location: Virtually
Target Audience: All Staff and Faculty

REGISTER

During the months of November and December, the FLEX Fitness Centre in collaboration with Durham College and the Ontario Tech Wellness at Work team, will be offering the following:

Menopause and Perimenopause: November 26^th,  1:00-2:00 p.m.

If you’re dealing with unexplained weight gain, sleep issues, mood swings, hot flashes and more, join nutritionist Sylvia Emmorey for an informative and empowering seminar and learn how to manage hormonal changes and take control of your hormonal health!

Food Cravings and Triggers for Eating: December 3^rd, 1:00-2:00 p.m.

Do you ever have the sudden urge to reach for something unhealthy and wonder why? There are many triggers for eating and not all are for actual hunger. If you’d like to learn why you eat what you eat as well as how to modify food behaviour and deal with cravings, join nutritionist Sylvia Emmorey for this informative and interactive session.

Join one workshop or join them all! Register for these free workshops on the Empowered Wellness Workshops Form.

Each workshop will be delivered virtually through Microsoft Teams and the link will be sent on the day of the workshop.

Questions? Contact Brianna, Fitness Coordinator, through email at brianna.christopher@durhamcollege.ca.

The 2024 flu shot clinic is open to Ontario Tech and Durham College staff, faculty and students.  The next clinic occurs:

• Thursday, January 16 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Campus Health and Wellness Centre (G1030) 

What to Expect:

• Expert Care: Our qualified healthcare professionals will be available to administer vaccinations and answer any questions you may have.
• Community Health: By getting vaccinated, you help protect yourself and those around you from the flu.
• Timeframe: Quick and easy, pre-book your appointment to ensure your spot, appointments are around 15- 20  minutes with safety and symptom monitoring while you enjoy a light snack and refreshments. You may also drop-in without registering ahead of time, though space may be limited.
• Preparing for your visit: Please arrive 10 minutes before your appointment time, register upon arrival and wear clothing that is loose enough for sleeves to roll up easily - the injection site will be in your upper arm.  

Complete the booking form to secure your spot and stay flu-free!

ASIST is a two-day* in-person workshop featuring powerful audio-visuals, discussions, and simulations. You'll learn how to recognize when someone might be thinking about suicide, and how to provide a skilled intervention and develop a safety plan with the person to connect them to further support. This workshop will increase your willingness, confidence, and capacity to provide suicide first aid. Training is facilitated by the Canadian Mental Health Association.

Free fitness classes offered by Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre for Staff and Faculty.

Visit the Group Fitness web page to book your spot.

Whether you are new to Ontario Tech or wanting to refresh your knowledge of the supports and services available through TELUS Health, our Employee Assistance Program, please select the orientation format that works best for you.

1. 1-Minute Mini Orientation for Employees - Video Recording
2. 25-Minute Full Orientation for Employees - Video Recording
3. Virtual Orientations: Employee and Manager* sessions held live. Select the date within the Orientation Flyer that you would like to attend to register.

*Orientation for Manager video recordings are available on the Leader Supports webpage.