woensdag 30 april 2014

RECIPE OF THE WEEK: spicy lentils & spinach pancakes































It is time for a new recipe to share! Not only do I try to post one recipe every week but I also try to cook something new every week. So this recipe is one I want to share with you all for this week :). It takes some time to prepare but it really is so tasty! Actually these are two different recipes, so don't be scared of all the ingredients. It's worth the time! In the 'how to' section below I'll describe both of the recipes at the same time so you'll be finished with both at the same time :). I got this book by Yotam Ottolenghi for my birthday last December and the recipes are really great and special! 






                                                         Serves about 2-4 persons

Ingredients (for the lentils)                                                    Ingredients (for the pancakes)
∆ 200 gr. red lentils                                                               ∆ 250 gr. frozen spinach
∆ 350 cl. water                                                                     ∆ 110 self raising flour 
∆ 50 gr. of fresh coriander                                                      ∆ 1 tbsp baking powder 
∆ 1 small onion, peeled and sliced                                          ∆ 1 egg and 1 egg white
∆ 40 gr. peeled fresh ginger                                                   ∆ 50 gr. melted vegetable butter
∆ 3 gloves of garlic                                                                ∆ 1 tsp ground cumin
∆ 1 mild green chili pepper                                                    ∆ 0,5 tsp salt
∆ 1,5 tsp mustard seeds                                                         ∆ 150 cl. soy milk
∆ 4 tbsp oil                                                                            ∆ 6 spring onions (sliced)
∆ 1,5 tsp ground coriander                                                     ∆ 2 fresh green (or red) chili's
∆ 1 tsp ground cumin                                                             ∆ 100 gr. vegetable margarine
∆ 0,5 tsp turmeric                                                                  ∆ 1,5 tbsp lime juice (+zest of 1 lime)
∆ 0,25 tsp ground paprika                                                      ∆ some crushed sea salt
∆ about 10 curry leaves                                                         ∆ 1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
∆ 300 gr. chopped tomatoes (fresh or canned)                        ∆ 1 glove of garlic (chopped)
∆ 2 tsp sugar                                                                         ∆ 0,5 tsp chili flakes
∆ 0,25 tsp fenugreek (optional)
∆ 150 gr. soy yoghurt
∆ 75 gr. cucumber finely chopped 
∆ 1,5 tbsp  olive oil
∆ 70 gr. vegetable butter 
∆ 1,5 tbsp lime juice
∆ some crushed sea salt

How to
Rinse the lentils and place them in a bowl and add the 350 cl water. Leave it there for about 30 minutes. Heat the frozen spinach and when all the ice is gone let it sit in a sieve to cool down. Prepare the lime butter (green section in the pancake list) for the pancakes by mixing the margarine with the lime juice, zest, salt, coriander, garlic and chili flakes. Put the butter in a bowl and cover with plastic. Keep in the fridge until use. Now back to the lentils, cut the coriander in half (one half should be leaves, the other half should be the stalks). Put the stalk together with the onion, sliced ginger, chopped garlic and chopped chili in the food processor and pulse them (don't make a puree). *if you don't have a food processor you can really finely chop everything and mix together. Chop the leaves of the coriander and set aside. 
Put the mustard seeds in a pan and heat them up. When they're jumping they are done, lower the heat and add the onion-ginger-chili-garlic mixture. Also add the 4 tbsp of oil. fry everything in the pan on a low heat for approx. 10 minutes. In the mean time mix the dry spices (the coriander, cumin, turmeric, paprika and curry leaves) and add them to the mixture in the pan. Smother everything for about 5 minutes. Then add the lentils (with the water), tomatoes, sugar, *fenugreek and some salt. Put the lid on the pan and let it boil for approx. 30 minutes.
In the mean time prepare the yoghurt mixture by mixing the soy yoghurt, olive oil, salt and cucumber. 
And back to the pancakes :). Melt the butter. Press all the water from the spinach. Mix the flour, baking powder, egg (not the extra egg white), melted butter, salt, cumin and soy milk in a large bowl. Make a smooth mixture. Use a fork to stir in the spring onions, chili and spinach. Use another bowl and beat the egg white until it's firm. Gently mix the batter and egg white and bake them as regular American pancakes (small ones). They are done when they're golden-green. Stack some pancakes and add some lime butter on top. 
To finish the lentils, stir in the 70 gr. of vegetable butter, lime juice and chopped coriander. Maybe it needs a bit more salt. Serve the lentils in a bowl and add some yoghurt mixture in the middle. Enjoy!!!

dinsdag 22 april 2014

a message to Doesburg and Rotterdam





























Tadadadadadam: Today's sunny outgoing mail goes to Rinske and Lotte!

donderdag 17 april 2014

a message from Singapore






























This bright yellow package came all the way from Singapore. It was filled with all these nice pieces of fabric, some tea and a sweet long letter! Thank you Corey

woensdag 16 april 2014

hello coffee!





























On this beautiful sunny day I met with my dear friend Suus for a coffee and something sweet. Spirit is a really nice restaurant that sells all kinds of organic and vegan foods. A good place to give in to your cravings :)

dinsdag 15 april 2014

happy mailbox: from Doesburg, Korea and Breda































3 Letters in one day :), happy! Thanks Rinske, Anne and Hanna!

zaterdag 12 april 2014

bachelorette


































Today it was time to fool my friend Karen and get her to come with me to the market and back home in the morning. When we came home all her lady friends were waiting for her and surprised her! It was a fantastic day filled with love, friendship, a city marathon-tour, dinner and a cocktail workshop. Now only 1.5 month untill the wedding!

dinsdag 8 april 2014

RECIPE OF THE WEEK: home-made chickpea burgers






























I decided to share another passion of mine with you all: Cooking. How nice would it be to share one recipe each week?! I thought very ;). This evening we planned to eat something else but when I got home from work I craved for fries and a burger! Maybe you all recognize the awful feeling of fat everywhere when you've finished your snacks.. So I decided to make an alternative version instead. We roasted some potatoes in the oven with garlic, rosemary and sea salt. For the burgers I used a recipe from this great cook book from Mark Bittman. The book is all about basic vegetarian recipes and therefore a bit boring on the eye but the recipes are wonderful. 
For about 6/7 burgers, you can make them beforehand and keep them in the fridge

Ingredients
∆ 400 gr. chickpeas (ready to eat)
∆ 1 onion (in quarters)
∆ 1 clove of garlic
∆ about 40 gr. oatmeal
∆ bread crumbs 
∆ 1 table spoon of dried chili
∆ about 15 gr of fresh coriander 
∆ 1 table spoon of lemon zest
∆ a pinch of lemon juice
∆ 1 egg (if you're a vegan replace the egg for some mashed potatoes)
∆ a dash of oil and some salt and pepper

Extra
∆ a few leaves of lettuce
∆ 1 large onion slices in rings and baked
∆ 2 sliced tomatoes mixed up with some coriander, salt/pepper and olive oil

How to
Puree the beans with the onion, garlic, chili, coriander, oatmeal, lemon (juice and zest), salt/pepper and the egg. The mixture doesn't need to be a smooth puree though. If the mixture is a bit dry please add some good olive oil. The mixture should not be too wet. Leave it for a few minutes. 
Lay down some parchment paper and put the bread crumbs in a plate. Form about 6 or 7 burgers from the mixture and cover them with bread crumbs. You can easily make these burger beforehand and keep them in the fridge. But when you're ready, you can heat up a frying pan and put in some olive oil. Bake the burgers on both sides until they are colored well. 
Because I wanted to make a healthy version of a burger (and fries) I chose to leave the bread out. You can replace the bread (for the burger) with some lettuce and you can add the things you like. In the 'extra' section I wrote down what I'd put on mine. Enjoy!!!

vrijdag 4 april 2014

our trip to Terschelling



























































Biking, walking, relaxing, reading, cooking and most of all, enjoying the nature and the silence! Love it!