Month: May 2010

Cheese Quiche

Cheese Quiche

Being in Switzerland at the moment, there’s no wonder all my dishes this week are packed with cheese.  This is no exception! 1 lb (500 gr) grated Swiss cheese 1 teaspoon cornstarch 3/4 cup half & half (or milk) 1 Tablespoon flour 2 Tablespoons ricotta 

Klimpas Soup

Klimpas Soup

This used to be my childhood’s favorite soup!  My Latvian great-grandmother used to make it when I was very, very young, and then my mom took over the recipe.  I just learned it from her!  Here’s the recipe: Ingredients: Consommé – see yesterday’s post 1 

Chicken with Broccoli

Chicken with Broccoli

 

I think I like any dish with cheese… I guess it has to do with my swiss roots 😉  In Switzerland, at family restaurants, almost everything has cheese in it – if not, they put cheese on top!

Ingredients:

  • 1 chicken – in pieces
  • 2 carrots, 1 celery stick, parsley
  • 1 large broccoli – in small pieces
  • 3 oz (100 gr) grated cheese (Gruyère)
  • 3 oz (100 gr) grated parmesan
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 5 Tablespoons flour
  • 3 oz (75 gr) butter
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • Pepper and nutmeg to taste

Directions:

  1. Place the chicken in a stock pot. Add the carrots, celery, parsley and 1 teaspoon salt. Add water and boil for about 1 hour, or until the chicken is tender.
  2. Take out the chicken and let cool.  Save the chicken broth for a nice Consommé.

For the cream sauce (Béchamel):

  1. In a saucepan, melt the butter at medium heat.
  2. Add the flour and let fry while stirring constantly for about 2 minutes.
  3. Add the milk, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Bring the heat to medium – high, and continue stirring until it starts to boil.

Now to put it all together:

  1. Make a first layer of broccoli.
    Chicken Broccoli 1
  2. Then a layer of chicken.
    Chicken Broccoli 2
  3. One layer of Béchamel sauce, and then at the end, sprinkle Gruyère and Parmesan.
    Chicken Broccoli 3
  4. Place in a warm oven at 350ºF (180ºC) for about 1 hour.
Fish Sticks

Fish Sticks

This is an easy way to make home-made fish sticks! Ingredients: 1 lb (500 gr) fish filets – cut into thin stripes 1 egg 1 cup bread crumbs salt oil Directions: Sprinkle some salt over the fish stripes Scramble the egg in a medium bowl, 

Moussaka

Moussaka

Hola Sonia, aquí te dedicamos mi mamá y yo la receta! It’s been a very long time since we have made Moussaka at home.  We adjusted the preparation of the eggplants to save on a few calories … We have been grilling eggplants for so 

Crunchy French Toast

Crunchy French Toast

I remember eating “crunchy” French Toast when I was a kid.  There’s a tiny little trick in order to make them!

Ingredients:

  • 8 slices sandwich bread
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • sugar
  • cinnamon
  • oil
  • Marmalade, powder sugar, maple syrup

Directions:

  1. Mix 2 eggs, milk, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a bowl.
  2. French Toast 1
    Dip the bread slices, one by one in the batter.
  3. French Toast 2
    Fry the bread slices on a non-stick pan with a little bit of oil at medium heat. Put them aside.
  4. French Toast 3
    Return the fried slices to the pan and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on each side.  Fry shortly, just to caramelize the sugar over the french toast.  This will give you really crunchy French Toast!
Tortellini with Saffron Sauce

Tortellini with Saffron Sauce

Ingredients: 1 Tablespoon Saffron 1/2 onion – finely diced 2 garlic cloves – pressed 1 cup heavy cream 1 cup milk 2 egg yolks – mixed with a little bit of milk Salt Pepper Parmesan or Pecorino – grated Cooked tortellini Directions: Put the saffron 

Crispy Chicken

Crispy Chicken

Ingredients: 2 cups corn flakes 1/2 cup flour 2 eggs 1 chicken – in pieces salt, pepper and garlic powder Oil Directions: Sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic powder over the chicken pieces. Place the corn flakes in a large plastic bag and crunch them well 

Pork Filet with Prunes

Pork Filet with Prunes

Ingredients:

  • 1 Pork filet
  • 15 – 18 prunes
  • 2 Onions – chopped in large chunks
  • 7 oz (200 gr) sliced bacon
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 cup water

Directions:

  1. Pork Filet with Prunes 1
    Slice the Filet lengthwise.  Place prunes along the middle. Sprinkle salt and pepper.
  2. Wrap the filet with the bacon stripes.
  3. Add the remaining prunes and the onions to the baking dish.
  4. Add 1 cup of water.
  5. Pork Filet with Prunes 2
    Bake in a warm oven at 350ºF (180 – 200ºC) for about 1 hr 15 min, or until Filet is well done.
  6. Place the meat on a cutting board.
  7. Take out most of the prunes, leaving about 1 – 3.  With a stick blender, puree the onions and the prunes.  Add water in case there is not enough to make a nice sauce.  Taste, and adjust salt to taste.  You can also start blending without the prunes, and add and blend according to taste. Strain the sauce, add to a serving dish.  Cut the Filet in medallions, and serve on top of the sauce.
Garlic Pizza Bread

Garlic Pizza Bread

Ingredients: 1 Pizza Dough 1 Garlic clove – crushed 2 Tablespoons Olive oil Oregano Marjoram Directions: Make the pizza dough. Warm up the oven to 360ºF (200ºC). Form your pizza bread, cover with a towel, and let rest for 15 minutes. Mix the garlic, olive 

Black Beans

Black Beans

You will find this dish throughout the Caribbean, and the north of South America.  I make it Venezuelan style.  I do know that in Brazil and that in Cuba it is prepared similarly, but I am not sure how close their recipes are.  The only 

Chicken Fajitas

Chicken Fajitas

I love this dish. Yes, it does take more time to prepare all the ingredients, but then it is a lot of fun to eat!
Tip 1:  leftovers taste great, so do not worry about making too much of anything!
Tip 2:  Cover the leftover guacamole with plastic wrap.  I place the wrap so that it is in direct contact with the guacamole – so that there’s no air between guacamole and wrap.  This way, your guacamole will stay nice and green the next day!

Ingredients:

  • Guacamole
  • Salsa
  • Sour cream or plain yogurt
  • Flour tortillas
  • 4 Chicken breasts – sliced thinly
  • 2 peppers – sliced
  • 2 onions – sliced
  • 1 large lemon
  • 4 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 1.5 teaspoons salt
  • pepper
  • 4 garlic cloves crushed (3 for marinade, 1 to add to the pepper and onion slices)
  • 1 can of re-fried beans
  • Grated cheese

Directions:

  1. Prepare the guacamole and the salsa.
  2. Warm up the re-fried beans on the stove.  Add a little bit of water to make it easier to stir.
  3. Fry the onion and the pepper slices.  Add 1 crushed garlic clove.
  4. Combine lemon, salt, pepper, oil and garlic (3 cloves).
  5. Add chicken, mix, cover and place in the fridge for about 2 hours.
    chicken for your salad
  6. I like to fry the chicken in smaller batches, to sear and then cook.  This way the chicken stays tender.
  7. Combine the chicken with the pepper-onions and fry until the chicken is well done.
  8. Warm up the tortillas on a non-stick pan.  You just need to turn them a couple of times quickly, just to warm them up.
  9. Serve all ingredients separately, so that each person can make his/her favorite fajita combination.

Fajitas 0

Mushroom Omelette

Mushroom Omelette

You can adapt the recipe and make cheese, mushroom or any combination of your favorite Omelette.  It is important though to have a good non-stick pan to make this dish. Ingredients: 7 oz (200 gr)  mushrooms 1 onion – chopped finely Salt and pepper to 

Pizza

Pizza

We like to make Pizza on Tuesdays, because the kids have sport until 6 pm, and then there’s not enough time to cook. I usually set the bread machine to make the dough while we are away, so that as soon as we get home, 

Crêpes

Crêpes

Ingredients:

  • 18 oz (550 ml) Milk
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 Tablespoons oil
  • 1/2 lb (220 gr) flour
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

  1. Mix all ingredients in a blender.
  2. Make Crêpes in a Crêpe pan at med – high heat.  Use a soup serving spoon to add the batter to the pan.  Move the pan quickly so that the batter spreads evenly over the pan.
  3. Crêpes 1
    Turn the Crêpe when you see that the edges separate from the pan.  Let the other side cook for just a little bit.
  4. Crêpes 2
    Serve with mermalade, syrup, fruits, sugar or nutella.
Coleslaw

Coleslaw

This is a very simple, very light version of the classic  side-dish. Ingredients: 1 small cabbage 6 carrots – finely grated 1 lime – juice 2 Tablespoons olive oil 1/4 teaspoon cumin 1 teaspoon salt pepper to taste Directions: Add the salt to the finely 

Cheese Fondue

Cheese Fondue

Still cool enough to make Fondue one more time, although we even used to make Fondue in Venezuela –   I  remember once eating Fondue at the Beach after bringing the air conditioner to the max, so it would be cold enough to survive eating 

Sauerkraut – Latvian style

Sauerkraut – Latvian style

My mom has always made sauerkraut this way.  I am assuming it is the way it is made in Latvia, since she learned how to make it with her grandmother.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 Cabbage – thinly sliced
  • 1 can sauerkraut
  • 1 onion – chopped
  • 4 peppercorns
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 4 dried juniper berries
  • 1 cup water or you can make my version with apple juice
  • 3 Tablespoons sugar – to make a dark caramel

Directions:

  1. In a large pot, fry the chopped onions slightly in a little bit of oil.
  2. Add the sauerkraut, cabbage, salt, bay leaves, juniper berries and apple juice (or water), and cook at medium heat for at least 45 minutes.
  3. Now comes the tricky part.  You need to make a dark caramel with the sugar in another pan. Use a deep one, because you will need to dilute the caramel in water, before you add it to the sauerkraut.  I like to wear nice, long kitchen gloves while doing this, because I have a lot of respect for making caramel!
  4. Add the diluted caramel to the sauerkraut and continue cooking the sauerkraut for another 30 minutes.
Pork Roast with banana sauce

Pork Roast with banana sauce

I started to make this dish in Germany. It is not particularly German style, besides the fact that I do use German cumin for this recipe. I did mention in earlier posts that the cumin tastes different here.  Now this might be a tricky one 

Rosemary Potatoes

Rosemary Potatoes

The rosemary adds a really nice touch to the potatoes.  It’s a great side dish when making a roast! Ingredients: 2 lbs (1 kg) potatoes 1.5 teaspoons salt 1 rosemary stem 2 tablespoons olive oil pepper to taste Directions Wash the potatoes thoroughly. Slice the 

Lemon Chicken

Lemon Chicken

This recipe is a combination between the way roast chicken is made in Venezuela and the way I used to make it in Florida… It’s also an easy recipe when the kids have friends over – I still have not met a kid yet that didn’t like lemon chicken!

(This recipe serves 8 – adjust for 4)

  • 2 chickens
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 2 – 3 lemons – juice
  • 2 tablespoons dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 3 teaspoons salt
  • pepper to taste
  • 4 onions – quartered
  • Olive oil
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 teaspoon cornstrch – optional

Directions:

  1. Wash and pat dry the chickens.
  2. Place them in a large pan.
  3. Squeeze the lemons over the chickens.
  4. Sprinkle the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and oregano.
  5. Sprinkle a little bit of olive oil over the chickens.
  6. Place the garlic cloves in the chicken cavities.
  7. Place the quartered onions around the chickens.
  8. Add the water to the pan.
  9. Lemon Chicken 1Place in an oven at 350ºF  (180ºC) covered for about 40 minutes.  Uncover, make sure that it has enough water, and continue baking uncovered for about another hour. Make sure it is thoroughly cooked before serving!
  10. Add 1 teaspoon cornstarch diluted in water to the sauce and let it boil for just a sec if you would like a thicker sauce.
Chocolate Gugelhupf

Chocolate Gugelhupf

I adjusted one of my great-grandmother’s cake recipes to please my kids… they wanted chocolate! I will eventually post the original recipe. Ingredients: 7 oz (200 gr) Butter 1 cup sugar 4 eggs 1.5 cups flour 1/2 cup milk 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon 

Schnitzel – cordon bleu style

Schnitzel – cordon bleu style

This is a Schnitzel variation served here in Germany.  I used to know it with chicken only, but this is also very tasty! 4 pork chops (boneless) 4 ham slices 4 cheese slices 1 cup bread crumbs 2 eggs – beaten Salt and pepper to 

Meatloaf

Meatloaf

Ingredients:

  • 2 lbs ground beef
  • 2 Tablespoons sour cream
  • 1 Onion – finely chopped and fried in a little bit of oil
  • 2 Eggs
  • 3 Slices of sandwich bread
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

  1. Chop the onion finely and fry it for about 10 min at low heat.
  2. Put the bread slices in a bowl, add water and let it soak. Then take the crust off and squeeze the water out.
  3. In a big bowl, add the ground meat, bread, sour cream, onions, eggs, salt and pepper and mix well.
  4. Place the meat in a meatloaf pan (or a pound cake pan).
  5. Pour a thin layer of ketchup over it.
  6. Bake in a preheated oven at 350º F (180ºC) for about 1 -1.25 hours, or until meat is well done.
  7. Let stand for about 10 minutes before slicing.

Carbonara

Carbonara

I think I learned how to make this dish in the US – I guess that’s why I add cream to it…  I’m still categorizing it as Italian, although the original should not have any cream in it! Ingredients: 7 oz (200 gr) bacon – 

Chupe andino

Chupe andino

This is one of my favorite Venezuelan soups.  It is really nice to make when expecting guests that are traveling and are not sure when they arrive, because it is a main dish, and you do not have to worry about any last minute cooking! 

Swiss salad dressing

Swiss salad dressing

This salad dressing I learned to make in Switzerland.  It is really so easy to prepare, that my kids are the ones in charge of making the salad dressing!

Ingredients:

  • 2 teaspoons mayo
  • 1 teaspoon dijon style mustard
  • 1/4  teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • pepper to taste
  • 1 teaspoon chopped chives
  • 2 tablespoons vinegar
  • 4 tablespoons oil

Directions:

  1. Blend the mayo with the mustard.
  2. Add salt, chives, pepper, and garlic powder and mix well.
  3. Add vinegar and mix.
  4. Add oil and blend well.

That’s it!

Geschnezeltes

Geschnezeltes

This dish I learned with my grandmother (father’s side). I remember watching her make it when I was a kid, and I was truly amazed to see that you could make a sauce by just adding cream to a pan after frying the meat.  It 

Arepitas

Arepitas

This is basically the same as the arepas, but formed very small in order to eat them as appetizers.  They are also served along with parrilla (barbecue).

Rösti

Rösti

Ingredients:

  • 6 medium potatoes (peeled and shredded)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • oil
  • butter

Directions:

  1. Put a little bit of oil in a large pan.  Add the shredded potatoes, and fry for about 10 minutes on medium heat..
  2. Shake the pan occasionally to make sure that the potatoes do not stick to the bottom of the pan.
    Add a few butter flakes, and sprinkle some salt on top of the potatoes.
  3. Place a large plate on top of the potatoes, and then turn the pan upside down, while holding the plate with one hand.
  4. Slide the potatoes back onto the plate in order to fry the other side.  Sprinkle some salt and pepper.
  5. Fry for another 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are done.
Filet with peppers

Filet with peppers

This dish I made up once because I wanted to make something similar to my mom’s roast beef.  It is really easy to make! I’ll post the roast beef eventually, but I must warn that it is a little bit more complicated to make but