Showing posts with label Main course - Special. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Main course - Special. Show all posts

Wednesday, 29 May 2013

Cous cous with Vegetables

Couscous is a North African dish, usually offered with stewed meat or vegetables. There also are versions of Fish couscous or a very delicate one just with herbs.... This dish is very versatile! Play around and you will find your favourite one.
Today I prepared my couscous with vegetables and spices to create a perfect Arabic taste... 


INGREDIENTS: 
Servings: 4

1 glass instant couscous
1 small eggplant
2-3 small zucchini
2 handful fresh fava beans
1 medium tomato
1 carrot
1 medium onion
2 garlic cloves
3cm ginger root
fresh parsley
fresh basil
salt 
chilli powder
1.5tbs curcuma
1/3tbs cumin seeds
EVO oil
1 1/3 glass water + 1/4 glass 
 

 
1. Cut eggplants into 1.5-2cm cubes, salt them and let them release their water in a bowl.
Usually it takes about half an hour to have the eggplant quite wet.


2. Slice carrots into wheels or half wheels if the carrot is too thick.
3. Cut zucchini into wheels.
4. Cut onion into 4 parts and then slice it finely.


5. Heat 5-6 tbs of EVO oil in a frying pan with a squeezed garlic cloves and grated ginger.
6. Add 1tbs of curcuma, cumin seeds and stir well. 
7. When you start filling a nice smell, add carrots and onion, cook at a low heat till the onion starts getting transparent.

 8. Squeeze eggplants to remove their water and add them and zucchini to the pan, continue cooking at low heat covered with a lid till they become coloured.
9. You may salt veges now or any time you want, but not at the very end. 

10.  Clean fava beans and remove them from the pods and peel the skin.
Note: Some people don't bother peeling fava beans, I personally don't like it, as I found the skin a bit hard.
11. Add fava beans to the pan and cook for some more minutes. 
Note: You may add 1/4 of water to cook the veges better. 


12. At the end add tomato cut into small cubes, stir the veges well and cook till all of them are completely ready.

13. Chop fresh parsley and basil finely.
14. Mix couscous with chopped herbs and 0.5tbs of curcuma, some chilli to your taste.
15. Boil a bit less than 1.5 glass of water, melt some salt in it, add 1 tbs of oil and pour it over the couscous.
16. Cover the bowl with couscous with a lid and let it sit for 10 minutes.

17. Using a fork stir couscous in order to separate the graines of it.  
Note: The grains of couscous tend to stick one to another during the cooking process so you need to fluff them carefully.

18. Arrange cooked couscous over a presentation dish as a doughnut and add stewed vegetables inside the ring. 


bil-hanā' wa ash-shifā'     بالهنا والشفا 
       

Saturday, 11 May 2013

Asparagus Omelette oven cooked

Fluffy and airy with it's delicious crust, this omelette can be served for a Sunday brunch or as a light dinner. The asparagus tips remain naturally crunchy, if you like them softer, you may cook them a bit with the rest of the asparagus.  
 


INGREDIENTS: 
Servings: 2

300g asparagus
4 eggs
1/2 glass milk
100g Parmigiano cheese
salt
pepper
EVO oil



1. Wash and peel asparagus.
2. Keep the tips and cut the rest into thin wheels.


3. In a big bowl mix together eggs, milk, grated Parmigiano, some salt and pepper.



4. Cook the asparagus wheels with some oil, salt and pepper till they are slightly browned. 

5. Oil a cake pan and transfer the asparagus into it.
6. Pour the egg mix over the asparagus.

 
 7. Decorate the omelette with the asparagus tips any style you like.      

8. Cook the omelette in a preheated oven at 220C for 15 minutes.


ENJOY !!!

Wednesday, 27 March 2013

Polenta Fritters

Today's recipe is a bit particular... it is prepared completely with the remainders! Great! That is the housewife's paradise! We don't through away anything ... Of course it's possible to prepare the same dish with normal ingredients. 
We had Polenta the other day. Polenta is an Italian corn flour porridge. I had just for a half a plate left... it was such a pity to throw it away.
In the evening we had some sauteed spinach and again there was some just to serve half a plate.
I usually cook generous portions but serve normal ones, so if one wants to top up there is some in the pot...
And finally I had some other remainder ingredients that were absolutely perfect for this dish - just a coincidence!!!

INGREDIENTS:
Servings: 2

1 big hand-full ready polenta
1 hand-full sauteed spinach
1 egg white
3 slices of bacon (I had Pancetta) 
black pepper
EVO oil
  
I repeat, you may prepare the fritters from scratch. Polenta recipe may be found HERE. 



1. Cut bacon into tiny cubes or stripes
2. Chop the sauteed spinach.
3. Mix polenta, egg white, spinach and bacon, use your hand or a fork to mix.
4. Add some black pepper to taste. 

5. Wet the hands with water and form small fritters (from that amount I got 4).
6. Fry them with some olive oil till they are brown at one side, then turn them over and fry the other side as well.

7. Serve with some fresh salad to your liking as a main dish. Or you may prepare the fritters from scratch and serve them as a starter or snack.
Note: Don't add any salt as all the ingredients are already salted.  
 
     

Tuesday, 26 March 2013

Polenta - Italian Corn flour Porridge

Spring is arriving and Polenta will be my farewell to winter... This dish really suites the cold period of the year. They usually serve it in winter or in the mountains' restaurants when it's cold. Polenta is substantial, gives a lot of energy and heats the body. Especially if you serve it with some nice and fatty sauce...
Polenta is an original dish from the northern regions of Italy. In the past it was also used to substitute bread: they prepared it really thick and when it was already cold, cut it in slices and toasted it. 

INGREDIENTS:
Servings: 2


1 glass corn flour (not the instant type)
4.5 glasses of water
1/2 teaspoon salt

Note: If you use an instant type of polenta, I mean the one that cooks in about 5 minutes, then consult the instructions on the package.
 

1. Bring the water to boiling in a sauce pan.
2. When the water is boiling stir in the corn flour using a hand whisk, they say in Italy "as rain falls", I cannot invent a better term...
3. Add salt and whisk.


4. Keep stirring and cook your polenta for about 25-30 minutes at a very low heat, constantly stirring.


5. When polenta is ready serve it immediately with the sauce and grated Parmigiano and ENJOY it's nice heating effect on your cold and numb body... And don't forget about a glass of nice red wine!

Polenta is always served with a thick sauce and one of the most classical ones is the Tomato sauce with the Sausage. You can find the recipe HERE.