20130815 Potato & Mozzarella Tortilla

I served this with roasted sausages and pepper, as I found them in the fridge. But I think this would go better with a simple green salad.

Ingredients 

450g potatoes, peeled and thickly sliced 

5 eggs, beaten

4 tasty tom tomatoes, sliced

175g mozzarella ball, torn into small pieces 

1tsp dried dille

Olive oil

Salt and freshly grounded black pepper

Methods 

1. Heat olive oil in a frying pan, and fry the potatoes over medium heat for 10-15 minutes. Season with 1/2 tsp of dille and salt and pepper. 

2. Pour the beaten eggs over the potatoes, and let it cook (without lid) for about 15-20 minutes or until the base is set. 

3. Transfer the tortilla to a baking dish and cook under a hot grill for about 3 minutes. 

4. Remove the dish from the oven and scatter with tomatoes and mozzarella pieces and the rest of the dille. Return the dish under the grill and cook for another 5-10 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft and mozzarella is melted.

5. Cut into thick wedges and serve right away. 

20130728 Taco

Ingredients

For the meat...

1/4 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp paprika powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp beef bouillon block, broken

freshly ground black pepper

salt

olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

500g lean minced beef

1cup water

And the rest...

8 taco shells

lettuce leaves, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 jar taco sauce

125ml sour cream

Grated cheese

Method

1. Heat olive oil in a frying pan and brown the meat and onion. 

2. Add the water and rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil them simmer for 20 minutes.

3. Heat the taco shells as per instructions on the packet. 

4. Spoon the meat and basically any veggie you like into the taco shells, and top with taco sauce and sour cream and grated cheese. Eat right away and serve with Desperado!

20130725 Pesto salad with Parma ham

Ingredients:

150g green salad

1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes

1 tbsp pesto

Freshly grounded black pepper

1 mozzarella ball, torn into small pieces

8-10 slices of Parma ham

1/4 melon, cut into small pieces 

Method:

1. In a salad bowl, mix the first 5 ingredients well. 

2. Place the mixed salad on two plates and lay the Parma ham over them. 

3. Place some melon on the side and serve with some fresh ciabatta bread. 

20120831 Egg and Lentil Curry

(SOURCE: Delia Smith's Egg and Lentil Curry with Coconut and Pickled Lime)

This dish is easy to make and you can easily find all the ingredients in your cupboard. As I love my lentils all mushy, I will soak the lentils for about 2-3 hours later before cooking. I served the lentils with some plain basmati rice, but I think it would go much better with some plain naan bread.

INGREDIENTS
2 large hard/soft boiled eggs, halved
75g green lentils, soaked in warm water for an hour and then drained
75g creamed coconut
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 fat garlic cloves, pressed
2.5cm piece root ginger, grated
3 cardamom pods, crushed
1 tsp cumin seeds
1tsp fennel seeds
1tsp coriander seeds
1tsp turmeric powder
1tsp fenugreek powder
dash of chilli powder
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

METHOD
1. Dissolve the creamed coconut in a jug with 1 pint of boiling water.
2. Toss the whole spices in a frying pan over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, or until they start to jump. Tip them into a mortar and crush.
3. Heat the oil in the pan over high heat, and brown the onions until they are dark at the edges. Lower the heat to medium and add chilli, ginger, garlic, turmeric, fenugreek, and the finely crushed roasted spices. Stir everything together.
4. Stir in the drained lentils and add the coconut liquid. Bring to the boil, put the lid on, and lower the heat to simmer for about an hour. Stir occasionally. Season with salt and pepper shortly before removing the pan from heat.
5. Spoon the lentils over some plain rice, and lay the halved eggs on top of the curry.

20111224 Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

This holiday season was a mellow one for me. I just put my feet up and enjoyed the company. I only cooked something simple on Christmas Eve night - stuffed portobello mushrooms as starter, roasted new potatoes as side dish, grilled rib eyes as main course, and some fruit yoghurt as dessert. I was even too lazy to find a recipe for the stuffed portobellow mushroom, and simply made one up myself. To be very honest, it was definitely not a WOW dish, but was a good and simple starter for sure.

INGREDIENTS
2 large portobello mushrooms
vegetable oil
1 cup grated cheese
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/3 fresh parsley, roughly chopped (leave some for garnishing)
1/4 cup drained oil-packed sun dried tomatoes, roughly chopped
salt and freshly grounded black pepper

METHOD
1. Heat the oven grill to high. In a small bowl, mix the cheese, breadcrumbs, parsley, and tomatoes together. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Spray a small oven dish with vegetable oil. Lay the mushrooms gill side down in the dish, and grill for about 4 minutes.
3. Turn the mushrooms and stuff them with the cheese filling. Return to the oven and grill for another 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Sprinkle with some roughly chopped parsley and serve.

20110830 Root Vegetables and Lentils Casserole

(SOURCE: BBC Good Food - Spicy root & lentil casserole)

The original recipe called for 2 parsnips, but I couldn't find them so simply replaced them with 100g more potatoes. It was a very fragrant (and filling) dish, as the potatoes and lentils absorbed all the flavor. I served it with some plain white rice and steamed broccoli.

INGREDIENTS
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
800g potatoes, cut into large chunks
4 carrots, thickly sliced
2 tbsp curry powder
1L vegetable stock
100g red lentils
fresh coriander, chopped
yoghurt

METHOD
1. In a large pan, heat oil on medium heat and cook onion and garlic until fragrant. Tip in potatoes and carrots, and cook on high heat for about 5 minutes.
2. Sprinkle curry powder and pour stock, then bring it to the boil. Reduce heat and add lential. Cover and let it simmer for about 30 minutes until lentils are soft. If it was still too watery, cook without a lid for about 10 minutes, until sauce is thicker. Serve with chopped coriander and yoghurt.

20110418 Tamatar Chaaman (Paneer in Thick Tomato Sauce)

(SOURCE: Indian Cookbook by Pushpesh Pant - Tamatar Chaaman)

This dish is from Jammu and Kashmir. Last time when I fried the paneer for my palak paneer dish, it was quite a disaster as the paneer cubes were broken and they stuck a bit to the pan. So this time I used more oil and waited till the oil was piping hot before putting the paneer in. The paneer fried beautifully, but I think I fried them too long as they were a little too hard. Next time will be better!

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup vegetable oil
250g paneer, cut into small cubes
2 cloves
1 tsp cardamom
1 cinnamon sticks
350g pureed tomatoes
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp Garam Masala
salt
some coriander leaves,  for garnish

METHOD
1. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat, add the paneer and fry golden brown all over. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. Add the whole spices to the pan and stir fry for about 1 minute.
2. Add the pureed tomatoes to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, or until all the liquid has evaporated. Pour in 1/2 cup hot water togehter with all the ground spices, except the garam masala, and season with salt. Bring to the boil and add the paneer. Reduce heat to low and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle over the garam masala and stir gently, then simmer for a further 2 to 3 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves.

20110415 Carrot and Sweet Corn Congee

I have been staying home for two days fighting a recurring headache, so I made a huge pot of typical Chinese comfort food - congee! - using ingredients I can find in the fridge and cupboard. Last time when I was unwell, I whipped up the same congee too. I wonder why I seem to always have some carrots and sweet corns at home. This time I simply scrapped the vegetable oil, and replaced the chicken stock cubes with vegetable ones and dried parsley with a handful of freshly chopped parsley.

20110403 Palak Paneer (Spinach with Paneer)

I love palak paneer. At our favorite Indian restaurant in The Hague, palak paneer comes with every menu and I always cleared the dish. So I thought I would give this a try myself. I found so many different palak paneer recipes. As I was feeling adventurous, I decided to modify them and make one of my own. Okay, the dish looked a bit more orange-y and tasted a little more tomato-y than the one from the restaurant. But who cares, because this tasted pretty darn good! Next time I may make a bigger portion and simply serve it with plain basmati rice.

INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp oil
1/2 tsp cumin seed
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1 tbsp ginger paste
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 small onion, pureed
100g chopped tomatoes, pureed
100ml creme fraiche
salt
280g frozen pureed spinach, thawed
150g paneer, cubed

METHOD
1. Heat enough oil in a pan to slightly deep fry paneer for about half a minute. Set aside.
2. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a wok. Add cumin seeds, turmeric, red chilli powder, ginger, and red chilli, and fry until fragrant. Add pureed onion and tomato, and cook until they become a soft paste.
3. Stir in the spinach puree. Add the creme fraiche, and season with salt. Simmer for about 7 minutes with lid on. Add paneer, and cook for a few minutes until heated through.

20110324 Lentil and Spinach Curry

(SOURCE: Tasty Kitchen Blog - Lentil and Spinach Curry)

This dish sure looks appetizing because of the beautiful colors. But it didn't taste as good and rich as the dahl. Next time I will half the lentils and cook them in 3 cups of vegetable stock instead, so they become a thick paste. This is the end of my craze for lentils...for March anyways.

INGREDIENTS
2 cups red lentil
2 cups water
2 cups vegetable stock
2 tsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ginger root, grated
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp sugar
300g fresh spinach
1 can 400g chopped tomatoes
salt and pepper

METHOD
1. In a saucepan, bring the water and stock to a boil and add lentils. Simmer covered for about 25 minutes until lentils are soft and liquid has been absorbed. Remove from heat and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large non stick skillet. Saute onions and garlics until soft. Add spices and sugar and cook for another minute. Add spinach and cook until wilted. Add crushed tomatoes and cooked lentils, and heat through, and season wiht salt and pepper.

20110324 Dhal, v2

(SOURCE: VegWeb.com - Delicious Pakistani Dhal)

I am not sure if it is politically correct to label this recipe "Indian" when the original recipe clearly said that this was a "Pakistani Dhal". But as many websites told me that Pakistani cuisine is a relatively small subset of Indian cuisine, I guess it is alright. I doubled the amount of chopped tomatoes by accident, and it made the dish a bit sweeter and it tasted good. I made this for a potluck party today, and my colleagues seemed to love it!

INGREDIENTS
3 cups vegetable stock
1 cup dry red lentils
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium onion, diced
1.5 tbsp freshly grated ginger
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp red chili pepper
salt and pepper, to taste
400g can chopped tomatoes

METHOD
1. In a saucepan, bring the vegetable stock to a boil. Add the lentils and boil for about a minute. Lower the heat and simmer for about 25 minutes, or until it becomes a thick paste. Remove from heat, and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan. Add onion, ginger, and garlic, and fry until soft. Add the spices and saute for about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes and saute for another 5 minutes. Then add the cooked lentils, stir, and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes.

20110323 Lentil Soup with Paprika and Pancetta

(SOURCE: Tasty Kitchen Blog - Lentil Soup with Smoked Paprika and Pancetta)

I used to get dahl soup for lunch from a catering lady called Kat. But since Kat disappeared off the face of the earth and never answered our email order, I haven't had dahl soup for a long time. As I bought 2kg of red lentils from that little Asian supermarket last time, I thought I would make dahl soup myself. I added a little too much water by accident, but the soup was still very tasty - the pancetta gave it a very intense flavor.

INGREDIENTS
90g pancetta slices, cut into small pieces
1 large onion, diced
4 small carrots, sliced
1 celery stalk, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp paprika
dash of chili pepper
1/2 cup white wine
2L chicken broth
450g lentils
salt and pepper, to taste

METHOD
1. Cook pancetta in a large soup pan over medium high heat until fat renders and it starts to brown. Add onions, carrots, and celery, saute until softened. Add garlic, cumin, paprika, and saute until fragrant. Add wine, continue to cook another minute or so. Add broth and lentils and bring to a  boil. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until lentils are just tender, about 30 minutes. Add water if the soups becomes too thick. Puree the soup into a consistency you desire. Season with salt and pepper.

20110318 Dhal

(SOURCE: Simply Bill by Bill Granger - my dahl)

I always wanted to cook dahl but couldn't find lentils anywhere. Last time I found some red lentil from a little Asian supermarket, so I decided to give Bill Granger's dahl a try. Its color looked quite dull, so I was doubtful about its taste. We ate this dahl with our fingers with the help of some naan bread. This was really good! Such a simple dish with a rich and exotic flavor.

INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, finely sliced
one-inch piece of ginger, grated
3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1 cup red lentils
1 tbsp lime juice
small handful freshy coriander leaves

METHOD
1. Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, ginger, garlic, chilli, salt and cumin and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft. Add the lentils and 750ml of hot water and cook.for 20 minutes until the lentils have dissolved.
2. Remove from heat and stir through the lime juice. Top with the coriander leaves and serve.

20110225 Khumb Shabnam (Mushrooms in Yoghurt Sauce)

(SOURCE: Indian: Cookbook - Khumb Shabnam)

This is originated in Awadh. Kebabs are famous is Awadhi cuisine, because meat is tenderized with raw papaya paste and is ground many times. But this is a simply vegetable dish that takes less than 15 minutes to make. I didn't really like it because of the strong cumin smell, but my husband seemed to like it.

INGREDIENTS
200ml natural yoghurt
1 tsp red chilli powder
1tsp ground cumin
1 tsp Garam Masala
pinch of ground turmeric
1 tbsp vegetable oil
250g white button mushrooms, sliced
salt


METHOD
1. In a bowl, mix the yoghurt with the ground spices and season with salt. Whisk well to combine.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan over high heat, add the mushrooms and stir fry until there is a small amount of moisture left - but do not let them dry up. Remove from the heat, and allow the mushrooms to cool.
3. Then pour in the spiced yoghurt and mix. Return to the heat and simmer for a few minutes until hot.

20110224 Phool Gobi (Cauliflower Masala)

(SOURCE: Indian: The Cookbook by Pushpesh Pant - Phool Gobi)

This dish is originated in Punjab. I skipped the asafoetida (adding an onion-like smell after heating) and fenugreek seeds (a bittersweet spice) as I couldn't find them. I couldn't find Garam Masala either, so simply made my own using the recipe provided in the cookbook - but of course, I didn't have everything the recipe lists, so I modified the recipe a little with the limited ingredients I have. We like our cauliflower less crunchy, so I doubled the cooking time as suggested. A little improvisation was needed when cooking this dish, but it tasted pretty good.

I made four Indian dishes last night so we only had to heat them up after work today and tomorrow, and my husband could have some leftover for lunch. Our house is now smelling like curry - actually even my handbag smells like curry because I left it next to the kitchen counter, man! Now I just have to find a way to rid the smell. Any ideas?

INGREDIENTS
125ml vegetable oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
2.5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and crushed
1 tsp ground ginger
1 large cauliflower, cut into 5cm florets
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp Garam Masala *
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp ground tumeric
bunch of coriander leaves, chopped
salt

*Garam Masala can be made by simply grinding the below ingredients.
2 cups cumin seeds
1/2 cup ground coriander
3/4 cup cardamom pods
1/3 cup black peppercorns
40g ground ginger

METHOD
1. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat, and fry the cumin seeds and ginger for a few seconds. Add the cauliflower. Season with salt, chilli powder, garam masala, sugar, and tumeric. Stir and mix everything well. Add a splash of water, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Add coriander, toss well, and serve.

20110219 Samosa

(SOURCE: Indian: The Cookbook by Pushpesh Pant - Samosa)

This colorful cookbook, Indian: The Cookbook, packaged in a traditional Indian rice bag drew my husband and my attention at a local book store yesterday. We love Inidan food but there is no Indian takeaway here in Dordrecht (can you believe that?!). I always wanted to give a try at Indian cooking, but was always put off by the long list of exotic- and unfamiliar-sounding ingredients. This book helped me to overcome that as it has a rich glossary of Indian ingredients, which teaches me what the ingredients are and how they taste like - so if I can't find any of them, I could try to replace them with other spices of similar flavor.

So here's my first go! As I couldn't find any ghee, I used butter instead. The samosas were yummy, but they didn't look that pretty and were so spicy (!) - so I added quite some sugar to bring the heat down, and will definitely half the chilli powder and green chilli next time. Also the pastry was a bit dull and tough, so next time I will add 1 or 2 tbsp of vegetable oil and some salt to the dough. I hope I can find those rectangular samosa pads, so I could make beautiful triangular samosas next time. But overall, the first go at Indian cooking was fun, and I look forward to cooking more with this new cookbook!

INGREDIENTS
For the pastry -
500g plain flour, plus some more for dusting
180ml warm water
oil, for deep frying
For the filling -
100g potatoes
150g peas
1tsp cumin seed
1tsp ground coriander
1tsp ground turmeric
1tsp chilli powder
5cm piece of ginger, finely chopped
4 green chilli, finely chopped
4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp fresh coriander, finely chopped
salt
sugar

METHOD
1. Cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling water for 20 minutes. Drain well, then mash.
2. Cook the peas in a pan of boiling water for 5 to 7 minutes. Drain well and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, mix the flour with enough water to make a stiff dough. Make into 10 dough balls, and cover them with a damp cloth.
4. Heat the oil in a pan over medium high heat. Fry the cumin seeds for about 15 seconds. Add the ginger, green chilli, ground coriander, ground turmeric, and chilli powder, and fry for a minute. Add the mashed potato and peas, and cook for a minute. Then add the finely chopped coriander and fry for another minute. Season with salt and sugar. Remove pan from the heat.
5. On a floured surface, roll the dough balls into rounds of 12cm, and make 10. Brush the edge of the pastry with a little water, spoon the potato filling in the middle of the pastry, and then press the dampened edges to seal it.
6. Deep fry the samosas in batches in hot oil (180 degree C) for 3 to 5 minutes, or until golden brown. Drain well on a kitchen paper.

20110128 Hutspot

The temperature has dropped to below 0 degree C again. So more stamppot this week! My husband does not like hutspot (mashed potatoes, carrots, and onions), so I served this with something he definitely likes - i.e. some homemade meatballs and loads of boterjus (excessive fat from cooking the meat with lots of butter)!

INGREDIENTS
800g starchy potatoes, peeled and cubed
200g carrots, cut into thin strips
200g onions, thinly sliced
beef stock
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp creme fraiche
salt and pepper

METHOD
1. Put the potatoes, carrots, and onions into a big pot. Top it with beef stock. Bring to the boil, and cook for 20 minutes. Drain well.
2. Add the butter and creme fraiche to the boiled vegetables. Mash everything together, and season with salt and pepper.

20110107 Vegetable Pad Thai

(SOURCE: BBC EasyCook Magazine)

I forgot to buy a red chilli, so my dish is less colorful than the one shown in the magazine. I also skipped the roasted peanuts because I don't really like peanuts. But it seems that the roasted peanuts are quite crucial to a pad thai dish, because it tasted a bit different and that something was missing. And this dish taught me that my husband likes neither fish sauce nor oyster sauce - oh well, I was really pushing my luck anyways as he is still a rookie fish-eater!

INGREDIENTS
200g rice noodles, rehydrated according to pack instructions and drained well
handful of coriander
2 garlic cloves, peeled
3cm piece fresh root ginger, peeled
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 yellow pepper, thinly sliced
140g sugar snap peas
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp caster sugar
3 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
100g beansprouts
juice of 1 lime

METHOD
1. Cut the stalks off the coriander and finely chop them (set the leaves aside for later). Tip the chopped stalks into a mortar along with the garlic and ginger, then pound to form an aromatic paste.
2. Heat a wok and, when smoking, tip in the oil then the paste. Cook for a few seconds, then stir in the pepper and peas. Cook for a few minutes more until softened, then pour in the egg. Stir until cooked, then add the sugar, fish and oyster sauces.Add the noodles to the pan. Toss everything together, adding a little water if the noodles seem a bit dry.
3. Just before serving, stir in the beansprouts and lime juice, then place on a serving plate and scatter over coriander leaves.

20101228 Spinach and Cheese Stuffed Pasta Shells

(SOURCE: Some magazine - Gevulde schelpen)

I wanted to make a vegetarian dish to give our bodies some time to detox before all the oliebollen in the New Year. Unfortunately this dish failed the purpose because of the awesome and cheesy spinach stuffing. Next time I may add some finely chopped basil leaves to give it a little more aroma.

INGREDIENTS
450g frozen spinach, thawed and drained
300g jumbo pasta shells, cooked al dente and drained
salt and fresh ground pepper
30g pinenuts, roasted
2 eggs
200g cream cheese
125g mascarpone
2 garlic cloves, crushed
10 sundried tomatoes in oil, finely chopped
200g grated Gouda cheese
100g grated parmesan cheese
dash of nutmeg

METHOD
1. Heat oven to 190 degree C. In a medium bowl, mix the eggs, cream cheese, and mascarpone with a hand mixer. Then mix in the garlic, sundried tomatoes, and spinach with a wooden spoon. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper. Finally add half the Gouda cheese and parmesan cheese to the spinach mix.
2. Stuff the shells with the spinach mix and lay them in a greased casserole dish. Bake the dish in the oven for 35 to 45 minutes. Scatter with the roasted pinenuts and serve.

20101226 Rockefeller Mushrooms

(SOURCE: Koken & Genieten magazine - Rockefeller Champignons)

A simple starter for our boxing day dinner. This tasted a little too strong for a starter, so I would suggest replacing the brown gravy with a simple white sauce.

INGREDIENTS
3 tbsp butter
1 cup beef bouillon
2 tbsp flour
salt and fresh ground black pepper
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
450g frozen spinach
nutmeg
12 big mushrooms, about 450g, cleaned and stem removed
6 slices of bacon
1 tbsp oil
grated cheese

METHOD
1. Make gravy. Melt 2 tbsp of butter in a small saucepan and stir in flour. Keep stirring until blended well. Add bouillon and bring to the boil while stirring. Continue to stir until smooth and it thickens. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. Heat the grill to high. Heat 1 tbsp of butter in a pan over medium heat, and brown the onion and garlic. Add the frozen spinach and 2 tbsp of water to the pan. Cover the pan with a lid and simmer the spinach mix for about 15 minutes. Season with nutmeg and salt and pepper.
3. In another pan, fry the bacon slices until crispy. Remove bacon slices onto a plate with kitchen paper to absorb the excessive fat. Break each slice into two. Add the mushrooms to the pan with the bacon fat, and fry for about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Lay the mushrooms on a casserole dish.
4. Stuff each mushroom with some spinach mix, then sprinkle with grated cheese and the gravy. Grill for about 5 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven and place a piece of bacon on each stuffed mushroom.