Last weekend, my friend and training partner Justin, competed in the Moab Red Hot 50k. I tagged along to cheer him on, find some dry trails to run on, and spend some time amongst the red rocks. My end of the bargain involved cooking a post-race meal for Justin and company. I'm pretty used to this, it seems like I am always being coerced into the kitchen during family gatherings, ski trips and the like and cooking for everyone. Justin is a bit of a challenge however. You see, his taste buds apparently stopped developing somewhere around age 13 and he has spent the last 18 years sustaining himself on hot dogs, macaroni and cheese and quesadillas. To illustrate my point, on the way to Moab, we stopped at a Subway. Justin got a footlong sub with turkey, american cheese, and mayo on white. That's it. So that was my challenge for the weekend, produce a meal that Justin could eat that had plenty of nutrients and proper balance of fat, protein, and carbs needed after the draining effects running 33 miles has on the body.
The most important thing after expelling that much energy is simply to refuel. This is easier said than done. Running for 5-6 hours can reek havoc on anybody's digestive system and make eating anything seem like a monumental task. Justin has a very sensitive stomach and is prone to poor post-activity eating habits (I have seen him complete a 40 mile mountain bike ride, have 2 beers and pass out till morning). Given all of this, I decided to give flavor a higher priority than nutrition when selecting the menu. I wound up using some rosemary pomegranate marinade leftover from valentines day to marinate some top sirloin steaks. The steaks were pan seared and accompanied by a broccoli mac and cheese casserole and a salad. I used whole grain shells for the pasta and Amy's Organic butternut squash soup to counterbalance the mountain of cheddar cheese.
It should be noted that Justin did amazingly well in the race. He blew away his goals finishing 32nd in his age group in 5 hours 50 minutes. (He also ate all of his dinner)
Rosemary Pomegranate Marinade
2/3 cup 100% pomegranate juice
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 sprigs fresh rosemary (stems removed)
Puree all ingredients in blender. Marinate meat overnight reserving a little bit of marinade for brushing on while coooking. This marinade would be delicious for a number of meats- pork tenderloin, lamb chops, steak, chicken breast...
Whole Wheat Shells and Cheese Casserole
16oz box whole wheat shells (you could substite penne or macaroni)
8oz shredded cheddar cheese
12oz can organic butternut squash soup
1 crown of broccoli (16oz bag of frozen)
salt and pepper to taste
1. Bring large pot of water to a boil, add 1 tlbsp salt to water and put in pasta. Cook for 10 minutes. Pre-heat oven to 375
2. While pasta is cooking, rinse and chop broccoli.
3. Add broccoli to pot and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
4. Drain shells and broccoli in a colander and dump in a 9x13 baking pan.
5. Add can of soup and half of cheese to pan and stir it around so everything is coated. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Top with remaining cheese and bake uncovered for 12 minutes.
7. It is done when cheese is melted and turning golden brown on the edges.
*There was no baking pan at our rental condo, so the picture shows the mac and cheese being baked in a large frying pan. This works too if you don't have a baking pan.
While it may not be the first race I've ever signed up for, it is the longest. Also, the only one I ever had to set my alarm just to register.
Even 15 minutes before registration "officially" opened at 7am today, there were 52 people signed up for the 200 person field in the San Juan Solstice 50. That's five zero, as in fifty miles! When asked to enter my expected finish time, I hastily calculated about 11 hours based on previous races without fully realizing that meant I would actually be on my feet and running for over 600 minutes. And that was optimistically assuming that I could maintain at least 80% of my pace in similar trail marathons.
So, giving little consideration to the full ramifications of my actions, I became number 53 and promptly went back to bed.
Who could blame me? I was going to need my rest if I expected to put forth all the effort needed to prepare myself physically (and mentally) for half a day of suffering up and down the San Juan mountains surrounding Lake City, CO. Truth be told, I began the training process already and was drained from the 14 mile training run yesterday.
An early start on training is essential to work up to 50 miles over the next five months. A large amount of calories will also be necessary. Not just any calories either, it has got to be the correct ratio of carbs to proteins to fats, and the right kind of fats too, and at the right time, and consumed with the proper amount of water, and oh don't forget salt and electrolytes. But don't forget taste! It's hard to remember with all the tidbits of nutrition and diet advice we are barraged with daily that food is actually supposed to taste good! My purpose here is provide some direction for anyone looking for ways to make the food we eat taste good!
So enough long-winded introduction and onto the food. This is a recipe for a well rounded dinner that is suited for the day after a race or a long training effort when getting the proper nutrients, carbs, proteins and fats to starved muscles is essential for quick recovery (so you can run again tomorrow). Salmon is a good choice because it contains both protein and healthy fats (a five ounce filet will contain about 25 grams protein and 15 grams of fat). The olive oil used in the salsa helps even out your fats and proteins. A good basic rule to follow while training is to balance your meals with 4 parts carbs, 1 part protein and 1 part fat. Many people try to avoid fat altogether, but this is a mistake. Fat provides the most concentrated form of energy from food. In order to take in enough calories to endure long training bouts, fat is essential. It is also what makes food satisfying, sends signals to our brains that the stomach is full, and keeps you full longer. Fish is an excellent source of fat as it contains essential fatty acids. Polenta is made almost entirely of corn which is an excellent choice for a whole grain carbohydrate. Adding some steamed vegetables rounds out this meal with simple carbohydrates. Don't be afraid of adding a little salt to the veggies since extended training runs exhaust your sodium supplies.
Salmon with Roasted Tomato Salsa and Grilled Polenta
Serves 4
Ingredients
4 five ounce salmon filets (skin on)
2 tablespoons olive oil (plus extra for brushing salmon and polenta)
1 teaspoon blackening spice
1 teaspoon sea salt
5 roma tomatoes
1 onion sliced
1 oz fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Polenta (see following recipe or buy a tube of pre-made polenta in your grocery store)
1. Pre-heat your grill to 400
2. Cut the tomatoes in half and toss in a mixing bowl with onion slices, olive oil, blackening spice and sea salt.
3.
Allow mixture to set for 5 minutes so the tomatoes can soak up the
olive oil the dump entire mixture on hot grill. Use tongs to flip
tomatoes and onions after 3 minutes and cook an additional 2-3 minutes.
Use tongs to remove tomatoes and onions and place back in bowl.
4. Add basil leaves and garlic, mix ingredients together and pulse in a food processor or blender.
Salsa is now done, set aside while you finish the rest
5.
If using store bought polenta in a tube, slice into 4 equal parts and
pack down into 1/2 inch thick patties. If using the homemade recipe,
slice the loaf into 1/2 inch thick patties.
6. Brush
flesh side of salmon and both sides of polenta cakes with olive oil and
place on hot grill (flesh side first for salmon). Season salmon with a
little blackening spice.
7. Cook polenta and salmon filets for 5 minutes and flip.
Cook an additional 5 minutes and remove from grill.
**Cooking
time can vary depending on how thick your salmon is. When the inside
of the flesh turns from ruby red to light pink, the fish is done. The
polenta just needs to be heated up, it's really good to get the outside a
little bit crispy.
8. Top the salmon and polenta with the roasted tomato salsa and serve with steamed vegetables.
Polenta
Ingredients
4 cups water
1/2 tablespoon sea salt
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup polenta flour (you can use cornmeal or masa harina, but the coarser, the better)
1. Bring water, oil, and salt to a boil
2. Slowly pour in polenta flour while stirring
3. Lower heat to medium, if polenta gets "angry" take off heat and slowly stir in the same direction until it calms down
4.
Continue stirring over medium-low heat, it will get very thick. The
polenta is done when it begins to peel away from the sides of the pan
and a thin crust forms on the bottom. this entire process takes about
20 minutes. Don't try to rush it as higher heat just angers the
polenta.
5. Scoop thick mix into a greased loaf pan and put in fridge to cool for 30 minutes
6. Once cooled, you can slice into patties and polenta is ready to be brushed with olive oil and grilled!
Last weekend, my friend and training partner Justin, competed in the Moab Red Hot 50k. I tagged along to cheer him on, find some dry trails to run on, and spend some time amongst the red rocks. My end of the bargain involved cooking a post-race meal for Justin and company. I'm pretty used to this, it seems like I am always being coerced into the kitchen during family gatherings, ski trips and the like and cooking for everyone. Justin is a bit of a challenge however. You see, his taste buds apparently stopped developing somewhere around age 13 and he has spent the last 18 years sustaining himself on hot dogs, macaroni and cheese and quesadillas. To illustrate my point, on the way to Moab, we stopped at a Subway. Justin got a footlong sub with turkey, american cheese, and mayo on white. That's it. So that was my challenge for the weekend, produce a meal that Justin could eat that had plenty of nutrients and proper balance of fat, protein, and carbs needed after the draining effects running 33 miles has on the body.
The most important thing after expelling that much energy is simply to refuel. This is easier said than done. Running for 5-6 hours can reek havoc on anybody's digestive system and make eating anything seem like a monumental task. Justin has a very sensitive stomach and is prone to poor post-activity eating habits (I have seen him complete a 40 mile mountain bike ride, have 2 beers and pass out till morning). Given all of this, I decided to give flavor a higher priority than nutrition when selecting the menu. I wound up using some rosemary pomegranate marinade leftover from valentines day to marinate some top sirloin steaks. The steaks were pan seared and accompanied by a broccoli mac and cheese casserole and a salad. I used whole grain shells for the pasta and Amy's Organic butternut squash soup to counterbalance the mountain of cheddar cheese. 
