Better than carbo-loading for a Marathon—one cup of this energizer dish will keep you going for hours, without any sweet or caffeinated pick-me-ups.  What’s more, it’s inexpensive, stays fresh for more than a week in the fridge, while flavors continue to improve until leftovers taste better than the casserole did when it first emerged from the oven. (Use organic ingredients if possible.)

1 cup cooked Garbanzo Beans (also known as Chickpeas—of which Hummus is made)

1 cup cooked red Kidney Beans

1- ½ cup cooked whole grain Brown Rice

1 medium size Onion (red preferred)

5 cloves of Garlic

1 large or 2 medium size Heirloom (or other) Tomato(es)

2 whole Eggs

½ cup – plus 2 tablespoons—plus another 2 tablespoons of extra virgin Olive Oil

½ cup Vegetable Broth

¼ teaspoon Cumin Powder

1 tablespoon dry Basil

1/8 teaspoon Ginger Powder

Pinch of Cayenne Pepper (or to taste)

Pinch Turmeric

¼ teaspoon sweet, red Paprika

1 tablespoon dry Basil

2 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce

1 stalk chopped Celery

Pinch Sea Salt (or to taste)

>Sauté chopped onions in ½ cup olive oil; add minced garlic; stir in chopped tomatoes and chopped celery stalk.

>When onions translucent and tomatoes soft, remove from heat and set aside.

>Heat up oven to 400º.

>In a bowl, combine chickpeas, beans, rice and vegetable broth and mix well.

>In a blender (or with a whisk in a bowl) blend and whip eggs with all the herbs, spices and Worcestershire sauce.

>Fold contents of blender into the beans, rice, etc. combination and mix well.

>Brush a Pyrex baking dish with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and spread mixture evenly throughout the dish.

>Drizzle the last 2 tablespoons of olive oil on top of the dish.

>Place casserole into oven and bake for 20 minutes

>Cover casserole with foil; lower oven temperature to 380º and bake another 30 minutes, then check to make sure there are no soggy parts in the dish. It should be easy to slice and lift a section from any part.

>Remove from oven, let cool, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.