Tag Archives: cooking

Persimmon&Jamon Salad for Women’s Day

Today, March 8th, many people are celebrating International Women’s Day across the globe. Of course, each country have their own means of celebration, special traditions and demonstrations, gifts and food. In my home-country (Russia) this day even is a public holiday. It is also another good day/reason to call your mother, sister or a friend and say how much they mean to you, or celebrate a woman who has always inspired you. And why not to rise a glass for yourself? 😉Persimmon&jamon Salad

 This elegant salad can be served as a tasty fare for the Women’s Day. You need only few minutes literally to assemble and serve the salad. Salty dry-cured meat and tender persimmon slices go perfect together here. Impress your guests or and simply enjoy it yourself.ProsciuttoSalad with persimmonProsciuttoSalad with persimmon and pomegranate seeds

Salad with persimmon&jamon

  • Servings: 2
  • Difficulty: very easy
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 Few shavings of parmesan or grana padano cheese make the salad only better.
Ingredients
4 thin slices jamon serrano (or prosciutto)
10-12 thin slices persimmon (from a quarter)
2-3 tbsp pomegranate seeds
200-300g small arugula leaves
2 tbsp pistachios, chopped
Dressing
2 tbsp EV olive oil
2 tsp pomegranate molasses
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
sea salt, to taste
Preparation method
  1. Arrange 2 slices of jamon and 5-6 slices of persimmon on each plate. Sprinkle with pomegranate seeds.
  2. Top with arugula leaves. Mix ingredients for the dressing, drizzle the salad and sprinkle with nuts.
Enjoy!
recipe found here (in Russian)

Fish with spiced lentil ragout

 Happy Valentines Day!!! 
I’d like to represent a very delicious main course, that looks elegant and suits perfectly to this special day. A healthy and tasty fish is complemented here by aromatic lentil ragout and fresh fennel shavings. Another secret weapon in this sensational dish is aromatic spices: turmeric and ginger, that really burst the lentils with lots of flavour. And of course don’t forget the final touch – a drizzle of lime juice.
 Simple! Healthy! Sensational!Fish with spiced lentil ragout

Fish with spiced lentil ragout

  • Servings: 2
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients
Fish
2 x 150-200g white fish fillet (I used sea bass)
2 tbsp lime juice
freshly ground sea salt and black pepper
some homemade breadcrumbs and flour, for coating
1 tbsp olive oil or other veg oil, for frying
Lentil ragout
100g dried green/brown or Puy lentils
1 rosemary sprig
water
1.5 tbsp olive oil
1 small red onion, chopped
1 small carrot, cut into fine cubes
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 medium tomato, chopped (without liquid and seeds)
1.5 tbsp tomato puree
zest from 1/2 lime
freshly ground sea salt and black pepper
Garnish
lime juice
lime wedges
fennel shavings
fennel or parsley
Preparation method
  1. Rinse and drain lentils. Put in a saucepan with rosemary, cover with water (do not season) and bring to boil on a medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes or until lentils are tender. Add extra water if all absorbed, or drain some if there is any left.
  2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a small frying pan, add onion and carrot and saute for 6-7 minutes until soft and golden. Add garlic, ginger, turmeric and saute for a minute more. Stir in chopped tomato and puree. Turn off the heat.
  3. Discard rosemary form lentils. While lentils are still warm season with salt and pepper, then mix in lemon zest and vegetable mixture; give it a good stir.
  4. Drizzle fish with lime juice, season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle skin side with breadcrumbs and flour. Heat oil in a frying pan and fry skin-side down for 2 minutes, then turn and fry for 1-3 minutes more (depends on fish thickness), until golden and cooked.
  5. Arrange lentil ragout on a serving plate, top with fennel and fish fillet, drizzle with lime juice. Garnish with fennel (or parsley) and lime wedges.
Enjoy!

Beetroot soup with bacon and chive

 The week before St.Valentine’s Day is just started. Are you ready for the Big Day? Have you planned how do you want to spend it? No matter what you choose – whether to go to a restaurant or to spend a romantic dinner in, I recommend you to try this pureed soup with roasted beetroot. You can serve it as a hot starter on the V-Day, or just prepare it during the week.Beetroot soup with bacon and chives  The soup is very easy and quick to make. The only thing I’d like to mention: better to roast beetroot instead of boiling, roasted beets with rosemary and olive oil have such a lovely aroma and they add an extra amazing taste to the soup! And if you are vegetarian – omit the bacon.

Beetroot soup with bacon and chive

  • Difficulty: very easy
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You may also garnish the soup with fresh chopped dill instead of chives.
Omit the bacon for vegetarian option.

Ingredients

2 small beetroots, about 230g
1 small red onion
1 garlic clove, optional, peeled
1 teared fresh rosemary sprig or 1 tsp dried
1 tbsp olive oil
500ml water (or veg or beef stock)
2 small potatoes, about 230g
1 bay leave
1 tsp dark muscovado sugar (or sub with white)
1 tbps lemon juice
freshly ground pink pepper, to taste
sea salt, to taste
Garnish
3-4 smoked bacon strips
1.5 tbsp each cream cheese+sour cream (or use more cream cheese)
4 tbsp fresh chive
Preparation method
  1. Wash and peel beetroot, cut into 4-5 slices and arrange on a piece of foil. Slice onion and add along with garlic and rosemary to beetroot. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake in preheated 180C oven for 20 minutes, then take out onion and garlic. Seal the foil and bake beetroot for 20-30 minutes more or until it’s soft.
  2. Meanwhile, peel potatoes and cut into small cubes. Bring water or stock to boil in a medium pan, add potatoes, bay leave and some salt. Slightly cover, simmer on a medium heat until soft. Discard the bay leave.
  3. Add all roasted vegetables to the pan along with sugar and lemon juice. Season to taste with pink pepper and salt. Simmer all together for 5-6 minutes more.
  4. In a small pan, fry sliced bacon (without oil) until it’s crispy. Drain on a paper towels.
  5. Blend the soup until smooth.
  6. For the garnish, mix cream cheese with sour cream, or use only cream cheese. Chop chives.
  7. Pour the soup into serving bowls. Garnish with fried bacon, chives and a dollop of cream.
  8. Serve warm with some bread.
Enjoy!
Pureed Roasted Beetroot Soup

Salted peanut cookies

 I love shortbread cookies, there are almost thousands possibilities of flavours that you can add: mandarin, lemon or orange zest, vanilla or cinnamon, cardamom and etc. I stumbled upon this recipe a long time ago on one Russian website that content was about news, conferences for chefs and there were some recipes as well. I don’t know why I haven’t tried this recipe earlier, because these cookies are amazing! They have the right shortbread cookie texture – not too crumbly neither hard, simply divine! 🙂SPCookies

Salted peanut cookies

  • Difficulty: moderate
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I mix all ingredients with my hands. You may do it with electric mixer, but don’t overmix.
Ingredients
75g butter, cold
50g caster sugar
1 medium egg
lemon zest from 1 small lemon
120g plain flour
30g salted peanuts, chopped
Method
  • Cut butter into 1cm cubes and bring to room temperature. Divide the egg into yolk and white.
  • On a flat surface (you can do it in a large bowl too), mix butter with sugar until just coarse crumbs.
  • Add egg yolk, half of egg white (keep the rest) and lemon zest. Mix to combine.
  • Mix in flour. Combine the dough. On this step you may think you need to add extra flour, stop, no need to add extra flour or overknead the dough; after resting it’ll be perfect. Cover the dough in a plastic wrap and put in a fridge for 40-50 minutes.
  • Once the dough is cooled, roll it out on a lightly floured surface into 5mm thick disk. Cut out cookies any shape you like. Carefully transfer cookies on a lined baking tray. Brush with remaining egg white, sprinkle with peanuts.
  • Bake in preheated 180C oven for 12 minutes or until cookies are lightly golden.
Enjoy!

Potato pizza-pie

 One day I decided to make a savory potato pie, but to use potato in the crust instead of filling. I imagined myself a good fluffy pie with a creamy filling of fried mushrooms, onions and something else. When I made and rolled out the dough, I realized that it looks more like a pizza not a pie. 😀 However, the potato crust suit nicely to all these colorful ingredients which I used, including some cooked fish leftovers. Grilled bell pepper and bright spring onion gave an extra kick to this pie. Honestly, I was surprised how good and delicious the pizza-pie turned out. 🙂
Potato pizza-pieI’m co-hosting FF#104 with lovely Hilda@alongthegrapevine (she is so creative and has lots of unusual recipes on her blog); so, I’m inviting everyone to join, we share many delicious food there, and you can chat with other foodbloggers and of course don’t forget to like and say “wow, yummy or just hi”! 😀 Read the guidelines here. Happy cooking! 🙂

Potato pizza-pie with fish, bell pepper and mushrooms

  • Servings: 4-5
  • Difficulty: moderate
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Ingredients

Crust

200g/2 medium potatoes
1 bay leaf
20g butter
1 medium egg
sea salt, to taste
2-3 Tbsp grated parmesan, optional
~150g plain flour
Filling
100-150g cooked fish fillet leftovers (I used sea bream)
a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg, optional
1 meduim red bell pepper, grilled or roasted, sliced
150g mushrooms
1 large red onion
a bunch of spring onion or chives, chopped
100ml double cream or 30-35% fat cream
Other
1 tbsp olive oil+1 tbsp butter, for frying
sea salt, freshly ground white pepper
Method
  1. Clean, peel potatoed, cut into fourths. Put in a pan along with some salt and bay leave, cover with water and boil until ready. Drain. Add butter, season with salt and mash potatoes. Stir in egg. Mix in parmesan, if using. Sift the flour into potato mixture, combine into a soft dough (add some more flour if the dough is too wet).
  2. Grease the baking paper (to suit your baking tray). Roll the dough out on this paper. Put in a freezer for 5-7 minutes (or in a fridge for 15 minutes).
  3. Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Slice mushrooms and onions, fry on a medium-high heat in a mixture of oil and butter (you can do it in a one large frying pan, but don’t mix it-put side by side and fry). Stir 1/3 of the cream into mushrooms, and season to taste. Set aside.
  4. Add some butter into the same pan and chopped spring onion (reserve some for garnish, optional), saute for 2 minutes on a low heat –  you only need to soften the onion.
  5. In a bowl, mix fish with the remaining cream, sautéed spring onion and nutmeg, season to taste.
  6. Sprinkle crust with breadcrumbs. Bake it without filling in a preheated 180C oven for 15 minutes.
  7. Spread onion, fish, mushrooms and pepper slices over the crust. Bake for 15-17 minutes more.
  8. Sprinkle with remaining spring onion (optional). Serve warm.
Enjoy!

I’m also sharing it with Saucy Saturdays, Foodie Friends Friday, Foodie Friday

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