My favorite recipes

This January Todd Vanek added a new hat to the collection he already wears when he stepped into the role of mayor for the city of Colfax.

“It’s another way to keep my attention deficit disorder at bay,” Todd said with a laugh.

For the past 10 years, the Vanek family has lived on the Palouse. Before moving to Pullman and then Colfax, they were living in Virginia. Todd and his wife, Amy, wanted to move to the West. Todd began looking for a graduate program and found one that suited his needs at Washington State University where he earned a doctorate in Educational Psychology. His focus has been in program evaluation and assessment.

After earning his degree, he worked at WSU for two years and then began working at Decagon, a Pullman company, as the customer support manager.

“Basically, my job is to figure out if the customer is happy,” Todd said. “I’m sure you can figure out how that applies to being mayor.”

He has had many leadership opportunities and has developed his leadership style over the years. Todd said the typical leadership pyramid with the leader at the top of the pyramid should be inverted. The leader is at the bottom, and those who fill the roles in an organization are at the top.

“The leader’s sole job is to support everyone else,” Todd said. “It’s my job to come in and get them the resources they need to do their job.”

Todd also wants to help businesses in Colfax and wants to work with the community to generate more business for the city. He said the challenge is figuring out how to motivate people and how to help local businesses.

“It’s about good organization,” Todd said.

Todd is required to utilize good organizational skills every day as he juggles his many hats, which includes his dad hat. He is the father of six children: Morgan, 22, and Jonathan, 18, both reside in Indiana; and Tayma, 11, Dyamin, 8, Liana, 4, and Arri, 1, live in Colfax. As a family, they enjoy many outdoor activities.

“Last year we started skiing,” Todd said. “Everyone has been except for Amy and Arri, who is still too little.”

The Vanek family also likes to run. Todd runs marathons and this year has qualified to run the Boston Marathon. Amy is training for a half-marathon in March and can be seen running through Colfax pushing Liana and Arri in a jogging stroller. Tayma has run in two 5K races, and Dyamin can be seen working on speedwork at the track.

“He gets a kick out of speedwork,” Amy said, “especially if he can beat mom.”

They also enjoy traveling, although much of their travel includes a race. Last year’s trips included Missoula and Coeur d’Alene to run qualifying races in preparation for this year’s trip to Boston for another marathon.

Todd said nutrition is an important component of running. He said when he began running longer distances, he had to improve his meals. He focuses on nutritional value over taste when preparing for long runs.

“It’s not just what you eat,” Todd said, “but what you do with what you eat.”

Every day, Todd eats a bowl of plain oatmeal for a mid-morning snack. He said he gets teased at work for his eating habits. His breakfast is usually eaten early around 5 a.m. and is about 1,200 calories, which is the fuel he needs to run a couple of hours a day. The weather has not slowed him down.

“Running in fresh snow with no wind, nothing compares,” Todd said. “It’s so peaceful. I see so much that many people miss, especially when you run for hours.”

Recipes:

Todd’s Typical Breakfast

5 eggs: 350 cal.

3 sausages: 110 cal.

2 pieces of toast with butter: 230 cal.

Bowl of cereal with milk: 190-290 cal.

Orange juice (8 ounces) 120 cal.

Full-sized fruit (banana, peach, orange, grapes, etc.) 35-110 cal.

Total Breakfast Calorie Intake: 1035-1210 cal.

10:00 a.m. Top-Off

1 cup oatmeal: 300 cal.

Full-sized fruit (banana, peach, orange, grapes, etc.): 35-110 cal.

Total Calorie Intake: 335-410 cal.

By 10:15 a.m., I have eaten more than half my recommended daily calories (1370-1620 cal.), so I am well prepared to carry out the activities of the day.

Vanek Family Pizza

Crusty Pizza Dough:

1 package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons olive oil

2-3 1/2 cups flour

1 tablespoon cornmeal

Dissolve yeast in warm water in warmed mixer bowl. Add salt, olive oil, and 2 1/2 cups flour. Mix. Add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and mix about 1 1/2 minutes or until dough starts to clean sides of bowl. Knead.

Place dough into greased bowl, turning to grease the top. Cover. Let rise in warm place, free from draft, about 1 hour or until doubled in bulk. Punch dough down.

Brush 14-inch pizza pan with oil. Sprinkle with cornmeal. Press dough across bottom of pan, forming a collar around edge to hold toppings. Add toppings, as desired. Bake at 450 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

Pizza Sauce:

1 can tomato sauce flavored with Italian seasoning

Pizza Toppings:

Mozzarella cheese

Cheddar cheese

Grated Parmesan

Pepperoni (Todd’s favorite)

Canadian bacon, and pineapple (Tayma’s favorite)

Baked Ziti

2 eggs, beaten

1 container (15 ounces) ricotta cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

2 cloves garlic, minced, or use 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 jar (26-30 ounces) spaghetti sauce

1 8-ounce can tomato sauce

1 teaspoon dried oregano

16 ounces ziti or other tubular pasta, cooked and drained

1. In large bowl, combine eggs, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, and 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Set aside.

2. In large skillet, over medium-high heat, cook garlic in oil for 3 minutes. (If using garlic powder, just add in with the oregano.) Stir in spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce, and oregano. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat.

3. Reserve 1 to 2 cups of spaghetti-sauce mixture. Mix remaining sauce with pasta.

4. In 13x9-inch pan, spread enough sauce to cover the bottom of the pan and then pour in 1/2 of the pasta with sauce; top with ricotta-cheese mixture and then remaining pasta. Cover with remaining spaghetti-sauce mixture.

5. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and additional Parmesan, if desired. Bake uncovered for 10 minutes or until heated through.