Eating Better, Running Better

So we’re all trying to eat better this year right? I’ve been most recently inspired by Alice Waters and Jamie Oliver who both promote eating more simply. While I would like to run faster, I wouldn’t mind being part of the slow food movement which “aims to be everything fast food is not.” I admit I am far more concerned about what goes in my child’s mouth than my own and I am resolving to eat as healthy as she does, the kid can pack away the fruit! Now we are pretty much meat free at our house (I cop to eating bacon a few times a year) and we eat fish but that’s about it. So it’s a challenge to come up with something new to eat that will be good for us and isn’t meat based. I like the frozen meatless burgers but holy cow (pardon the pun) I’m amazed at how many ingredients are in them and the usually very high levels of sodium.

Last night I decided to try and make my own and found a good bean burger recipe. These aren’t really burgers in my opinion but more like a bean patty. The recipe is below, I cooked mine in a grill pan with a little olive oil and didn’t make them as big as the recipe said, I think much smaller ones cook up better. I think it’s a good basic recipe that you can add plenty of substitutions to based on your tastes. I used red pepper instead of green and just a touch of cumin and chipotle powder. I might think about sauteeing the onions, garlic, and peppers next time since they had a strong flavor but were still good. If you use raw, make sure you squeeze all the moisture out so your patties hold together. I served with Cook’s Illustrated’s Roasted Sweet Potatoes, the kid ate a few bites of the black bean patty and seemed to like but was pretty full from the huge serving of sweet potatoes she devoured.

This is a killer meal for runners. It includes 2 of the top foods for runners providing you with fiber, protein, and plenty of vitamins and minerals essential to muscle function and health.

Black Bean Patties

• 1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 green bell pepper, cut into 2 inch pieces
• 1/2 onion, cut into wedges
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs

Directions

1. If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), and lightly oil a baking sheet.
2. In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.
3. In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.
4. In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.
5. Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.
6. If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.

I use my running time to think about all sorts of things, from the mundane to the existential. Sometimes, for example, what I need to get at the grocery store (decidedly mundane). If you are like me, here’s a running/grocery planning song for your running mix called The Grocery Store.