Millet with Parsley and Onion Recipe/Cohasset Triathlon

With a little bit of pushing and encouragement from some special lululemon ladies, I am committed to blogging regularly about food, nutrition and sharing recipes. And of course I will have to throw a bit in about swimming, biking and running too!

Last Saturday, I needed a quick and easy meal. I was racing Cohasset triathlon on Sunday, so I wanted something easily digestible. It was just a sprint, so I didn't need to get crazy with my pre race food. I had some millet in the house, and Jacq had just brought in some fresh local parsley from her CO-OP that I was excited to use. I searched my Whole Foods iPhone app and adapted a millet recipe I found. You could use this recipe with quinoa, amaranth or really any small grain. You could also use it as a side dish or as a bed for fish, scallops or chicken.

Millet with Parsley and Onion Recipe

1 cup millet
2.5 cup water
2 tablespoons vegetable or chicken broth
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine soaked** grain with boiling water; add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and simmer 20-25 minutes, remove from heat, fluff and let sit covered for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat broth in large pan. Add onion and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add parsley and cook for about another minute. Combine both Millet and the onion and parsley in a bowl. Stir in salt and pepper and serve.

Nutrition Benefits:
Millet: A gluten free grain that is highly nutritious and very easily digested. It is high in thiamin, iron, protein, fiber, zinc, magnesium and potassium. It is a great source of energy and great for athletes.
Parsley: A powerful nutritious herb that contains vitamin A,B vitamins, calcium, iron and potassium. It nourishes the glands and fights congestion and inflammation of the kidneys. It is powerful detox herb because it stimulates the liver. Parsley root and seeds contain ingredients that help produce a pain relieving benefit to relax stiff joints.

**I like to soak all my grains. It helps remove the phytic acid which blocks the absorption of vitamins and minerals. Soaking the grain also makes it more digestible. It is very easy to do- you just put the grain in a bowl and fill it with water until the water covers the grain. Ideally you want to soak 8-12 hours, however, if I haven't planned that far ahead, I will soak for as much time as I have even if it is 30 minutes. When you are ready to cook, just strain the water and rinse the grain and it is ready to cook.

Cohasset Triathlon on Sunday was an all around fun day.I had never raced Cohasset before, but was rather impressed that it was the fastest selling sprint in the country. I raced with Sarah's Soldiers which is a team raising money for type 1 diabetes. I was scared about the 62 degree water, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought. If I were training in that water, I probably would be freezing, but racing in it was fine. The bike was pretty flat with some small rolling hills, and the run had a couple of hills, but nothing too bad. It was a gorgeous day. I am extremely impressed with Streamline Events and Race Director Bill Burnett.It truly was one of the most well run and most organized events I have ever raced.An additional plus was having Whole Foods as a race sponsor that provided some great post race quality food rather than typical junk. I would do another one of his races in a heart beat!


Katie, Me and Andrea pre race.

And to top off an already beautiful day, I won my age group.

Post Rapture Hills to Purgatory Ride and Shrimp Scampi (Gluten-free and dairy-free)

We had one of my favorite dishes tonight. I love this recipe as a pre-race meal or after a long training day. It was especially great after our 87 mile Post Rapture Hills to Purgatory Ride.

Hills to Purgatory by wgarland at Garmin Connect - Details
(I rode from Wayland to Hopkinton and back in addition to the the route on garmin connect)

I adapted this recipe from one of Barefoot Contessa's recipes. Ina loves her butter, bread crumbs, cheese, and wheat pasta, but I am not a fan. I put my spin on it to create not only a healthier, less inflammatory version, but a meal that is much kinder on your digestive system and body.
Kate's Shrimp Scampi
2 lB Shrimp
12 oz (1.5 packages) of Quinoa pasta or other gluten-free pasta of choice
5 large cloves of garlic
2 large shallots (about 1/4 Cup)
2 lemons using both lemon zest and juice from both lemons
1/2 Cup Organic Parsley
3 tbsp Rosemary
3 tbsp Red Pepper Flakes (sprinkle liberally if you like it spicy)
1/4 Cup Olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place shrimp in pan. Pour chopped garlic, shallots, parsley, rosemary and red pepper flakes over shrimp. Pour olive oil, lemon juice and lemon zest next. Top off with salt and pepper. Bake for 15 minutes.
Cook Quinoa pasta for 6-8 minutes. Occasionally stir the pasta since it has a tendency to clump. I like the Ancient Harvest brand. It doesn't disintegrate like other alternative pastas. It tastes amazing. Not only do I like it better than regular pasta, but it even passed the test of dad and nana- who is an extremely picky eater.Not only did it pass the test- they both love it.

Serve shrimp over pasta and enjoy!!

...and next time I escape from purgatory, I will be sure to refuel with this delicious meal.

Gluten-Free Banana Bread

Everyone has been loving this gluten-free banana bread! It is so delicious, moist and tastes better than regular banana bread. All the ingredients can be found at Whole Foods or a natural food store.

Recipe:

1/2 Cup Coconut Sugar
3/4 Cup Quinoa Flour
1/2 Cup Teff Flour
1/2 Cup Sorghum Flour
1/4 tsp aluminum free baking powder
1/4 tsp arrowroot powder
3 ripe bananas
2 eggs
1/4 Cup Coconut Butter or Coconut Oil (I like to combine them and use both as a mixture in the 1/4 Cup)


1/2 Cup gluten-free chocolate chips (I use Enjoy Life allergy free brand since it not only is gluten-free, but it is soy and dairy free too)

1/2 Cup chopped Pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (or 325 degrees on convection bake) Combine all the dry ingredients in one bowl. Next combine the eggs, oil and bananas in another bowl and mix together. Pour in wet mixture to the dry flour mixture and mix together. Fold in the chocolate chips and pecans. Pour into bread loaf pan and bake for 30 minutes. Let cool for at least 5 minutes before enjoying!!

What I love about this banana bread is not only is it absolutely delicious, but it is nutrient dense. It isn't healthy only because "it has bananas" like traditional banana bread.

Teff: a gluten-free grain that is packed with nutrients such as thiamin, potassium, iron and calcium. It is higher in protein and fiber than wheat. It is a great grain for athletes not only because it is not pro-inflammatory like wheat, but it has energy enhancing properties. I use Bob's Red Mill Whole Grain Flour since it is high quality and tastes great and because they support cycling :)

Quinoa: a nutritional powerhouse- the gluten-free grain that is high in protein, antioxidants, phytonutrients and many vitamins and minerals. It acts as a prebiotic that feeds good bacteria in the gut and is easily digested.

Coconut Sugar: low on the glycemic index and is more nutrient dense than white and brown sugar. It is full or vitamins and minerals including: Potassium, Magnesium, Zinc, Iron and Vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6 and C. The sugar is not processed, bleached or refined and does not contain any preservatives.

Last course training run and Honey Mustard Scallops

Joe and I ran our last run on the course before Boston in 2 weeks. We started at the Harley store in Framingham and ran just past BC. It was a gorgeous day, low 40s and sunny. A nice change from the snowy, cold training runs that inundated the majority of our Boston training. We both were tired. The legs felt heavier and the 15.5 miles felt a little longer than I would have liked, but overall I am feeling ready for Boston. It is amazing how fast it crept up on us. Compared to the duration of Ironman training, this was so short! But I am ready to to run and then switch gears back to triathlon training.
It was nice to run the infamous Newton hills one last time. Oh Newton Hills, I will see you again in a couple of weeks. Getting to BC was a great feeling. I don't like Dunkin Donuts too much, but I always like going into the Dunkin Donuts at BC since it is the culmination point of so many long runs that I have done and represents some sort of successful finish.

Dinner last night was one of my favorites. Honey Mustard Scallops-fast, easy and good.

Honey Mustard Sauce (this could be cut in 1/2, but I like extra sauce and some for left overs).
4 Tablespooon Dijon Mustard
4 Tablespoon Honey (I use a liquid form of Raw Honey)
2 Tablespoon Organic Apple Cider Vinegar
3 Teaspoon Organic Expeller Pressed Olive Oil
1/4 Teaspoon sea salt
Combine all ingredients in bowl and mix well.

I cooked the scallops in a pan over medium heat- a couple minutes per side. I served the scallops over brown rice. Drizzle the honey mustard sauce over the scallops and rice and top off with fresh ground pepper. I also served asparagus and arugula salad on the side, but this could be changed up depending on the season.