The Athlete Gourmet - Quick and Easy Weekday Meals
Some days, having a well stocked pantry can crucial for post workout recovery. I like to keep my pantry filled with canned beans, such as garbanzos and cannellini. Sometimes, I might finish up a workout and be starving for a filling lunch with some protein to help my muscles recover and some carbohydrates to replenish my body’s stores. This salad is a great, satisfying one-bowl-meal you can easily whip together with whatever you may have laying around the kitchen.
After working out, it is recommended you eat within a 45 minute period afterwards to get the best results and be fully recovered and ready for your next workout. Because of the relatively short window and because I’m generally quite tired after my workouts, having a recipe that’s easy to toss together is key.
The best part of this recipe is its versatility. First, choose a type of canned bean. I prefer garbanzo or cannellini beans, but there are many other great beans you could use. Red kidney beans, for example, are a good source of vitamin E and C, which boost your immune system and help your body recover from the stress of the workout.
I usually have either garlic or onions laying about and start my salad off by sautéing these in some olive oil. Any other greens or veggies you have laying about can be grated or sliced and add to the salad. For the salad pictured above, I started by chopping up some garlic and sautéed it for a minute in olive oil, then added the garbanzo beans and cooked them until they were heated through. I took them off the fire, added some chopped parsley, a drizzle of apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper.
In a big bowl, I put a base layer of lettuce, some grated carrot and then lightly dressed them with extra virgin olive oil, apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper. I then put a generous scoop of the warmed garbanzo beans. I topped the salad off with a poached egg and served it with some crusty bread. Quick, easy and very satisfying.
Other vegetables I’ve added to the greens have included thinly sliced radishes, sliced tomatoes, avocado, cooked beets… The variations are limitless and really just depend on what you have around the house.
