green smoothie

while we all hold on

(for dear life, sometimes)

to who we are,

i think it's fair to say we become products

of our environment. for me, that means a lot

of things - like lately, my (slight)

obsession with green smoothies.

i had never heard of green smoothies -

much less imagined myself drinking, craving

and researching twists on them - before about

a year and a half ago. one of my coworkers brought

in a smoothie everyday, filled with lots of visible

kale. other people started drinking them. a lot

of people started talking about them. and i kept

thinking, one day, i'll get up the nerve to make one.

i kept it in my head for over a year.

people still drank them, but they didn't talk about

them quite as much. then, in april, i switched jobs

and boom: green smoothies. in my face. all the time.

again. ok, i will make them.

but, i didn't.

until one day, in the middle of may,

i realized that i had almost all of the ingredients

in the house for this one, the smoothie i'm

most commonly faced with. i prepped everything

the night before - i chopped kale, measured spinach,

diced strawberries and sliced dates, even sprinkling

some flax seed in for good measure. the next morning,

i blended the whole thing with a ripe banana and

coconut water, the only acceptable beverage in the house,

and blended. the results were faintly flecked, but overall,

smooth. the mixture, like everyone said,

tasted like bananas. it was pretty good.

for the next few weeks, we set up shop every night.

after dinner, larry would try to clean the kitchen,

and i, as i am apt to do -

stemming kale, hulling strawberries - would

recreate a mess next to him.

the next morning, when larry got up for work,

he would pour a couple cups of coconut milk

(which we found we liked better than the coconut

water when not using a crazy ripe banana) into

the container, add a banana and blend for 2 minutes

before dividing amongst our shiny new smoothie cups.

(mine's the orange!)

his would leave with him. mine would go in the fridge,

ready and waiting for me to fly downstairs, always one

minute later than my 7:20 deadline, and grab it out

of the fridge. it was great - i loved my breakfast,

i felt good about my breakfast and larry was into it, too.

but, then, as i am also apt to do, i got bored.

i wanted to try new things.

so i played around - trying almond milk,

blueberries, mixed berries, no kale, no spinach,

adding ice cubes and more.

i learned this: mixed berries have never been my thing.

but, also, this: i love green smoothies. love 'em.

there aren't many i haven't liked.

but, there's one that has stood out as my favorite.

the one that i wish i could drink every day.

but, i don't because, for many reasons,

it's more of a special

occasion green smoothie.

i can't believe i just wrote that.

this one

doesn't have kale or bananas.

it sometimes uses dates, sometimes agave.

when they're in the house, i add blueberries.

lately, i've been tossing in cubes of melon.

here's what it always features:

baby spinach

an apple or a pear

a couple splashes of almond milk

ice cubes

and a generous half of an avocado.

i haven't been able to decide if i like

apples better than pears. i'm sad that i

discovered the delicious addition of melon

so close to the end of melon season. i'm

very happy that i realized i only need a small

amount of almond milk - just enough to blend

the mess into a cohesive frosty drink - to make

me happy. but, i've made one decision, that i haven't

wavered from since beginning.

i don't measure.

i can't.

early in the morning,

when i need to leave for work and i've

sacrificed my hair time for smoothie time,

the last thing i want to deal with

are measuring cups. honestly,

it annoys me that i have to deal with

a knife and a cutting board. and, by now, i've

gotten pretty good at making a smoothie

that tastes pretty much the same every day.

so, here's what i do. approximately.

i start by placing a huge handful of

baby spinach in the container.

this fills up about half the blender.

then, i large chop an unpeeled apple* or pear,

using all of a small piece of fruit,

or three-quarters of a large piece.

that goes into the blender, too,

pressing down on the spinach.

then, i add about ten cubes of melon,

or a small handful of blueberries.

i spoon in a generous half of ripe avocado**

(and, by this i mean, that when i "halve" the fruit,

i make sure to cut a bigger section for the smoothie)

then, i drizzle in a squeeze or two of agave

(or three chopped pitted dates).

i add two or three splashes of almond milk,

just enough so that i can see about 1/3-inch

of milk on the bottom of the blender.

and, then, before setting the blender to puree,

i top everything with two small

handfuls of large ice cubes.

usually it takes a good 20-30 seconds for

the mixture to start blending. if things don't start

to take shape at that point, i turn the blender off and shake

the container a couple times. if that still doesn't

help everything mix together, i add a little bit

more almond milk. and once everything is combining,

i let the blender run for at least a minute or two, or until

everything is cohesive and smooth.

on the rare days that i've gotten it together

to make my smoothie before i start getting ready,

i've learned that, surprisingly, this mixture

keeps - covered and in the fridge - for at least

a couple hours.

and that's it.

it's green.

it's satisfying.

it makes people ask questions.

(what are you drinking? why are you drinking that?

spinach? avocado? did you lose a bet?)

but, mostly. it makes me immensely happy.***

*you may notice that the apple i used on the day i took pictures was a granny smith. they looked really shiny and beautiful in the store, but i don't recommend using them. they make the smoothies more tart that i like and it would take quite a bit of sweetener to balance it all out.

**don't get me wrong. a fair half of an avocado makes a really good smoothie. but, using a little more than half ensures that the entire thing tastes faintly of avocado. and in my opinion, what's the point of using a good, but expensive and fatty fruit if you're not going to be able to taste it?

***on friday, i made three smoothies - one for me and one for each of my sisters - as a road trip "treat" to drink on the way to our grandmother's house. they drank theirs, but i'm not sure they'd be able to say that these smoothies made them immensely happy. one of my sisters said it took her three sips to realize she liked it, but she came around. i do think they'd say they like them just fine.

cod with orange, avocado and jalapeno salsa

i think the mention of a quick dinner

conjures up images of

pasta with jarred sauce or a pat of butter,

tortillas topped with melted cheese and hot beans,

frozen meals that are heated in the microwave.

maybe a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

but, rarely, when you ask someone for a

speedy dinner suggestion, do they offer up fish.

i'm no exception.

i see shrimp and think, peeling and deveining.

i look at mussels and think, cleaning and debearding.

clams - scrubbing,

salmon - pinbones,

monkfish - membranes.

but the truth is, fish and seafood are both very fast:

shrimp (especially when purchased

ready to cook) and scallops

are just a literal flash in the pan,

clams and mussels steam open

in minutes

and fillets of fish?

just as quick.

plus, unlike an unadorned bowl

of pasta or a microwave-melted

quesadilla, you really feel like

you've made a meal to be

proud of.

this classic in our home -

topped with a toss-together

avocado, orange, red onion

and jalapeno salsa -

pops up both

this time of year and in

the summer, for some reason

often taking fall and spring

vacations. i think, though,

it's not too hard to figure out

why that happens.

in the summer, it's hot and we,

like everyone, crave simple, refreshing

dinners that don't take a lot of kitchen time

or a hot oven. in the winter, citrus makes its

huge comeback, filling bin upon bin in the

grocery store and usually somewhere nearby

are avocados, most likely on sale.

the first time i made this recipe,

was several winters ago and i hadn't yet

figured out that mahi-mahi -

the fish originally called for -

is not one of my favorites.

i went to the store to pick up the

two fillets - everything else was already

in my kitchen - cooked them, topped

them with the orange mixture and

realized how good it was.

i also decided that next time,

i would use a different fish.

since then, i have made this

crazy easy dinner many, many times,

finally deciding that i love the salsa

over flaky cod, trying all different types

of oranges from navel to blood to at last,

the cara cara that the recipe requests.

at times, i've been lucky enough to find

a red jalapeno, but often i end up using

a readily-available green. i've left out

the lime juice, squeezed in lemon, stirred

in chopped leaves of cilantro and doubled

the fruit. and at this point, i don't look

at a recipe, using whatever i have at home

or if inspiration strikes at the market,

whatever looks good.

i usually prep the oranges,

chop the red onion and the pepper,

combine all three,

season with salt and a touch of pepper

and then move the bowl to the side.

once the fish is searing -

always using a nonstick pan and the

10-minutes per 1-inch of fish rule -

i cube the avocado and add it to

the oranges. by the time i've pulled

down the plates and grabbed the forks

and knives, the fish is beautifully browned.

once topped with generous spoonfuls

of the oranges and avocados,

it's hard to argue with this quick meal.

because really, this is one of those simple

dishes in which the final product is a direct

result of what you put in it. pick up

a juicy, fragrant and sweet orange,

a tender avocado that yields gently to the touch

and a spicy jalapeno - you're good to go.

spoon it over decadently moist piece of

seared fish - you'll never regret it.

cod with orange, avocado and jalapeno salsa

adapted from bon appetit magazine

the original recipe calls for a cara cara, blood or regular orange, but the appearance of the blood oranges were not for me. if you can find a cara cara - orange on the outside, but pink-hued in the center - grab it: the flesh is very sweet. over time, i've increased the oranges from 1 to 2 and i never bother measuring anything, just using my eyes as a guide. also, i have marinated the fish for 15-20 minutes before cooking it, which is delicious, but i love it simply seasoned with salt and pepper, too.

this time, for a side dish, i used red quinoa that i tossed with a squeeze of lime (plus it got an extra boost from the juices of the orange mixture). i've also served the fish alongside couscous, brown rice or spinach.

2 cara cara or navel oranges

1 quarter small red onion, peeled and finely diced

1/2-1 whole jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

1 lime, juiced

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 fillets cod (about 6 ounces each)

1 avocado (or less)

segment the oranges: using sharp knife, trim top and bottom from oranges. using paring knife, carefully remove peel and white pith from oranges, curving to follow the shape of the oranges. hold orange over a small bowl to catch juices; cut between membranes to remove wedges, placing wedges in bowl as you go (the end goal is to have segments of oranges without membrane or pith attached). once all wedges are removed, i like to squeeze what's left into the bowl to extract any remaining juice.

stir onions, jalapeno and lime juice into bowl; season with salt and pepper.

in large nonstick pan over high heat, heat olive oil 30 seconds. carefully add fillets; cook 10 minutes, turning once (if the fish is thinner than 1-inch, scale down cooking time slightly). transfer fillets to plate.

meanwhile, halve and pit avocados. using sharp knife, score cubes into the avocado halves, going all the way down to the peel. using spoon, scoop out avocado cubes and gently toss with orange mixture.

spoon orange mixture and its juices over fish.

breaking from tradition

like most households,

we have our evening routine

down pat.

i make dinner.

afterward, we bring dishes into

the kitchen, 

i put away any leftover food,

wrap up unused ingredients,

like half a lemon

or a few pieces of scallions

and leave larry to the cleaning.

it works for us

and we rarely vary from 

that very comfortable pattern.

which is why, you can imagine,

the look of horror on his face

last week - after briefly basking

in the realization that the cleanup

from this meal would be a snap -

when he turned from the sink 

just before 9:30,

to see me chopping an onion.

garlic,

tomatillos, 

serrano peppers

and a bunch of limes,

were hanging out nearby.

earlier in the day,

when i had been searching

for something, anything

to make in the extreme

heat, i opened up one

of my favorite cookbooks,

super natural cooking

right to page 95.

the picture was so beautiful,

and it was so hot in the apartment

and it reminded me of a soup

i hadn't had in a really long time,

one that i had always thought of fondly,

as a watered-down version

of guacamole.

it was thin, certainly 

avocad0-based, dotted

with chopped onions,

tomatoes and cilantro.

it was cool and satisfying,

but it looked nothing like

swanson's thick, green, smooth

soup that i had somehow

never before noticed. 

it's amazing what heat will do

to a person.

i made the shopping list.

in the store, unfortunately,

i was deterred by two things:

1) no tomatillos. anywhere.

we actually went to three stores,

because i just couldn't believe

that there weren't any to 

by found. finally, i gave in

and bought a large can

of tomatillos. certainly not

ideal, but also, especially

when they are destined

to be simmered and pureed,

not such a sin either.

2) the avocado situation -

bleak. at the first store,

they were so soft that i 

actually broke one trying

to softly press it. the second

store didn't have any and at

the third, they were as hard

as, well, an under-ripened 

avocado.

so, i made the decision

to use the can

and never speak of it again

(yes, i cracked already -

i'm weak, what can i say?).

this way, i could prepare

the first part, which required

simmering the above ingredients

together, pureeing and then

chilling, the night before.

i knew the next day, that

when i went to the fourth - 

and always faithful store -

i could pick up the perfectly

ripe avocados.

it was a great plan -

and in hindsight, one that worked

quite well - 

but certainly ambitious

for a hot sunday evening.

in the time it took for larry

to load up the dishwasher,

i had everything in the pot.

once it came to a boil,

i reduced it to a simmer, 

let it cook the requisite five minutes

and then pulled out

the immersion blender. 

the recipe instructed to let the mixture

cool for 30 minutes before stirring

in lime juice and placing in

the fridge.

we used this time to suck

on these odd little korean ice pops

we had found the day before

and pray for a stiff breeze.

the next day,

i was so happy to have the dinner

three-quarters of the way done.

i bought nicely ripened avocados

after work and when i came home,

i set to work mashing them with a fork.

they...didn't want to be mashed.

maybe the heat made me weak, 

i don't know.

so i tried with the immersion blender,

also a no-go. 

next, i splashed some soup 

into the bowl of avocados. 

perfect. 

they pureed into a beautiful green. 

and although i had been worried

all day that the 

chilling soup was too

thin and that i had somehow 

messed up

the proportions by using 

the canned tomatillos,

as soon as i blended in the creamy

avocados, i knew i was fine.

i modified the original step

of frying sliced corn tortillas

in clarified butter and instead,

coated a pan with cooking

spray to help the slivers

brown (i was planning to bake

them, but there was no

way i was turning on the oven).

chopped tomatoes and a few

drizzles of crema

finished off the bowl.

all three brought welcome

contrast.

the soup was really 

the most amazing food

for a hot hectic night

after work. 

and even though i worried that

it might suffer from 

texture repitition - i become

restless from the same spoonful

over and over again -

i don't think i could ever

tire of this soup.

while the original recipe

calls for the soup

to chill for at least two 

hours, i strongly 

recommend letting

it sit overnight. not only

will the flavors have more time to 

meld together, but you also

can be sure that it is cold

by the time you need it.

and i think larry, who

was thrilled to eat dinner

before 10pm, would be willing

to attest to this.

tomatillo-avocado soup

adapted from super natural cooking

in spite of the fact that i'm not the biggest fan of chicken, if i'm using store-bought, i much prefer chicken broth or stock over vegetable stock, so i switched to the former. i was a bit worried about the avocados browning, so i rubbed each half with a bruised lime before blending - i would do it again. and, when cutting the corn strips, i used kitchen sheers.

you could totally make this whole soup a day ahead of time. we ate this two nights in a row (and the next day for lunch) and the color never faded. i think it would make a fabulous first course for a dinner party or if you for some reason have tons of shot or shooter glasses, a special pass-around appetizer.

1 large can tomatillos (there should be 12 inside)

3-4 serrano chilies, seeded and chopped

1 white onion, peeled and chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

6 cups low-sodium, fat-free chicken broth

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (i used 3 limes, here)

4 large ripe avocados, peeled and pitted

1/2 cup packed chopped cilantro

kosher salt

2 limes

12 corn tortillas, cut into thin strips

1 tomato, halved, seeded and chopped

mexican crema or thinned sour cream

in large saucepot, add tomatillos, squeezing inside the pot using your hands to slightly break them up. add serranos, onion, garlic and stock. over medium-high heat, bring to a boil; immediately lower the heat and simmer 5 minutes. using immersion blender, blend soup until smooth. (at this point, swanson puts the soup through a strainer. it's optional and i chose not to do this and i don't think the soup suffered any. in fact, i wouldn't strain the soup next time, either.)

cool soup 30 minutes; stir in 1/4 cup lime juice. cover and chill at least 2 hours or overnight.

in bowl, place peeled and pitted avocados, cilantro and the juice of 2 limes. sprinkle with kosher salt. add a generous splash of chilled soup. using immersion blender, blend avocados. add mixture to tomatillo mixture and, using immersion blender, blend until smooth. add more salt or lime, if needed.

in large skillet or saute pan coated with cooking spray over medium heat, cook tortilla strips until golden, turning as needed. place on paper towel to cool.

divide soup among bowls; top with crema, chopped tomatoes and crispy corn tortilla strips.