Well hello, yes it is me, I am still here. I have been so bad with updating my food blog, it's been forever since I've added a recipe or a post of any kind. I can't make promises that I will be updating all the time, but I am hoping to get back to it as time permits.
Today, I am bringing you the meal plan for the next two weeks, as you may know if you've followed me for a while or follow my main blog Diary of a Stay at Home Mom, I shop for two weeks at a time. it's something I started doing when we were an active duty family, and it's just stuck. Why change a good thing right?
So here we go, the meal plan for the next two weeks:
If you don't yet know, I am a huge lover of coconut. I just absolutely love coconut anything. I grew up eating fresh coconut, drinking fresh coconut juice straight out of the coconut, and really there's nothing like it.
So it goes without saying that since I was a child, one of my favorite cakes are these Portuguese coconut little bars, sometimes they are round cakes too. If we went to a Pastelaria (cake shop), I would usually order one of these.
I haven't made them in years, but was having a craving for them yesterday, and since I had everything I needed on hand, I whipped up a quick batch. Needless to say, I have got to be good and stay away from them, or I will eat the whole thing. They are so good, and I hope you enjoy them too.
Bolos de Coco (Portuguese Coconut Cakes)
2 cups shredded coconut
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
In a bowl, mix shredded coconut and sugar together. Add eggs and melted butter to the mixture and stir well.
Mix in vanilla extract and flour until combined.
Grease a baking pan and pour the batter into it.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
Allow to cool before cutting into squares.
Without a doubt, my favorite cookies are Snickerdoodle, and especially when they are just perfect, soft and yummy.
I have made many cookies over the years and some recipes are ok, some don't come out as great, and this one is by far my go to, and my absolute favorite Snickerdoodle recipe. They are no fail, always turn out amazing and are so easy to make.
I don't know where I got it from, over the years I have scribbled recipes on pieces of paper and notebooks, when I am scrolling online or on social media. Wherever it came from, it is the best Snickerdoodle, truly.
Snickerdoodle Cookie
Ingredients:
2 sticks of butter (1 cup)
1 and 1/3 cups of sugar
1/3 cups of brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 and 1/4 cups of flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 and a 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
3/4 teaspoon of salt
Cinnamon sugar to roll cookies in
Method:
Preheat oven to 375 ° F.
In a stand mixer, beat the butter and the sugars until creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix. Add the flour a little at a time, then the baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Mix well but don't overbeat, you just want everything mixed together.
The size of the cookies depends on you. I just grabbed small bits of dough about the size of a golf ball, rolled into a ball and then rolled them in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Place on a greased baking sheet, and then slightly flatten.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.
Good morning. It has been a while since I've posted something on this blog, and I do miss sharing, so am hoping to start doing more of that. I have a couple recipes to post, just need to sit down and do it instead of getting distracted.
One thing I do want to get back into is posting the Meal plans for the week, it helps me stay on track and also gives me a place to look back and see what I was making, for future meals.
So without further ado, here is the meal plan for this week.
These delicious burgers are a typical Turkish street food.
I have been enjoying Mediterranean recipes for the past year, and one of the foods we have most enjoyed, have without a doubt been from Turkey. There are so many delicious recipes, from heart warming stews and kebabs, to yummy street food like Pide and Simit. I had not heard of an Islak Burger before, so when I came across this recipe I knew I had to try it.
Wow was it good. It was not only easy to make, it used simple ingredients but the result was fantastic. You can make them in a skillet or in the oven, I chose to do the oven because I was making quite a few for the whole family. Here is the source for the recipe.
Islak Burgers
Ingredients:
1½ pounds ground beef chuck (20% fat)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped, divided
1½ teaspoons paprika, divided
5 tablespoons (or more) unsalted butter, divided
¼ cup tomato paste
4 hamburger or brioche bun
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preheat
oven to 400°F. Mix beef, parsley, half of garlic, and 1 teaspoon
paprika in a large bowl. Divide into 4 loosely packed patties 4″ wide
and 3/4″ thick. Make a small indentation in the center with your thumb
to help keep it flat as it grills. Chill until ready to use.
Meanwhile,
cook 4 tablespoon butter and remaining garlic in a medium saucepan over
medium heat, swirling pan occasionally, until butter turns
caramel-brown and smells nutty, about 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and
remaining ½ teaspoon paprika, whisk to combine, and cook until paste
begins to caramelize, about 30 seconds. Add ¾ cup water and whisk until
smooth; simmer until mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove
from heat.
Heat
a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high. Melt 1 tablespoon butter
and cook buns, cut side down, until cut sides are golden-brown, about 2
minutes (you may need to do this in 2 batches, using additional butter
if needed). Using a brush, generously brush cut side of buns with tomato
sauce.
Transfer buns to a 13 x 9″ glass baking pan.
Add
oil to the skillet and increase heat to high; heat until oil begins to
smoke. Season patties on both sides with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to
medium and cook burgers until lightly charred on the bottom, 2–3
minutes. Flip and cook to desired doneness, 2-3 minutes for medium-rare.
Transfer
burgers to the pan with sauce and coat burgers in sauce. Transfer
burgers to bun bottoms and top with top bun. Brush the top of bun with
sauce. Cover the pan with foil, transfer to the oven, and bake for 5
minutes. Carefully remove foil and serve immediately.
I think everyone has seen this recipe floating around. It comes from Kirbie Cravings. It is a very quick and easy recipe to throw together, and the results are quite a tasty roll, albeit a bit heavier than a usual roll.
The family all enjoyed it, I did too but I am low carb so it's not something that I will be having a lot, but for a quick bread roll, it is definitely a recipe I'll keep on hand.
Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, add flour and
yogurt. Stir with a spatula just until all the flour is fully
incorporated and a dough forms. Your dough will be quite sticky. Be
careful not to overmix. The more you mix, the stickier your dough will
be. Divide dough evenly into 9 pieces. Lightly
wet your hands and grab one of the dough pieces. Roll it between your
hands until it forms a ball (it's okay if it has cracks, you just want
to make sure it is round) and then place it onto the prepared baking
sheet. Repeat with remaining dough (wash your hands clean and rewet for
each one), spacing dough balls 2 inches apart. Place rolls into oven and bake for about 25 minutes or until rolls are done.
Notes: If you don't have self-rising flour, you can make your own by whisking
together 2 cups all purpose flour + 3 tsp baking powder + 1/2 tsp salt.
It's been a while since I've added a Menu plan Monday, and I wasn't planning on doing it again, really, but just felt like it today, so thought I would bring it back and hopefully stick with it. It helps me have a place to keep my meal plans on hand.
Hope you enjoy a peek into our meals over the next week!
MENU PLAN October 21 - 28, 2024
Monday 21st Breakfast: Low Carb Banana Pancake Lunch: Tuna Salad Dinner: Sage and Kale Stuffed Spaghetti Squash Tuesday 22nd Breakfast: Oatmeal, Coffee Lunch: Vegetable Soup Dinner:Cabbage Roll Casserole, Salad
Since I've been on a low carb diet, I have tried to find recipes that I can make that are not only easy but delicious, and will take away my cravings for those carb loaded meals, that I used to love.
Pizza is one of those. I do love a good pizza, but I really don't want all the carbs.
This recipe is just 4 ingredients, faster and easier to make than normal pizza and it is delicious.
1 1/2cupsshredded mozzarella cheese(plus more for topping)
2 tbspcream cheese
3/4cupalmond flour
1egg(beaten)
sauce & pizza toppings of your choice
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
In a large bowl, microwave the cream cheese and mozzarella together for 90 seconds, stirring half way through.
Stir
in the almond flour and beaten egg to combine (if your dough appears to
be too sticky, add in a little more almond flour). Knead with your
hands until a dough forms.
Place
the dough in between two large pieces of parchment paper and roll the
dough out into a 10" circle, or until it's about 1/3 inch thick. (*See
tips in the recipe notes below for keeping the dough from sticking to
the paper).
Remove
the top piece of parchment paper, and place the bottom sheet with the
dough on it onto a pizza pan or upside down sheet pan.
Use a fork to pierce lots of holes throughout the dough to help it cook evenly and prevent bubbling.
Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly golden brown.
Remove from the oven and top it with sauce, cheese, and the toppings of your choice.
Bake for an additional 5-10 minutes. Gobble up. :-)
Hello everyone, I know it's been a long time. The last recipe I added to this blog was back in November of 2023. My word, seems like forever ago.
If you follow me on my main blog, you will know that in January, after routine blood work, I was told my Triglycerides were slightly elevated and I needed to make a few changes to my diet. I've never been one to eat a really bad diet to begin with, but certainly had to make quite a few changes, mainly ditching all the junk, sweets, sodas and snacks and embracing a more healthier way of life.
I had already been looking into the Mediterranean diet and had made a few dishes, but after my doctor suggested the same diet to me, I just dived right in.
My meals now revolve around a lot more fish and chicken, minimum red meat. Lots of veggies and fruits, quinoa, lentils, chickpeas and wholewheat pasta and rice. Minimal potatoes and when I do have those, they are either red skinned which are healthier, or sweet potatoes, but even then, I have a few pieces and that's all.
I have lost 35 pounds since February and am in the best shape I've been in since my twenties. My goal is to maintain this healthier way of life, but not give up everything yummy completely. I still have a sweet treat once in a while, maybe once a month if that.
But, I want to start sharing some of the meals I've been having, here on the blog, not just to help others achieve a healthier way of life, but also as a record for me to have for the future. Hope you enjoy!
Today's recipe is one of my husband and son's favorites lately, well, and mine too. This spicy cucumber salad is so refreshing with just the right amount of heat. It's delicious. The recipe comes from Recipe Tin Eats, she has amazing recipes so be sure to check out her website.
4cucumbers(~20cm/8", scale up/down for shorter/longer, Note 1)
3/4tspcooking/kosher salt
1eschalot/French onion, halved then very thinly sliced (US: shallot) (Note 2)
1cupgreen onion, green part only finely sliced (1 large, 2 small stems)
2tbsp+chilli crisp(crispy chilli oil) - Laoganma is my fave (Note 3)
2tspwhite seame seeds, toasted (save some for topping)
Dressing:
1 1/2tbsprice vinegar(sub any clear vinegar)
2tspsoy sauce, all-purpose or light (Note 4)
2tspsesame oil, toasted (ie brown, not yellow)
Instructions
Smash & salt cucumbers
Smash - Hit
cucumbers with a meat mallet, rolling pin or similar to make the sides
burst open. Cut in half lengthwise then into 2.5cm/1" pieces.
Salt 30 min - Place
in a bowl, toss with salt. Set aside for 30 minutes to draw out water
(Note 5). Drain/strain and discard salty water, leave cucumbers in same
bowl.
Salad
Whisk Dressing in a bowl.
CHECK spiciness of your chilli crisp - they vary by brand. If using Laoganma, stick with recipe, else adjust to taste.
Toss - Put
green onion, eschalots, sesame seeds, dressing and chilli crisp in with
the cucumbers. Toss until eschalots go floppy - ~30 seconds.
Serve, sprinkled with extra sesame seeds and dollops of chilli crisp if you dare!
Note: Water
continues to come out of cucumbers so after few hours/next day, you'll
have a lot more dressing but not as intense flavoured. So eat/serve with
spoon to get plenty of dressing in every bite!
I love easy recipes, the kind that take a only a few ingredients and are easy to remember.
This yogurt cake is so easy to make and so delicious. It just uses a yogurt cup for the measurements, so you don't even have to dirty your measuring cups. Even better right?
The versatility of the cake is that you can make a simple vanilla cake, you can make chocolate, or even lemon, which I did last week, and was immediately devoured by my lemon loving boys here at home.
So, without any further ado, let's bake.....
Chocolate Yogurt Cake
Ingredients:
1 plain yogurt 170 gr, cup (6 oz)
Now using the same cup, we measure the remaining ingredients:
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
3 cups of all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 eggs
Chocolate chips
Directions:
In a bowl, beat the eggs with the yogurt using a whisk, then add in the oil and sugar. Whisk until well combined. Add in the cocoa powder and mix.
Add the flour, a little at a time, sifting while adding. Lastly, add in the baking powder and mix gently just until combined, don't over mix the baking powder or it may make the cake dense.
Grease the cake pan with butter and cocoa powder, then transfer the cake mix to the pan. At this point, you can pour some chocolate chips over the batter, but it's optional. I like to, just to make it even more chocolaty.
Bake for 40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.
Let cool completely then invert onto cake dish. You can leave the cake as is, and make a simple chocolate frosting to cover the top, or you can cut the cake in half, and use your favorite filling.
For simplicity purposes, I just used some whipped chocolate frosting, that I already had on hand.
Do
you know what Kibbeh even is? I didn't for a long time, but a couple
months ago, I started looking more into Mediterranean cooking, and found
a whole new world of delicious recipes. Kibbeh is one of them, and
funny enough, it is quite popular in Brazil too.
The
traditional Kibbeh is usually made into balls and fried. I am all
about the traditional most common way, but I also love trying the
variations to the more popular recipes, from each country.
Ok
so, first of all Kibbeh is considered to be a national dish from
Lebanon. It's basically a combination of ground meat, bulgur wheat and
spices, and it is absolutely delicious and quite easy to make.
One
thing to keep in mind, there are different types of Bulgur Wheat, you
want to use the fine, although I could only get some medium coarse which
works well too, it just takes a bit longer to soak.
Let me show you....
Oven Kibbeh
Ingredients:
2 cups of bulgur cracked wheat
2 cups of hot water
2 pounds ground beef
1 onion, finely diced
Parsley and Cilantro
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Garlic to taste
Juice from 1 lemon
Sumac, to taste (Sumac has become one of my favorite spices)
In
a big bowl add the bulgur wheat, pour over the hot water. Cover with
plastic wrap and let it soak for about an hour. Should be long enough
to hydrate the wheat.
After
the hour has passed, give the wheat a good stir to loosen it. To the
same bowl, add the meat, onion, parsley and cilantro to taste, butter,
salt and pepper, garlic, lemon juice, sumac and aleppo pepper. Mix
well.
Drizzle
a little olive oil in a baking dish, I used a 13x9 inch. Take half of
the kibbeh meat mixture and pat down into the dish. Next, cover the
mixture with some cream cheese, and then shredded mozzarella. Take the
remaining kibbeh and pat down on top of the cheese. (I find it
easier to grab handfuls of the meat mixture, at a time, and then pat it
down on the palm of my hand, then place it on top of the cheese, that
way it's not pulling off the cheese.)
Take
a knife or dough scraper, and make a diamond pattern on top. I just
make diagonal lines one way, then come back the other way. You don't
have to go all the way down to the bottom of the dish, you basically
just want a small dent to drizzle on more olive oil.
Once
done, drizzle some olive oil across every line, then bake in a 375 F,
for about 35 minutes. Keep an eye on it, if you overcook it, the kibbeh
will dry out. I just check after 25 minutes, and if there's a lot of
liquid in the pan, I pour it out and then pop it back in the oven for
the last 5 minutes.
I have recently been on a journey, to find and try different recipes from all over the world. My background is quite diverse, I am Portuguese, born in Africa, my greatgrandparents on my father's side were Brazilian, the ones on my mother's side were all from Portugal, Madeira and Azores. We have French ancestors too.
But having lived in South Africa my entire childhood, also opened up my palate to African food. So I am quite blessed to enjoy so many different cultures with so many wonderful recipes.
Loving food the way I do, also means that I am very much interested in trying dishes from all over the world, and sometimes, something simple as watching a series or movie from a different country, and seeing the food they're eating, is enough to make me want to try.
I have recently (over the past few months), become completely obsessed with Turkish shows. So of course, seeing what they eat, has peeked my curiosity into the food they eat. The whole Mediterranean cuisine itself is very appealing to me, Fresh ingredients, healthy food, lots of vegetables, delicious street food, and the flatbreads? Yum!!!
So today, I am bringing the first of many recipes I've been trying, and loving recently.
The Turkish Flatbread Pizza, known as Pide.
The Pide originated in the city of
Samsun, in the Turkish Black Sea region, and has been a favorite since
1725. The flatbread is shaped into a boat, or a flat American football,
if that helps you visualize it, then filled with a variety of delicious fillings, from beef, to cheese, to spinach....yum!
This
was my first attempt at making these, so although they were absolutely
delicious, I wasn't thrilled with the final look. It takes a bit of
practice to make sure the Pide doesn't open up, and stays flat around
the edges.
Anyway, I hope you will enjoy this recipe, it is a great alternative to your usual Friday night pizza.
The
recipe I'm sharing with you, is from one of my favorite Turkish channels on Youtube. I just love Aysenur, she is such a sweet lady and
shares so many wonderful recipes. Be sure to give her a follow.
25 gr. fresh yeast or 1 tbsp active dry yeast (use dry yeast according to packet details)
1 tbsp sugar
about 5 to 5+1/2 cups bread or all-purpose flour
2 tsp salt
PIDE TOPPINGS: (You can adjust the amount depending on which pide you want more)
MINCED MEAT TOPPING (This is enough for about 8 pides)
1 medium-size onion
2 sweet green peppers
1 medium-size red capia pepper
1 tomato
2 cloves of garlic
250gr. ground beef (%30 fat would be ideal if you can get it)
1 tsp salt and ground black pepper
if the meat doesn’t have much fat add 3-4 tbsp olive oil
SPINACH TOPPING/ FILLING (for 3 pide)
1 small onion
two handfuls of fresh washed and pat dried spinach
1/2 tsp salt and ground black pepper
CHEESE TOPPING (use as much as pide you want) Turkish white cheese (crumbled) shredded kashar or mozzarella cheese
How to make Turkish Pide
Prepare the simple yeast dough:
In a mixing bowl add lukewarm water, yeast, sugar. Disolve the
yeast or use according to package. Add most of the flour amount along
with salt and knead adding more flour if needed until it is smooth and
elastic.
Cover and let it rise until almost doubled in size
Toppings:
Traditionally we use a special knife to chop veggies and minced meat
together. But it is easier to make it in a food processor. You can
choose whichever you like.
For minced meat topping: In
a big size food processor process onion, red and green pepper until it
is chopped in small cubes. Add peeled tomato, salt, black pepper, red
pepper and tomato pastes and minced meat. Process pulsing until
everything is chopped and mixed well. If the minced meat doesnt contain
much fat you can drizzle a little bit olive oil.
For spinach filling:
Proccess onion with washed and dry spinach leaves, salt and pepper
pulsing until everything is chopped (don’t make it very small) While
fill it you can alternately add crumbled Turkish white cheese (or feta)
or kashar, mozarella cheese (Check the video)
Cheese and Sujuk topping: (use as much as pide you want) Turkish white cheese (crumbled) shredded kashar or mozzarella cheese
Shaping The Pide:
Rolling Turkish pide dough
Classic Open Pide Shape (Açık pide)
Heat the oven to highest setting (about 230 to 250C). Cut the
risen dough into 12 pieces and shape them round. Cover the ones you
don’t use with a damp clean kitchen towel or freezer bag so they don’t
get dry.
Roll
out one piece in a lightly floured surface into a oblong shape that can
fit to your baking try. Place then to the try that is lined with baking
paper. Add generaously from the minced meat filling (about two full
tbsp) on top leaving 1cm space in sides. Spread evenly with back of a
spoon or your hand.
Fold the sides of the pides inside and press them well.
Pinch
the ends and seal. Hold from the corners and strech a bit more as far
as it can fit to your tray and place it back. Brush the sides with egg
yolk and bake until sides and bottom has nice golden color.
