Experimenting with Rice Cakes
After the last 24 hour race where our fueling wasn't up to snuff due to the craziness around the event, I decided I needed to try something new. I had gotten most of my calories from Snickers bars and cookies and other junk food, but was never satisfied the entire event. I wanted more "real" food, but still something that was easy to digest. The chicken and rice soup always hit the spot, but was a hassle to deal with in the make-shift tent we had set up. With some big races coming up, I decided that it was time to start playing around in the kitchen. I have The Feed Zone Cookbook, but hadn't gotten more then just flipping through and looking at the pictures. This time, I pulled it out with the intent to try a few of the portable recipes.
I'm not a huge bacon fan and I was looking for something with a little longer shelf life then the egg rice cakes. So I decided to try the Chocolate Peanut Coconut rice cakes. All flavors I love and the recipe was super easy... Well, it would have been easier if I'd had a food processor! All I had was a cheapo, ancient blender. I pre-crushed some of the nuts with the hopes that my blender would handle the strain. (There's a reason I hadn't used in forever...) No such luck. I ended up with liquid on the bottom, solid chunks on top and a blender that was smoking. And while the flavor was absolutely yummy, the cakes were so incredibly sticky that my hands were covered in gunk. Not good for riding or racing... I made some additions at home after our ride, but the next day, I couldn't stand the taste. Whatever I did, it just ruined the whole batch. And I was out a blender. I made one more super small batch without the blender - just over cooked the rice and mixed it really hard.
Tried them again on my next two workouts. Hard workouts - chasing Nick and the boys around one day, then some massive intervals the next day. After work, already tired and hungry. And the rice cakes worked great. Tasted awesome, vanished into my stomach despite the high intensity I was riding at. No dryness in my mouth, no stickiness, and no cloying flavor stuck in my mouth after I ate them. I think I'm on something! Now I just need to get a food processor so I can really have some fun in the kitchen and get some bars mixed up for rides and workouts. I'm gonna have some fun and have something really yummy and full of energy whipped up for June!
I'm not a huge bacon fan and I was looking for something with a little longer shelf life then the egg rice cakes. So I decided to try the Chocolate Peanut Coconut rice cakes. All flavors I love and the recipe was super easy... Well, it would have been easier if I'd had a food processor! All I had was a cheapo, ancient blender. I pre-crushed some of the nuts with the hopes that my blender would handle the strain. (There's a reason I hadn't used in forever...) No such luck. I ended up with liquid on the bottom, solid chunks on top and a blender that was smoking. And while the flavor was absolutely yummy, the cakes were so incredibly sticky that my hands were covered in gunk. Not good for riding or racing... I made some additions at home after our ride, but the next day, I couldn't stand the taste. Whatever I did, it just ruined the whole batch. And I was out a blender. I made one more super small batch without the blender - just over cooked the rice and mixed it really hard.
Tried them again on my next two workouts. Hard workouts - chasing Nick and the boys around one day, then some massive intervals the next day. After work, already tired and hungry. And the rice cakes worked great. Tasted awesome, vanished into my stomach despite the high intensity I was riding at. No dryness in my mouth, no stickiness, and no cloying flavor stuck in my mouth after I ate them. I think I'm on something! Now I just need to get a food processor so I can really have some fun in the kitchen and get some bars mixed up for rides and workouts. I'm gonna have some fun and have something really yummy and full of energy whipped up for June!
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