Ideas for Dinner for Athletes PLease!?

Question

I run a small Hotel and this weekend we have 20 athletes booked in for a thiathlon. I am hoping to serve a suitable dinner the night before and heard pasta would be good. I've decided, I think, on offering a choice of pasta carbonara, bolognaise and pasta with mushroom sauce (plus salad and bread). Any more useful suggestions or tips for an easy pudding?! Many thanks!

Answer 1

Triatheletes will certainly want the "carb-loading" menu. What you have laid out sounds like the usual thing for the triathelete.

You could also have some kind of rice dish, a seafood jambalaya would be great as the rice provides the starch and the seafood gives them needed protein for the final stages.

I can't help with the pudding, but a fruit salad with some seasonal/regional mixed berries would be ok. You might serve it with ice cream or frozen yogurt, believe me, triatheletes do incorporate some fats into their diets and the staunch "no/low fat" types could always choose the yogurt.

good luck

Answer 2

Pasta is always good, some runners prefer to eat pasta the week before and protien the day before. Grilled chicken might be a good choice!

Answer 3

Carbs and Protein! Pasta, fish and chicken are excellent! With lots of bread and fluid: water, gatorade but no alcohol.

Answer 4

I had four brothers who were athletes and they always wanted pasta before games. Something about "carbing up". Good luck!

Answer 5

grilled chicken with seasonal steamed vegetables/salad . pancakes with strawberries and fruit sauce are good

Answer 6

Pavlova with oodles of fruit salad and whipped cream.... well, maybe not the cream.

Answer 7

STEAK.... Plenty of Protein!

Answer 8

Linguine with Potatoes, Green Beans, and Spinach Pesto
6 tablespoons toasted pine nuts, divided

7 cups packaged spinach leaves, trimmed

1/3 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon olive oil

8 oz. uncooked linguine

3 medium (1/2 inch) cubed, peeled red potatoes

2 cups (2-inch) cut green beans

Place 3 tablespoons pine nuts, spinach, and next 6 ingredients (spinach through garlic) in a food processor; process until smooth, scraping sides of processor bowl once. With food processor on, slowly pour water and oil through food chute; process until well-blended. Set aside.

Cook linguine and potato in boiling water 6 minutes. Add green beans; cook additional 5 minutes or until potato is tender. Drain. Combine remaining 3 tablespoons pine nuts, spinach mixture, and pasta mixture in a large bowl. Toss well to coat. Garnish with Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Serving size: 2 cups, calories 524; fat 17.3g. protein 23.9g. From Cooking Light Magazine.

Last Minute Lasagna
1 pound lean ground turkey (optional)

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

26 oz jar low-fat spaghetti sauce

16 oz can tomato sauce

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon basil

2 tablespoons lowfat Parmesan cheese

2 cups fat-free cottage cheese

1 cup fat-free mozzarella, shredded

12 oz lasagna noodles, uncooked

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1 cup chopped red peppers

1 cup chopped yellow peppers

Preheat oven to 375. Spray a 9x 13 baking pan with vegetable spray.

Place the turkey, onion, and garlic in a large frying pan sprayed with PAM and a little bit of water. Cook on medium- high heat until the turkey is browned and the liquid has evaporated.

Add the sauces, oregano, basil, and crushed red pepper. Simmer 10-15 minutes.

Spread a little of the sauce on the bottom of the prepared baking pan. Place part of the uncooked noodles on the bottom of the baking pan. Spread half of the cottage cheese over the noodles evenly. Spread half of the sauce over the cottage cheese. Arrange the vegetables on top of the sauce. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the vegetables. Top with the noodles, sauce, and mozzarella cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake 45-50 minutes. Remove foil and bake for
10-15 minutes. From the McDougall Program for Maximum Weight Loss.

Artichoke and Red Pepper Pizza
1 Boboli Thin Pizza Shell

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup julienne cut red bell pepper

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

5 garlic cloves, minced

1 can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped (not in oil)

1 jar sliced mushrooms, drained

11/2 cups shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

Freshly cracked pepper

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet, simmer ingredients until tender.

Place on boboli shell and top with cheese.

Bake at directions on Boboli package. From Cooking Light Magazine.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes
7 cups cubed peeled baking potatoes

6 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 cup 2% low-fat milk

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons margarine

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Place potatoes and garlic in a saucepan. Cover with water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer 20 minutes; drain. Return potatoes and garlic to pan. Add remaining ingredients; beat at medium speed with a mixer until smooth.

Calories 251, fat 4.8g for 3/4 cup. From Cooking Light Magazine.

Thai Chicken with Basil and Vegetables

Sauce

2 tablespoons chicken broth
2 teaspoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cloves garlic
1 serrano pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cups broccoli florets
2 carrots, cut into thin strips
4 green onions, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/4 cup firmly packed basil leaves
2 cups cooked jasmine rice

In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients. Set aside.

Rinse chicken breasts and pat dry with paper towels. Thinly slice breasts. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet or wok over medium high heat. Spray with vegetable oil. Add garlic and serrrano pepper. Cook for 10-15 seconds. Add chicken and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink in the center.

Add the broccoli, carrots, and green onions and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, or until vegetables are tender-crisp.

Add the reserved sauce mixture and basil leaves. Stir-fry for 1 minute, or until mixture is warmed through. Serve over cooked rice.

Per serving: (4) 290 calories, 29g protein, 32g carbohydrate, 5g fat. From AHA Low-Fat, Low-Cholesterol Cookbook.

Garlic Rosemary Roasted Chicken

1 (5-6 lb) roasting chicken

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary

8 garlic cloves, crushed

2 medium red onions, quartered

2 whole garlic heads

2 teaspoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Remove and discard giblets and neck from chicken. Rinse chicken under cold water; pat dry. Trim excess fat. Starting at the neck cavity, loosen skin from breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers and gently pushing fingers between the skin and meat. Place rosemary and crushed garlic beneath skin of breast and drumsticks. Lift wing tips up and over back; tuck under chicken. Place chicken breast side up, on a broiler pan.

Cut a thin slice from end of each onion. Remove white papery skins from garlic heads (do not peel or separate cloves). Cut tops off of garlic heads, leaving root end intact.

Bake at 450 for 30 minutes. Brush onions and garlic heads with olive oil and arrange around chicken. Reduce oven temperature to 350; bake an additional 1:15 or until a meat thermometer registers 180 degrees.

Cover chicken loosely with foil; let stand for 10 minutes. Discard skin from chicken. Squeeze roasted heads of garlic to extract pulp; serve as a spread on French bread, if desired.

Per serving: calories 231, 7.7g fat, 26.5g protein. From Cooking Light Magazine.