Shakshuka & feta

Last summer I had to be in the UK where we had Shakshuka & feta.

The dish is pretty basic but awesome. It is warm tomato sauce (passata),  to which are added poached eggs with some feta crumbled over it and some toasted bread.

For presentation the plate was sprinkled with some flat leaf parsley which made the plate a combo of red, white, yellow and green.

It was rainy but that breakfast at the Serpentine Bar in Hyde Park was the breakfast fix we needed.

Ipanema Cocktail

Last time I was in Germany we went for a drink. I wasn't feeling like having alcohol so I went for a non-alcoholic cocktail called Ipanema.

It was a mix of ginger ale, passion fruit juice, sugar cane. I didn't have the recipe but with a bit of rince-and-repeat you will find the measurements you like.

1. Crush the ice
2. Add the passion fruit juice
3. Add the ginger ale
4. Balance out the acidity with some sugar cane syrup.

I've added white rum to the mix when I was experimenting at home and it works pretty well.

Pickling peppers

This year I started growing peppers at home and it was a success. I grew seedlings from seed and gave them a lot of time. I started last year and grew them basically for a year.

When the time came to pluck the fruits of my effort I had to decide what to do with them and I decided to pickle them since I like them pickled.

This is what I used:

• 2 cloves of garlic
• a teaspoon of peppercorns
• a mixture of 50-50 vinegar-water
• a mixture of 2:1 salt:sugar

Basically it is an easy thing to do. You cut up your peppers, you make the mixture and boil it. Then you put your peppers in a jar and poor the mixture over it.

Make sure you sterilize the jar and the lid. When you fill it up do not give any space for airpockets so before filling it completely you can tap the jar on the counter and the bubbles rise to the surface. Finally fill completely and screw the lid onto the jar.

Turn the jar upside down and store in the dark. According to the research I did you have to wait at least 2 days before you can eat the peppers so I did and I must say they tasted amazing.

I did it with green and red peppers and it worked file twice. New plants are growing for next year but they just have sprouted. It is a different kind and I will probably use them differently.

Thai Mango Salad

About a year ago I was in Thailand and to bring back the memories I looked up the recipe for Thai Mango Salad.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped peanuts
• 2 firm mangoes, (about 2 lbs/1 kg)
• 1 sweet red pepper
• 2 carrots, coarsely grated
• 4 cups torn mixed greens
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh mint

Dressing:

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp grated lime rind
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp fish sauce or soy sauce
• 2 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 tsp minced hot pepper
• 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper

Toast peanuts over medium heat until fragrant and dark golden, about 8 minutes. Stay by the pan, don't burn any. Set aside.


Thinly slice mangoes lengthwise. Thinly slice red pepper and remove the pepper seeds and the core.

In large bowl, whisk together oil, lime rind and juice, fish sauce, sugar, hot pepper, salt and pepper. Add mangoes, red pepper, carrots, mixed greens, green onions and mint; toss to coat. Serve sprinkled with peanuts.

Butternut Hummus

Hummus is a paste made from basically chickpeas and sesame seed paste (tahini). I recently came an article in which there spread was butternut hummus. I loved the idea so I got to work in my kitchen and this is what I did:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 butternut
• pepper
• salt
• garlic
• peanut oil
• sesame seed paste
• sriracha hot chili sauce

First of all you cut up the butternut up into dice of the same size and throw them in a bowl to coat them with (peanut) oil, pepper, salt and garlic. You put them in a preheated oven on 180 degrees Celsius and bake them until they are golden brown.

Once they are ready I 've put them in a tray and into the fridge so that the pieces can cool down. First I blended the butternut into a puree and then I added the sesame seed paste and blended it down again. I got a smooth sweet orange paste but it needed some kick (I just returned from South-East Asia and like my food spicy) so I added some sriracha chili sauce to it to finish it of with some heat and acidity.

Jalapeño Salsa

The other day one of my friends was at my place when we came home from a night out and had munchies. I know that you can't feed Mogwai after midnight but anyways we had a snack and this salsa before going to bed.

Ingredients:
- onion
- vinegar
- jalapeño peppers

Dice the onion and peppers, put them in a bowl, blend it down you will get a green paste under which I mix some vinegar for taste and better preservation.

Lizano Style Sauce

Ingredients:
- onion
- carrot
- tomato
- habanero/jalapeño (depending on how hot you like it)
- cilantro
- lime
- vinegar
- ground coriander
- chili powder
- garlic powder
- brown sugar
- stock cube
- water

I had this sauce over my rice for the first time when I was in Costa Rica. I made sushi before so I know vinegar and rice work very well together.

I did not put any amounts in the ingredients list since it it up to you to experiment and find the right balance you like so there is no 'wrong' just you trying to make it better.

I heat the water, dissolve my stock cube and add the (diced) onion, (diced) carrot, (diced) tomato, habaneros and cilantro. Let it simmer until the carrot is soft enough a baby can bite through it.

Dash 2 spoons of vinegar in the pot. Add 2 tablespoons of salt. Add cumin, ground coriander, chili powder, garlic powder, lime juice and brown sugar for the taste. You have to find the balance for your taste.

Cook it on a low heat for 10 to 20 minutes. I blend it down and if the consistency of the sauce is not thick enough you can add some cold water with thickening agent dissolved in it and put some heat underneath your pot.

According to the person that gave me the recipe it keeps up to two weeks but usually I am out by then because it works really well.