This is My Buddha Bowl (and a ramble on vegan running)

This was my last cooked dish before my most recent half-marathon, and I gotta say, it definitely energized me to finish. It's amazing what we can accomplish with plant power when we are not hungover!!

Here's what went into this bowl:

Citrus Black Beans and Rice
Coconut-Roasted Brussel Sprouts
Steamed Kale
Baked Peanut Tofu

#yumtown

The kale and the Brussel Sprouts are pretty self-explanatory, so I won't delve into detail with them here. But let's talk about how this all went down. A lot of people ask me about how to cook certain things sometimes, and I always tell them that most of the time, it's a simple process - you just need to get your timing right. Which gets easier the more you cook! How convenient.

First, preheat your oven to 400. Thankfully, the sprouts and the tofu need about the same time to roast/bake, so no headache needed with your oven. While your oven is preheating, mix the tofu sauce. Here's what you'll need:

1/2 Cup peanut butter (chunky - always chunky in my world!)
2 Tbl Bragg's liquid aminos
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 Cup water
1 Tbl brown sugar

Whisk all ingredients together really well. Then toss with well-pressed, cubed tofu. I used about 1/3 a block with this dish, since I was only serving one.

[crickets]

Throw your tofu in a glass baking dish and prepare your sprouts. I love sprouts because they are super easy and not as terrible tasting as childhood folklore holds. Also they are good for you? Half them (because it's precious) and place face down in a cast iron skillet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Once your oven is heated, throw those suckers in. About 5 minutes later, take one spoonful of coconut oil and toss it in your cast iron wherever you please. This will seep through the Brussel Sprouts and make them mega-tasty. Now close the oven, you dummy!

The cool part here is that you get to wait another 20 minutes before needing to do anything again. You can do dishes or push-ups or laundry or update your blog (nope) or chase your roommate around the house for a good old fashioned tickle fight or walk to Spencer's for a double espresso. But after the first 20 minutes of roasting, take both dishes out and flip them to let the other sides bake evenly. Then put them in for another 20 minutes. (For English majors, this is a total of FORTY minutes for baking).

After you've gotten from espresso from Spencer's and have flipped your oven babies, start the rice. This stuff is BOMB and I must give a huge shoutout to my boy Justin Philalack (roommate and culinary artist extraordinare) for this inspiration. It's easy peasy, delicious and full of nutrients perfect for kicking ass at a half-marathon in a relentless rainstorm.

Grab these things:

rice (however much suits your fancy)
1 can black beans
1/2 orange peel, minced
2 cloves minced garlic
2 Tbl Braggs liquid aminos
1 tsp ginger powder, or 2 tsp fresh minced ginger (better. obvi)

Cook the rice first. This should be simple. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat the garlic in a dab of olive oil over medium for about 2 minutes. Add the orange peel and stir to incorporate for about 1 minute. Then stir in the rest of the ingredients, and heat on low, stirring occasionally, until the rice is finished. Once it's done, drain the rice and incorporate into the black beans.

Done! Somewhere in there should be the steaming of a good handful of kale. But all it requires is 5 minutes of heating in a pan (with a little bit of water) with a saucepan lid over the kale to keep in the steam. Duuh easy.

This was the longest race as a vegan, and I gotta say, it felt pretty damn good. I know I didn't train well enough, but adrenaline and crowds and Katy Perry and American-flag-guy and goal-setting got me through it. It's unfortunate that we have grown up believing that animal products supply us with bountiful nutrients we can't get anywhere else - that are in fact vital to a physically demanding lifestyle.

Just for example, this meal alone (one serving) contains the following:

Vitamin C -294%. Vitamin C forms important proteins that build tendons, ligaments, blood vessels and skin. It also acts as an enzyme in the breaking down of all your delicious front-porch meals, AND acts as an antioxidant to clean up the mess that all those free radicals make when you break down food. Vitamin C keeps you younger longer and keeps your body functioning with efficiency!

Iron - 71%. Some vegans/vegetarians don't get enough iron in their diet, which is simply because they don't eat enough vegetables. It is found in lots of animal products but is just as abundant in dense vegetables. We need iron to make certain proteins in our body, and also to carry oxygen to blood.

Vitamin B-6 - 40%. Protein is essential to building muscle mass to prepare for a race, but it is nothing without a good dose of B-6, which is crucial in breaking down those proteins. It also produces antibodies that fight diseases and keep your immune system strong.

Magnesium - 42%. One silly obscure mineral that is actually involved in more than 300 biochemical functions in your body. It helps maintain normal muscle and nerve function, keeps heart rhythm steady, supports a healthy immune system, and keeps bones strong. It also helps regulate blood sugar levels, promotes normal blood pressure, and is involved with metabolism and protein synthesis. Woah!

Vitamin A - 133%. Helps maintain healthy skin, teeth, skeletal and soft tissues, mucus membranes, etc. This stuff helps keep us healthy when we are putting our physical bodies under great stress.

Calcium - 53%. Clearly very important for keeping your bones strong! It also helps the messaging system between the nerves and muscles and brain efficient.

Protein - 39 grams. Any vegan gets this question all the time - "But where do you get your protein??????" It can get frustrating talking with people who refuse to believe that you are in fact getting enough nutrition to be a runner, cyclist, casual waterpark volleyballer, etc. on a plant-based diet. I don't want to hop up on a conspiracy-theorist soap box or anything, but there truly is a LOT of nutritional propaganda put out there by the meat industry. They want us to believe that a) we need more protein than we do and b) that we can only obtain said massive amounts of protein through animal products.Check out the Vegetarian Resource Guide for a more detailed breakdown on the nutrients at play here.

Potassium - 831 mg. Potassium is important. The end.

Vitamin K - 600%. What???? That's like, 6 times more than what is recommended by our socialist president Barack Hussein Obama???! Check it out - kale is super high in Vitamin K, which is good for your blood and good for your bones. It helps prevent calcification in your arteries AND is good for your liver.

Fiber - 87%. Besides the obvious benefit of keeping you "regular," which is a HUGE advantage to a fiber-rich diet (vegans are the quickest poopers), it also can reduce your risk for breast cancer.


Now that I am finished with the half-marathon, I am now training for my FIRST FULL in October! It's terrifying and exciting and I can't wait to share how it's going. If you are a vegan athlete, holler and me and share your favorite pre-race recipes!