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Books & Spoons MID WEEK ANGST FOR WHAT'S FOR DINNER

30/11/2016

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Mid-week angst for what's for dinner hits us all from time to time. There are lots of solutions for the problem, here is one thought with several variations. 
This is something I like to do, to keep the cost of grocery bill on the budget, yet have a variation to the meals through the week. 
When making fish, I often bake more than needed and either serve with a different side dish the day after or use it in some kind of salad, by the side of a salad, pasta salad, noodle salad, in a wrap with the salad... 
Here are some of the recipes I have shared before (click the image to get the recipe), the salmon with curry and cinnamon is still my favorite that I have been doing for years. It started as a holiday fish served cold on a buffet table with numerous tapas dishes, and by now I have used it in all ways I can imagine. 
I hope this will give you some inspiration and ideas for the everyday menu planning. Till next time
~ Cheers!

Cinnamon Curry Salmon 

For one file of salmon (whole half of the fish) 
Mix together
1 TBSP of salt
1/2 TBSP of black pepper
1 TBSP of cinnamon
1/2 TBSP of curry powder

Rub the spice mix into the flesh side of the fish
Bake the salmon for about 25-30 minutes at 180 C / 350 F until done. 
And that's it!!
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Noodle Salad with Salmon
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Bean salad with Salmon
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Salmon wrapped up
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Salmon with side salads
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Red pasta salad
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Books & Spoons Recipe for CHILI SWEET POTATO SOUP

24/11/2016

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A soup that I could eat every day for the rest of the days. It is easy to make, just peeling and chopping some veggies, and not that many either. And the smaller you cut them, the faster they will be done when cooking, then you can puré the veggies, do the finishing touch and let the delicious flavors entice you. 
This is a great soup course for a winter time multi-course dinner or served as it is as a meal with some hearty artisan bread on the side. It will warm you up from inside out with the slow heat from the chili peppers, yet the smoothness of the coconut milk will make the soup child-friendly as well.
I hope you all are having a wonderful beginning of the season celebration. Till next time
~ Cheers!

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A CHILI SWEET POTATO SOUP
  • 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
  • 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
  • 1,5 chili peppers, seeded and sliced
  • 2 shallot onions, chopped small
  • a thumb sized piece of ginger, shredded
  • 5,5 oz can of coconut milk
  • vegetable stock as needed



  • Prepare all the vegetables as directed
  • Set in a pot and add the vegetable stock, just enough to cover the veggies
  • Cook until done. 
  • Puré the vegetables in the cooking liquid with a hand mixer until smooth.
  • Add coconut milk and mix well
  • Bring up to the temperature if needed. 
  • Taste the soup, add salt and pepper if desired. 
  • Serve
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Books & Spoons Recipe for SLOW COOKED BEEF STEW 

18/11/2016

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When it gets dark, wet, and cold outside I love to make lots of soups and stews that will warm me up from inside out. This slow cooked piece of heaven also known as meat stew took three hours in the oven to simmer, brought lovely aromas into the house, was so tasty and soothing,  and the flavors got even better the day after. 
If you happen to have leftovers, heat them up on a medium heat on top of the stove until thoroughly brought up to the temperature. Or you can freeze the leftovers in an airtight container for up to two months. 
I hope you enjoy it! Till next time
~ Cheers!

SLOW COOKED BEEF STEW

  • 4 lb / 1,8 kg chuck roast, cut into 2-inch pieces
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/4 cup crushed tomatoes 
  • 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 1 medium red onion, quartered
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 4 sprigs thyme
  • 1/2 celeriac cut into small pieces 
  • 1 parsnip cut into small pieces
  • 8 medium carrots (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut into medium dice
  • 1 lb / 0,5 kg pounds baby white or red potatoes, halved

  • Preheat the oven to 325°F.
  • Season the meat with salt and pepper, place in a large bowl, and toss with the flour.
  • Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or wide-bottomed pot with a tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat. 
  • Cook the meat, in batches, until well browned on all sides, 6 to 8 minutes, transferring the pieces to a plate as they are browned. 
  • Pour off and discard any drippings from the pot.
  • Add the tomatoes, broth, onion, bay leaves, thyme, parsnip, celeriac, and half of the carrots and bring to a boil. 
  • Return the meat and any juices back to the pot (the meat should be barely submerged in liquid), cover, and transfer to the oven. 
  • Cook for 2 hours.
  • Add the potatoes and the remaining carrots to the pot, cover, and return to the oven. 
  • Cook until the meat and vegetables are fork-tender, about 1 hour more.
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Books & Spoons two meals in one: RED BEANS AND RICE & STUFFED PEPPERS 

14/11/2016

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Last week I posted about this on the website Instagram account, and I got a message for a recipe. So here you go.
It is easy and rather fast to make, and as tasty as you make it. The allure of it is that you can make it to a two different meal times with a little twist, as long as you make enough of the red beans and rice to fill up the bell peppers the next day. I love the simplicity of it, and of course, the red beans and rice can be made without the minced pork meat and serve both as vegetarian meals. 
Because the next day - I just added a sharp tasting cheese and the top part of the peppers that I had cut off chopped up into the red beans and rice mix and filled the peppers up with some more cheese on the top. There really can't be too much cheese, right?! 
I hope you enjoy it! Till next time
~ Cheers!

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Red Beans & Rice

200g (7 oz) minced pork meat
1 onion, diced small
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tetra of kidney beans, rinsed
​1 tetra of crushed tomatoes
2 servings of whole grain rice cooked according to the directions in vegetable stock
chili powder
paprika powder
coriander 
salt
pepper
Stuffed Bell Peppers

 -Leftover red beans and rice
- Bell peppers 1-2 per person
- Sharp tasting shredded cheese


​- In a large saucepan brown the meat with onions and garlic in a little oil.
- Add crushed tomatoes
- Add the cooked rice and rinsed beans. Add a little of the cooking stock from the rice to make sure the consistency is as desired to avoid dry meal. 
- Season to taste. 
- Let it simmer on a low for a couple minutes just to bring the tastes together. 

​- Cut off the tops of the peppers. Separate the stem and discard.
- Dice the cut-off part of the peppers and add to the red beans and rice mix with the shredded cheese.
- Fill the peppers well and tight. 
- Add some cheese on the top and set in the warm oven (350 F / 180 C) for about 30 minutes until the cheese has melted with good color and the peppers still has a little crunch to it. 
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Books & Spoons Recipe DARK CHOCOLATY NUTTY BANANA BREAD  

11/11/2016

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Holidays are coming and all the entertainment with it. It is time to start to plan and wonder what, where, and when. 
For
brunch with friends and family or just weekend lazy breakfast because it is freezing cold outside and you want to cozy up at home, cuddled up with a blanket reading a good book with some tea and good cake... This recipe surely delivers!

I love this recipe because it is easy to get together, you don't need any fancy equipment to mix it, just a bowl and a spoon, and the taste is fabulous. I used Greek yogurt in it instead of natural and it gave nice depth to the flavor.
It can be made to many different things, but here is my favorite so far with bananas, hazelnuts, and dark chocolate. YUMMY! Hope you enjoy it!
​Till next time
​~ Cheers!

​BASIC CAKE MIX
8 to 10 servings
preparation time 15 minutes + 35 minutes cooking
​
150 g (5,3 oz) butter
2 dl natural yoghurt
2 eggs
4 cup flour
1 ½ cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon soda
3 bananas
1 cup peanuts/hazelnuts/any nuts
50 g / 2 oz of dark chocolate
2 tsp cardamom

To the baking pan: 
butter
bread crumbs




​- Preheat the oven to 200 C / 390 F degrees. 
- Peel the bananas.
- Chop two of them in a bowl and crush with a fork.   - Chop the nuts and chocolate coarsely with a knife.
- Melt the butter in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove. 
- In a bowl mix the yogurt and melted butter. 
- Add the eggs and stir vigorously with spoon or whisk 
- Add all the dry ingredients, so that the raising agents are well mixed in. 
- Mix in the batter the crushed banana, chocolate and nuts and cardamom.
- Mix the dough until smooth.
- Grease the cake tin with breadcrumbs and flour it. 
- Pour the batter into a baking dish. 
- Bake for 35 minutes or until done
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Books & Spoons Recipe PORK THAI SOUP WITH RUTABAGA

3/11/2016

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​I love this Thai-flavored soup. I'm not sure if I love it more eaten hot or cold leftovers, but it is delicious and one of my favorites for sure. Last time I made it the heat of the taste was so that my eyes teared up, but you don't have to use as much chili peppers in the soup, or you can add coconut milk to it to make it more family friendly if you so desire. 
The difference with this soup is that I sauté all the other ingredients in a pan except the noodles. Those I cooked in a vegetable broth that also became the liquid in the soup. You set noodles and broth at the bottom of the serving dish and add the rest of the ingredients on top of the noodles. Make sure you use enough broth while cooking the noodles since they soak up the liquid like a sponge.

I surely will keep you warm, hope you enjoy it. Till next time
~ Cheers!

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THAI SOUP (for 2 adults+2children)

- 400g / 14oz thinly sliced pork loin
- 1/2 rutabaga peeled and thinly sliced
- a small thumb size piece of shredded ginger ~ 10 g/0,35 oz
- 2 cloves of garlic fine cut
- 1 red chili pepper seeded and thinly sliced
- 3 spring onions thinly sliced

- 2 Tbs Olive oil
- 2 Tbs soya sauce
- salt
- pepper
- 1 lime

- 1,5 liters/34oz vegetable broth
- 1 pkg egg noodles 

​(coconut milk one can if so desired to soften the taste)


1. Prepare all the ingredient ready to be used as directed on the ingredients list. (Leave a tiny piece of rutabaga to be shredded and little green part of spring onions for the garnish of the dish.)
2. Set oil and soya sauce in the medium warm pan, with garlic, chili, ginger, and the pork. 
3. Fry on the pan until the pork gets a good color and is thoroughly cooked.
4. Season with salt, pepper, and fresh lime juice.

5. Cook up the vegetable broth and cook the egg noodles as directed on the package.

6. Portion the noodles into the serving bowls, add the pork mix and the cooking liquid.
​7. Garnish with shredded rutabaga and thinly sliced spring onions. 
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