Pinole
The Tarahumara Indians are a Native American people of northwestern Mexico (Copper Canyons). Most still practice a traditional lifestyle; living in caves, cliff overhangs, or small cabins of wood or stone. After 2009, when Christopher McDougall published his book Born to Run, the Tarahumaras are often being referred to as “the running people” due to their long-distance running ability. They eat lots of corn and beans, and usually run in hand made sandals! Pretty much as close as you can get to barefoot-running. When distance running they eat Pinole to keep their energy levels up.
“Pinole is a Spanish translation of an Aztec word for a coarse flour made from ground toasted maize kernels, often in a mixture with a variety of herbs and ground seeds, which can be eaten by itself or be used as the base for a beverage.”
– Wikipedia.
Sooo, after finishing reading Born to Run I was inspired to make Pinole. Well, my very own version. I’m not in Mexico and I don’t toast my own corn, so this was the closest I could get. Pinole can be eaten as a porridge, baked in the oven (shaped as cookies – easier to carry on long runs), or even made into a drink. The picture collage below pretty much explains it all…
I baked it in the oven at about 180 degrees celcius for about 15 minutes or so (until brownish/crispy).
mmm (?)
It tasted… like somthing new. I’ll have to experiment more to get my perfect recipe.
Keen to try? ;-)
BORN TO RUN by Christopher McDougall – true inspiration!
