See Corey Run: A Fitness & Nutrition Journal: June 2011

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

3 What's to Come

Hi Everybody,

Corey's Creamilicious Corn Chowder

I know it's been kind of quiet here lately, but that's because I've been hard at work on my upcoming healthy gourmet cookbook. For those of you who might not be aware, I'm writing a cookbook of more than 250 original recipes that's geared towards endurance athletes. I believe that this community could use some more exciting recipes, ones that truly enhance our athletic performance, and at the same time, more than satisfy our taste buds. :) Of course, anyone who's into living a healthy lifestyle can benefit from the foods used in this cookbook. Almost every superfood imaginable in going to be in this cookbook. :)

Also, instead of doing the "white bread" thing, which frankly is a tad bit staid and boring ;), I've decided that the cookbook will encompass cuisines from all over the world, to make cooking not only healthy, but also more of an exciting adventure as well.

Coconut Sticky Black Rice
Pudding with Poached Asian Pears

It's also a really practical book as well. Instead of being "just a coffee table book" with lots of exposition and pretty pictures (although there will be lots of "pretty pictures" in it to whet the appetite ;) ), it'll get down to business and provide what athletes are really seeking in a cookbook -- i.e., recipes, and a practical schematic of how to use those recipes to their best advantage in their training. There'll also be a sports nutrition section in the appendix, for those people who'd like more practical information on various related topics -- i.e., foods to eat during training, and when to eat them, foods to avoid, etc. This isn't going to be a biochem textbook or a detailed primer on vitamins and minerals, people. From what you've told me, that's not what you want in a cookbook to enhance your health and boost your athletic performance, and frankly, it's not what I want either. :)

I don't know about you, but since we all lead busy lives, I'd rather just open up a cookbook and start cooking. When it comes to cookbooks in general, I know I'm probably never going to read those extensive forwards or long stories about how people got interested in cooking, etc. (If they were made into separate books, maybe I'd reconsider, but I don't think that's what a cookbook should really be about.) And many of you told me the same exact thing. See, I listen to what you have to say, as I want this cookbook to be truly useful to you.

Most of you have limited time to cook, so I've also taken that into consideration as well. There are a lot of easy-to-make recipes as well as what I like to call "weekend project" recipes for those of you who just want to cook as a fun weekend activity to do either by yourself, or with friends &/or family.

When it comes to cookbook writing, I'm about about skipping past the fluff and giving people detailed but useful information that helps them in the kitchen and maximizes their chance of recipe success. :) Anything on top of that is clutter, er, I mean extra material. ;) If it doesn't contribute to helping you make a recipe, or help you gauge the best foods for your training, then why put it in a cookbook? That's just my cookbook writing philosophy. As you can see, it's a very practical outlook, one that helps you to get where you're going, quite literally. :)

Rosemary-Kalamata Olive Bread

Anyhow, I'm really trying hard to finish this cookbook, as several people keep asking about it. "When's it going to be ready?" is the most common question I get these days. :) It's coming, it's coming, as soon as humanly possible. I promise! Since I'm doing everything myself -- creating and writing the recipes, the photography, the cooking, the story-telling/anecdotes, the sports nutrition section, etc. -- the process takes a lot longer than people might imagine. The staging, food styling, and photography alone can take well over an hour, depending on how complex the shot is. Then there's the recipe creation, writing, and testing, as well as the rewrites/editing of the cookbook content itself, etc. I won't bore you with the rest. ;)

Spicy Turkey Burgers with Roasted Red
Pepper Salsa & Sweet Pickle Relish

Also, I think it's important to put my best efforts into the book, and if that takes a little longer than others would imagine or expect, then I'd rather put in the proper time to produce a quality result, which is of course, what people who are interested in purchasing the cookbook would want anyhow. :)

In the meanwhile, you're welcome to check out (or follow!) my recipe blog, Cooking with Corey, which has many examples of the types of recipes that'll be in the cookbook. That way, you can get a mini preview, if you will. Please note that there will be several recipes that will only be available in the cookbook. Also, not all recipes from the blog will appear in the cookbook, only the ones that I think will be most advantageous or interesting to endurance athletes.

You can browse the blog's recipes by dish type or cuisine category by clicking on any of the alphabetized entries in the tag cloud, or by expanding the blog archive and viewing the recipes in numerical order. Or, use the search bar to search for a particular recipe.

Insalata Caprese con Finocchio e Olive
(Capresian Salad with Fennel & Olives)

The blog also contains a lot of useful information on nutrition as well.

I hope that you will enjoy making the recipes on the blog. If you do make any of the recipes, please let me know how they turned out for you by leaving a comment on the blog, or by tweeting your replies to me. Your constructive feedback is always welcome.

Oven-Baked Kale Chips,
Six Different Ways

As many of you already know, I'm also up for recipe requests, provided that they fall within healthy gourmet parameters, and it's something that I'd be up for cooking. ;) Additionally, I am happy to answer questions you might have about the recipes themselves, and upon request, am also happy to provide information or tips regarding cooking, baking, food, (sports) nutrition, etc., as time allows.

Apricot Rugelach

I believe in producing inspired content, and blogging only when I've got something to say that I think will be truly helpful to others or will hopefully inspire people who read this blog. Also, there has to be time for blogging here, which has been hard to come by lately. (The recipe blog does get updated regularly, but that's only because those efforts contribute to the completion of the cookbook. ;) )

So, hang in there. I've got several ideas for running-related articles to post. And when I can find the time to post them, I will certainly do so. :)

Thanks for your patience and for continuing to follow this blog.

Happy Running,
Corey

P.S. Below are some more sample recipes from the blog/cookbook. Click on any of the photos to go to the corresponding recipe(s), and also to see a larger photo of the dish. :)