Gyros with Tzaziki and Rice

On my last weekend grocery shopping I bought a pork steak. That was sitting in my fridge. I had no idea what to do with it.

Now I thought about Greek food. I cut the steak in strips and made a Gyros marinate. It needed a day and a night to rest.

For my Tsatziki I used a mix of curd and Greek yogurt. I had no enough of both. But that mix went well. Fresh parsley and some black olive rings finished it.

Gyros:

210 g pork steak, 3 tbsp olive oil

1 heaped tsp sweet paprika powder, 

1/2 tsp majoram, thyme and oregano each

Black pepper, salt

1 yellow onion, 2 cloves of garlic

1/2 cup long grain rice

Place meat, onion strips and garlic together in a hot pan. Sear it all together and cook until the gyros is done. Depending on the thickness os the meat strips that will take 5 to 10 min. Cook the rice and serve it with Tsaziki.

 

Vanilla Pudding

In a time when Dr. Oetker pudding powder is the go to if you want a bowl of sweet goodness, it is very rare to cook it from scratch.

In 1894 it was introduced and made cooking easier. Now you can get ready made vanilla puddings in the fridge isles in all supermarkets. Taste may or may not be so good.

This is a Pastry Chef and YouTuber Marco d'Andrea recipe my friend gave me. She cooked it and liked it a lot. 

Recipe:

300 ml whole milk, 220 ml double cream

Pinch of salt, 2 egg yolks

40 g sugar, 40 g potato starch

1 vanilla bean pod

Scrape the seeds out of the pod. In a pot add seeds, cream, salt, sugar and 200 ml milk. Bring it up to temperature.

In a bowl stir egg yolks with 100 ml milk and starch. Add warmed milk mix and stir well. Pour back in the pot and on medium heat cook until thickened. Pour in a bowl to cool down.

If you hate skin on your pudding, place klingfilm directly on top of the pudding. I love skin :-)

If you miss the bright yellow color, either drop an third egg yolk in before you fill it in a bowl or use a bit of food coloring. I stayed on the side of no additives.

Veggie Pancake with Okonomyaki sauce

It is time to give the assortment of veggies in my fridge a new life. Lots of bits and bobs to get rid off. Use what ever you find. 

My veggies were cabbage, carrot, celery stalk, red chili, quarter courgette, white from a leek, spring onion.

I used Korean pancake mix as a base, but added an egg. The mix is already seasoned, that makes it easy.

Cutting and chopping all veggies looked like a lot of work. I took the easy way and just cleaned and peeled the veggies and chucked rough pieces in the blender. The Thermomix just needed 5 sec on speed 6 and the work was done.

I only needed enough veggie mix for 2 pancakes. For the leftover veggies I added 2 tbsp olive oil and water and veggie stock cube and cooked a soup. No other pot to clean.

1cup Korean pancake mix, 1 cup water

1 egg, 4 tbsp canola oil, 2 1/2 cup shredded veggies, salt, pepper

Okonomyaki sauce

Potato Dumpling Bake -Knutschis

Little potato dumpling not cooked in water, but baked in a creamy sauce in the oven. 

Bacon bits, onion and lots of seasoning in the cream are the much needed ingredients. The grated Cheddar on top ist just the finish.

Here in Germany you can get a potato dumpling dough package from different producers. They are in the fridge section of the supermarket. Since we have different versions of potato dumplings, look for "halb und halb". The dumpling dough is made with cooked and raw potatoes. That is the best for recipes like that.

Recipe for 4:

1 package "halb und halb" potato dough

150 g smoked bacon strips, 1 spring onion

200 ml double cream, 80 g Cheddar cheese

Nutmeg, smoked paprika, cayenne, salt, pepper, dried thyme.

Roll the potato dough in golf ball size dumplings. Mix the seasoning with the cream.

Preheat the oven 180 C.

Toss the bacon in a pan and let it loose some fat. Pat it dry a bit. Add the chopped spring onion and give it 3 min.

Use an oven proof dish and pour a little cream in. Set the balls on top. Pour the bacon mix over. Bake for 15 min.

Spread the cheese over and bake 15 more minutes.

Pasta in Anchovis Sauce with Pistacchios

It does not taste fishy! But salty and well rounded. Umami is the name of the game.

I wanted a quick sause for some linguine without hitting the shops. All ingredients came out of my storage. Fresh basil sits on the windowsill during this time of the year.

This recipe reminds me of the kitchen of Sicily. Pistacchios are grown there and the use of anchovis is often found on the island.

Recipe for 1:

135 g Linguine

1 tsp olive oil, 25 g butter+ 15 g butter

6 anchovis filets, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 3 basil leaves+ 15 to finish, 1 tsp pepperoncini

25 g pistacchios, zest of 1 lemon, pepper

Cook the linguine in a wide pan in salted water. That way they fit in from the beginning. They just need to soften about 5 min.

In a second pan heat up oil and 25 g butter, toss in the crushed garlic and the 3 basil leaves. Let the anchovis melt in that mix.  Use a couple of large spoons of pasta water to mellow out the sauce. Take garlic and basil out. Add pepperoncini.

Transfer the half cooked pasta in the pan and let it cook until it is ready. Add more pasta water if needed.

Chop the basil and the pistacchios and put the lemon zest over the pasta with them. Season with pepper.

 

Tuna Porridge - Chamchijuk

This is the forth Korean breakfast rice porridge from YT Aaron&Claire.

Canned tuna is the protein in this dish. Usually there is no egg in this one. But since I have some quail eggs, I decided to drop three in the last three minutes of cooking time.

Now that I made all 4 different porridges, I have a favourite. And it is the one with the Shiitake mushrooms. So much Umami.

Recipe:

1 cup cooked rice, 1 1/2 cups water

1 tsp Dashida beef stock powder

1 spring onion, 1 can tuna fish

40 g courgette, 1/2 yellow bell pepper sesame seeds toasted, 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil

Optional: 3 quail eggs

For the additional veggies it is nice to use up what ever is sitting in the fridge.

Put sesame oil in a wok. Start with the white of the onion and 2/3 of the drained tuna. Give it 2 min. Add rice and water and beef stock powder. Chop veggies very fine and add to the pot. Cook for 10 min.

In the last 3 min, crack in the quail eggs.

Serve with some onion greens and sesame seeds and a little sprinkle of sesame oil. Place the 1/3 of tuna on top.

 

One Pot Chicken and Rice

This is a one pot dish, but you will cook twice in the same pot.

This recipe starts with the preparation of the chicken stock you will need later to cook the rice. The tastier the stock, the better the rice. Let the chicken legs cool down to handle them. Discard the skin and bones and pull the meat in small chunks. Use a fine mash sieve to get a clear stock. Measure out 650 ml of stock. If you do not have enough, fill it up with water.

Clean the pot for the second use. 

Not only chicken but tasty sausages are part of this dish. I used two different kinds. But decide for yourself what to use. You can even use chorizo. But that would give a red color to the dish and overpower the chicken.

Recipe for 3:

2 chicken legs, 1 raw smoked pork sausage,  1 Bockwurst,  1 Shallot

1 large spring onion, 2 cloves of garlic, bay leaf, 1 carrot, 4 stalks of celery, 3 juiniper berries, pepper, 1 tsp veg stock paste

250 g long grain rice, parsley, 1 tbsp butter

There are two steps to this dish. Easy to prepare one step the evening before.

cook the chicken on low heat for 40 min.

Get the chicken out. Use a wide pan and fry of the shallot in some butter with 1 garlic and the raw sausage. Cut it up in bite size pieces. Take the skin off the Bockwurst and add it with the other celery to the pan. Season with salt and pepper.

Toss the rice in and stir well. Pour in the chicken stock and cook for 15 min. Now add the  pulled chicken and cook 5 min more.

Serve with fresh parsley

Lentil Soup with Sausages

Stormy nights and days are calling for soups.

Lentil soups are one of the most served soups here in Germany. The combination of lentils with lots of pork is made in heaven, if you are not vegetarian or vegan.

This is a soup for sausage lovers. 

I used dried pink lentils. I cooked them im unsalted water with a shallot for 18 min, drain. They need about 30 min cooking time. Added to the soup, they will finish cooking there. Feel free to use can of cooked brown lentils. Just drain them before adding them to the soup.

Recipe for 3:

90 g smoked bacon, 150 g cooked lentils, 2 smoked raw sausages, 2 Wieners,

1 large spring onion, 3 medium potatoes, 2 carrots, 100 celeriac, 120 g leek,

1 parsley root, 1 litre veg stock, salt and pepper, parsley, salt, pepper

In a large pot put in the bacon bits and let them take some color. Add vegetables and give thrm 10 min in the pot. Stir often. Season. Pour in the stock and bring to a boil.

 Cut the raw sausage in rings and toss them im the soup. Cook for 10 min and now add the lentils. When they are soft, cut the Wieners in 3 pieces each and warm them in the soup. Check the seasoning and finish with parsley.

Feta Cabbage Packages

Packing these packages with puff pastry makes it an easy dish. Serve it hot as a full meal with a dip or bring it to a gathering and serve it at room temperature. Both ways are fine.

Ready made puff pastry is available in most supermarkets. Check the print on the back for the ingredients list to see if the pastry is made with butter or palm oil. The real puff pastry contains butter. But the other is cheaper and most likely, you wont taste the difference.

Keep the fresh pastry as long as possible in the fridge. It gets a bit soft after a while and the handling is no longer good.

Recipe for 4 (it makes 8 packages):

1 rectangular piece of fresh puff pastry

150 g pointed cabbage, 1 large spring onion, 1 clove of garlic, 1 tbsp olive oil

50 g cherry tomatoes, 150 g sheep feta, 1 egg, salt, pepper, nutmeg, Italian herbs

1 tbsp breadcrumbs, 1 tsp nutricional yeast, fresh basil

Preheat the oven to 180 C fan.

Cut the cabbage in thin strips and the onion too. Mash the garlic and put all in a pan with dome olive oil. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Give it 5 min to wilt down. Take it out and store it on a cold plate to cool down. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top.

Break up the feta in fine crumbs. Cut the cherry tomatoes in small cubes and chop the basil. Season with pepper, a little salt, Italian herbs and nutricional yeast. Mix with the cabbage.

Beat the egg and pour 2 /3 of it in the mix. The other is needed to brush the pastry later.

Cut the puff pastry in 8 pieces and spoon mixture on top. Fold the corners over the top and pinch the sides. Place them on baking paper.  Brush with the remaining egg wash.

Bake them for 20 min.

Dip:

1/2 yellow bell pepper, skin peeled with a speed peeler

2 tsp creme fraiche, 150 g Greek yogurt, dill, parsley, smoked salt, pepper

 

Green Goddess Salad - vegan

This is a Tik Tok Recipe. 

You just need a a good foodprocessor or a sharp knife. It is important to chop the salad ingredients fine. A lot of surface area is needed for the dressing.

Just pour all in a bowl and scrape out the foofprocessor. No need to clean it. Now all dressing ingredients in and give them a good whirl. Add to the salad and that is it!

For a nicer look, slice an avocado and place it on top.

Ingredients for 1:

4 large leaves of a cabbage  / I used pointed cabbage

1 small cucumber, 2 spring onions

"Pesto":

Bunch of basil, parsley and dill

1 shallot, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, pepper, salt, juice 1/2 lime

1 tbsp nutricional yeast, 5 tbsp rapeseed oil

35 g walnuts, 1 tsp agave syrup

1 avocado

Chicken alla Cacciatora Tuscany style

This is home cooking Mama or Nonna style. I used chicken legs, but rabbit or other kinds of meat can be used.

 It is a one pot dish, when you have an oven proof pot large enough to hold all ingredients. Alla cacciatora means in Hunter style. What the hunter trapped or shot went in the pot and then on the table. 

The chicken need some time in the marinate. Prepare it the evening before and ket it dit in the fridge over night until lunch the next day.

All other prep work is quick and easy. The most cooking is done in the oven. 

Recipe for 3:

3 chicken legs, 1 can whole tomatoes, 100 ml chicken stock, 250 ml red wine, 20 black olives, 20 capers, 2 anchovis filets, pinchnif salt and pepper.

Marinate:

1 twig rosemary, 1 garlic clove, juice of 1 lemon, 5 black olives, 5 capers, 1/4 tsp black pepper ground, 2 tbsp tomato paste

Prepare the marinate and rub the chicken legs with it. Store covered in the fridge. 

Preheat the oven 180 C fan.

Heat up some oil in a pan and fry off the chicken on both sides for 5 min. Take it out.

Chuck in the liquids and cook them out with the residue of the chicken for 3 min. Season. Add the chicken  skin down and stick in the oven for 20 min.

Turn skin side up, cook 20 min more. Add olives, capers and anchovis  and ladle sauce over the chicken. Just 10 min more. Serve with rice or pasta.