New Blog Feature: Recipe of the (almost) week!

If you are like me its hard to work all day, come home and run for up to 2 hours, make dinner, and have some time to relax. Dinner is often the thing that suffers and we all know how important nutritious food is for our bodies....especially as runners! Crap in = Crap out :)

So I've decided to start a new feature on my blog....A recipe of the (almost) week! I'll try my hardest to post a new recipe each week. I'll focus on runner friendly foods (think carbs and protein) that are easy to prepare and are as healthy as possible. In return, please send me some of your favorites and I can feature them one week. (either e-mail me or post them in a comment) We can all use some new recipes in our rotation, right??

This first recipe came from the New York Times Online. It was billed as being a good comfort food for people that like baked mac and cheese....If you know one thing about me, you know that I loooove mac and cheese! The best parts of this recipe....it's so easy, can be made a day in advance, and it's healthy....what more can a runner want! I've made it three times and love it! My comments/substitutions are in parentheses. Enjoy!

Baked Orzo With Tomatoes, Roasted Peppers and Zucchini

1/2 pound orzo (about 1 1/8 cups) (I used whole wheat orzo from Whole Foods this time and loved it)

Salt to taste

1 large red pepper, roasted and diced (for ease, I get the jared ones)

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (I use less)

2 medium zucchini, sliced about 1/4 inch thick (I've substituted various squashes and they work well)

Freshly ground pepper to taste

1 pound tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced; or 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes, with juice (I use no salt added canned tomatoes....again, its easy!)

1 or 2 plump garlic cloves (to taste), minced

2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan or 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese (1/2 cup, tightly packed) (I've only made it with Parm cheese so far but a coworker has used the goat cheese and likes it too. We both use more cheese than it calls for....calcium and its yummy!)

1. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil, and add the orzo. Cook eight minutes, or until it is cooked through but still firm to the bite. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. Toss with the diced roasted pepper and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.

2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Oil a 2-quart baking dish. Heat another tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large, wide skillet. Add the zucchini and cook — stirring and turning over the slices, or tossing them in the pan — until just cooked through and lightly colored, about five minutes. Scrape into the bowl with the orzo.

3. Return the pan to the heat, add the final tablespoon of oil and the garlic. Cook just until fragrant, 20 to 30 seconds, and add the tomatoes and salt to taste. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the tomatoes have cooked down slightly and smell fragrant. Taste and adjust seasoning. Scrape into the bowl with the orzo, add the Parmesan or goat cheese, and mix everything together. Add freshly ground pepper to taste, and adjust salt. Transfer to the baking dish.

4. Bake 30 to 40 minutes, until the top is just beginning to color. Serve hot or warm.

Yield: Serves six. (yeah right......after a long run Bryan and I could polish this off ourselves...but we don't!)

Advance preparation: You can assemble this several hours, even a day, before baking.