Coping with rage hunger

It's official: my stomach has taken control of my body. Obviously that's a slight overstatement (errr not really), but in all seriousness, my hunger has reached new levels often times leaving me bonking halfway through a run or rage hungering at all my friends. Sorry!

This week has been case in point. Since Saturday's 18 mile run (!!!), I have literally been constantly hungry. Embarrassingly so. I highly doubt it's professional to be downing your lunch during a 10am meeting, but desperate times call for desperate measures? Obviously my high mileage has forced my body to burn calories like never before, but the issue has also been exacerbated by less than great eating habits for the past couple of months. I most likely haven't been getting as much fiber/protein as I should since Seamless provides at least two of my meals a day, leaving me at the nutritional whim of Tribeca's restaurants. Less than ideal. Besides being fun and wonderfully destressing, cooking is the best way to ensure you get the proper nutritional mix to maximize your training.

So last night, I took advantage of an early exit from the office to swing by the Union Square Greenmarket to scope out the vestiges of summer's produce. Snagged a few pints of shiny yellow and red cherry tomatoes, a couple shallots, and a bundle of fresh basil, which I decided to combine with some pasta and spicy Italian sausage. Perfect combination of carbs, MEAT, and fresh veggies for a hungry runner. I wanted to whip up one of my mum's standard summer pasta dishes, but of course I couldn't find the recipe and was way too lazy to fill out the form for Cook's Illustrated free online trial. So I winged it!

Homage to end of summer tomatoes
(Loosely adapted from the vague memory of a Cook's Illustrated recipe)
2 1/2 pints cherry tomatoes
3 cloves garlic (1/4 inch slice)
4 large shallots (sliced in rings)
3/4 lb spicy Italian sausage
2 tbsp olive oil
red pepper (to taste)
kosher salt
pepper
basil
farfalle or orecchiette pasta
arugula (optional)
pecorino or some other hard cheese, preferably with a little bite

Preheat oven to 300F. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil and place whole cherry tomatoes on sheet along with sliced garlic and shallots. It's okay to leave the shallot rings intact rather than separating as it will help prevent them from burning. Toss vegetables with 2 tbsp olive oil and salt pepper to taste. Slow roast in oven for ~30-40 minutes, tossing every 15 minutes.

While the tomatoes are doing their thing, heat a dash of oil in a frying pan and quickly sear the outside of the sausages on high heat (3-4 minutes). Turn heat down and cook the sausages almost through for another 10 minutes. Drain fat from the pan and then allow meat to rest/cool for a few minutes before chopping into bite-sized pieces.

Stir the sausage into tomato mixture and put back in the oven for another 20-30 minutes, or until the tomatoes begin to burst. While you're waiting for your tomato sausage mixture to finish up, boil water and cook your pasta of choice - I prefer farfalle or orecchiette. After the tomatoes have burst and the onions look nice and caramelized, remove from oven and mix with pasta and arugula if you want some extra veggie lovin'. Garnish with basil and shaved pecorino cheese. Last step, put food to face.
I got a little overzealous in my cooking binge last night, so I also tried my hand at this fantastic recipe for goat cheese and caramelized onion cornbread from Smitten Kitchen! If you like corn, cheese, bread, or really just happiness, then you should definitely bake this immediately. Clearly I had to sample a smidge before getting around to photographing it.

Coming up: tackling the formidable 20 mile run, energy gel reviews, my running bucket list, and more NYRR races!

All my runner ladies

Courtesy of Kim, a great article on "8 Wonder Foods for Female Runners." These days it's impossible to pick up an issue of Runners World or troll a running blog without reading an article on the best foods, ingredients, or crazy Native American protein powders to supplement your running and maximize performance. However, many of them force readers to search out ingredients that you could only maybe find in your local veganlocavorefairtradesustainablyorganic market. Eh, that sounds like far too much effort. This article offers accessible advice for health conscious runners, and some tasty recipes to help you tap the various benefits of several foods. Although the author gears the article towards female runners' needs, the nutrition tips are applicable for most athletes. Pretty sure pomegranates' antioxidant power doesn't gender discriminate.

Personally, I'm usually slightly skeptical of the ever changing "food of the day", preferring to focus on eating well balanced meals full of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and MEAT. Hey, I'm a growing girl - I need my protein. Speaking of healthy running snacks, spent Memorial Day having a much needed bakeathon and whipped up a massive batch of my favorite whole wheat muffins. NYTimes' Mark Bittman posted this recipe a few months ago, and it's absolutely one of the most flexible quick-breads I've tried. The recipe can hold up to 3/4 cup of whatever add-ins you like, giving you so many yummy variations! For the past month, I've been itching to get my hands on all the fresh berries abounding in my farmer's market. So Monday I picked up some fresh blueberries, threw in a handful of oatmeal and poof! oatmeal, blueberry whole wheat muffins. Definitely my new favorite combination!

What recipes are you dying to try this summer?

Food for thought

Literally. In case you didn't know by now, one of the few things I love more than running is food and as a runner is especially important to stay properly fueled with lots of carbohydrates and protein. Enter granola and Greek yogurt. My roommate and I should take out stock in Fage given the amount we go through in a week. And I'm the same with granola, which is often my breakfast, dinner, snack, you name it. However, this little food addiction adds up pretty quickly. Sadly I'm not exactly equipped to make my own yogurt (next life goal!), but granola? Easy peasy lemon squeezy. Even our tiny little oven can handle that.

Crunchy delicious granola

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen and King Arthur Flour

The original recipe molds the granola into little chewy bars. The first time I tried the recipe that was my intended goal; however, after a little bit of fortuitous over-baking they were not the chewy bars SK had raved about. Blessing in disguise! After crumbling up the crispy bars, I discovered some of the best granola I've ever had. The maple syrup and sugar caramelizes into deliciousness without becoming too sweet and the recipe can hold a TON of fruit and nuts - perfect for breakfast or a pre-run snack.

1 2/3 cups quick rolled oats

1/2 to 3/4 cup granulated sugar (use more for a sweetness akin to most purchased granola)

1/3 cup oat flour (or 1/3 cup oats, processed till finely ground in a food processor or blender)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 to 3 cups dried fruits and nuts (total of 10 to 15 ounces)*

1/3 cup peanut butter or another nut butter (optional)

6 tablespoons melted butter

1/4 cup honey or maple syrup

* My fave is 1 cup raisins, 1 cup dried apricots, 1/2 cup wheat germ, 1/2 cup pecans, 1/2 cup hazelnuts, and 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes. Honestly, you can pretty much throw anything into this recipe and it'll still be good. Okay, maybe not anything.... Pretty sure you wouldn't want PBR granola.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8″ x 8″ x 2″ pan in one direction with parchment paper, allowing it to go up the opposing sides. Lightly grease the parchment paper and the exposed pan, or coat with a non-stick spray.

Stir together all the dry ingredients, including the fruit and nuts. In a separate bowl, whisk together the vanilla, melted butter or oil, liquid sweeteners and water. Toss the wet ingredients with the dry (and peanut butter, if you’re using it) until the mixture is evenly crumbly. Spread in the prepared pan, pressing them in firmly to ensure they are molded to the shape of the pan.

Bake the bars for 40 to 50 minutes, until they’re brown around the edges — don’t be afraid to get a little color on the tops too. They’ll seem soft almost underbaked when you press into the center of the pan but do not worry, they’ll set completely once completely cool.

Cool the bars in their pan completely on a cooling rack. (Alternately, after about 20 minutes you can use your parchment “sling” to lift and remove the granola, and place them in their paper on the rack to cool the rest of the way. This can speed the process up.)

Once cool, a serrated knife (or bench knife) to crumble the granola. It should break pretty easily at this point so you can even use your hands. To store, wrap the bars individually in plastic or stack them in an airtight container. In humid weather, it’s best to store bars in the refrigerator. They also freeze well. Assuming it lasts that long.

What's your favorite afternoon snack?