Quick Sunday Brunch

November is upon us. And with it come late nights, longer study days, and inevitable anxiety resulting from the thought of not being able to finish outlining.

November is upon us. And with it comes no fun.

What a sad way to start a blog post. I'm feeling the law nerd humor, however, so it seemed appropriate. Nonetheless, November also brings cold chilly relatively cooler weather that makes for more enjoyable runs and bike rides. Also, it welcomes tea-fueled study sessions from the comfort of my apartment followed by enjoyable Netflix study-breaks--the longing for daylong marathons makes the shorter breaks that much more exciting. But actually, November is not so bad. It ultimately provides me with a legitimate and unquestionable excuse to retreat from social events and spend time alone, which as you may know, is a crucial factor of my well-being.

Before moving onto the food, just a quick note about the holidays (namely Dia de los Muertos). This year for Halloween, I proudly incorporated culture into my costume. As it turns out, the makeup was a hit!

For a brief background and explanation of the festivities read this or this. And definitely check out this awesome video. Otherwise, for a quick and contemporary info session, go see the Snapchat story!

Grilled Breakfast Sammie (adapted from With Peanut Butter On Top)
Makes 1 sandwich.
Active time: 10 minutes; total time 15 minutes.

• 3 large egg whites
• 1 tablespoon salsa 
• 1/2 cup baby spinach
• 2 slices Ezekiel (or other) bread 
• 1/2 tablespoon mustard
• 1/4 avocado
• 3–4 tomato slices
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I used Daiya shreds)
• More salsa! (optional)

1. Heat a non-stick skillet or pan over medium heat; spray with cooking oil. Add egg whites and salsa and cook until resembling an thin omelette, about 5 minutes. Remove egg from pan and set aside. 
2. In the same pan, cook spinach, stirring occasionally, until wilted, about 5 minutes. 
3. Assemble the sandwich by spreading the avocado on one slice of bread; spread the mustard on the other slice. Lawyer one slice of bread with the spinach, tomato, cooked egg whites, and finally the cheese. To with the other slice of bread. 
4. Place the sandwich on the pan and cook uncovered for 3–5 minutes, or until sides are toasted. Cover and cook for 1 more minute. 

These Shoes are Made for Running...

Guess what I splurged on yesterday????

New running shoes! Yup, a nice pair of Brooks Ghost :)



I'm ready to take up running again--slow and steady most likely--but it turns out I was running on one of the worst types of shoes for my stride type. Funny right? No wonder I got injured. If I'm going to take running seriously again (which I obviously will) I need the right shoes, so I hauled my butt over to Marathon Sports to get fitted.

Next topic? Food.

I bought a bag of cranberries this weekend on a whim; I didn't realize that I really didn't have much use for it. Then I read about cranberry salsa. So I grabbed the jalapeño in my fridge, chopped half an onion and threw everything into my Ninja blender. A few minutes later I had a delicious relish-like salsa.

A ton of it is still in a mason jar my fridge, but it seems this salsa goes well with everything: chicken, brussels sprouts, kale, wasa crackers, etc. I'm excited to try it in a sandwich, but that'll have to wait until later this week. For now, here's the recipe. Enjoy!

Spicy Cranberry Salsa
Active/total time: 5 minutes!
Makes about 16 oz.

• One 12 oz bag fresh cranberries
• 1 jalapeño, roughly chopped
• 1/2 small sweet onion, roughly chopped
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 1-2 tablespoons sugar (to taste)

1. Put first 4 ingredients into a powerful blender or food processor; pulse 10 times to mix the ingredients. Starting on low, process in intervals, moving up in speed, until ingredients are finely chopped. 
2. Add sugar and process until just blended. Season with salt and pepper. 

Batalla de Puebla

Hello hello blogosphere. I'm here to deliver the much anticipated blog post about the most celebrated Mexican holiday in the United States--notice I didn't say America because I feel strongly against the definition of a country with the name of a continent. Ironically, it is also the least celebrated holiday in Mexico.

That's right folks, 5 de Mayo is not a work holiday in Mexico, it is not a lets-wear-sombreros-and-drink-margaritas day, and it most certainly not our 4th of July. What it is, is a day to commemorate the first battle in which Mexico defeated France; and a day of hope for the Mexican military forces. Go nuts with the Wikipedia article here.

That said, I have to admit that this holiday is a great opportunity to showcase Mexican gastronomy. It is great motivation for any passionate foodie--and even more for us Mexicans--to put together a gourmet meal. And this year was no exception: I'm proud to say (or write) that for the first time ever, I made a batch of traditional green salsa from scratch.

You may be laughing at the fact that my super proud moment consisted of throwing some ingredients into a blender and simmering the mixture for a while, but salsa is everywhere in Mexican cuisine. It is in enchiladas and chilaquiles, and huevos rancheros and enfrijoladas; atop tacos and molletes, and sopes and fajitas. It is a great dressing for meat and an even better dip for totopos (tortilla chips). If you have salsa, you're all set.

Here my is meal for my cinco de mayo: marinated fajitas, mango pico de gallo, loaded guacamole Enjoy!

Marinated Chicken Fajitas with Lime (adapted from Martha Stewart)
Active time: 20 minutes. Total time: 30 minutes + marinating.
Makes about 6 servings.

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 pounds skinless boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices
• 2 large bell peppers, cut into 1/2-inch thick strips
• 1 large white onion, halved and sliced lengthwise

1. In a large bowl, whisk 3 tablespoons olive oil, garlic salt and chili powder in a large bowl. Add chicken, bell peppers and onion. Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Place in a Ziploc bag and let stand in the refrigerator for at least one hour and up to four hours. 
2. Heat remaining olive oil over medium high heat in a large saucepan or wok. Add chicken and vegetables and cook, flipping once or twice, until chicken is done, about 5 minutes. Serve hot with tortillas, guac and salsa.

Spicy Dining

It turns out next week is Spring Break. And I can't wait! I'm almost counting down the hours like a teenager does the week before her first Justin Beiber concert. But really though.

Imagine this, a five-star hotel--no, I won't disclose the name--with multiple pools and a beachfront, 90+ degree weather and all you can eat for four days. Enough said. Oh and then there's the fact that I'm going with a group of five fun friends. 

Yes, I plan on having a great time. 

But for now, I have about four days left of real life. 100+ hours--yes, I told you I was counting--of regular old college/working life. Which also means I have the opportunity to blog at least once or twice.  I can't promise anything, but here's tonight's dinner.

So what did I have for dinner? A sizzling dish of spicy black bean enchiladas served with a side of chipotle cilantro sauce. Quite yummy and quite healthy. Enjoy!

Spicy Black Bean Enchiladas (adapted from Skinny Bitch: Ultimate Everyday Cookbook)

Active time: 20 minutes. Total time: 1 hour.

Makes about 4 servings.

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon chili flakes
• 2  15oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup chipotle sauce
• 1 cup diced tomatoes
• 12 corn tortillas
• 1/2 cup shredded vegan (or regular) cheese
• Salsa, for serving

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute for about 5 minutes. Add bell pepper and continue to cook for 6 more minutes. Add chili powder, cumin and flakes and stir; then add black beans and mix well. 
3. Pour a little less than half of the bean sauce into the blender. Add diced tomato and chipotles and blend well. Season with salt and pepper. 
4. Pour enough bean sauce to cover the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Set aside.
5. In a separate pan, heat the remaining oil over medium-low heat. Place 1 tortilla at a time in the pan and flip to warm both sides. Fill each tortilla with about 2 tablespoons of the remaining bean and pepper mixture and roll up; fold the seam under and place the tortilla seam-side down. Once all the tortillas are filled and rolled, pour the remainder of the bean sauce over them and sprinkle with cheese. 
6. Bake enchiladas for about 40 minutes, or until bubbling. Serve with salsa.

New Me?

Guess what?

It's a new year. . . And a new me!

This semester I vow to cook/bake and blog more often. I also promise to try more new (and exciting) foods--I already had some lamb shank just the other night. I will tackle my challenges in hopes of increasing my cooking skills and my palate.

Truthfully, there were two things I missed in my life last semester, home-cooked meals (be them gourmet or not) and blogging. This year I am not ok without them, so now that I will have my evenings off--or at least I hope I will--I can devote them to this lovely blog--and making my stomach happy!

I have no idea where to begin the story of what my life was like the last six months. I was happy and sad; relaxed and stressed; carefree and worried all at the same time. The second half of 2012 was one of the hardest semesters of my college experience--both emotionally and academically--but also one of the greatest. I'm not prepared to go into details because a) I don't expect you to read all about my issues and b) you can't expect me to tell you all about my issues. So lets just leave it at this: fall 2012 was different.

Anyways, the reason I will have my evenings off is that I'm only taking one class this semester. Wait, don't tag me as a slacker just yet. For some odd reason, I failed to realize (last semester) that I only needed one class to complete my second minor and meet the graduation requirements. Either way I wouldn't have liked graduating in December though, so the situation worked to my advantage. I'm taking a once-a-week class and working four days a week. My arrangement is a smooth transition into the real world.

I'll be posting more about my job and the excitement it's brought to my life, but for now here is some talk about food.

I've recently entered a tofu stage. If I could have it all day every day I would, but who am I kidding, I would just end up hating it after a week. But having a tofu scramble once day--or sometimes twice--is definitely possible, so here's an idea. Take the best of a burrito and combine it with a cheesy tofu scramble and you get a delicious anytime meal. Plus, the best part of a tofu scramble is that you can add whatever chopped vegetable you're feeling for. Think of it like an omelet. The possibilities are endless.

Tofu Scramble Wrap
Active time: 15 minutes. Total time: 10 minutes.
Makes 1 serving.

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/3 cup chopped mushrooms
• 1/3 cup mild fresh salsa (I used Trader Joe's)
• 3 oz extra firm tofu (about a 3/4-inch slice)
• 2 tablespoons shredded mozzarella cheese.
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves
• 1 piece lavash bread

1. In a smal pan heat olive oil over medium heat. Sauté mushrooms and salsa for about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper. 
2. Using a fork, crush tofu until it resembles coarse meal. Add tofu to pan and cook for about 3 minutes. Add cheese and stir to combine; cook only until cheese is melted. 
3. Place lavash flat on a plate. Put tofu scramble in the middle of the lavash and top with cilantro. Fold in lavash corners and carefully wrap around tofu scramble. 

Fish with Cherry Salsa!

I know it's been forever since I last wrote. I'm not proud of my blogging commitment skills--once again I had to scrounge around for hours in order to get inspired enough to cook. It also doesn't help that it is the summer and all I want to do is bum around.

Well turns out I still have that passion for food that got me to start this blog. I only realized time had passed when I looked out to see a dark sky; I was so entranced in my chopping, that even my hunger went away. Until I took a first bite. That's when I realized how great a gourmet dinner is--and how awesome it is when you know you cooked it.

But before I go into recipes let me make a comment on my new--and still budding--record collection. Two years ago Amanda (my roommate) and I bought a record player on a limb. We then picked out five records that would make us seem like the cool-vinyl-listening-kids we wanted to be. Our "coolness" lasted all of two hours until we realize we didn't have appropriate speakers for the player and the only way of listening was though a laptop (talk about defeating the purpose of a record player).

Anyways, this summer I'm taking a history of Rock'n'Roll class (it's ahmazing) that makes me want to listen to old records all day long. So last week I finally made it to RadioShack and bought the right cables. Best purchase of the summer! I can finally pump up the volume and play records appropriately--not that I think I'm a cool kid anymore.

That's my bit on life for now. Following is a fish recipe that perfectly combines sweet and sour flavors. It's fresh, healthy and super simple. So next time you want a quick summer delight for dinner, make this. Enjoy!

Pan Fried Tilapia with Cherry Salsa (adapted from Everyday Food Light)
Makes 2 servings.
Active time: 25 minutes. Total time: 30 minutes.

• 1 cup Bing cherries, pitted and coarsely chopped
• 1/4 red onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• Juice of 1 lime
• Coarse salt
• Fresh ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 Tilapia fillets, 4-6 oz. each

1. In a medium bowl combine cherries, onion, cilantro, jalapeno and lime juice. Toss to mix and season with salt and pepper. Set salsa aside.
2. Clean fish filets; brush with olive oil and season with coriander, salt and pepper on both sides. 
3. Heat a large pan over medium high heat. Spray with cooking spray. Add fish fillets and panfry until fully cooked, about 3 minutes on each side. Serve fish topped with salsa.

*The fish can also be cooked on a grill and then topped with salsa to serve.