Moroccan-Spiced Chicken

Chicken in the most favourite meat in my family and I'm always looking for new ways of preparing or just spicying it. So I was very intrigued after finding this recipe in Martha Stewart website. Actually, I've never used cinnamon with chicken and it really made a nice combo with other spices.

What we need:
1½kg chicken, quartered, skin on ( I used just full breast)

spices:
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 lemon, quartered

What we have to do:

1. Mix spices, 2 teaspoons salt, 3/4 teaspoon pepper, and the oil in a small bowl. Rub spice paste all over chicken.
2. Preheat oven to 200C. Carefully arrange chicken in a single layer on hot sheet, and arrange lemon wedges around chicken. Place in the oven and roast for 40-50 min. When it's done, take out of the oven and let it rest for 10 min and serve.

Jool's favourite Saturday afternoon pasta can become yours!

A few days ago we had a discussion with some friends on Facebook about pasta dishes. I'm not a big fan of it and I do not cook much pasta either. Not that I don't like, but I find pasta dishes pretty messy. And I do hate too much tidying up. But I really liked the recipe and actually while the sauce and the pasta was cooking, I managed to tidy up the kitchen. So a quick and not a messy pasta dish by Jamie Oliver. He says that every time he makes this easy dish, his wife Jools seems to be really impressed with it. So why not turn it into your favourite! Just do use fresh basil if you can. I used just dried as it's winter and not so easy to get fresh one.

What we need:
1 red onion
1 fresh red chilli
½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon ( it went so well with tuna- pleasantly surprised!)
1 teaspoon of dried basil ( but do use fresh if possible)
800g tinned plum tomatoes
600 gr of good tinned tuna in olive oil
salt and pepper
500 gr rigatoni or penne
1 lemon zest and juice
a small handful of grated Permesan cheese
olive oil

What we have to do:

1. Pour some olive oil into a pan and add finely chopped onion, chilli and cinnamon with basil. Fry for about 5 minutes until onion has softened.
2. Ass tomatoes and break them using the back of a spoon, then add tuna and salt, pepper. Bring it to boil and simmer for about 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, cook the rigatoni with some salt, then drain it. Toss the pasta into the tuna and tomato sauce with some more basil, olive oil and lemon zest and juice, Permesan and mix together well. Check the seasoning and serve immmediately.

Turkey cutlets with sauteed brussel sprouts and mushrooms

Shops are loaded with cabbage, brussel sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli. So it's really the best time to enjoy all of them. And that's exactly what I'm doing almost every day! This time boiled and sauteed brussel sprouts with mushrooms and turkey cutlets.

What we need:

1 turkey breast
2 tbsp of flour
½ teaspoon of paprika powder
salt and pepper
½ tbsp of dried rosemary
½ tbsp of dried oregano
olive oil

for sauteed brussel sprouts:

300-400 gr brussel sprouts
200 gr of mushrooms
1 onion
2 tbsp of butter
salt and pepper
a pinch of oregano

What we have to do:

1. Take paprika powder, salt and pepper, dried rosemary and oregano and crush it into powder. Then mix it with flour.
2. Cut turkey breast into 4-6 slices ( depends on the size of the breast), flatten them with some heavy tool. Roll the pieces into spiced flour and fry in olive oil for 4-5 minutes on each side.
3. Cut brussel sprouts in half and boil for 4 minutes in boiling water.
4. Chop the onion and fry with a bit of oil, then add sliced mushrooms and butter. Saute for 5 minutes, then add boiled and drained brussel sprouts. Add salt and pepper, oregano, mix it and turn the heat off.
5. Serve turkey cutlets with the vegetables. Enjoy!

Fried rice with mushrooms and soya beans

Does fast food really have to be a burger or pasta? I've been watching Rachel Ray show for quite a while and she's always trying to convince that pasta is healthy, that turkey burger is the best thing on the planet! Personally I never associate these dishes with healthy food, even if it's wholeweat pasta or ground turkey breast. And I'm always surprised to see some kind of success stories how watching Rachel Ray show and cooking the way she does, helped to lose some weight! Those people must have eaten tons of junk food before. Don't get me wrong, I do like some of her recipes but I'm just not into pasta and burgers. I'd rather have a few potatoes with some roasted chicken or rice with mushrooms and soya beans with a great bunch of dill.

What we need:

1 glass of rice
300 gr of mushrooms
200 gr of frozen soya beans ( mine were steamed and frozen so there's no need to boil them)
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper
a handful of dill
1 lemon
olive oil

What we have to do:

1. Wash the rice and cook them. Then drain.
2. Chop the onion and garlic and put into a hot pan with some olive oil. Fry for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add sliced mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and keep on frying for 5 minutes.
4. Add frozen soya beans and mix them with mushrooms. When they get unfrozen, add boiled rice and heat them through.
5. Finally add chopped dill.
6. Put the dish into serving plates and drizzle some lemon juice on the top. Enjoy!!!

Happy 1st Birthday to my blog! And velvet cupcakes

Today I'm having a little blog anniversary - 1 year since I've started writing my blog. What a year it was! But I won't go into analyzis or boasting, just let's go straight to celebration with (red) velvet cupcakes. Well, I decided not to use any food coloring and went with natural colour.

What we need:

50 gr of butter
150 gr of sugar
1 egg
½ baking powder
100 ml of buttermilk or cream
150 gr of flour
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

for icing:

150 gr of cream cheese
50 gr of butter
2 tbsp of cream
1 orange zest and juice
1 tbsp of lemon juice
1 tbsp of vanilla extract
1oo gr sugar powder

What we have to do:

1. Put room temperature butter and sugar into a bowl, and mix it until fluffy.
2. Add the egg, vanilla extract and mix it again.
3. Mix flour and baking powder together and incorporate into butter and egg mixture.
4. Place the batter into cupcake tray with paper cups. And bake for 20-25 minutes in 180C oven.
5. Let the cupcakes cool.
6. Mix all icing ingredients for 5-10 minutes and put some on each cupcake. You can place the cupcakes into a fridge to let the icing cool. And then enjoy!!!

Culinary tour around the world-2010: Nicaraguan breakfast

Another week for the Culinary Tour around the World 2010 and this time we go to Nicaragua. It was really challanging this time to find much information about this country as there are plenty of photos of Nicaraguan food but only some recipes. Even if there is a recipe, it has some ingredients that are impossible to get in Turkey. So once again I decided to go with a simple recipe but added some Turkish touches and ingredients.
If there is one meal that everyone in Nicaragua eats, it's gallo pinto, which is a healthy and filling dish with basic rice and beans. The beans are red, and the color of the beans on the rice gives gallo pinto, or "painted rooster," its name. Just for improvisation, I decided to change red beans with green lentils and serve with fried egg and shredded cabbage.

What we need:

1 glass of boiled rice
½ glass of boiled green lentils ( traditionally - red beans)
oil
1 onion
3 cloves of garlic
½ green bell pepper
salt and pepper

2 eggs
a handful of shredded cabbage
1 teaspoon of white vinegar
salt and pepper
a pinch of sugar

What we have to do:

1. Pour some oil into a skillet and add onion with garlic. Fry for 2-3 minutes. Then add chopped green pepper and lentils. Fry until solf. Then add boiled rice and heat it through. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Fry 1 egg per serving.
3. Warm some vinegar and mix well with sugar, salt and pepper. Pour over shredded cabbage. Mix it and serve.
4. In a plate put some fried rice and lentils, add fried egg on the top and some cabbage. Enjoy!!!

Tuna panini stripes and a strange feeling

Since the early morning I haven't been into cooking at all and after evidencing pedestrian overpass collapse just next to my house ( Istanbul, Beylikdüzü), I am still in a bit of a shock. Luckily there are no casualties, but still one man was injured. It really brought a kind of strange feeling...

Now as the evening is coming and the motorway is being cleaned up and the traffic is improving, time to think of something easy but filling. So time for breakfast or I should say lunch...

What we need:

2 slices of wholeweat bread
olive oil
1 tbsp of canned tuna fish
1 slice of cheese

for serving ( optional):
1-2 fried or poached eggs
some lettuce or baby spinach leaves

What we have to do:

1. Brush toast bread with olive oil and add tuna with a slice of cheese. Put in a hot panini maker and press it. Toast until light brown.
2.Cut panini into stripes. If you want, serve them with fried eggs and some spinach, and a cup of tea. Enjoy!

Have a safe day!

Lemon bars or tart

It is definitely of the best lemon bars or tart I've tasted. I even had to say goodbye to my dinner and had two pieces. Just couldn't resist. I found the recipe and mouth-watering photo in Blue Ridge Baker and knew I had to make it. The recipe is really simple but the result is great - crispy bottom, tangy top and heavenly caramel flavour in the middle.

Lemon tart or bars

( serves 8)

What we need:

For the crust:

100 gr butter

50 gr sugar

¾ tsp of vanilla extract

a pinch of salt

125 gr flour

a little bit of lemon zest for extra flavour.

For the lemon top:

230 gr sugar

3 tbs. flour

3 big eggs

1 ½ tsp of lemon zest

100 ml lemon juice

What we have to do:

1. Pre-heat the oven 170C. Butter your baking tray.

2. Make the crust by mixing melted butter with sugar. Then add lemon zest, vanilla extract, salt and mix in the flour. Pour in onto the tray and spread it over. Put in the oven for 20-25 min.

3. While the crust is baking, mix the flour and sugar all together, then add lemon zest, lemon juice and eggs. Mix it well and when the crust is done, pour the lemon topping. And place into the oven again. Reduce the heat - 150C and bake for 20 min. Let it cool completely and remove from the tray. You can dust with some sugar powder if you like.

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Stuffed leek

This is one of the recipes that I wouldn't normally try,but after seeing a photo in Turkish cookery magazine 'Sofra', I was very intrigued as it is a very interesting interpretation of Turkish classic - sarma ( stuffed grape leaves). It's delicious but I believe it's still tastier with grape leaves. It's quite easy to make, just if you need to make for the whole family, you'll have to buy a lot of leek as only the bigger outer layers are used. And what to do with the inner parts? It means you really have to plan ahead. However, it's a great dish for those who have no access to grape leaves and still want to taste a bit of Turkey.

What we need ( vegetarian version, serves 2):

2 leeks
1 tomato
½ red pepper
a small handful of parsley
a pinch of ground cumin
dried or fresh mint
1 tbsp of pine nuts
1 tbsp of black dried grapes
salt and pepper
olive oil

a pinch of all spice

4 tbsp of rice
1 clove of garlic

What we have to do:

1. Cut in the leeks diagonally and remove 3-4 outer layers. Clean carefully. Then put in a big bowl or a pot and pour over some hot water. Let it stay there for about 5-7 minutes.
2. Mix rice, about 2 tbsp of olive oil, chopped garlic, tomato and red pepper, add the spices, some chopped parsley. Mix it well.
3. Take one layer of leek, add a teaspoon of stuffing and fold to make triangles. Fold it several times so that the stuffing wouldn't go out.
4. Put all the stuffed leeks into a pot. Cover with a plate ( you should press it a bit so when you add water, these stuffed triangles wouldn't loose its shape) and add water to cover the stuffed leeks. Season with salt and pepper, and boil for 15 minutes or until water is almost absorbed. Serve with yogurt.

Leek and potato soup

Finally we have snow in Istanbul. Despite the beauty, snow is cold. And when it's cold, I want soup. Today it's leek and potato soup!

What we need:

1 leek
1 celery stalk
1 potato
2 tbsp of olive oil
salt and pepper
a pinch of dried oregano
a pinch of red pepper flakes or some chilli
2l water or vegetable stock

What we have to do:

1. Clean the vegetables very carefully and cut into small pieces.
2. Pour some olive oil into a pot and add the leek. Let it fry for 3 minutes, then add celery and potatoes.
3. Season with salt and pepper. Add oregano, red pepper flakes. Fry for 5 minutes.
4. Pour water into the pot and let the soup boil for 7-10 minutes until potatoes are soft.
5. When soup is done, puree it with hand-held blender. You can garnish with some pepper flakes or a bit of cream. Enjoy and take care!

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Thai banana fritters with sesame seeds

Finally I opened Gordon Ramsay books that I'd got for Christmas and decided to try a very simple and yet very delicious Thai recipe from 'World Kitchen'. It's best to serve these still hot with some vanilla ice-cream. A very fast and tasty sweet delight.

What we need:
5 bananas
vegetable oil for frying

for batter:
2 tbsp of desiccated coconut
100 gr rice flour
100 gr corn flour
4 tbsp sesame seeds
a pinch of salt
2 tbsp of sugar
225 ml water

What we have to do:

1. Prepare the batter by mixing all the ingredients.
2. Slice the bananas.
3. Preheat the oil. When it's very hot, carefully dip banana into a batter and place into the oil. Deep fry until light brown and crispy.
4. When fritters are done, place them on a paper kitchen towel.
5. You can dust with sugar powder or some coconut and vanilla ice-cream. Serve straight away.

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Turkish winter classic - Kapuska

When it comes to Turkish cuisine, everyone knows kebabs, döners, lachmachun or pide but these are the dishes that Turkish eat in restaurants. If you go to a Turkish home in winter, you'll find mantı ( dumplings), bulgur köfte ( bulgur balls), a great variety of vegetable stews ( turlu). Kapuska is a cabbage and rice stew. Very easy to make and it is tasty! When the weather is going crazy ( sleety!)outside it's really great!

What we need:

1 medium size cabbage

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

4 tbsp of rice

1 tbsp of tomato paste

1 tbsp of red pepper paste

1 chilli pepper

salt and pepper

1 teaspoon of oregano

2l water

some olive oil

What we have to do:

1. Cut cabbage into pretty big chunks.

2. Chop the onion and garlic. Put them in a big pan or a pot and fry with a bit of oil for 3-4 min. Then add the cabbage and saute for 5 min. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Add tomato and pepper paste, chilli, oregano and rice. Mix it all together and pour the water. Simmer for 10 min until cabbage and rice are soft. Serve and enjoy!

If you want you can also add some chicken, beef or turkey.

Culinary Tour 2010: El Salvador

This is the second week for the Culinary Tour 2010 hosted by Joan Nova in Foodalogue and this time we are in El Salvador.

El Salvador cuisine particularly distinctive among the diverse cuisines of Central America. A blend of indigenous and Spanish influences, El Salvador food includes all sorts of stuffed delights: tamales, empanadas, pastelitos, and the ever-present pupusa. Pupusas are similar to corn tortillas, only thicker and stuffed with cheese, beans or meat. It is so fundamental to the cuisine of El Salvador that the country has even declared November 13th "National Pupusa Day."

I went with Pupusas de Arroz, i.e. pupusas made from rice flour and I chose cheese stuffing and I served with curtido ( coleslaw salad).

What we need:

400 ml of rice flour
2 tbsp of wheat flour
150 ml of water
salt
1-2 tbsp of oil

for stuffing:

100 gr of cheese
1 teaspoon of paprika powder
salt

for curtido:

1/2 cabbage
1 carrot
500 ml boiling water
3 scallions
5 tbsp of white vinegar
100 ml water
1 Jalapeño or serrano chile pepper
salt

What we have to do:

1. Combine rice flour and water and mix well. Shape into patties.
2. Spoon about 1/2 tablespoon each of cheese into center of a patty. Top with another patty and press edges of patties together to seal. No filling should be exposed. Brush with oil.
3. Cook pupusas on dry nonstick griddle or skillet over medium-high heat, turning once until browned, about 4 minutes on each side. Serve at once with tomato salsa and curtido.
4. To make curtido, place the cabbage and carrots in a large heat-proof bowl. Pour the boiling water into the bowl to cover the cabbage and carrots and set aside for about 5 minutes. Drain in a colander, pressing out as much liquid as possible. Return the cabbage to the bowl and toss with the remaining of the ingredients. Let set at room temperature for a couple hours if you like. Then chill and serve as an accompaniment to pupusas or as a side dish. Enjoy!!!

Cooking locally - chickpeas, rice and chicken

I believe that you have experienced one simple thing - when you go on holiday you taste wonderful dishes which are pretty simple so you decide to go back home and try to cook the very same dish, but even if it's tasty, it's still different. So many chefs do speak about cooking seasonally and locally, and they really make a point. So after cooking some Asian and Mexican dishes during the last week, today I decided to take local ingredients and to make a dish out of this. I didn't use any particular recipe as it is very simple, but has all the flavours that Turkey and Mediterranean region has to provide. Give it a go!!!

What we need:

200 gr of boiled chickpeas
1 onion
4 big ripe tomatoes
1 tbsp of tomato paste
100 ml of water
salt and pepper
dried or fresh thyme, basil, parsley
2 cloves of garlic

2 chicken breasts
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes or chilli pepper
olive oil
150 gr of rice

What we have to do:

1. Put a pan on a heat and add some olive oil. Put chopped onion. Fry until it gets soft,then add grated tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until reduced. Then add boiled chickpeas, garlic, tomato paste and water, thyme, basil, chopped parsley. Simmer for a few minutes and take it off the heat.
2. Put some olive oil in a pot, let it heat up and add washed rice. Let it fry for 2-3 minutes, add water ( 1:1.5) and a bit of salt. Stir it well and cook for about 10 minutes. Then turn the heat off, stir the rice and cover the pot with a lid. Let it rest for 5 minutes.
3. While rice is cooking, season chicken breast with salt and pepper, red pepper flakes and put in a hot pan with some oil. Fry for 4-5 minutes on both sides. Let it rest before slicing.
4. In a serving dish put some rice and chickpea stew, place sliced chicken breast on the top. You can also serve it with fresh vegetable salad. For vegetarian version, just skip the chicken.

A Good Salad

What makes a good salad for me? A bit of this and a bit of that!!! I really believe that salad can be a very exciting dish by its own. I have a kind of rule for making them! First of all I start salad with at least two types of lettuce or leaves ( a combo of soft and crunchy leaves is the best), then I add some herbs ( I believe they can be used not just to touch the flavour but also as a leafy part of the salad), then some vegetables ( tomato, cucumber, peppers, carrots) and finish up with either cheese or some toppings ( nuts/ seeds or croutons, or even roasted or fried meat or fish), or both! I also like adding something spicy, sweet or sour. Below is one example of a good salad, I really believe it is good as long as it is fresh and tastes good!

What we need:

some baby spinach
some frisee leaves
some parsley or basil
1-2 tomatoes
1 red pepper
1 chilli
1/2 orange
1 tbsp of sunflower seeds
30-50 gr of your favourite cheese

your favourite dressing

What we have to do:

1. Put all the leaves in a bowl, add sliced tomatoes, pepper, chili, sunflower seeds.
2. Pour the dressing and mix it well together.
3. Put the salad into serving dishes and decorate with peeled orange pieces and cheese. Enjoy!!!

Some dressings that go well with this salad:

French dressing ( by Jamie Oliver)

Peel and finely chop 1/4 clove of garlic. Put the garlic and 1 teaspoon of dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons of white or red wine vinegar, 6 tbsp of olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix it all together very well!

Lemon dressing:

Take 6 tbsp of olive oil, salt, pepper and 1 lemon. Mix it all together very well and use for the salad.

Yogurt dressing:

Take 6 tbsp of natural yogurt, 2 tbsp of wite or red wine vinegar, 1 tbsp of olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix it all together and use for the salad.

Asian dumpling soup

After making Chinese dumplings last week, my husband asked for more as he really enjoyed the flavours and the use of chopsticks. However, this time I decided to go with my own version of dumpling soup. I decided to use the shape of Korean dumplings - Mandu. Anyway, if you google 'Asian dumplings', you'll see different shapes and different recipes. So I sticked to what I really liked in last week's dishes.

What we need:

for dumplings:

300gr flour
150 gr water
1 tbsp of vegetable oil
a pinch of salt

filling:
200 gr of minced turkey
1 teaspoon of grated ginger
4 shitaki mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
a handful of blanched napa cabbage
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
1 teaspoon of rice vinegar
salt and pepper
1 egg

for soup:

2-3 l of chicken or beef stock
2 tbsp of soy sauce
a handful of spinach
100 gr of broccoli
1 carrot
1 spring onion
salt and pepper
1 chilli pepper

What we have to do:

1. Mix flour, water and oil and knead the dough for about 10 minutes until it gets silky. Cover and leave it until you make the filling.
2. Mix all filling ingredients.
3. Roll out the dough, cut out circles, put the filling in the centre. Brush the sides with beaten egg and fold it. Shape it into small bags. At this stage you can freeze them.

4. To make soup, bring chicken stock to boil, add carrots, 5 minutes later add broccoli and the dumplings. Cook for 6-8 minutes, then add spinach and spring onions with some soy sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and serve! Enjoy!

Redondo fish wraps

One more recipe from Jamie Oliver's 'Jamie's America'!!! Originally it's called Redondo Mackerel wraps but I used sea bass that's why I would call it just Redondo wrap. I liked this recipe not just because it was absolutely tasty but also for the story it comes with. In Jamie American Road trip LA episode Jamie Oliver went fishing with a chef called Rigo, who was brought up in a Mexican family that was bound up in the gang culture, he had lost his father, stepfather and uncle to drug crime. But, bravely, he decided to turn his back on such life and train as a chef. Now he's doing a great job, works in the Four Seasons Hotel in LA, has a child and a settled family life. It was amazing to see an example of how determination can help to start afresh! Redondo comes from the Redondo Beach Pier where one morning Jamie and Rigo went fishing but had no luck, so they decided to barbecue the mackerel caught by the fishermen next to them. When I was watching that episode I was more than amazed by very strange and big brown pelicans walking onto the pier.

What we need ( I've changed the original recipe a bit):

For the wrap:
1 ripe avocado, halved and stoned
2 limes
2 small seabass fillets, pinboned
4 small flour tortilla wraps
1 onion
2tbsp olive oil
A few sprigs of fresh parsley

For the salad:

1 green or yellow courgette/ zuchini
2 large spring onions
1 red pepper
1 green chilli
juice of 1 lime or lemon
olive oil
salt and pepper

What we have to do:

1. Clean the fish, season with salt and pepper, put on a grill or a pan and fry for 3-4 min on each side.
2. Put avocado, onion, lime juice and olive oil into a food processor and blend until smooth.
3. For the salad chop all the vegetables, you can shave courgettes into long ribbons, mix it together with lemon juice, olive oil, season with salt and pepper.
4. Take one tortilla, spread a tablespoon of avocado mix, place a piece of fish and on the top put a handful of salad. If you are adventurous add some drops of hot chilli sauce. Enjoy!

Gorditas with salsa

Gorditas means 'little fat girl' in Spanish and is meant as a sort of cute, cuddly term of endearment. It is also the name for these little puffy tortillas, which are often made around Easter and other special occasions. My special occasion was The Culinary Tour 2010- South of the Boarder organized by Joan from Foodalogue.com. It is definitely a challange for me as I'm not familiar with America's South neighbours' cuisine at all and living in Turkey deprives me from authentic ingredients. This week focuses on Mexican cuisine and I decided to use Jamie Oliver's interpretation of Mexican cuisine. Along with the recipe he gives ideas how to use European ingredients to get exciting flavours.

What we need:

for the gorditas:

250g fine cornmeal or masa harina
salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
350 ml of hot water
plain flour for dusting

for the salsa:

1 apple
3 large tomatoes
2 spring onions
1 red chilli
coriander ( I used parsley)
1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
1 tbsp sunflower seeds
1 lime
salt and pepper

to serve:
100 gr Don Francisco Mexican cheese or feta ( which is similar)
1 fresh red chilli
1 lime

What we have to do:

1. Put cornmeal and salt into a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Mix the baking powder into the hot water and pour into the well. Mix the cornmeal into the water and use your hands to knead it. Make about 8 balls and use your hands to shape into round and flat gordita. Dust with flour and put on oiled tray until you make your salsa.
2. For salsa, chop deseeded apple, tomatoes and spring onions, and finely slice the chilli. Put them into a bowl. Add corriander. Put pumpkin and sunflower seeds into a hot pan and some olive oil and toast them for a few minutes. Put the seeds into the salsa. Add oil, salt and pepper.
3. Put the pan back on the heat, add oil and cook the gorditas for about 2-3 minutes on each side.
4. Serve the gorditas warm out of the pan with a tablespoon of salsa, a little hunk of cheese and a couple leaves of corriander and a few slices of chilli. If you fancy add a squeeze of lime.

Fiery Dan Dan noodles

On Sundays I don't like cooking. I prefer just spending time with my husband. So tonight's dinner was an easy choice though I'd been thinking about this dish for a while. Once again the idea for the recipe comes from Jamie Oliver's 'Jamie's America' and if you saw 'Jamie's American Roadtrip' NYC episode, so you must remember the dish that made him shout 'Uuuuuuhhhhuuuu! Where have you been all my life?!!!!' Even introducing the recipe in the book, Oliver writes that this dish is right on the edge of his chilli tolerance, but that's the beauty of it, and you've kinda just got to go for it. Personally, I love chillies but still I halved the amount of chilli oil. But my husband went for it and loved it! I loved it too for one more reason it took less then 20 minutes to make and fresh spring onions and lots of greens make it fresh while chilli pushes all the right buttons.

Some background from the book:

In the western Szechuan province of China they make this dish in massive buckets, which they carry on poles over their shoulders. In China, 'dan' means pole, so these are quite literally 'pole pole noodles'.

What we need:

Serves 2

200 gr of minced beef
1/5 tbsp of honey
200 gr wheat noodles
2 handfuls of green vegetables ( Chinese cabbage, bok choi, broccoli, spinach) - I didn't use bok choi
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp of dark soy sauce
1 tbsp of black pepper
2 tbsp of chilli oil
1 spring onion
1 lime
some vegetable oil
some salt (optional, but I felt that meat needs some seasoning)

What we have to do:

1. Put beef into a dry pan and fry until it turns brown and crunchy. It takes about 10-15 minutes. Then add honey and a bit of salt, mix it and cook for 2-3 more minutes.
2. While beef is frying, put a pot of water on the heat and bring it to boil. Add some salt and put the noodles in. Cook for 6 minutes. Then into the same pot put chopped cabbage and broccoli. Cook for 2 minutes and drain.
3. Take a pan, add some oil, put the garlic and spinach. Then add cooked noodles and vegetables. Pour soy sauce and chilli oil. Give it a good mix with tongs and divide into two or even three bowls. Sprinkle over crunchy beef and finish with some spring onions. Serve it with a lime quarter to squeeze over.

P.S. You can make your own chilli oil by getting a handful of mixed dried chillies, toasting them in the oven to bring flavour, whacking them in a food processor with a bottle of groundnut oil and pouring it back into the bottle. This will keep well in your cupboard for a year.

Jiǎozi - Chinese dumplings and potstickers

"

Jiǎozi or potsticker is a Chinese dumpling popular in China, Japan ( known as gyoza) and North America and throughout the world. I've always wanted to try them but never had. So after looking through Gordon Ramsay 'World Kitchen' and finding steamed Chinese dumplings, I remembered seeing fried version of them. And once again our good friend google helped me and I came across an amazing site 'Use real butter.com' with wonderful instructions on how to make the dumplings and how to fry and steam them . It was very helpful and I highly recommend to read it carefully if you're going to make them the first time. For the dough I used Ramsay recipe but the filling wasn't completely Chinese. I used local ingredients but it turned out great and I'll definitely make again.

What we need:

For the dough ( I made 45 dumplings):

300 gr flour
1 tbsp of vegetable oil
150 ml water
a pinch of sea salt

For the filling:

300 gr of ground chicken (traditionally pork is used)
100 gr of Chinese cabbage also known as napa cabbage ( white cabbage can also be used)
3 spring onions
50 ml of soya sauce
salt and pepper
a thumb size fresh ginger
1 tbsp of rice vinegar
1 green chilli
some vegetable oil for frying

What we have to do:

1. Mix the dough ingredients and knead for 10 min until silky. Then wrap in a fling until you prepare the filling.
2. Chop the cabbage and mix with vinegar and soya sauce. Mix it well and keep for 5-10 min. Then mix with ground chicken, add finely chopped ginger, spring onions, chilli. Add some pepper. Mix it well.
3. Divide the dough into 5-6 pieces and roll each piece. Take a wide glass and cut out circles. Add the filling, fold the circle with the filling in half and pinch in the middle. Then continue folding the edges to make pleats. Press hard so that it won't lose the shape. See the photos here.
4. Add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil to the pan with a lid. Place the dumplings. Put them on a medium heat.

5. When they start browning, very carefully and very quickly pour a glass of hot water ( hold the lid to protect yourself from the steam!) into a pan and cover it with a lid. When the steam stops and water starts bubbling, take the lid off and let the water boil out. The bottom of the dumplings must be crispy.
6. Dumpling are generally served upside down with soya sauce, vinegar and chilli sauce, garlic, ginder and spring onions. Enjoy!!!

Mexican breakfast by Jamie Oliver

Not the best looking dish, is it? But it tasted great and it really gives you a kick to start a day. This morning once again I opened Jamie Oliver's 'Jamie's America' and stopped by his interpretations of Mexican cuisine. So I gave it a go! The Mexican name for this dish is 'huevos rancheros' - eggs with chillies, tomatoes and peppers in burritos. Jamie even says it's especially good if 'you've got a hangover you're trying to shake off'! :DDDD If you want to bring this dish to another level and serve for brunch, serve with black beans, some steamed rice and a bottle of Tabasco or chilli sauce beside it.

What we need:

(serves 6)
olive oil
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 red peppers
2 fresh red or orange chillies
1 large dried chilli
3 bay leaves
salt and ground pepper
800gr of tinned chopped tomatoes
2 large tomatoes
6 large eggs
6 tortillas
150g Cheddar cheese to serve

What we have to do:

1. Put a large pan with a lid on a high heat and add several good lugs of olive oil. Add finely slices onion, garlic, deseeded and finely slices peppers and chillies, bay leaves and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Stir and cook for 15 minutes to soften and caramelize the vegetables.
2. Pour in the tinned tomatoes and use a spoon or a potato masher to break them up a bit. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat to a medium and cook for further 5 minutes so the sauce starts to reduce down.
3. Correct the seasoning if you think it needs it.
4. Lay sliced tomatoes over the top of the mixture, then use spoon to make small wells in the tomato stew and crack in your eggs so they poach in the juices. Cook for another 3-4 minutes.
5. Warm your tortillas.
6. Serve the vegetable stew and poached eggs on warm tortilla with some grated Cheddar cheese. You can also bring cheese and a grater to the table and get everyone involved and make their own. Wrap the tortilla up and eat it right away.

It is also a really healthy dish if you reduce the amount of oil and use wholeweat tortillas. Really what a beautiful way to wake up! Have a nice day everyone!

Pomegranate and bulgur salad

If you like grains or pomegranate this salad is definitely for you. It can be eaten as a salad by its own or as a side dish and if you cannot find bulgur in your local supermarket try cousous or buckwheat. I loved fruity flavour and the idea of lots of fiber and vitamin C made me enjoy this salad even more!

What we need:

200 gr of boiled bulgur
1 big pomegranate
1 lemon juice
a handful of parsley
1 tbsp of olive oil
salt


What we have to do:

1. Cook bulgur in water for 15 minutes and let it stay for 10-15 minutes until it cools.
2. Deseed the pomegranate by cutting it into quarters and hitting its skin with a wooden spoon above a bowl. The seeds should fal easily.
3. Chop parsley. You can also add some mint.
4. Mix bulgur, pomegranate seeds and parsley together. Then add 1 lemon juice, olive oil and salt. Mix it together and serve.

Enjoy!!!