Why Do It and Monster Cookie Cake

In Myrtle Beach.  I’ll spend time with my parents as well as run the Diva Myrtle Beach Half Marathon with sorority sisters.  It’s a weekend to get excited. 

Status of the foot:  It’s achy when I rest but feels fine when I’m walking. Classic plantar fasciitis? My dad asked “Do you take care of your feet?”  My answer “Well…not really”  His eyes flew open wide in disbelief.  Guess I’ve always taken my feet for granted. I would rather go barefoot than wear shoes even if walking on hot, stony pavement.  I’ve never ritualistically rubbed cream to soften my feet.  I’ve worn sneakers and shoes haphazardly, only caring that they “fit right” and sometimes didn’t even bother about a good fit if I loved the shoe.  My poor feet. I better make good on my “footy favors” promise.

Runners accept pain.  We don’t like it.  We try to ignore it and would quickly advise anyone else to rest.  We never take our own advice.  So why run the half this weekend instead of taking an extended break after running a good Boston race? I’m not sure but I want to keep running. I want to keep experiencing different distance runs.

On top of all that I hope to accomplish this spring, I’m still searching for more. I would like to run 3 marathons in 90 days. Why? Because that would get me a bronze level membership in Marathon Maniacs.

It’s either run 3 in 90 days or run 2 in 16 days.  Well I missed the 2 and I would have had the 3 if food poisoning or flu hadn’t over come me at Disney.  With Ted’s event season starting, it’s unlikely I’ll be able to find a marathon to complete the 3 needed this spring.  Even so, I wonder if my foot will tolerate more long races or even more race pounding?  Why do I want to join other marathon obsessed runners at Marathon Maniacs? Who knows. It’s just one of those things I’d like to see if I can do.

If my goal of 3 in 90 isn’t do-able this spring, I’ll investigate options for the fall when I run Rochester on September 22 then Chicago on October 13.  Guess it depends on how everything heals then holds up over the summer.  But for now, I’ll keep my focus on the job at hand and hope for the best. I’m not good with pain and certainly don’t want to deal with it over 26.2 miles.  Body, stay well.

Have you ever had or do you have a goal that might not make sense to anyone except you?

FOOD FOCUS

I was reading an article from Training Peaks by Nell Stephenson about options for gluten free carbohydrates. This is important for anyone suffering gluten intolerance who is into any kind of endurance activity. Most carbohydrate offerings or suggestions seem to focus on oatmeal, bagels, whole grains. Unless specifically labeled "Gluten Free", those selections will cause gastrointestinal troubles for gluten sensitivity.

Some symptoms of gluten sensitivity might include fatigue, headaches, stomach aches, bloating, skin issues, lack of focus, and more. See The Celiac Foundation website for more specifics.

In the meantime, I thought the Training Peaks article introduced some delicious options for gluten free, healthy carbohydrates.

Banana: 1 medium has 27 g

Sweet Potato: 1 cup mashed has 58 g

Dried Dates: 18 g per date

Fresh Figs: 2" diameter, 12 g

Raisins: small box, 34 g

Naturally I wanted to incorporate those delicious ingredients into a recipe and came up with an out of this world "cookie cake". It’s NOT gluten free but it IS delicious. It’s not the most moist and delicate cake you’ll ever eat but it IS sweet and satisfying. The original recipe for "Monster Cookies" was from Paula Deen.

Makes (1) 9" round cake

*Use a 9" with 3" sides cake pan and grease well.

• 1/2 cooked, skin removed and mashed sweet potato
• 1/2 cup peanut butter *natural and crunchy is best.
• 1 cup brown sugar (packed)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 beaten large eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
• 1 1/2 cups quinoa flakes (or you can use all oats)
• 1 cup flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup chopped figs
• 1/2 cup chopped dried pear (or other dried fruit of your choice)
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/3 cup coconut

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F and prepare the pan. Line with parchment and grease well.

Beat the potato, peanut butter together. Add the sugar and eggs. Add the milk, salt and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes.

Blend the oats, quinoa(if using), flour and baking powder then add to the liquid mixture.

Stir in the figs, pear, raisins, coconut.

Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake for 1 1/2 hours *check after 75 – 80 minutes to determine how much more baking is needed.

*If you want a cake that is a little more moist, make a sugar wash of 1/2 cup sugar with 1/2 cup water, boil for 3 minutes, allow to cool, add 1 TBS vanilla and pour over the cake.

Ever made a cookie cake?