Gettin’ orange-y wit it, a Whole Carrot-Mango Smoothie with Mint

Hot hot heat (remember that band, by the way?)! It was feeling really good outside, autumn-like in San Diego, but I think there’s a bit of another heat wave going on here in SoCal and some storms which make things muggy. This morning, after pumping iron (I’m the type who would rather lift weights and do push-ups than run or do a spin class), I wanted to treat myself to a cool drink.  I really like the “Orange Carrot Karma” smoothie at Jamba Juice, but I wanted to see if I could make one at home. I came upon a smoothie recipe over at Camilla Saulsbury’s blog Power Hungry that had these:

Green Smoothie Muffins and Pistachio Milk

I’m feeling mean green today. In sixth grade, my friends and I would do silly things and one of the things that I did (among other crazy kid things) was perform rap songs. To my friends, I was once “The Mean Green Rapper Crapper” because I was a wannabe rapper and my favorite color was green. So silly, but those were the days of being crazy kids. I was influenced by those times as I was developing a new muffin recipe and an accompaniment to it. I was thinking of using green things that are good for your insides so that they do their job well (LOL yes, alluding to my former rap name). I love zucchini bread and muffins, but wanted to use a different green veggie. Cruciferous kale is big nowadays, so I decided to try it out in a muffin recipe along with banana, apple, and pineapple, which are often found in green smoothies. When I wanted to stop my coffee and caffeine addiction a couple of years ago, I started having tea or a green smoothie instead, often with kale and a few fruit pals. Moreover, I love matcha green tea in green smoothies so I added it here in this recipe. The pistachios are a nice addition as well. Going with the green theme, I also made pistachio milk, which, when paired with these green smoothie muffins, is a mean & green, yet delightful combo. 😀

Broiled Hake in Tomato-Olive Crust

I love fish! I love learning about them–their biology, systematics, ecology, etc. I spent many hours as a undergraduate researcher in a university biology fish lab (specifically with guppies & close relatives), was the first author of a manuscript, and for a couple of years was the lab manager in charge of hundreds of fish tanks. I became very attune to the needs of the fish that I worked with that I think I was in some ways “The Fish Whisperer.” I ordered all their supplies, coordinated a team of students to help care for them, spent weekends cleaning tanks and measuring their reproductive capabilities (for the scientific research of maternal provisioning–yes, some fish I worked with had placentas too! lol ), and I even made a special dish for them–a beef liver pâté for optimal nutrition. Anyhow, I get excited by the subject of fish. Just ask my parents! They have been there with me through all of my fish adventures at school and with the several incarnations of the family fish tank at home while growing up. Of course, I also enjoy fish in the culinary realm–cooking and eating them!

Anyone else love fish? I learn a lot about food when I go grocery shopping. On a grocery trip recently, I encountered a new fish for me, a white fish called hake (Merluccius capensis) or also commonly called Cape Capensis in the U.S. and Merluza in Spain.

Pumpkin Pie Spice Latte – Make it your way!

Fall is finally in full swing here in San Diego after that September heatwave where we had temperatures that went up to about 110 degrees. That was sweaty time, now it’s sweater time! …and time for some yummy hot beverages. I usually drink a variety of teas from our budding tea collection, but I miss coffee now and then, especially seasonal coffee drinks. At times, I like going to local coffee shops and sometimes even Starbucks to get my fix, but I don’t like all that sugar and having to spend too much $$$$ on a drink. Like one comedian said, “You think I want to stand in line at Starbucks and spend that much money everyday? I would rather learn how to make that **** myself!”