Tarator (Cold Cucumber Soup) December 13, 2009

Tarator

Ingredients:

2 c. Balkan yogurt

1 c. cold water

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

2 c. English cucumber, minced

1/2 tsp. Kosher salt

1 tbsp. dill. coarsely chopped

1 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. walnuts, coarsely chopped

Crush garlic and salt together in a large bowl, set aside. Whisk yogurt and cold water in a separate bowl. Then mix with the garlic and salt mixture. Add minced cucumber, dill, olive oil and walnuts. Chill before serving.

*This is my ode to summer. It is a typical Bulgarian summer soup. I have a learned to love it and it just reminds me of summer every time we have it. I like it more creamy but most Bulgarians make it with the same ratio 2 c. water and 2 c. yogurt.  Sometimes they add ice before serving but I prefer chilling it before serving. It’s good with Rakia or Grappa. enJOY with JOY!

Cream of Asparagus Soup December 10, 2009

Cream of Asparagus Soup

Ingredients:

2 lbs. asparagus, chopped

3 tbsp. butter

1 medium white onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 tbsp. flour

3 c. chicken broth

1 sprig of thyme leaves

1 c. heavy cream

1 tbsp. lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

Cook onion and garlic in butter in medium-low heat until softened. Chopped asparagus seat aside the woody part. Keep a few asparagus tips for garnish.*Boil the woody part of the asparagus with the chicken broth for 10 minutes then discard the asparagus. Add the chopped asparagus with the sautéed onion and garlic for 5 minutes or until it becomes bright green in color. Then add the flour to coat. Add the broth and thyme to the pot and let it simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Steam asparagus tips for garnish

Remove the pot from heat. Puree it with a hand mixer. Be careful when blending hot liquids. Let it simmer for 10 minutes then stir in heavy cream. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add lemon juice before serving. Garnish with asparagus tips.

*I boil the woody part of the asparagus to get as much flavor as I can. You can substitute heavy cream to 2% milk. Then just adjust the flour from 3 to 4 tbsp.

This is one of my son’s favorite soup. Hope you’ll like it. enJOY with JOY!

Creamy Spinach and Leek Dip November 20, 2009

Creamy Spinach and Leek Dip

Ingredients:

1 c. light  mayonnaise

1 pkg Knorr Cream of Leek Soup Mix

1 c. sour cream or plain yogurt

1/2 pkg. frozen spinach

1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1 clove garlic, minced

Combine all ingredients. Bake uncovered st 350F for 25 minutes or until heated through.

*I usually use Hellman’s Olive Oil Mayonnaise and Balkan plain yogurt instead of sour cream. It taste perfectly and a crowd pleaser.

Banana Apple Crumble Muffins September 14, 2009

Banana Apple Crumble Muffins

Ingredients:

Muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup white sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted in room temperature

2 large ripe bananas, mashed

1 Golden Delicious apple, peeled and diced

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 Balkan yogurt (sour cream)*

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Topping (optional)

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup Quaker Oats

1 tbsp. flour

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tbsp. butter, melted and in room temperature

Preheat oven to 350F.

For the topping in a small bowl mix together the brown sugar, cinnamon, oats and melted butter with a spoon until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside

For the muffins in a medium bowl mix the mashed bananas and diced apples using a wooden spoon. Then add butter, vanilla, egg and yogurt to the banana-apple mixture until blended.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon.

Stir in the banana mixture into the flour mixture until combined. Fold in chopped walnuts, be careful not over-mix.

Pour batter into a lightly greased or lined 12-cup muffin pan about 3/4 full.

*Sprinkle a small amount of the sugar-oat topping on top.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 5-10 minutes before serving it.

*I changed a little bit the recipe I used plain yogurt instead of sour cream and I just sprinkled the muffins with pieces of pecans instead of the topping. I stumbled upon this recipe just surfing the net. Banana and apple are one of my favorite fruits to bake. Hope you’ll like it. enJOY!

Source: A Lot About Nothing

Decadent Double Chocolate Chip Cookies July 19, 2009

Decadent Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

3/4 cup packed  brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 2/3 cup flour

1/3 cup cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 pkg. Hershey’s Chipits Special Dark Chocolate

1 1/4 cup pecans, chopped

In a large bowl with electric mixer, cream together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together  flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; beat into creamed mixture on low speed. Stir 1 pkg. of Chipits Special Dark Chocolate and 1 1/4 cup chopped nuts. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls onto greased baking sheet. Bake at 375 F for 8-10 minutes or until set. Cool for 5 minutes then transfer to rack to cool completely.

*I cooked the cookies for 8 minutes to make it more chewy. enJOY!

Source: Chipits.ca

Classic Mojito June 30, 2009

Mojito

Ingredients:

12 fresh mint leaves

1/2 lime, cut in wedges

2 tbsp. sugar or simple syrup

crushed ice

1 1/2 oz. Bacardi Rum Superior

a splash of club soda

a sprig of mint and lime wedge for garnish

Put 12 mint leaves in a tall glass with lime wedges. Muddle the mint and lime by using a muddler. It is a bartender’s tool to mash the mint and lime together. It is important to muddle because it releases and intensifies the flavor. Then add simple syrup. Fill the glass with crushed ice. Add the Bacardi Rum and top it up with club soda. Stir then garnish with a sprig of mint and a lime wedge.

*Simple Syrup is equal parts of water and sugar by boiling it until the sugar dissolves. I prefer using simple syrup in a cocktail because it mixes well with the alcohol. You can also use powdered sugar.

A muddler is a bartender’s tool to muddle or mash the fruits and herbs. It looks like a pestle but a bit longer. I did not have a muddler on hand so I used  ice cream scooper. By using the back of the scooper and try to push and mash it together. It worked and we had a killer Mojito. It is perfect drink  for a hot summer day. enJOY!

Source: Bacardi Mojito Cocktail

Summer Jicama Salad June 21, 2009

Summer Jicama Salad

Ingredients:

1 medium sized Jicama, julienned

1 carrot, julienned

1/2 English cucumber, julienned

4 red radish, julienned

1 green or red pepper, julienned

1 medium sized onion, finely sliced

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup lime juice

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 tsp. honey

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

Combine jicama, carrot, cucumber, red radish, green pepper and onions. Whisk together red wine vinegar, lime juice, olive oil, honey and cayenne. Season with salt and pepper.

*I remember when I was a child we eat sliced Jicama with salt, it is also know as Singkamas in the Philippines. This is  one of my favorite salad for summer, very refreshing. It is good side dish for barbecue or with Grilled Salmon Steaks. enJOY!

Anna Olson’s Triple Chocolate Brownies May 29, 2009

Triple Chocolate Brownies

 

Ingredients:

300 grams bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

2/3 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

90 grams white chocolate chips or chunks

90 grams milk chocolate chunks

 

Preheat oven 325 F and grease and line an 8-inch pan with parchment paper. In a bowl resting over a pot barely simmering water, melt chocolate and butter, stirring gently. Remove from heat and stir in sugar and vanilla. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Stir in flour and salt. Fold in white and milk chocolate.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a tester inserted in the centre of brownies comes out clean. Cool before slicing.

 

*I changed some ingredients I used 300 g of dark chocolate chips (50% cocoa) then 90 grams of semisweet chocolate chips instead of milk. I ran out of vanilla extract so I used almond extract, it turned out well and you can really smell the almonds in the brownies. I top it up with chopped pecans.

Source: Anna Olson Food Network

Bulgarian Moussaka April 2, 2009

Moussaka (moo-sah-KAH)

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef or pork

4 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, minced

4 medium size Yukon Gold potatoes, minced

2 tomatoes, chopped

1/3 cup parsley, chopped

3 eggs

1 cup Balkan yogurt or plain yogurt

2 tbsp. flour

salt and pepper to taste

Saute onions with olive oil until it becomes translucent.  Add the beef cook for about 10 minutes then add potatoes, tomatoes, and parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Transfer it to a 9″x13″ baking dish. Bake in a 350 F oven for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Beat eggs with yogurt and flour. Pour over the dish and cook for 10 minutes more.

* This a typical dish in Bulgaria and this is one of my hubby’s favorite dish and it became mine as well. This similar to Shepards Pie or meat pie. The whole dish is a full meal already. You can substitute beef with ground chicken or turkey but do not over cook it because ground chicken/turkey tends to be rubbery when it’s over cooked. Add more 2 more tomatoes chopped to make it moist if you’re using chicken/turkey. enJOY!

Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern PHILIPPINES March 30, 2009

I stumbled upon this episode of Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern Philippines in Travel Channel. This was aired last 2007 which I missed but thank God for youtube I finally seen it. The episode more focused on Luzon, northern part of the Philippines. They have shown Filipino delicacies which some of it I have heard, eaten and miss…like the banana-que, balut (I just eat the yolk part). But some of the dishes are truly bizarre even for me as Filipino. Kudos to you Mr. Zimmern you have a stomach of steel. Lastly I was really proud that  they showed Palawan, it is one of the most beautiful islands in the Philippines. Breathtaking beaches….the final frontier.

Bizarre Foods Part 1 of 6

Bizarre Foods Part 2 of 6

Bizarre Foods Part 3 of 6

Bizarre Foods Part 4 of 6

Bizarre Foods Part 5 of 6

Bizarre Foods Part 6 of 6

Source: Travel Channel Bizarre Foods w/Andrew Zimmern

youtube.user.DerfMik