Pre-Long Run/Race Fueling w/ Vegan Brownies

You guys had great tricks for getting rid of the “sickies” before it gets worse – thank you! I’m happy to report that I woke up on Saturday feelin’ ok and went for an easy 4.6 miler on the bridle path.

I have to say, it was a little strange not running long, since I usually do my long runs on Saturday. But, I had to rest up for Sunday’s ING NYC Marathon Tune-up!

My goal for Saturday was to be über productive to allow for extra rest and recovery after Sunday’s 20 miles. First on my list was laundry, a visit to Whole Foods, and then some reading for class.

I also wanted to bake something delicious that I could enjoy after the race (and, who am I kidding? the night before too!) A blog I read often called Greens and Jeans sparked the idea to make a chocolatey, delicious vegan treat.

Since I’m a little obsessed with the vegan cupcakes they sell at Whole Foods, I was super excited to give vegan brownies a try.

The original recipe can be found here - I made a bunch of changes! I substituted applesauce and almond milk for the oil and water, used more cocoa powder and less sugar, and added in some cinnamon.

Chocolate chips seemed necessary to add to the mix – they weren’t vegan, but since I’m not vegan, nor is anyone I’ll be sharing these with, I’m ok with it!

My oven is the definition of wonky, so they may have taken a little longer than normal (~34 minutes).

My stomach was growling, so clearly I had to sample the goods once they cooled.

Delicious! Moist, chocolatey and still a bit warm.

90% Vegan Brownies

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips (if you want this recipe to be 100% vegan, just get vegan chocolate chips or skip ‘em!)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°

In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Mix together almond milk, applesauce and vanilla and pour into dry ingredients; mix until smooth. Add chocolate chips. Spread evenly in a 8×8 inch baking pan.

Bake for 30-35 minutes (more or less if you use a different size pan) until the top is no longer shiny. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting into squares.

These were a great treat to enjoy after my pre-long run/race dinner of arugula salad with mini heirloom tomatoes and bell peppers, baked flounder and a baked sweet potato.

I had the brownie (ok, two brownies!) with a side of Greek yogurt and went to bed obnoxiously early for a Saturday night.

The race slash my first 20 miler went well – stay tuned for a recap tomorrow!

Question: Are you vegan or vegetarian? Thoughts on vegan foods?