Beef Noodles with Teriyaki sauce

I guess everyone has already gone through the big dramatic question - 'What to make for dinner?' Sometimes, as a mere mortal, I just lack inspiration. I might also be extra tired and feel I don't have enough good ingredients to prepare a tasteful and healthy meal. A quick, colorful and delicious wok can do wonders and save your dinner plans. Use the ingredients you find, add some veggies and be creative! It's an addictive way of preparing healthy, quick and incredibly yummy dinners for the ones that, like me, do have some hectic weeks here and there. 

1 pack of egg noodles - if not, 2 packs of common noodles. 

2 steaks, sliced in strips 

1 red capsicum, diced

1 full hand of green beans, chopped

2 carrots, in slices

1 can of baby corn, halved

1 onion, in thick slices

2 cloves of garlic

Chilli

Sauce

¼ cup sweet Japanese Rice wine - If not, white vinegar

¼ cup soy sauce

2 tablespoons light brown sugar or 1 tbs of brown sugar and 1 tbs of honey

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

splash of sesame oil 

First, warm your wok well, in high heat. When it is warm enough, add a splash of oil and fry the chopped chilli (or any other pepper of your preference), some of the grated ginger and the sliced beef. When it starts getting dry, you may want to add a few drops of lemon juice. It gives a delicious zing in the final flavor. When the meat gets completely fried (don't let it burn), transfer it to a bowl and put aside. Using the same wok, add some more oil and stir fry quickly all the vegetables, just until they get that expected crunchiness. Put them in another bowl and reserve. Meanwhile, cook the noodles according the instructions on the pack and, a bit before time, remove them from the boiling water and rinse them with cold water. That will prevent them from cooking further and getting soggy. Back to the wok, add another splash of oil, the rest of the grated ginger, the soy sauce, the rice vinegar, the sugar and the honey. Let it boil quickly, but watch out so it does not burn. When you achieve the caramel consistency you desire in the sauce, add the reserved meat, the reserved vegetables and, finally, the noodles, tossing it quickly just so it gets warm enough. Sprinkle some chopped spring onions and cilantro leaves on top and garnish with some toasted sesame seeds or salted peanuts.

Enjoy!

Classic brownies

I am not a big fan of brownies. I can eat them, but I definitely do not love them. OK, they can taste yummy, but if baked for too long (which is usually the case in Cafès and bakeries), they just taste and look like a disastrous chocolate cake attempt.
The funny thing is: sometimes I get these strange desires of trying to cook or bake something that is on my 'low priority list' just to challenge myself. And - HURRAY!- that is exactly why these little babes have earned their place on my blog. I might be bragging a little, but if you are a chocoholic like me, give these brownies a try and enjoy them with a nice cup of latte.
Bliss, pure chocolate bliss. 


Classic Brownies
from here. 

70g unsalted butter
112g dark chocolate in chunks, 56% cocoa
56g dark chocolate in chunks, 70% cocoa
150g sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
½ teaspoon instant espresso powder (optional)
¼ - ½ teaspoon salt
47g all purpose flour
115g chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 160ºC and line a 20cm square baking pan with foil, butter the foil and place the pan on a baking tray. I used a loaf pan and it worked just fine. Put the butter in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, top with the chocolates and stir occasionally until the ingredients are just melted - watch out so the butter doesn't separate from the mixture. Remove the bowl from the pan of water. Stir in the sugar with a whisk, but don't stress if it gets a little grainy. Whisk in the eggs, one by one. Add the vanilla and whisk the other ingredients vigorously . Stir gently the espresso, salt and flour; don't over stir. Switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the chopped walnuts. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top with the spatula.
Bake the brownies for 30 to 33 minutes or until the top is dull and a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool the brownies for room temperature. When completely cool, turn the brownies out onto a rack, peel away the foil and invert onto a cutting board – cut into 16 squares. Serve them alone or with some vanilla ice cream and decorate with some raspberries. Yum!
Makes 16

Old-fashioned Chicken Fricassée with Wine-flavored Cream Sauce, Onions and Mushrooms

When I first watched Julie&Julia, I had the impression that the crazy desire I had to spend many nights awake cooking would eventually fade away. The thing is: the more I watched it, the more I felt like having a lot of money. Money enough to quit working and cook to perfection. Money enough to travel around the world and learn how to cook from the best chefs. Money enough to follow a long lost dream.. All that amount of money was definitely something I did not have, but luckily I had just enough to order Julia Child's amazing book and all I can say is WOW! It's a must have if you are a foodie like me. You will need some ahead planning and time to execute the very detailed  (and full of tips) recipes, but the results are definitely worth the effort. 

Invite some friends over, serve a chilled fairly full-bodied white Burgundy, Côtes du Rhône or Graves and prepare this dish that, with such fancy name, Fricassée de Poulet à L'Ancienne, will make you feel a bit more French - even if just for some hours.. 

For 4-6 people

Preliminary cooking in butter

1120 to 1320 grams of cut up frying chicken

1 thinly sliced onion, carrot and celery stalk

55 grams of butter

Adding the flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp white pepper

55 grams flour

710 ml boiling white chicken stock or chicken bouillon

290 ml of dry white wine or 140 ml of dry white vermouth

A small herb bouquet: (2 parsley sprigs, 1/3 bay leaf and 1/8 of thyme tied in a washed cheesecloth)

Onion and mushroom garniture

16-20 braised onions

220 grams of fresh mushrooms stewed in butter, lemon juice and water

The Sauce

2 egg yolks

140 ml of cream

Salt and white pepper

Drops of lemon juice

Pinch of nutmeg

Dry the ingredients throughly in a cloth. In a heavy casserole, cook the vegetables slowly in the butter for about 5 minutes or until they are almost tender, but not browned. Push them to one side. Raise the heat slightly and add the chicken. Turn it every minute for 3 or 4 minutes until the meat has stiffened slightly, without coloring more than a light gold yellow. Lower heat, cover and cook very slowly for 10 minutes, turning the chicken once. It should swell slightly, stiffen more, but not deepen in color. 

Sprinkle salt, pepper and flour on all sides of the chicken, turning and rolling each piece to coat the flour with the cooking butter. Cover and continue cooking slowly for 4 minutes, turning it once. 

Remove from heat and pour in the boiling liquid, shaking casserole to blend the liquid and the flour. Add the wine, the herb bouquet and more stock, so that the liquid just covers the chicken. Bring to simmering point. Taste for seasoning and add salt if necessary. Cover and maintain at a slow simmer for 25 to 30 minutes. While the chicken is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Add their cooking juices to the chicken cooking sauce in the next step. When done, remove the chicken to a side dish. 

Oignons glacés à blanc (White-braised onions - Glazed onions)

18-24 peeled onions about 1 inch in diameter

140 ml white stock, chicken broth, dry white wine or water

30 grams butter

Salt and pepper to taste

A small herb bouquet: (2 parsley sprigs, 1/3 bay leaf and 1/8 of thyme tied in a washed cheesecloth)

Place the onions in the saucepan with the liquid, butter, seasoning and herb bouquet. Cover and simmer very slowly, rolling the onions in the saucepan from time to time, for 40 to 50 minutes. The onions should not color, but should perfectly tender and retain their shape. If all the liquid evaporates during the cooking, add more. Remove herb bouquet. (It may be cooked several hours in advance and reheated).

Champignons à blanc (Stewed mushrooms)

115 grams of fresh mushrooms

71 ml water

1/8 tsp salt

1/2 tbs lemon juice (which helps keep mushrooms whie)

15 grams of butter

Trim and wash and cut the mushrooms. Bring the water, salt, lemon juice and butter to boil in the saucepan. Add the mushrooms and toss to cover them with the liquid. Cover and boil moderately fast, tossing frequently, for 5 minutes. Put aside until ready to use. 

The sauce - Simmer the cooking liquid in the casserole for 2 to 3 minutes, skimming off fat. Then raise heat and boil rapidly, stirring frequently, until the sauce reduces and thickens enough to coat a spoon well. Correct seasoning. You should have 420 ml. Blend the egg yolks and cream in a mixing bowl with a wire whisk. Continue beating and add the hot sauce by small tablespoonfuls until about 280 ml has been added. Beat in the rest of the sauce in a thin stream. Pour the sauce back in the casserole, set over moderately high heat and, stirring constantly, reach all over the bottom and sides of the casserole, until the sauce comes to boil. Boil for 1 minute, stirring. Correct seasoning, add drops of lemon juice to taste and, finally, a pinch of nutmeg. Strain the sauce through a fine sieve. Arrange the chicken, the onion and mushroom garniture in the casserole. Pour the sauce over it, remove from heat and just before serving, tilt casserole, add enrichment butter and baste the chicken with the sauce until the butter has absorbed into it. Serve with steamed rice or risotto, buttered peas or asparagus as a garnish and decorate with sprigs of fresh parsley. As Julia Child would graciously say: Bon appetit! 

Served with risotto.

Passion fruit jelly panna cotta

Despite my absolute LOVE for chocolate, I have to say this has a been a quite poor Easter for me. Finding chocolate Easter eggs is almost an impossible mission in Norway. And, when found, they cost more that what my love and addiction can afford. Making them is a distant dream too, once I don't have a stone that is cold enough to work with the chocolate. Anyways, I was planning to bake loads of Easter recipes and chocolaty desserts, but with the stores closed most of the time, my Easter holidays have been dedicated to a very well deserved and long rest. After all, who needs to hurry with chocolate recipes during Easter when you have absolutely the WHOLE year to enjoy one of the best flavors on Earth?

The naked truth!

Totally far from chocolate, but equally yummy, this panna cotta recipe was quite easy to make and definitely a must do on the (hopefully) warmer days to come. From Norway, Happy Easter to you all!

From here.

Serves 6

Jelly

2 tablespoons of water

1 tablespoon gelatin powder

4 passion fruit

112 g of caster sugar

300 ml of extra water

Panna cotta

2 tablespoons water

2 teaspoons gelatin powder

480 ml of single cream

47 g of icing sugar

1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

For the jelly, put the water in a bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over. Wait for about 5 minutes (or until the gelatin is absorbed by the water). Through a fine sieve, strain the passion fruit pulp. You will need around 60 ml. In a saucepan, place the sugar, juice and extra water over medium heat and stir until sugar is dissolved. Bring to boil and then simmer for 3 minutes. Add the gelatin mixture and cook, always stirring, for about 2 minutes. Pass this mixture through a sieve and divide between six cups or mold glasses (120 ml capacity). In case you want to unmold the dessert, remember to lightly grease the molds with neutral vegetable oil. Refrigerate for about 5 hours. 

For the panna cotta, place the water in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over it. After 5 minutes, the gelatin should be absorbed by the water. Over medium heat, place the cream, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds to boil. Stir here and there, but allow the cream to boil. Add the gelatin and cook for about one minute, stirring until the gelatin is dissolved. Allow this mixture to cool to room temperature before pouring over the already firm passion fruit jelly. Refrigerate for another 4-5 hours. Before serving, use some of the passion fruit seeds for decoration on the unmolded panna cotta. If you plan to keep the panna cotta in the molds, you can use a little less gelatin powder on the creamy part - that it will make it taste even more divine! 

Lemon Cloud Tea Cookies

For the ones that, like me, love lemon and baking, an easy peasy recipe. Adapted from here.

Cup - 240 ml

210 g all purpose flour

3/4 cup cornstarch

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

113 g softened unsalted butter

140 g confectioner's sugar

2 large eggs

1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped

5-6 teaspoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 150°C. Prepare two baking trays with baking paper. In a bowl, sift the salt, cornstarch, flour and baking powder and set the mixture aside. Using an electric mixer, combine the butter and the confectioners' sugar, beating well on low speed. Continue beating for about 2 minutes in medium speed until the mixture becomes light. One by one, beat in the eggs. Don't worry if your batter looks spoiled. It's the way it's supposed to look. Add both the lemon juice and the zest. While adding the flour mixture, remember to decrease the speed on your mixer to low. Using your spatula, give the dough a few good turns to bring it all together. Use a teaspoon and make tiny dough balls on the already prepared trays. If you place them about 5 cm apart from each other, you should be fine. With a floured fork, press a crisscross design on the top of each dough mound. Bake the cookies for about 20 minutes and make your favorite tea before enjoying easy to make, fresh and yet delicious cookies. 

Enjoy!

Italian pizza dough and sauce

After some of my friends told me that some of the recipes that are on the blog look yummy, but a bit too difficult to make, I promised I would take into consideration all my friends with little time, little kids or little patience in some (just some) of the posts. This pizza is a good example of something that does look a bit complicated, but despite the time you have to set aside for the dough and sauce preparation, it is definitely worth it. For this recipe I have used, for the second time, a pizza stone. And I must say I simply adore mine. It does deliver what it promises: a thin and crispy dough. I am on a 'done by myself' phase right now too- I made the sauce from scratch and, once again, yum!!! Use your imagination on the topping and get ready for an easy and very, very, very delicious meal. 

Italian Pizza dough

For 4 pizzas (32 cm)

Recipe from here.

600 ml lukewarm water

2 teaspoons of dry active yeast

1 teaspoon of dried basil

1 teaspoon of dried thyme

1 teaspoon of dried rosemary

1 teaspoon  salt

2 teaspoons sugar

200 grams semolina flour

600 grams pizza flour (tipo 00)

Pour the semolina flour in a big bowl. Add the yeast, the spices, the salt and sugar and mix everything. Stir in the water and watch out for its temperature. Add the pizza flour little by little until you get the correct consistency. Knead the dough until it gets elastic and soft and set it aside to rise for about 30 minutes or until it rises to almost double the initial size. Warm the stone in the oven while the dough rises. (270°C)

Italian homemade sauce

Fresh tomatoes

Fresh spices of your preference (I used chives and parsley)

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt & pepper

Sugar

1 fresh chili 

2 garlic cloves

The stems from the tomatoes (their function is to add a delicious flavor to the sauce, but they shouldn't be eaten)

With a sharp knife, cut a 'cross' on the tomatoes, where the stems sit. Place the tomatoes under boiling water for about 3 minutes. Rinse them with cold water and skin one by one. Cut the tomatoes according to your preference. I decide to go for a chunkier version this time. In a thick pan, fry the garlic with the chili in extra virgin olive oil and add the tomato pieces, salt, pepper and place the stem from the tomatoes on the top of the sauce. After some minutes cooking, taste the sauce and add more salt or pepper if needed and some sugar, in order to avoid the acidity that comes from tomatoes. The sauce should cook in low-medium heat until it reaches the consistency you want. The longer it cooks, the thicker the sauce will be. Stir it once in a while and don't forget to taste to make sure all the flavors are developing as they should. Remove the tomato stem when the sauce is done. 

Open the dough and fold the borders slightly. Spread the sauce, the mozzarella and use your imagination on your favorite topping . Today's toppings were the traditional Margherita and chicken with fresh mushrooms and shallots. After you prepare your pizza, bake it for 6-8 minutes. 

Margherita

Mozzarella cheese

Very good quality ripe sliced tomatoes

Oregano

Fresh basil leaves (when serving)

Chicken with mushrooms and shallots

Mozzarella cheese

Cooked shredded chicken

Corn

Thin slices of fresh mushroom

Black olives

Sliced shallots

Oregano

Prepare the ingredients a bit ahead and enjoy an amazing and easy to make meal on the company of a good glass of wine, a good movie and your better half. Life is very good indeed!

A flavor from the countryside. 

Tradition and flavor

Vanilla cupcakes with pistachio praline whipped icing

I have finally managed to get back to my abandoned blog. Even though I have been cooking, I just haven't found the time to take decent pictures and post the recipes. Actually, after last week (which I mean wasn't a good week for me to cook at all), my will to try new recipes out has faded a little bit. Well, well.. That's just life. Sometimes I get happy with my cooking projects, sometimes I don't. And these cupcakes, I must say, were the result of a little project that I intend to try again. Yummy yum! 

Cupcakes
127 g softened unsalted butter
162 g caster sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
2 eggs
185 g all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
120 ml milk
Pistachio praline
75 g unsalted pistachio nuts
100 caster sugar
60 ml water
Whipped icing
145 g caster sugar
3 tablespoons water
generous pinch of cream of tartar
2 egg whites
pinch of salt