Not so light, but very simple

Quick food, where I felt like redoing the tahina dressing after last times failure.

Details:
I removed the olives and replaced them with dried cranberries. So it was bun with yoghurt cheese and olive oil, and a salad of blanched kale, roasted almonds, and the good tahina dressing.

Result:
After the cranberries were added to add a sweet side, it was really good. Tahin works well with greens with a little more taste, like kale compared to salad.

Heirloom tomatoes again, with celery and tahina again. And the pulled pork, again...

Details:
Pulled pork on bun, salad of small heirloom tomatoes and celery with a dressing of yoghurt, tahin, garlic, lemon juice, chili and salt.


Result:
Creme fraiche should have been used instead of yoghurt, or just the regular way of making it. At least there wasn't much taste.

The best way to consume cheap whiskey

This is easy and good, just remember to let it simmer for at least half an hour, or more, to get the alcohol out...

Oh! And tried my new combi oven!
It's awesome for pumpkin, just half an hours cooking, no preheat :P

Details:
Roastbeef from weekend grilling, reheated in microwave (not the best idea).
Pumpkin with oil and salt, roasted in oven for 30 min at 200 degrees.
Fried chopped onion and mushrooms in butter, then added tomato paste, fried a little more, then a splash of whiskey, a little water, Milda 7% cream replacement, thyme, salt, and pepper.


Result:
Meat was of course way too dry, and the squash got a little too much oil. But the sauce was awesome!

Hearty hearty piggy soup

With all the soup from the pork neck, I had to make this.
Even though the weather was way too sunny for it..

Details:
Soup from piggyboil, with a little fish sauce and some spring cabbage.
Fried some of the pork with some chickpeas and a little of the fish sauce until slight browning.


Result:
When I added the fishsauce, and the fishy smell spread all through the kitchen, I thought "Oh god... Now I ruined it.." But! A minute later it settled, and the result was alot better, than if I had tried with soy sauce or just salt.
This was generally an awesome soup, have to try this again!

The best Risotto

I had a lot of soup from the cooking of the pork, so I decided to use some of it for risotto.
Since it was so filling in taste, I decided to make it with mushrooms and the rest of my spinach.

Details:
Mushrooms, onion, and garlic roasted in butter, then added port wine, and little by little the smoky fond from cooking the pork was added, just ½dl a time, waiting for the rice to absorb it, before adding more. Then added spinach, pork, and salt and pepper, and heated through.

Served with sliced bell peppers with chili oil, lemon juice, and salt.


Result:
This was the best risotto I have ever had, period.. 

Pulled Pork Sammich

Bought 2kg of pork neck, and gave it a night in the slow cooker (first at high, until boiling, then medium through the night), along with carrots, onion, juniper, a bag of pickle spices (mustard, piri piri, and pepper), bay leaves, garlic, a little salt and sugar, and the deglaze from the pan I roasted the neck in along with a bit of pork fond.
This will be on the menu in different variations the next 3 days.

Details:
Bought "carrot bun" with "stolen" green salad, and pickled onions. Added a little sweet chili sauce too.


Result:
Should have tasted the onions before suing them. They were salty, and not sweet at all.
A dressing for the green salad could have been neat, too.
The meat was a little too dry, so more sweet chili sauce would have been good too.

This should usually be with coleslaw, so that for next time.

I'm so HEALTHY!

And now for something COMPLETELY different! In the spirit of the great CrossFit™!
A smoothie for a meal!

Details:
Beetroot, apple, frozen blackberries, carrot, ginger, honey, sweetener, and vanilla. All blended up with yoghurt natural.


Result:
Tried and true, so this was of course real good stuff! A bit lumpy, and since it was kind of acid, the yoghurt also curdled. I kind of like to be able to chew my drink though ;)

Nice and Spinach

In a lack of time, I ended up making this salad, which also happen to be a good alternative for vegetarian day. I did however add Fuet, a spanish smoked thin sausage. Usually spiced, but unlike chorizo, not with red pepper of any kind. This could, however, have been omitted, and the meal would still be cheap, protein-rich, and vegetarian.

There has also been found evidence that spinach (and beetroot amoung others) actually DOES improve strength ;) (http://www.medicaldaily.com/news/20120626/10452/spinach-muscles-nitrate.htm)

Details:
Baby spinach with lemon and a little chili. crumbled creamy yoghurt cheese, black olives, and a lot of cooked, fried chickpeas. Topped with slices of fuet.


Result:
It was good and fresh. With both roasted, tangy, salty, and umami taste. It could use a bit of sweet though, so some dried or fresh berries could do. Like cranberries.

Can you eat that?!

So I wanted to use the rest of the mash for a pancake, and mixed it up with eggs. Result really didn't work, but it tasted WONDERFUL!

Details:
Salmon patted in breadcrumbs and salt, and then fried.
Mash of cauliflower, potatoes, and carrots, mixed with an egg, some manchego cheese, and chopped spring onions.


Result:
Yep, all the starch didn't stiffen when fried, and it all just fell apart, but became this incredibly tasty mush! Yum! 

Mushy mushy mush

Instead of mash, I got goo, because I didn't think about what happens when you blend starchy roots and veggies.

Details:
"Frikadeller" stolen from work :P Grated cucumber in vinegar with chiracha and honey.
The mash is a mix of potatoes, cauliflower, and carrots, with a bit of butter. Topped with roasted walnuts and spring onions.


Result:
The cucumber was a nice complementary to the meatballs. The mash was made in the blender, and it got okay, but way too gooey. Also the walnuts were a waste, and the spring onions should have been fried...

I tried again with just potatoes a few days after, mashing them the right way. TUrned out better, but to get it really good, I think it should be 1/3 blended, and 2/3 mashed, to make it creamy, and less dry.

Tabouleh

Simple dish, suggested by a friend.. ;)
And gave a reason to use the rest of the mint.

Details:
Bulgur simmered for about 10 minutes until tender, and mixed with chopped spring onion, chopped tomatoes, and chopped precooked porkchops. Dressing was EVOO, lemon juice, and garlic.
Topped with chopped mint.


Result:
Refreshing, but best at the bottom, with all the dressing :P

Tatosalad!

Just the classic.. More or less..
It also learned me that crumbly potatoes are uncooked, not overcooked.

Details:
Fresh cucumbers, with seeds removed, and sliced thickly, half a red onion, some boiled chopped potatoes, and precooked pork chopped in cubes.
The dressing was 18% creme fraiche, with lemon, mustard, salt, and garlic.


Result:
This wasn't too damn good before I added the lemon juice.. Also have to learn that potatoes should be boiled for 15 minutes... Yea... :( 

Fattoush

Cucumbers and mint! Fresh from momma! :D
A different salad, arab this time.

Details:
Made from this recipe: http://www.dr.dk/DR2/Annemad/Opskrifter/opskrifter_2009/uds_3/20090819095149.htm
Served with homemade carrotbuns and tahina dip.


Result:
As most meals made from recipe, this was great. Nice, light, and summer-like. Not much protein, but it was a Sunday meal..

Oh-no-not-another-omelet-but-at-least-it's-summery

Yea like I said... But it was nice along with sunshine.

Details:
Simple omelet, with a bit of milk, so it would get fluffy. Topped with rucola, fried chorizo, manchego, and pearl onions. On the side a slice of wheat bread, with rucola, and a simple salsa of tomatoes, onion, olive oil and red wine vinegar.


Result:
It was tricky to eat the omelet with the filling on top, next time there should be room to roll it up :)
The bruschetta-kind of loaf would have been better if it had been toasted.

Simple Food

Now this is simple food. Had no energy left so it was whatever I had...

Details:
Precooked pork, thawed and fried with soy sauce and honey.
Steamed broccoli, carrots, and baby corn.
Just added some soy sauce, and that was it...


Result:
Soy sauce made the difference. Colors faded on the veggies after steaming, but then again, this isn't a fancy meal in any way. 

Nice and Fresh

Here is a good way to use up vegetables!

Details:
Pearl spelt with chopped red onion, carrots, cucumber, celery, and snack peppers, on top of beer-and-spice-braised beef. Topped with some green olives stuffed with almonds, and sprinkled with high quality tuscan olive oil.


Result:
The tuscan olive oil has a distinct grassy aroma, which was completely lost in the dish. Unfortunately.
It was pretty good anyway though. Very fresh, but the onions were a bit too much. Cucumber could have been excluded.

Expensive Dressing

A simple one, actually. At least for me. This was a salad with balsamico. 4-leaf balsamico condimento. Which means it is a mix of balsamico tradizionale and red wine vinegar. Balsamico tradizionale is NOT a vinegar, but grape must that has been aged for up to 25 years! It is usually poured on new casks of new types of wood every year (I think) to give it aroma. The one used here was 14€/100ml, and I have another one to 30€/100ml... Pure tradizionale, 12 years old, is 70-80€.. for 100ml...

Details:
Strawberry and peeled cubed apple on top. Sliced red onions and cucumber, chicken boiled in a heat-proof plastic bag (to contain juices, works well..), and then a mixed salad on the bottom. Sprinkled with plenty of balsamico, and a little roasted seeds on top.


Result:
Well it was a salad, and it was good. The chicken worked well, very neutral, but good taste. Balsamico goes well with everything, and especially strawberry.

Boooouuur... Gig... Non???

Bourguignonne sounds weird, and tastes AWESOME.. Beef, tomato, and red wine. What can go wrong?!

Details:
Yes, for this one I just stole a recipe, for once.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/fillet-of-beef-bourguignonne-recipe/index.html

A little less bacon, 100g of mushrooms, canned pearl onions, and just some random dry wine that I had in the fridge for... Eh... Weeks :S


Result:
I'm not the one to say someone else's recipe is anything but perfect, but this one actually was ;)
A little too salty, which was me just being too generous with the salt here and there.
It was made on veal shoulder, so could have used 2-4 hours of simmering. The meat could have been SO much more tender. Maybe something to try with the slow cooker!

Fancy Chili Meatballs

I dragged a lot of different pepperoncino spices with me home from Italy, which I thought I better get started with. Still having half a package of minced beef, and still wanting to test something I discovered in Israel (Celery in meatballs) I decided to go for meatballs in spicy sauce.

Details:
Meatballs were made with 2 small slices of dark wheat bread soaked in ½dl milk, celery, small onion, 1 tsp pepperoncino/garlic mixture, 1 tsp thyme, 250g minced beef, 1 egg, and salt.

Sauce of minced sweet peppers, celery, some low fat cream replacement called Milda, some tomato puré, pepperoncino and thyme.


Result:
The sauce was a bit too spicy and a bit dull. The Milda was completely useless. Maybe a bit of creme fraiche 18% could have a done it better, but I don't think the milk product was necessary since it is not in normal tomato sauce..  It DID, however, work well in a meatball sandwich, as the meatballs were great!

For a quick meal...

Coming home from a week in Italy, after 30 hours by train, I only had the energy to go buy groceries for the next few days, and come up with some kind of stew.. So.. This is a meal as I make it when I'm really tired.

Details:
Minced beef fried with mire poix (carrots, celery, and onion) and curry. Added onion "stock" and simmered with red lentils untill they were tender.


Result:
Kind of like minced beef and kale! But with more body. Next time though, I should use soaked lentils :S