-

-

Spain ….wow who new? I’ll be cheering for Spain in this final. Yep! Sorry Netherlands I have no sympathy for ya! You know …. I’m holding a grudge since you all of a sudden decided to become so good and kick my country out of the world cup. I’m still sulking. So to show my love for Spain I decide to make this green gazpacho. We luuuuuve Gazpachos here in this love nest. LOL You can check my other version here. I think Gazpachos are great to take on a summer picnic. Enjoy.

Spanish Green Gazpacho

Ingredients:

• 3 green tomatoes chopped
• 2 cups coarsely chopped seeded peeled cucumbers
• 1 jalapeno pepper chopped
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped green bell pepper
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup (2 ounces) cubed crust less white bread
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• Salt and pepper
• Additional olive oil

Direction:

Puree first all ingredients in food processor. Add bread and let stand until soggy, about 2 minutes. Puree until smooth. Mix in 1 1/2 cups water. Transfer gazpacho to large bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

-

Tapas, mezze, Antipasti, what they all have in common? They are all the same thing… its little portions of some delicious appetizers that usually you eat while sipping some nice wine. What could be better than drinking wine, nibbling some yummy food and talking nonsense with your love one? Awwwww love…. it makes everything better right? If you had a bad day, or got aggravated with something, you get home and find a sparkling clean house, with fresh flowers, and a spread with your favorite things waiting for you. Isn’t that precious? I know…. I’m really spoiling my hubby…. but he so deserve it. So let’s see what we have here…I got these little darling eggplants at the FM this morning, and my favorite way of cooking them is by roasting them in the oven. It’s easy and it accentuates the flavors. Simply season with salt flakes, freshly grounded black pepper, red chili flakes, olive oil and you are good to go.

-

Roasted Eggplant and Pepper Salad

• 2 pounds eggplant
• 2 yellow bell peppers, cored, seeded and sliced
• 8 unpeeled garlic cloves
• 1-tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2-teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Red chili flakes
• 6-tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup finely chopped Italian parsley
• 2-tablespoon finely julienne fresh Mint

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with foil. Slice the eggplants and put them in salted water for couple of minutes. Slice the peppers Drain the eggplants and pat dry them with paper towel. Mix the peppers, unpeeled garlic cloves, and the eggplants. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, red chili flakes. Roast them for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool slightly then add the lemon juice, fresh parsley and the mint. I served this salad with pita bread and hummus with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of paprika and Kalamata olives.

Do you know some of those days when all you try to do backfire’s in your face? Yep! I had one of those yesterday…. I felt like I was running in circles chasing my own tale like a dog. I had so much stuff piled on my to do list (yes, I make lists) that I thought I would need an extra arm. And the whole time I was thinking how people with kids manage to survive? I would pull my hair until I had none left if I had kids today. So at around 5, I just threw my list in the garbage, prepared myself a Caipiroska and tried to have some fun cooking this Spanish dish. And believe me I don’t know if it was the Caipiroska or the fact that I was cooking (probably a combination of both) but everything felt right again. This recipe is on Delicious magazine when I saw it I knew I would love it. I didn’t have the Chorizo sausage, but this recipe is a keeper. It was really yummy.

-

Spanish Prawns with Spicy Lentils

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 chorizo sausage, chopped
• 1 tbsp harissa*
• 400 g can chopped tomatoes
• 2 x 400 g cans brown lentils, rinsed, drained
• 220 g jar roasted red capsicums, drained, and sliced
• 1-cup (250 ml) chicken stock or water
• 500 g peeled green prawns (tails intact)
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Directions:

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and chorizo, and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes until the onion softens and the chorizo starts to crisp. Stir in harissa and cook for a further minute. Add tomatoes, lentils, capsicum and stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until the mixture has thickened slightly. Season the prawns with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, then add to the pan. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until the prawns are just cooked through. Stir in the parsley. The rice is just simple rice with black mustard seeds. Enjoy.

*Harissa is a North African chili paste from delis and gourmet food shops.

-

-

Since I started buying my veggies at the Farmer’s Market I have discovered a big variety of things I had never seen before at grocery stores. Without say how fresh everything is. I have used Amaranth before but just the grains, last Sunday at the Hollywood FM I saw this beautiful red and green bunches and when I asked the lady she told me it was red Amaranth. She probably noticed my puzzled face than she said also known as Chinese spinach. Well… say no more…. It looks stunning I have to try it. Now…. Panzanella is my favorite salad ever because if you know anything about me is that I am addicted to bread. So a salad that soaks bread in olive oil and lemon juice, have to be my fave, right? But trust me on that; it would insult the ingredients to use store bought croutons. So I bought a nice crusty Italian bread and cut it into small cubes and then massaged the olive oil, oregano, salt, pepper and the red chili flakes. You’ll see it will be the best croutons you ever had. I also tossed some feta in my salad. But it’s optional. Enjoy.

-

-

Red Amaranth Panzanella

• I bunch of spinach or romaine lettuce
• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1 small Italian rustic bread cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon of dry oregano
• 1 teaspoon of red chili flakes
• Cherry tomatoes
• 20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped

For the vinaigrette:

• 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2-cup good olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons chopped capers, drained

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven 350F and in a large bowl mix the bread cubes, the olive oil, salt, oregano, and the chili flakes. Toss it to mix it well than cover a baking tray with aluminum foil and spread the bread evenly. Toast it for 5 to 8 minutes or until golden. For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together. In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, spinach, and basil. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper.

Yesterday I was up for a partee. I just felt like that you know, for no reason, just in the mood. I was dusting and organizing my recipe books then I found this cool Sangria book (Mittie Hellmich). And on the cover it says “Fun and festive” Then I thought Oh yeah baby! I’m feelin’t, fun and festive could be my middle name. So of course I had to find somethin, somethin to go with this cool sangria, right? And Fajitas sounded awesome. So here it is… I totally recommend that for a middle of the week dinner.

Kumquat Sangria

• 2 cups of kumquats sliced
• 2 limes sliced
• 1 vanilla bean cut in half
• 3 ounces of Grand Marnier
• 3 tablespoon of Agaves syrup or sugar
• 750ml bottle of white wine chilled

In a large glass pitcher, combine the Kumquats,  limes, vanilla bean, Grand Marnier, and Agave or sugar. With a wood spoon muddle the mixture to release the fruit juice and dissolve the sugar. Refrigerate for about 2 hours.

When ready to serve, slowly add the wine. Fill the wineglasses with ice cubes and pour the sangria over the ice. Allowing the Kumquats to fall into the glasses.

-

Fajitas

• 1 lb of skirt steak
• 1large red onion sliced with the grain
• 2 large bell peppers sliced into half-inch wide strips

Marinade:

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ jalapeno finely sliced
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
• Salt and Pepper

Prepare:

Mix all marinade ingredients. Set the steak in the marinade and let it sit at least an hour. Heat to high heat a large cast iron pan. Add a teaspoon of olive oil to the pan. Add the steak, frying on each side for 3 minutes. Remove form pan and let it rest for 5 minutes. Reduce the pan heat to medium high add a little more oil if necessary.(I used the marinade) Add the peppers and onion cook stirring frequently until onions are slightly translucent. Mix the steak and serve with tortillas and guacamole.