A Scolding, a Plea, and MCG Mole Verde for Fitness Renewal

And good stuff!  My internet connection is back to normal, so here we go, straight to the point:

Australia is not doing well in the Ashes.  That is all you need to know.
 
To be honest; I'm worried.  Very worried.  I'm an Australia fan, and I'm quite concerned about what the chaps on the team are eating.  It's quite obvious that their diet is lacking in nutrition, and furthermore, in an old interview with Shane Warne from 2006, he says that the Australians eat sandwiches and drink cokes during their lunch breaks!  Soda pop is no good for athletes!  No wonder you're looking like a hot mess and that the English are saying you're bad at batting, bowling and fielding!   For crying out loud, eat properly and stop all of this self-destruction that's going on!  By eating poorly, you're actually helping the English win, and we cannot have that! 

Mr. Ponting, tell your team to eat this mexican dish that I'm proposing today.  It has the proper balance of proteins, vitamins, nutrients  and carbohydrates for your lads to perform at their highest level.  Mr. Ponting, please have some Melbourne Cricket Ground Mole Verde.

Mole (pronounced mo-lay) is a mexican-aztec word for stew/curry/salan.  There are hundreds of varieties, but the one thing they have in common is that they are all cooked slowly and are very flavourful because the ingredients meld together.  A good, rich, delicious mole is just what the doctor should order for the tired athlete to get back into form.
Melbourne Cricket Ground Mole Verde (vair-day)
Ingredients
1 chicken cut in 8, skin removed
6 cups of chicken broth
1 small onion
1/2 tablespoon salt

1 cup pumpkin seeds
3 tomatoes
5 green chilies, use more or less to adjust heat to taste
1/2 chopped onion
5 garlic cloves
1 bunch coriander (cilantro)
1 teaspooon cumin seeds
5 black peppercorns
4 cloves
olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
salt to taste

1.  Cook chicken in broth with salt and onion; simmer 12 minutes, remove chicken.
2.  Toast pumpkin seeds in a dry frying pan.
3.  Blend pumpkin seeds in a blender with 1 cup of the broth from step 1.  If you don't have a blender, crush the seeds to a powder with a mortar and pestle, and add to the 1 cup of broth.  If you don't have a mortar and pestle, use a sharp knife and chop the seeds until they're as finely chopped as possible, then add them to the cup of broth.
4.  Simmer the tomatoes and chilies in salted water for 10-15 minutes.
5.  Drain the tomatoes and chilies, and put in the blender with with the coriander,garlic, cumin seeds, black peppercorns and cloves.  If you don't have a blender, crush the spices in the mortar and pestle first, then crush the cooked tomatoes and chiles.
6.  Heat some olive oil in a big pot, and fry the chopped onion until lightly brown and slightly crispy.
7.  Add the blended pumpkinseed mix, and fry 4 or 5 minutes.
8.  Add the tomato/coriander/spice puree, fry 2 or 3 minutes, then add 2 cups of the broth.  Simmer about 10 minutes.  The longer you cook this, the richer the sauce will be.  Add more water when needed.  If you want an extra smooth sauce, cool it down and put it in the blender again, but it is not necessary.
9.  Add the chicken and salt, and add the rest of the broth.
10. Cook on high heat about 3 minutes, then turn the heat to med-low and simmer for approximately 1/2 hour.

Serve this dish of deliciousness on plain steamed Basmati rice.

Right.  So now Australia has no excuses...with this MCG Mole Verde, my second-favourites (come on people, everyone knows Pakistan is #1 in my heart) will be big and strong and will reverse the painful situation in the third test!  Let's GO, Australia!  Show those English guys how things are done Down Under!

Have a good one, and keep your fingers crossed for today, Day 4!

Happy Mole, Happy Cricket, and Happy Australia!