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Homemade Falafel

July 17th, 2008 Inge No comments

Ingredients for 4 servings:

  • Falafel Wrap1 tin chickpeas (400 grams / ± 11-12 oz.)
  • 1 sweet onion, minced
  • ½ to 1 tablespoon dried parsley gedroogde peterselie
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • ½ teaspoon ground coriander/cilantro seeds
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • a dash of freshly ground black pepper
  • a dash cayenne pepper (or another kind of spicy pepper to taste)
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice (try lime juice for a different zing)
  • ½ teaspoon of baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, extra virgin, cold pressing (I always use Carbonell)
  • about 100-125 grams / 3.5-4.5 oz. dried bread crumbs
  • oil for frying. DON’T use olive oil for this, because it will start to smoke at high temperatures. I prefer using arachis oil / peanut oil, because of its higher smoking point.

Tip for vegans: use agar instead of the egg to bind the falafel.

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Lasagne

June 14th, 2008 Inge No comments

Ingredients:

  • 1.1 lbs. / 500 grams lean minced beef
  • ½ medium sized onion, minced
  • ½ big green bell pepper, seeds and veins removed, minced.
  • lasagne sheets
  • sugar (to taste)
  • 1 litre / 32 oz. tomato sauce (sugo)
  • ½ litre / 16 oz. sifted tomatoes
  • 1 smal tin (70g/ 1 oz. ) tomato purée
  • Cheese: Ricotta, Mozzarella (according to taste)
  • freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • Oregano
  • Basil
  • Thyme
  • Salt (to taste)
  • Parsley (freshly minced, to taste)
  • 1 clove of garlic (finely minced)
  • White wine (to taste)
  • 2-3 cups of  Béchamel sauce

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Italian Salad with Cherry Tomatoes

December 27th, 2007 Inge No comments

Insalata di gamberi e polloIngredients

  • 100 g / 3.5 oz Rocket lettuce
  • 100 g / 3.5 oz. oak leaf lettuce
  • 1 small container of cherry tomatoes
  • 1 piece (125 grams / 4.5 oz.) Mozarella Cheese
  • pine nuts
  • ± 100 gram / 3.5 oz Jamón serrano
  • olive oil
  • balsamic vinegar
  • basil
  • grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Take a salad bowl and cut the salad leaves in small pieces. Cut the cherry tomatoes in halves and add them to the salad. Cut the mozerella in small slices and add that too.

Roast the pine nuts without the use of oil. Once the nuts change colour they are ready. Stir it through the mixture. Cut the Jamón serrano into very small pieces and fry them very shortly with a tiny bit of olive oil in a frying pan. It shouldn’t take more than one minute. Drain the jamón serrano on some paper towel and add it to the salad.

Use a bit olive oil (extra virgin) and balsamic vinegar to make a dressing (I use 3 units of oil to one unit of vinegar). Finish the salad with a bit basil and grated parmesan cheese.

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Canneloni With Spinach, Cod and Ricotta

June 8th, 2007 Inge No comments

Ingredients

  • 350 grams / ± 12 oz. cod, without bones
  • 250 grams / ± 9 oz. sheets for lasagne (verdi)
  • some salt
  • a dash of freshly ground black pepper
  • 50 grams / ± 2 oz. butter
  • 1 small onion, minced
  • 3 tablespoons of flour
  • 425 mililitre / ± 14 fluid oz. milk
  • 1 tablespoon freshly minced or a teaspoon dried minced chive.
  • juice from ½ lemon.
  • 225 grams / ± 8 oz. minced spinach (when you use spinach from the freezer, make sure it’s thawed and strained)
  • 250 grams / ± 9 oz. ricotta
  • 1 teaspoon minced or  ½ teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1 teaspoon minced or ½ teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 tin (400 grams or 14 oz.) tomato cubes
  • 2 tablespoons dried bread crumbs
  • 30 grams / 1 oz. grated cheddar cheese

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White Sauce For Pasta

June 4th, 2007 Inge No comments

Last week I didn’t have the time to cook every day. What I usually do when I see these periods coming is cooking in advance on a lazy Saturday afternoon and freeze the parts I want to use later. I also take the opportunity to finish all fresh stuff in my pantry to prevent it going bad in the week coming up. Sometimes I discover tasty combinations, and this white pasta sauce is one of them. It’s a nice variation on red pasta sauce, the kind predominantly used over here.

Ingredients:

  • ± 75 grams / ± 2.5 oz. mushrooms (sliced)
  • 2 small tins of tuna (on water)
  • 400 grams / ± 1 lb. mixed Italian vegetables (cut in pieces)
  • a couple of cubes frozen spinach (I use a kind which has cream cheese added to it)
  • cooking cream (preferably soy-based, because that’s lighter)
  • 1 bag grated cheese (I use the generic pasta cheese, a mix of Emmentaler, gruyere, cheddar, etc.)
  • a piece of spicy blue-veined cheese like  Gorgonzola
  • herbs (parsley, celery, green bruschetta herbs)
  • salt
  • ground white pepper
  • a dash of white wine
  • a small piece of butter

Directions:

Heat the butter in a sauce pan and add the sliced mushrooms. Cover them in butter while frying them, it will prevent them getting brown. Stir-fry for about 2 minutes, until they softened up. Add the spinach cubes and the herbs, keep stirring. Add the vegetables and lower the fire. When the veggies are about done, add the tuna, the cream and the cheese, heat it through and keep it simmering for about 5 minutes. At the very end add wine, salt and pepper to taste. Your sauce is ready. You can also make it a bit thicker and add béchamel sauce and use it as a sauce for lasagne.

Variance:

  • use fried bacon instead of tuna and add spring onions
  • use spam instead of tuna.
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