​Sometimes my menu plans gets written anew right in a middle of the market, when I see something I just can't resist. This happened to me, when I saw the rainbow carrots, and the colors just charmed me.
I wanted to simply slow roast them in the oven, to bring out their natural flavors. At first thinking maybe a roast beef to go with them, but as it was a last minute change of a plan, I had to go with what was available, fresh, and within the right price. So I ended up making a St Agur meatloaf, and was very happy with the results! Sorry guys, there's no ketchup in my meatloaf, just natural ingredients, and lots of flavour, especially with the cheese melting into the meat. 
The meatloaf and carrots were together in the oven, for nearly 1,5 hours, until done, with a slight crunch still with the carrots, just the way I like them. 
The aroma that filled my kitchen while they were roasting in the oven, was heavenly, even the colors on the plate repeating the beauty of the nature, of autumn. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did
~ Cheers! 

​I washed them, peeled them, and cut into desired size, as much in same size as possible, for even cooking.
I tossed them in a little bit of olive oil, adding kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper. 
I roasted them on the side of the meatloaf, until just done. The time it will require, depends on the size of the carrots.

BLUE CHEESE MEATLOAF

800 g / 1,8 lb   Lean ground beef
3                      Small eggs
1                      Onion, chopped and sautéed
2                      Large cloves of garlic, chopped,                      sautéed
1 dl / 0,4 cups Bread crumbs
1 dl / 0,4 cups Milk
salt, pepper, fine herbs (thyme, oregano, salvia), paprika

St Agur, or other blue cheese 

​

Mix the bread crumbs and milk together, and let it sit for just a minute or two.
Add all the spices and herbs
Add the eggs
Add the sauteed onions and garlic
Add the ground beef and mix well until everything is thoroughly combined
Make a little cake and fry it in a pan to check the taste. Adjust the spices as needed.
Form the loaf, making a small furrow in the middle. Place the cheese in it, evenly.
Seal the meatloaf together again, and sprinkled with breadcrumbs.
Bake in the oven until the meat is done. 200 C / 390 F
​The cheese will melt into the meatloaf, giving it a lovely, layered taste. 

The days are getting shorter, the evening colder, and it is the perfect time of the year to invite friends over for a great evening of fellowship.
A great evening with friends, talking for hours, while enjoying lots of good bites of delicious food.
There a lot of advice and 'rules' of how a great  cheese tray should be built together. And that is all good. At least with that you get lots of variety. But before I get to that advise more deeply, let me remind you - choose something you would enjoy eating. Trying new things and flavors are lovely, but have at least some flavors you are not only familiar with, but a fan of.

If you want to serve a variety of cheese, you can mix and match it couple different ways to get different textures and flavors.
You can mix it by the different groups 'families' of cheese, for example aged, soft, firm, and blue. Or you can try selecting cheeses by the type of milk used - goat, cow, sheep. I would serve at least one cheese you are familiar with.
Always serve some bread, and crackers, on the side. You can also get  jarred condiments, different fruits, or for example artichoke hearts, roasted peppers, caramelized onions, olives etc.
Also different cured meats,  such as prosciutto and different salamis are great choices.
Always have a separate knife for each cheese, especially for the soft varieties. You can assemble your try in good time before your company arrives, since they are best at room temperature.
If you have a big company arriving, label each cheese for the guests.

Here served: St. Agur blue cheese, brie, Iberico cheese, Fuet salami, Chorizo sarta, Serrano ham, mango, pears, strawberries, grapes, fetacheese stuffed olives, plums with variety of breads and crackers.

So light a lot of candles, buy some great wine, get a good variety of cheese and accompaniments, and enjoy your evening!
~ Cheers!

CARROT AND GINGER SOUP

ca 7 dl / 1,5 pints  Vegetable stock
1 kg / 2 lb             Carrots, peeled and cut
1                           Leek, peeled and cut
50 g / 1,5 oz         Fresh ginger, peeled and cut

50 g / 1,5 oz         Butter
0,5                        Lemon

Set all peeled and cut vegetables into a pot, and add vegetable stock so that it just covers the vegetables.
Boil the vegetables under a lid, until the carrots are tender.
Puree the vegetables in the stock until desired smoothness.
Finish off with butter and lemon juice according to taste

This summer I met a young man, who impressed me with his burn and passion for all things culinary. Despite his young age of 11, he was excited about food, the different methods to prepare it, different types of serving of a meal, and even talked about working on his presentation skills. LOVED. IT.
His fire was contagious, and I most likely had a really goofy smile on my face every time I talked with him. But this young man wasn't just all the talk, he already knew his way around the kitchen, and during the time we spent together, he prepared (with little adult supervision, little is the key word) three meals for seven people. And not just any meals, the meals were tasty!
I love that he had the desire, and possibility, to work in the kitchen. My mom allowed me to make a mess in her kitchen, and it had a huge impact on me.
So lets keep the kitchen doors open, take the time to guide them, and give them the possibility to make the mess, and to fall in love with food, the right  and healthy way.
One of the dishes the young man prepared, was Eggplant Parmesan. I admit, I have been thinking about it every now and then since that day in August, so I decided to share my favorite recipe of Eggplant Parmesan with you.
I don't do it in a casserole type of dish, even though you could add much more cheese that way. I rather layer the baked eggplant wheels, with fresh Mozzarella and a bit more shredded Parmesan in-between.
I have already shared with you the marinara recipe, so just click here to get it.
It might look like it is a lot of work for a dish, but really, not only is it worth it, but with good planning, it will all go rather smoothly.

I had some previously made marinara sauce in the freezer, so I just took it to defrost in the fridge the night before, and heated it up, when needed.
So the most time consuming effort was drying the eggplants, because you know they are like a sponge and suck all the oil into them.
I cut them in the morning, salted both sides of them, and set them on a rack with paper towels underneath to gather the moisture (you can use just paper towels if you want to). The salt will speed up the process nicely, as well. If you don't do it in the morning, it takes about two hours in real time.
So now, all that is required for the meal to be prepared, is just putting the dish together. To avoid the excess of oil, I baked the eggplant in the oven. And while they were in the oven, I heated up the sauce, and prepared some fresh salad to go with it.
And oh my, it was so lovely! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did, and please, get the family, if possible, involved, and make the food preparation into a fun family time!
~ Cheers!

 Preheat the oven to 220 C / 425°F.
Combine 1 1/2 cups of breadcrumbs with 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, and place in a shallow bowl or rimmed dish.
Set up your station so that you have flour in one shallow bowl, beaten eggs in another bowl, and the breadcrumb cheese mixture in another, in that order. 

Spread a tablespoon of olive oil each over the bottom of two rimmed baking sheet pans.
Pat dry the eggplant slices with paper towels.
Working one at a time dredge the eggplant slices first in the flour,
then dip in the beaten eggs,
and then dredge in the breadcrumb Parmesan cheese mixture.
Place on oiled sheet pan.
Place breaded prepared eggplant slices in the oven. Cook for 18 to 20 minutes, turning the slices over at the half-way point, until they are nicely browned.
Remove from the oven and place the eggplant wheels into towers, so that there's a slice of Mozzarella and a little Parmesan in-between every layer, three wheels per tower.
Set back in the oven for just 2-3 minutes, while spooning the hot sauce into the serving plates.
Set the eggplant Parmesan towers on top of the sauce, and serve and enjoy