Food for Runners: Q-u-i-n-o-a

I suppose I could just call this post "Food for HEALTH" instead of making it runner-specific. But we're continuing with our series of foods that fuel activity. If you're catching up, we've covered bananas and garlic -- and included our favorite recipes from across the web.

We love quinoa because it goes with most any meal. And according to Care2.com, though we often think of quinoa as a grain, "it is actually a seed from a vegetable related to Swiss chard, spinach and beets."

So why is it so good for running? Well, it's been considered a super-food for thousands of years. In fact, "Inca warriors had more stamina and quicker recovery time by eating these quinoa seeds." (Source)

Some especially good news for vegetarian and vegan runners: "Quinoa has a higher protein content than wheat, barley or other major grains. One cup of quinoa has 9 grams, which trumps the protein-rich egg (6 grams)." (Source)

Quinoa also offers much in the way of antioxidants, "protecting the mitochondria from oxidative damage created during energy production as well as guard other cells, such as red blood cells, from injury caused by free radicals." (Source)


Here are some of our favorite recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner:

Kevin's Blueberry Quinoa Parfait
Alyssa's Maple Apple Quinoa Granola
Monique's Whole Wheat Banana Quinoa Pancakes
Tastespotting's Quinoa with Asparagus and Fava Beans
Our Quinoa Chili
Cassie's Quinoa Black Bean Burgers
Jane's Chana Masala with Quinoa
The Redhead's Green Goddess Quinoa Cakes
Our Red Quinoa Bread
Ashley's Skillet Quinoa Oat Bread
Fleeting Delight's Quinoa Sushi
Kathy's Quinoa Superfood Tacos
Our Chickpea Quinoa Salad
The NYT's Pho with Broccoli and Quinoa
Vianney's Quinoa Coconut Cookies


We usually buy quinoa in the bulk bins at Wegmans. It's readily available in most grocery stores across the country and beyond. Recently, however, Feed Adam sent some quinoa and quinoa flour (which I had never used before).


Feed Adam quinoa is planted, harvested, and processed by an indigenous Ecuadorian non-profit women's foundation called Randimpak.

Anyway, I know lots of you buy bulk ingredients online, so the next time you order, consider giving them a try. They offer bags of quinoa and quinoa flour up to 25 pounds! Here's a link to their shop. $1 per pound of their food sold and 50% of the profits from bulk sales is donated to help "eat away" at poverty.

Food for Runners: B-A-N-A-N-A-S
Food for Runners: G-A-R-L-I-C


OTHER STUFF:

• You can check out a Typical Tuesday in our life -- with lots of pictures -- over on Writing Chapter Three today.
• And don't forget to enter the Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook giveaway.
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