canarygirl.com

Yeah, so earlier in the week I had posted about staring at Peter’s (of Kalofagas) delicious Eggs Benedict recipe…Staring at Peter’s recipes is nothing new for me.  His site is a daily read.  He has a wonderful sense of humor, and is a phenomenal cook.  You should SEE some of the delicious things he cooks up!  He is of Greek descent, and, luckily for us, he shares his mouthwatering recipes, and the fun stories of Greece and his heritage that go along with them.  Not too long ago he had posted his recipe for Cheese Stuffed Keftedes (couldn’t you just *die* at how good those sound?)…well, I knew I had to put those on the menu.  I mean, Come ON!  Keftedes?  Stuffed with Cheese?  I may have fainted into my keyboard.  Actually, I’m pretty sure I did, because I had these weird square bruises on my forehead. This week, I could wait no more.  Monday I bought the ingredients to make his hellaciously good recipe. 

I’m not going to post Peter’s recipe, because I actually followed it pretty much to the letter…I had to substitute Gouda cheese (see it trying to escape there? lol) for the Greek cheese, though, since I can’t get the types he recommended for the recipe.

To go along with these delicious morsels of Greek joy, I decided to make a fresh tzatziki (pictured here) and hummus (pictured below).

 

Tzatziki Ingredients:

2 cups plain Greek yogurt, strained overnight
1 large cucumber, peeled and seeded, diced
1 smaller bunch of mint, minced (about 1/4 cup)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients.
Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight.
Drain any excess liquid thay may have formed before serving.

The hummus was an excellent dip for both the keftedes and the pitas.  I tell you, this is perfect summer food, you guys. The next time you plan on grilling plain old burgers? Forget that idea, and make these instead! Seriously, they are amazing.

Hummus Ingredients: 

1 jar garbanzo beans (14 oz, 800 grams), mostly drained
2-3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons tahini
juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt to taste

Preparation:

Using a food processor, mince garlic first, then add garbanzos and process until semi-smooth.
Add tahini, lemon juice, olive oil and salt and continue to process until creamy.
*If mixture still seems a bit thick, add a tablespoon or two of water to help it along.

Las Recetas en Español:

Keftedes de Peter (traducido directamente de su página web), Ingredientes:

1 kilo carne molida
2 cebollas, ralladas
4 rebanadas de pan, humedecidas con agua y desmenuzadas
1 cucharadita de ajo en polvo, o ajo fresco majado
2 huevos
1 cucharadita orégano
1 cucharadita perejil picado
1 pizca de comino
sal y pimienta al gusto
queso en lonchas para rellenar (Vlahotyri o Kasseri) (yo utilizé Gouda)

Elaboración:

Mezclar todos los ingredientes en un bol (mejor con las manos).
Formar hamburguesas finas, y reservar en un plato.
Tapar con film transparente y meter en la nevera durante al menos 4 horas.
Antes de asar, dejar que los keftedes vuelvan a temperatura ambiente. Cojer una loncha de queso y
ponerla en el centro de una hamburguesa. Ahora, tapar con otra hamburguesa y presionar por los lados a cerrarla bien.
Procurar cerrar los keftedes muy bien por los lados para evitar que se escape el queso cuando los ases.
Asar a fuego medio unos 5 minutos cada lado.
Servir con mostaza, mayonesa, Boukovo (chilis picantes molidos), ensalada y pan.

Tzatziki, Ingredientes:

2 vasos (de Nocilla) yogur Griego, escurrido durante una noche
1 pepino grande, pelado y con las semillas retiradas, en daditos
1 manojo pequeño de hierba huerto, picadito
2-3 dientes de ajo, majado
sal y pimienta al gusto

Elaboración:

Mezclar todos los ingredientes.
Tapar y dejar en la nevera varias horas o una noche.
Si se haya suelto algo de líquido, escurrirla antes de servir.

Homus, Ingredientes:

1 bote de garbanzos (800 gramos), escurridos
2-3 dientes de ajo
2 cucharadas tahini (crema de sésamo)
zumo de 1 limón
2 cucharadas aceite de oliva virgen
sal al gusto

Elaboración:

Poner todo en el robot de cocina y procesar hasta que esté cremoso.
Si te parece un poco espeso, añadir unas cucharadas de agua para ayudarlo.

 

 

 

The very beautiful and absolutely wonderful Elle at Elle’s New England Kitchen has nominated me for the Arte y Pico Award. Thank you, sweetheart! Elle’s blog is incredible you guys…if you haven’t stopped by her site yet, I seriously urge you to get over there! She has some of the most amazing recipes ever, and her photos are gorgeous! She recently won the Royal Foodie Joust with her amazingly creative Mango Buffalo Wings with Lime Cream dipping sauce…How incredible do they sound?  Plus?  Elle is one of the coolest people on the whole entire planet.  Now SCOOT! :D 

And, my favorite Mother and Daughter team, Giz and Psychgrad at Equal Opportunity Kitchen have also nominated me for the E is for Excellent Blog award! Thank you so much, ladies! I am truly flattered that you consider my blog worthy of an excellence award. Giz and Psychgrad are so much fun, people…check out Psychgrad’s curry video! These girls are currently taking a cake decorating class, too…I can’t wait to hear their stories and see their pictures of this fun undertaking! Check out their site, guys!

Even though I had already received these awards, I’d like to pass them along again to a few very deserving bloggers!  I’m all about spreading the blogging love.

For the Arte y Pico Award, I’d like to nominate the following bloggers:

Ben at What’s Cooking
Susan at Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy
Rita at Mochachocolatarita
Brilynn at Jumbo Empanadas
Ashley at Delish

And for the E is for Excellent Award, I’d like to nominate the following bloggers:

Pixie at You Say Tomahto I Say Tomayto
Diane and Todd at White on Rice Couple
Michelle at Thursday Night Smackdown
Rachel at Coconut and Lime
Chuck and Hungry Bear at Sunday Night Dinner

Ok, so that’s fun to say, isn’t it? lol Fun to say, and fun to eat! Looking for something simple and packed with flavor? This is just the ticket. Active work time is only about 15 minutes, the rest is just bake time. Empanadas are great for lunch, or for a snack, and are great the next day…perfect to take with you wherever you need to go. They’re even good cold, so are perfect picnic fare! When we had the sailboat, I’d make these all the time to take with for a day out on the water. You can make them up ahead of time, and they keep really well. Empanadas can be made into a pie, like I’ve done here, or if you’re feeling feisty, go ahead and make them into individually sized empanadas, for a quick bite, or a great party appetizer.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, diced
1 red pepper, diced
3 sprigs thyme
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce (or pure)
1 pound (1/2 kilo) light tuna, drained and flaked
pastry for 2 pie crusts (either homemade or store bought)
1 egg, beaten

Preparation:

Heat oil and saute garlic first until golden.
Add onion and pepper and saute until tender.
Add thyme, bay and tomato sauce and season with salt and pepper.
Cook about 5 minutes on medium heat.
Add tuna and stir until combined.
Remove from heat and remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf.
Spread half of the pastry on a baking sheet.
Cover with tuna mixture, leaving a 1″ border.
Top with remaining pastry and seal edges.
Brush pastry with beaten egg and poke a few ventilation holes.
Bake at 400ºF/175ºC for 20-30 minutes or until golden.

Y en español:

Ingredientes:

3 cucharadas de aceite de oliva
3 dientes de ajo, majados
1 cebolla, picada
1 pimiento rojo picado
3 ramos tomillo
1 hoja laurel
sal y pimienta al gusto
1 1/2 vasos tomate frito (salsa de tomate o puré de tomate)
2 láminas de masa quebrada
1 huevo, batido

Elaboración:

Calentar el aceite y dorar los ajos.
Añadir la cebolla y el pimiento y freir hasta que estén blandos.
A continuación, añadir el tomillo, laurel y salsa de tomate.
Salpimentar.
Cocinar unos 5 minutos.
Añadir el atún escurrido y desmenuzado y mezclar bien.
Extender 1 lámina de masa y cubrir con la mezcla de atún, dejando unos centimetros al border.
Tapar con la segunda lámina de masa y cerrar bien por los lados.
Pintar con huevo batido, y abrir unos agujeros en la superficie.
Hornear a 175ºC durante unos 20-30 minutos, o hasta que esté dorada.

Don’t forget! Only 5 days left to enter the free cookbook drawing!

To enter, please click and leave a comment HERE.

Doing my morning blog rounds I was over at Peter’s site (Kalofagas) longingly looking at his Eggs Benedict recipe (by the way, go and check that out you guys…it is seriously killing me I want it so badly), and realized there was a post just below that one that I hadn’t seen!  WHAT?  He had posted a delicious Chinese Take-out menu, and mentioned that it was part of a round up to be found at Mochachocolatarita’s Website.  I am SO glad he posted that, because her website is fantastic!  It’s so cool how we bloggers network and find each other through others’ blog posts.  I had never seen Mochachocolatarita’s site before.  That is a sin right there…her site is awesome.  No, more like AWESOME!  And Right now she’s hosting an event celebrating her 88th post, called, “Chinese Take-Out Party,” where each entrant submits their take on Chinese take-out. 

I think that this might be sheer luck on my part, because I had planned to post this anyway, but to come in just under the wire like this and be able to participate in a fun event?  Even better!

This recipe was something I came up with after having taken out a loin roast, and began wondering what to do with it.  The weather has been pretty warm, so regular roast with mashed potatoes didn’t really seem to fit the bill.  Avocados are currently at over 11 euros a kilo (that’s like $8-9 a pound), so Tex-Mex was out (you know it’s illegal to eat Tex-Mex without guacamole, don’t you? )…what to do?  Hmmm.  Why not go Asian with it?  Yes!  That was the answer I was looking for. 

 

Ingredients:

2 pounds (1 kilo) pork loin roast
1 cup mango juice
1/2 cup sweet soy sauce
1/4 cup regular soy sauce
2-3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons grated ginger
2 tablespoons grated garlic
4 spring onions, white bulbs only (we’ll use the greens later)
pepper to taste

Preparation:

Whisk together all marinade ingredients in a roaster with a lid.
Coat loin roast completely and allow to marinate for a couple of hours in the fridge, turning occasionally.
Heat oven to 375ºF/160ºC.
Roast loin (covered) for about 4 hours.
Shred meat and toss with the juices/sauce that became of the marinade while roasting.

For the Sesame Slaw:

Ingredients:

1/2 head cabbage, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped green onion (the ones we used the white parts from before)
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds
1/4 cup sweet soy sauce
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
pepper to taste

Preparation:

Toss all ingredients together.
Yep, that’s it. lol

To make the wraps, you’ll need:

12 flour tortillas
3 cups steamed rice
1 recipe of sesame slaw (posted above)
fresh vegetables and herbs to garnish…I used italian pepper, spring onion, fresh cayennes, cucumber and cilantro

Preparation:

Fill each wrap with some rice, pork, slaw and vegetables.
Slap some hot sauce on that sucker, too.
Have lots of napkins handy, this is better to be eaten with your hands.
 

Now, onto the dumplings.

I have posted this recipe before, so I will direct you to this post for the ingredients and instructions on how to form the dumplings. However, I have prepared them a little differently today, and changed up the sauce just a little.

To make the sauce:

1/2 cup sweet soy sauce
2 tablespoons regular soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
**just whisk all this together and your sauce is ready. Garnish with green onion if you like

Preparation of dumplings:

Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a saute pan.
Saute raw dumplings until golden on the bottom, then add enough water to come about halfway up the dumplings.
Cover and steam for about 10 minutes, or until cooked through.
Serve with sauce.

Y en español (*nota* 1 vaso = 1 vaso de nocilla):

Ingredientes:

1 kilo cinta de cerdo en una pieza
1 vaso zumo de mango
1/2 vaso salsa de soja dulce
1/4 vaso salsa de soja normal
2-3 cucharadas vinagre de arroz
1/4 vaso salsa hoisin
1/4 vaso miel
2 cucharadas de jengibre recién rallado
2 cucharadas de ajo rallado
4 cebolletas, solo la parte blanca (la parte verde se utiliza después)
pimienta negra al gusto

Elaboración:

Mezclar todos los ingredientes excepto la carne en un recipiente de horno con tapa.
Cubrir la carne con la salsa y dejar macerar en la nevera durante unas horas.
Calentar el horno a 375ºF/160ºC.
Hornear la carne (tapada) durante unas 4 horas.
Desmenuzar la carne y mezclar con la salsa que se ha formado.

Para la Ensalada de Sésamo:

Ingredientes:

1/2 col rallada
1/2 vaso cebolleta (la parte verde que reservamos antes)
1/4 vaso semillas de sésamo tostadas
1/4 vaso salsa de soja dulce
3 cucharadas de vinagre de arroz
pimienta al gusto

Elaboración:

Mezclarlo todo.
Sí. Solo eso. jiji

Para hacer los “wraps” necesitarás:

12 tortillas de harina (obleas)
3 vasos arroz cocinado al vapor
1 receta de la ensalada de sésamo
verduritas y hierbas para adornar…Yo le puse pimienta italiana, cebolleta, pepino, guindilla fresca y cilantro

Elaboración:

Rellenar cada “wrap” con arroz, cerdo, ensalada y verduritas/hierbas.
Ponerle algo de picante también.
Tener muchas servietas a mano, porque esto se come con las manos.

Ahora las empanadillas.

Ya he puesto esta receta antes, así que les dirijo a este post para los ingredientes e instrucciones para formar las empanadillas. Sin embargo, las he preparado un poquillo diferente hoy, y he hecho una salsa distinta.

Para hacer la salsa:

1/2 vaso salsa de soja dulce
2 cucharadas de salsa de soja normal
1/4 vinagre de arroz
**Mezclar todo esto y la salsa está lista. Adornar con cebolleta si te parece.

Elaboración de las empanadillas:

Calentar un poquito de aceite en una sartén.
Freirlas hasta que estén doraditas, y a continuación añadir agua suficiente para llegar a la mitad de las empanadillas.
Tapar y dejar cocinar durante unos 10 minutos o hasta que estén cocinadas.
Servir con la salsa.

Did I scare you? I mean, the idea of frozen salad probably isn’t that appealing. LOL But. And this is a pretty big BUT. (no, it’s not mine! ) Gazpacho. Sorbet. Combine the two and you have a bit of frozen heaven. This traditional Spanish soup is always served chilled, and often with ice…why not go just another step and turn it into a savory sorbet, I asked? Top that with the traditional finely chopped vegetables for added crunch, and you have entered into yum world. This one is going to be making regular appearances at our summer table, folks. It’s the perfect way to begin a meal in the sweltering heat of summer, or even as an afternoon snack. It’s packed with vegetables, very low in fat, and delicious. Oh!  And super easy.  So whatcha waitin for?

Ingredients:

2 pounds (1kilo) very ripe tomatoes
1 cucumber, peeled
1 small red onion
2 cloves garlic
1 italian pepper
olive oil to taste (about 3 tablespoons)
red wine vinegar to taste (about 3 tablespoons)
salt to taste
4 cups ice cubes (or more)

Preparation:

Roughly chop all vegetables, reserving a bit of tomato, cucumber, pepper and onion to garnish.
Place all ingredients in blender or food processor and process until smooth.
Add ice and process until smooth.
Serve sorbet garnished with a bit of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and topped with finely chopped tomato, cucumber, pepper and onion.

Y en español:

Ingredientes:

1 kilo tomates maduros
1 pepino, pelado
1 cebolla roja pequeña
2 dientes de ajo
1 pimiento italiano (para freir)
aceite de oliva virgen (3 cucharadas, mas o menos)
vinagre de vino rojo (3 cucharadas, mas o menos)
sal al gusto
4 vasos de hielo (o mas)

Elaboración:

Cortar las verduras en trozos (no tiene que ser muy pequeñas), reservando un poquito de tomate, pepino, cebolla y pimiento para adornar.
Poner todo en la batidora o robot y triturar hasta que esté bien molido y homogéneo.
Añadir el hielo y triturar hasta que esté suave.
Servir adornado con aceite de oliva virgen, vinagre de modena y las verduritas reservadas (picadas muy finas).

Orange and chocolate are one of those perfect combinations…like wine and cheese, or pears and cheese, lemon and chicken…Chocolate *obviously* is fantastic on it’s own, but man, when you add that extra little zing of orange, it just elevates it to new levels.  As the site’s one year anniversary approached, I wondered what would be the perfect recipe to celebrate with?  I toyed with a drink recipe, cakes, some really decadent main…nothing really jumped out at me.  After the site crash last week (which still is not fully resolved, btw…I still have to edit a gazillion posts wraught with Â’s and gobbledy gook. ), I was rather uninspired…I huddled around my bowls of soup and or plates of mashed potatoes like someone was going to take them away.  What can I say…soup and mashed potatoes are comforting to the heart as well as the tummy. lol  Finally I decided that I would do a chocolate mousse.  But, I thought, it’s got to be the best damned mousse ever.  I’ve got to add some orange in there, and some booze! :lol: The last mousse recipe I tried was excellent, though a bit too involved for everyday.  This recipe, folks is easy enough for a weekday (it only takes about 10 minutes to make), and you’ll have enough to last for at least a few days of delicious desserts—more if you freeze some into mousse pops.  And!? Since this particular recipe has booze in it?  It’s alllllll for you.  The kids will have to sit this one out. (You *can* omit the Cointreau for the kids of course, and just up the water a tad, but it’s more fun this way. ) This is grown up mousse.  Mom and Dad mousse.  Perfect mousse.  See?  Wanna bite?

I perused the internet to find a recipe that was simple and quick, yet used quality ingredients, and found the perfect starting point posted by Debra47 at Group Recipes.  I adapted her recipe to make the one I had in my mind.  If you like chocolate and you like oranges?  You are going to love this, guys. This is what I have left:

 

First of all, the ingredients:

Ingredients:

6 ounces (150 grams) Lindt Dark chocolate infused with orange essence and orange zest (or a high quality dark chocolate and a bit of orange essence and orange zest)
3 eggs, separated
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons Cointreau or Grand Marnier
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup demerara sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preparation:
 
Break up the chocolate bar and place in a microwave safe bowl.
Melt chocolate for about 20-30 seconds (watch this carefully, you don’t want to burn it).
Add egg yolks and beat to combine.

Add water and Cointreau and beat to combine.
Set aside.
Beat egg whites and salt on high speed until soft peaks form.

Add sugar and cinnamon and beat to combine.
Fold chocolate mixture into egg white mixture.

Refrigerate several hours or overnight.
Serve with freshly whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Mousse de Chocolate y Naranja en español:

Ingredientes:

150 gramos de chocolate Lindt de Naranja
3 huevos, separados
2 cucharadas agua
2 cucharadas Cointreau o Gran Marnier
pizca de sal
6 cucharadas azúcar demerara (azúcar moreno)
1 cucharadita de canela molida

Elaboración: 

En un bol apto para el microondas, derretir el chocolate–ten cuidado a no quemarlo!
Añadir las yemas y batir hasta que estén incorporadas.
Añadir el agua y el Cointreau y mezclar bien.
Batir las claras con la sal a punto de nieve.
Añadir el azúcar y la canela y batir hasta que la mezcla esté homogénea.
Añadir el chocolate, mezclando con cuidado.
Dejar en la nevera durante varias horas, o de un día para otro.
Servir con nata montada y un pizquito de canela.