So here it is! My first foray into recipes. The suggestion of doing recipes on my site has been among the most recurrent comments from friends and followers. Before I go into the recipe, I should explain why it’s taken me so long to chronicle what I actually eat.
I don’t really use recipes very often. My meals primarily consist of a base of rice, quinoa, corn tortilla or greens topped with whatever vegetables I have in the fridge and some sort of seasoning or dressing. It’s an unexciting menu, but even the slightest of changes can introduce enough variety to quell the feeling of eating a green salad every day. So when people would say that I should start posting recipes, I thought, “everything I eat could be fully explained in about three sentences.”
But since moving to Wisconsin in the quiet season, I’ve found myself with a bit more time on my hands and I’ve always wanted to expand my palate, so here I am. For now, I’ll be taking recipes from various books I’ve read on plant-based endurance nutrition and I’ll try to explain why the meals can help fuel your next workout. First on the docket is a raw almond flax burger with sesame sweet potato fries from Brendan Brazier’s Thrive series.
Raw Almond Flax Burger
½ tblsp chopped garlic
1 cup almonds
½ cup flax seed
2 tblsp balsamic vinegar
2 tblsp olive oil (he recommends coconut oil but I didn’t have it)
Sea Salt to taste
Simply put everything in a food processor (I use a Vitamix and desperately wish I had the flat blade for mixing dry ingredients) and mix to your desired consistency. This can take anywhere from about one minute to three minutes depending on how smooth you want the texture to be. Scoop out the mixture and form into patties. Simple.
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The patty is good with all traditional burger condiments and should hold together better than most black-bean burgers I’ve eaten. I prefer to eat the burger raw but it can also be cooked in a pan with light oil for a minute on each side.
The burger is going to be high in omega-3 fatty acids from the flax as well as omega-6 fatty acids from the almonds. Flax also provides both insoluble and soluble fiber and, to answer the burning protein question, has a complete essential amino acid profile.
Sesame Sweet Potato Fries
1 Sweet potato (peeled for less fiber, unpeeled for more)
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
Seasonings to taste (I used oregano and sea salt)
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Julienne the sweet potato into desired thickness. The bigger each fry, the longer they will cook for. Coat julienned sweet potato with sesame oil and lay out on baking sheet. Bake at 300’ for 30-50 minutes (depending on thickness). Simple again!
Sweet potatoes can provide nearly all of your vitamin A needs in one serving. Vitamin A is essential for maintaining healthy skin, skeletal and soft tissue. This may be especially important for endurance athletes as we are arguably damaging and regenerating these tissues more than the average person. Sweet potatoes are also a high source of carbohydrates that are better absorbed than many other root vegetables. This is not an ideal staple food for an endurance athlete, but prior to a workout or race in which you know your carbohydrate stores are going to be depleted, it can do wonders for this fuel reserve.
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I dressed my burger with some Ezekiel bread, greens, honey mustard and ketchup for a hearty meal after a smooth two hours on the bike trainer (sadly, it is already time for the trainer up here). Any recommended recipes are appreciated! But don’t even try with chili, I’ve got that down to a science.
Image may be NSFW.
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Image may be NSFW.Clik here to view.
