6/30/10

I am continuously amazed at where cooking ideas, recipes and just plain epiphanies are manifested. I constantly read and talk to long distance endurance athletes and triathletes that tell of some of their best ideas and thoughts coming together while on the long haul. This is something that I can definitely attest to. It is almost something that I look forward to, the long ride or run brilliant realization. With the waning moments of many of the longer workouts usually bringing my mind heavily onto the topic of food, it is only natural that I just start concocting different food pairings and recipes in my head. Today was a great example of this. I had a good 50 mile ride in the AM and found myself thinking of just this, food. I was still fixed on the post race food from this weekends race. I had potatoes and eggs on my mind. With both on hand, I needed a fun way to 'jazz' it up. The result was a sweet potato scramble in tomato sauce with yogurt. After a good workout there is not much desire for a long cooking process, so I nuked my sweet spud in the microwave for 5 minutes and finished cooking it in a skillet. Just enough to get a little crispness on the outside of the cut up pieces. Once the crispiness sets onto the potatoes, I add the 3/4 cup of egg whites or about 3 eggs. When the eggs are just setting, add a couple of slices of cheese singles or a good handful of shredded cheese. Let the cheese melt and give everything a good toss and now comes the real flavor star of the dish. A 1/2 cup to a cup of spaghetti sauce, depending on how runny one likes it. Bring it all to a slight bubble, a couple more tosses and spins with a spoon and wing, bam, boom, we now have a killer little scramble of a dish! I like to top it off with a little plain yogurt, as well, but it is plenty flavorful without it. The result is a creamy and filling delight, as well as giving the machine all the fuel it needs after a good effort. It is a beautiful meal on the eyes, too. I sit and eat my meal and can't help but smile. Yeah I biked really well this morning, but I am almost as proud of the creation on the plate in front of me. There is something incredible about a great ride or workout, but there is something equally pleasing about the immaculate epiphany that comes from it and the resulting concoction that sits in front of me.