Dine At Home

Mar 04

Eggplant casserole In the previous post, I complained about the prolonged season of hearty dishes. And finally it has arrived: a sunny spring. It feels so good that I fast-forwarded a few months and served this casserole of summer vegetables and low-fat mozzarella. Slice an eggplant lengthwise. Whisk an egg with salt and pepper. Dip each slice in the egg, then breadcrumbs, and fry in a skillet. In a casserole dish, layer slices of mozzarella, the eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, and bell pepper. Sprinkle with chopped garlic, basil leaves, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Repeat the layers. I only had the eggplant and mozzarella twice. Bake in the oven and serve with fresh salad greens.Reminds of august evenings, of vacation and late dinners on the terrace with friends. Baiba

Eggplant casserole

In the previous post, I complained about the prolonged season of hearty dishes.
And finally it has arrived: a sunny spring. It feels so good that I fast-forwarded a few months and served this casserole of summer vegetables and low-fat mozzarella.

Slice an eggplant lengthwise. Whisk an egg with salt and pepper. Dip each slice in the egg, then breadcrumbs, and fry in a skillet. In a casserole dish, layer slices of mozzarella, the eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, and bell pepper. Sprinkle with chopped garlic, basil leaves, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Repeat the layers. I only had the eggplant and mozzarella twice. Bake in the oven and serve with fresh salad greens.
Reminds of august evenings, of vacation and late dinners on the terrace with friends.

Baiba

Feb 28

Chicken and bean stew Winter just wouldn`t go away, and hearty comfort food are still on the top of the list. This chicken and bean stew is really good: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1570643/spicy-chicken-and-bean-stew. I almost followed the recipe this time. The exceptions are a can of chickpeas instead of 2 cans of butter bean, and lots of fresh bell pepper instead of 250 g frozen peppers. No coriander, served with rice and lamb`s lettuce. Baiba

Chicken and bean stew

Winter just wouldn`t go away, and hearty comfort food are still on the top of the list. This chicken and bean stew is really good: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1570643/spicy-chicken-and-bean-stew.

I almost followed the recipe this time. The exceptions are a can of chickpeas instead of 2 cans of butter bean, and lots of fresh bell pepper instead of 250 g frozen peppers. No coriander, served with rice and lamb`s lettuce.

Baiba

Feb 20

Potato dumplings with pesto and green beans Pesto potato salad sounded a bit weird, though all the ingredients are among my favorites: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2009/06/pesto-potato-salad-with-green-beans/. I planned to go for the traditional pasta instead, but then it turned out Sandis already had pasta for lunch. What`s in between pasta and potatoes? Potato dumplings! Otherwise, the recipe is from the link above. I also added some salad leaves, as they were withering in the fridge. Crumble feta on top to make the dish more filling. Baiba

Potato dumplings with pesto and green beans
Pesto potato salad sounded a bit weird, though all the ingredients are among my favorites: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2009/06/pesto-potato-salad-with-green-beans/. I planned to go for the traditional pasta instead, but then it turned out Sandis already had pasta for lunch. What`s in between pasta and potatoes? Potato dumplings! Otherwise, the recipe is from the link above. I also added some salad leaves, as they were withering in the fridge. Crumble feta on top to make the dish more filling.

Baiba

Feb 14

[video]

Feb 13

Carrot soup I don`t use the printer very often. As I switched it on yesterday, this recipe came out: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2013/01/carrot-soup-with-tahini-and-crisped-chickpeas/. A message from God? I swear I had never seen it before. However, the soup seemed rather simple and delicious, so I decided to try it out. Besides, it was an opportunity to use the leftover tahini dressing from the evening before. My chickpeas were tossed in curry powder instead of cumin, as it would be a little too much cumin for Sandis (he`s not a big fan). The roasted chickpeas is all you need to turn dull blended vegetables into a substantial meal with a kick. Later on, I realized it must have been my sister struggling with the printer during her visit last month. In that case, thanks for the recipe! Baiba

Carrot soup

I don`t use the printer very often. As I switched it on yesterday, this recipe came out: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2013/01/carrot-soup-with-tahini-and-crisped-chickpeas/. A message from God? I swear I had never seen it before. However, the soup seemed rather simple and delicious, so I decided to try it out. Besides, it was an opportunity to use the leftover tahini dressing from the evening before. My chickpeas were tossed in curry powder instead of cumin, as it would be a little too much cumin for Sandis (he`s not a big fan). The roasted chickpeas is all you need to turn dull blended vegetables into a substantial meal with a kick.
Later on, I realized it must have been my sister struggling with the printer during her visit last month. In that case, thanks for the recipe!
Baiba

Feb 12

Lazy turkey salad I am ill, and have no energy for cooking. This salad is a quick combination of what I found in the fridge.Marinate turkey pieces in chili flakes, soy sauce, honey and roasted sesame oil for some 15 minutes. In the meanwhile, chop an onion, a bell pepper and prepare the sauce. For the sauce, mix tahini paste, lemon juice, water, salt, pepper, and a minced garlic clove. Fry the onions, then add the pepper. Pour over some porto and saute a little. Set the vegetables aside, and fry the turkey. Serve on a bed of mixed salad leaves, sprinkled with roasted sesame seeds. Baiba

Lazy turkey salad

I am ill, and have no energy for cooking. This salad is a quick combination of what I found in the fridge.
Marinate turkey pieces in chili flakes, soy sauce, honey and roasted sesame oil for some 15 minutes. In the meanwhile, chop an onion, a bell pepper and prepare the sauce. For the sauce, mix tahini paste, lemon juice, water, salt, pepper, and a minced garlic clove. Fry the onions, then add the pepper. Pour over some porto and saute a little. Set the vegetables aside, and fry the turkey. Serve on a bed of mixed salad leaves, sprinkled with roasted sesame seeds.

Baiba

Feb 11

[video]

Feb 02

Hardly a few days since the last post, and already another one…  Another curry with coconut milk If you like nutty curries as much as I do, you have to try this one: peanut butter AND coconut milk. To round it up with more nuts, choose plain yoghurt with maple syrup, cinnamon and walnuts for the dessert. For the curry (about 6 servings), you`ll need: spring onions pork, chopped bite-size, 500 g red curry paste, 3 spoons peanut butter, 2 spoons brown sugar, 1 spoon vegetable stock, 1 cup low-fat coconut milk, 1 can of 400 g deep-frozen cauliflower florets, a package of 250 g palm hearts, a can of 400 g juice of half-lemon Fry the pork for 5 minutes to seal the juices. Add chopped spring onions and fry another minute. Add curry paste and peanut butter, then the sugar. Cover with stock and coconut oil, add the cauliflower, bring to boiling and simmer for some 10 minutes. Cut palm hearts, add to the sauce and heat through. Stir in lemon juice and serve with rice. For one of the next posts, I`ll try out David Lebovitz recipes from his “Sweet Life in Paris”. A brilliant book, recommended by my sister who`s much more into desserts than me. Even if you choose to skip the dessert recipes, the book charms with its witty and accurate description of the Parisian lifestyle and some appealing ideas for non-sweet dishes. Breastfeeding a baby means a lot of time for reading:) Baiba

Hardly a few days since the last post, and already another one… 

Another curry with coconut milk
If you like nutty curries as much as I do, you have to try this one: peanut butter AND coconut milk. To round it up with more nuts, choose plain yoghurt with maple syrup, cinnamon and walnuts for the dessert.
For the curry (about 6 servings), you`ll need:
spring onions
pork, chopped bite-size, 500 g
red curry paste, 3 spoons
peanut butter, 2 spoons
brown sugar, 1 spoon
vegetable stock, 1 cup
low-fat coconut milk, 1 can of 400 g
deep-frozen cauliflower florets, a package of 250 g
palm hearts, a can of 400 g
juice of half-lemon
Fry the pork for 5 minutes to seal the juices. Add chopped spring onions and fry another minute. Add curry paste and peanut butter, then the sugar. Cover with stock and coconut oil, add the cauliflower, bring to boiling and simmer for some 10 minutes. Cut palm hearts, add to the sauce and heat through. Stir in lemon juice and serve with rice.
For one of the next posts, I`ll try out David Lebovitz recipes from his “Sweet Life in Paris”. A brilliant book, recommended by my sister who`s much more into desserts than me. Even if you choose to skip the dessert recipes, the book charms with its witty and accurate description of the Parisian lifestyle and some appealing ideas for non-sweet dishes. Breastfeeding a baby means a lot of time for reading:)

Baiba

Jan 30

There has been a long silence and very few posts with various regularity for some while on this blog. Well… it will most probably continue to be so, as the meaning of regularity has reached a new level in our house. Since the beginning of January there are five of us. Needless to say, the young addition of the family isn’t too keen on haute cuisine quite yet… However, we will still eat, hopefully not too much junk, and will try to drop a line and a pic here now and then. Thank you for being faithful. Cheers and enjoy! Sandis ——————————————————————————— Coleslaw I do like cabbage, but try to avoid mayonnaise. The baby is born, and there is no more legitimate excuse for unhealthy indulging. After a quick search for “coleslaw dressing”, I found this recipe:  http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1815,136162-235200,00.html. Blend mustard, garlic, apple juice, oil, an apple, honey, tabasco, vinegar, salt, and pepper. I used far less oil than in the recipe to save on calories. A tablespoon of pistachio oil and 2 spoons of olive oil seemed sufficient. Vinegar and tabasco was added more generously. So full of flavours, after you try this out, you’ll never come back to mayo! Baiba

There has been a long silence and very few posts with various regularity for some while on this blog. Well… it will most probably continue to be so, as the meaning of regularity has reached a new level in our house. Since the beginning of January there are five of us. Needless to say, the young addition of the family isn’t too keen on haute cuisine quite yet… However, we will still eat, hopefully not too much junk, and will try to drop a line and a pic here now and then.

Thank you for being faithful. Cheers and enjoy!

Sandis

———————————————————————————

Coleslaw

I do like cabbage, but try to avoid mayonnaise. The baby is born, and there is no more legitimate excuse for unhealthy indulging. After a quick search for “coleslaw dressing”, I found this recipe:  http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1815,136162-235200,00.html. Blend mustard, garlic, apple juice, oil, an apple, honey, tabasco, vinegar, salt, and pepper. I used far less oil than in the recipe to save on calories. A tablespoon of pistachio oil and 2 spoons of olive oil seemed sufficient. Vinegar and tabasco was added more generously. So full of flavours, after you try this out, you’ll never come back to mayo!

Baiba

Jan 06

Holidays Two weeks off, a festive season with guests and the last month of pregnancy: a valid excuse to indulge. I even baked a honey cake. Tonight: a pork tenderloin in puff pastry and winter veggie curry with lentils, served with lettuce. For the pork, you`ll need a piece of tenderloin, an onion, a package of puff pastry dough (not a healthy option, just for the occasion), salt, pepper, sugar, and thyme. Chop an onion and fry in some oil with sugar, salt, pepper and thyme. Spread over the dough. Fry the pork from all sides to seal the juices and wrap in the dough. Cover with foil and bake in the oven until cooked through. Winter veggie and lentil curry: will work with any vegetables you have. I used carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, potatoes and celery root. Cut the vegetables into bite-size pieces. Chop an onion and a couple of garlic gloves. Fry each veggie (except potatoes) in a teaspoon of butter, then put in a pot and cover with stock. When boiling, add a couple of spoons of curry paste. Since I had red lentils that only need 10 minutes of cooking, I added them shortly before the vegetables became soft. Happy New Year. Baiba

Holidays
Two weeks off, a festive season with guests and the last month of pregnancy: a valid excuse to indulge. I even baked a honey cake.
Tonight: a pork tenderloin in puff pastry and winter veggie curry with lentils, served with lettuce.
For the pork, you`ll need a piece of tenderloin, an onion, a package of puff pastry dough (not a healthy option, just for the occasion), salt, pepper, sugar, and thyme. Chop an onion and fry in some oil with sugar, salt, pepper and thyme. Spread over the dough. Fry the pork from all sides to seal the juices and wrap in the dough. Cover with foil and bake in the oven until cooked through.
Winter veggie and lentil curry: will work with any vegetables you have. I used carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, potatoes and celery root. Cut the vegetables into bite-size pieces. Chop an onion and a couple of garlic gloves. Fry each veggie (except potatoes) in a teaspoon of butter, then put in a pot and cover with stock. When boiling, add a couple of spoons of curry paste. Since I had red lentils that only need 10 minutes of cooking, I added them shortly before the vegetables became soft.
Happy New Year.

Baiba