Breakfast smoothies

Blueberry-Pomegranate Smoothie

Sorry for the lack of updates -- things have gotten hectic as I have started a new internship in Washington D.C., settled into a new apartment as a tentative couch-surfer/resident, taken my LSATs, shopped for Christmas presents, and applied to graduate schools and "real" jobs all the while! December's a busy month for a lot of people, it seems, and I'll be glad once I'm finally through it.

Anyway, since this is a food blog:

I've obviously had limited time on my hands -- sometimes, so limited that I am struck with that unfortunate temptation to hit the snooze button, get 10 minutes more sleep, and skip breakfast. How dreadful of me! For as we know, Breakfast Is The Most Important Meal Of The Day.

It's times like these that a breakfast smoothie comes in handy. As far as I can tell, there's really no downside to making these lovely little concoctions. They're healthy, giving you one each of your recommended fruit and dairy servings and, if properly constructed, Vitamin D, protein, antioxidents and all other sorts of goodies. They're not too sugary (and the sugars that are there are natural) but still taste great. They're cheap, provided you spring for the in-season and/or on-sale produce. And if you need to get out the door ten minutes ago, you can simply fill your nearest beverage container and take your breakfast with you!

Two of my favorite combinations after the jump:

Roasted white fish wrapped in smoked bacon with lemon mayonnaise and asparagus

Those of you who know me have probably gathered that I often seek to fulfill personal "culinary quests" when looking for new recipes. Two such quests are as follows:

• I'm trying to learn more "weeknight dinner" (i.e. prepared in 40 minutes or less, delicious and nutritious) recipes, because lord knows I do enough fancy 3-hour Sunday afternoon affairs and that won't be viable once I get a real job. Upon finding such a recipe that I really like you might hear me say, "This is going in my weekly rotation."

• I'm trying to find a fish recipe that my lovely but pescephobic girlfriend might choke down without incident. It is my notion that she must eventually be compelled to tolerate fish dinners, dammit, because they're such a good lean source of protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and the like.

I think I might have found a good one here. After all, how could anything wrapped in bacon and slathered with lemon zest and fresh rosemary be too intolerable? And I can prepare it in under half an hour, nice! (Definitely "weekly rotation" material.)

Simplified Pollo en Pipián Verde (Chicken in Pumpkin Seed Sauce)

Every once in a while I just pick up recipes from random sources on the Internet, copy them to my "Recipes" folder, then forget about them until one day I decide I want to try cooking something new. This is one of those times.

I know next to nothing about Mexican dishes -- they are more Esteban's thing than mine -- but a quick Google search reveals that Pollo en Pipián Verde translates to "Chicken in Green Sauce," which is certainly to the point. If you're a gourmet with some time on your hands, you could take the time to scrounge together the 15 or so ingredients you need to prepare the dish from scratch; if you're a busy/lazy adult who needs something quick and easy to prepare for a weeknight dinner, however, this recipe is for you. All you need is some chicken thighs, pre-made salsa verde, pumpkin seeds, and a pair of zucchinis, give or take a few spices.

Beware, however: salsa verde comes hot. I grabbed a bottle that was rated "medium" and my sauce came out a bit too spicy for my and my parents' liking (even if they were quick to qualify that it still tasted delicious). Granted, I'm kind of a wuss when it comes to hot peppers, but I tend to find that when my mouth feels like it's on fire the sensation completely overrides the other flavors of a given dish -- and this is undesirable. I'd recommend you find a "mild" variant of the salsa, if at all possible... but perhaps you can handle the heat better than me and my family! 

Recipe after the jump:

Amherst meets reality

In our first post, we stated our aim to continue posting three different gourmet meals every week, in a fit of over-achieving ambition worthy of our Amherst days. Now, we present a post more fitting for life in the real world where you have to get up before 10am and life isn’t a magical fairyland designed explicitly to nurture and pamper you. This post features boxed macaroni and cheese.