"What I Cooked Today" Day 308

Sometimes a girl is broke and has to work with what she has. Which is why today we used leftover coconut rice and and a couple of onions to make dinner. We tried to fry the rice with some egg, but forgot to use salt. Again. The onions were a success, though. After cooking the onions for 15 minutes you remove the inside part, sautée it with some garlic and rosemary, add cream and Parmesan cheese, put all that back inside the onion, wrap around some pancetta, and put it in the oven. Always a winner.

Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson / Happy Days with the Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver

PS: That's me in the background - reading Lonely Planet's South America on a Shoestring and taking notes. Our world trip is only 6 months away!

"What I Cooked Today" Day 307

Today we made köfte. I love köfte because it has so many different levels of flavors. These köfte were made with lamb, pistachios, chili, cumin and a spice that we brought from Istanbul, sumak, which is made from red berries. We also made a salad with mint and red onion soaked in lemon juice, which takes off the sting from the onion and at the same time sweetens it. We added some creme fraiche and parsley and voila: a delicious and surprisingly fast dinner is made! After cooking we ate while watching Part III of The Godfather: the end to this weekend.

Source: Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 306

This weekend has been very quiet so far. Jochem and I have not arranged to meet up with anyone or to do anything, besides doing the weekly groceries. Of course, you can also find me at least once a day on a bike and in various yoga poses, but those activities do not count as plans to me. It's strange how I always want more time to do nothing, but when I have the time, I feel bored. I must be extremely spoiled.

Anyway, as far as cooking goes, Jochem and I decided to make a simple yet delicious pasta dish. You cook some rigatoni, make your own tomato sauce, grab some basil, Parmesan and mozzarella and start filling up an oven dish, lasagna-style. I accidentally used two dried chilis instead of one, so it was way too spicy, but really good nonetheless.



Source: Jamie's Italy by Jamie Oliver

For dessert we made cookies with twice the required amount of cranberries and white chocolate. I also added some leftover dark chocolate for good measure.



Source: Jamie Magazine Issue 14 November/December 2010

Then we proceeded to watch The Godfather Part I and half of Part II. We didn't get our couch potato asses into bed till 4 AM.

"What I Cooked Today" Day 305

Today Jochem and I had our last pieces of moussaka for dinner and carrot cake for dessert, which is nothing worth blogging about at this point. We did, however, stay up till the wee hours of the morning to watch TV and decided to make ourselves a little midnight snack. Jamie calls this sandwich a roast chip butty and it is basically, in our interpretation, a sandwich toasted in butter with mayonaise and French fries tossed in sea salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika and chili. So bad but so good!

Source: Jamie Magazine Issue 15 January 2011

"What I Cooked Today" Day 304

More moussaka! More carrot cake!

Source: Jamie Magazine Issue 15 January 2011 / Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 303

Today we had more moussaka and then Silvana's apple pastries with our homemade piña colada ice cream with roasted coconut shavings and honey for dessert. Bliss!

Source: Jamie Magazine Issue 15 January 2011 / Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 302

Today Jochem and I finally had our first taste of moussaka: grilled eggplant, spicy tomato sauce and creamy béchamel, which is a wonderful combination! For dessert we had Venetian carrot cake!

Source: Jamie Magazine Issue 15 January 2011 / Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 301

Today Mag suddenly showed up to pick me up from work. She came in looking the way she does, screaming at the top of her lungs, creating imbalance everywhere. It was quite the spontaneous meet-up. My colleague let me leave ten minutes early and so we biked to my green grocer's where I bought these beautiful shiitake mushrooms. I used them and a handful of leftover ingredients to make a simple spagetti with white truffel oil accompanied by sautéed mushroom. I made two critical mistakes, however:

(1) I took such a long time to assemble the dish and take a picture (Jochem usually does this part), that the dish was a bit cold when it was ready to be served. So I put it in the microwave, which one really shouldn't do when the sauce is a kind of carbonara sauce, because then said sauce turns into scrambled eggs.

(2) I forgot to put salt and pepper on top off the beautiful mushrooms. Seriously.

Luckily, I have nice friends who eat the entire plate in five minutes and lie about how good it was.

After having watched Mamma Mia!, we went downtown to meet Bic and watch some boys. I didn't get to bed until 1 AM. On a Monday night. While having to work at 9 AM the next day. I love it!

Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 300

Something great happened today. Something impromptu, yet again! Mag and her husband were in Utrecht to visit a friend to finish a carton of red wine (these friends of mine are such impressive red wine drinkers that they have graduated from bottles to cartons worth the equivalent of four bottles). Being spontaneous sometimes means that said friend is not at home, but someplace else. And so they called me to ask whether they could drop by. Then the four of us walked the five minutes to Bic's apartment to convince her to come as well. Though she was in the shower when we rang the bell, she did manage to make it back to our apartment, hair blow-dried and everything.

Luckily, Jochem and I had purchased a ton of food for day 300 of this silly blog. And so we had asparagus two ways: one plate with a French vinaigrette and another with extra virgen olive oil, sea salt, black pepper and Parmesan cheese.



Source: Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver

Then we had a vegetarian tomato curry with coconut rice, of which Roland ate three portions, and which I hope wasn't due to the lack of meat.



Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

For dessert we had the piña colada ice cream that we made yesterday with roasted coconut. I thought that it was a little bit too icy, but still good.



Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson


Happy 300!!!

"What I Cooked Today" Day 299

Today Jochem and I embarked on a crazy cooking frenzy by cooking 4 (!!!) dishes in 1 night! It all started when I decided that I wanted to have Nigella's piña colada ice cream for dessert this weekend. I decided that it would probably be best to make this as early as possible, since the ice cream would need time to freeze. Since we were working ahead already, I thought that it would be good to also make next week's moussakka in advance, since making the sauces takes forever and the dish freezes well, according to Jamie. When we finished all of that, we finally got round to cooking our dinner of that day. First, we made a so-called Venetian carrot cake. Nigella tells me that the Venetians first invented a pastry with carrot (I should have known that all things good originate from Italy), so we couldn't wait to try this alternative cake. It was a really nice cake with a moist texture that was interrupted (if you will) by raisins soaked in rum and toasted pine nuts. We also made some cream to go along with the carrot cake.

Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson



Then, we finally got round to making our main course. We prepared a simple pasta dish with rigatoni, spring onion, garlic, chili, and the star of the night: fresh octopus! The idea is to make fresh calamari rings that mimick the shape of the rigatoni, causing quite the confusion as to which is which. I'm not sure whether we accomplished all that, but with all the white wine and butter that we added, what else is there, really?

Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 298

Today my friends and I did something so random that I can't stop smiling at the mere genius of it (it was my idea, by the way!): we hopped on a train to Amsterdam for one reason and one reason only: to eat a hamburger! A few months ago Jochem and I stayed in a hotel in Amsterdam and stumbled upon the Burger Bar. This tiny cafetaria-style restaurant serves some of the best hamburgers in the country and I was looking for an excuse to have one again. And so we went. And we had our hamburgers. Mine was a 200-gram Irish beef hamburger on a white sesame bun with bacon, cheddar cheese, grilled onions and a fried egg. Of course I also ordered some Flemish fries with mayonaise. And afterwards we went to the Rembrandtplein to café De Kroon, which, according to my very hip colleague from Amsterdam, is a very hip café, where I decidedly felt very unhip in. But it was fun!

"What I Cooked Today" Day 297

Today, despite it being my day off, was a busy day, filled with errands. I had a drink at work in the evening and asked Jochem to pick me up so that we could get some take-out together. Would you believe that the köfte I had on the plane from Amsterdam to Istanbul was better than the one from this take-out place?! I might never eat fastfood again. Like, for real this time.

"What I Cooked Today" Day 296

Today we had leftovers again: cheesy mashed potatoes with buttery mushrooms and roast beef, plus banoffee cheesecake for dessert. Time to hit the bike again!

Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of he Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 295

Today Jochem and I had leftover parsnip and pancetta spagetti while watching TV. Awesome.

Source: Happy Days with the Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver


FYI: If anyone decides to give me this:



I would happily accept it! Just PLEASE give me a Dutch translation because those American measurements are just plain weird!

"What I Cooked Today" Day 294

Today I finally discovered THE way to beat that hollow feeling about having to spend another ordinary night cooking, eating, biking, doing yoga and going to bed (otherwise known as my unshakeable rut): celebrate! Some people suffer from what my dear friend Nigella describes as 'Sunday Night-itis' - I suffer from the same thing, but then on week days. So my friends and I came up with a great little plan: to celebrate Valentine's Day together with food. Bic prepared a bunch of antipasti.



Jochem (I did nothing really but drink the wine that Mar had brought) cooked our lovely parsnip and pancetta spagetti.

Source: Happy Days with the Naked Chef by Jamie Oliver



Mag made a tiramisu with forest fruits.



It was lovely.

"What I Cooked Today" Day 293

Today Jochem and I literally spent hours slaving away in my mother's kitchen trying to prepare the ultimate homecooked meal - Nigella Lawson style. We ended up with a cheesy potato mash, an assortment of wild mushrooms cooked in butter (of course) and white wine, and a roast beef. I thought the beef was just a tad too dry because we couldn't find a piece of beef with the bone still on it (really, what the - ?!), but other than that it was great. Homemade at its best. Plus: I finally purchased a bottle of truffle oil and finally get what all the fuss is about.

Source: Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 292

Today Jochem and I made one of our favorite dishes using one of our favorite Jamie Oliver recipes: fresh mackerel tacos with homemade guacamole and a zuccini salad with asparagus and radish with lots of creme fraiche and chili. It was such a beautiful sight, this dish with all its colors on our white plates, but, sadly, even my parents were sans camera that day. We did, however, catch a picture of the banoffee cheesecake that we also made. That's right: cheesecake with banana and toffee. How cool is that?! That Nigella Lawson sure is my kind of gal.

Source: Jamie's America by Jamie Oliver / Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson

"What I Cooked Today" Day 291

Today, after work, Jochem and I traveled to Almelo with the cats. Right before we took a bus, we had our last plate of cauliflower risotto for dinner. And, after we had some drinks at my brother's place, we made these fantastic sandwiches fried in butter topped with meats and cheeses. I may have clotted some arteries though.

Source: Jamie's Italy by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 290

Today was Thursday, so I headed off to another Wie is de MOL?! ex-colleagues reunion for dinner. This time we hung out at Daniëlle's place, who made burritos and the most lovely apple crumble pie, of which I had two servings, which basically undid all of the biking and yoga that I did today. It was totally worth it though.

"What I Cooked Today" Day 289

Today Jochem had to work overtime (apparently, that actually happens in real life and not just in the movies) so I had some leftover cauliflower risotto by myself while watching Grey's Anatomy on my laptop. Now it's time to ride my bike/hometrainer/stationary bike!

Source: Jamie's Italy by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 288

Today Jochem and Bianca decided to meet up for coffee, which turned into a dinner date, which turned into a homemade meal for three. In other words: it was yet another great impromptu night filled with good food, good wine, and good conversation. I will definitely miss such nights when I won't live here anymore. But let's not dwell on that for now - let's dwell on the FOOD! Bianca and Jochem prepared the same red mullet pasta dish inspired by Jamie Oliver's video that we made a few weeks ago. For dessert Bianca made something called 'Go Nuts,' courtesy of her American friend Amanda Miller, which I think is ice cream + Oreos + Reese's NutRageous + salted pistachios + maple syrup. I did nothing but watch from afar, but then again I had to work till 7. We did our usual thing: read aloud to each other from our favorite books, watch clips on YouTube and listen to music. We also watched scenes from Julie & Julia. It was fantastic!

"What I Cooked Today" Day 287

Today Jochem and I had another endive salad with pear, apple, herbs and blue cheese dressing. It was good, but I have to concentrate really hard on not getting hungry again. But I guess that riding my bike (or my 'hometrainer' as Derek enlightened me the other day), followed by some relaxing yoga, followed by a hot shower, will kick that sentiment right out the window. Right?

Source: Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 286

After spending most of the afternoon traveling from Brussels back to Utrecht by train, I was ravenous when I came home. Jochem and I had been planning to eat a salad, but I convinced him to make cauliflower risotto instead. It was quite comforting (and one of my better ideas of the day I'd say).

Source: Jamie's Italy by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 285

Today Derek, Kiran and I traveled to Brussels to visit Anna. It took us about 6 months to find a weekend where all 4 of us could be present, so I was pretty excited. However, I did not prepare to cook anything. Sometimes I choose to stay away from other people's kitchens to stop them from thinking I am a know-it-all in their own house, but Anna had other plans. Since I didn't bring or had even thought about potential recipes, I decided to make green chili again (I also wanted to make bruschetta but quite inexplicably forgot to get the central ingredient: mushrooms! Luckily the green chili stuffed us all...). Afterwards my friends make me watch 2 scary movies (per my own request, I must admit, but really: what was I thinking?!): Drag Me to Hell (= GROSS) and this little French flick called Inside (= SICK, DISTURBING and, most of all, UNNECESSARY). I had great fun though seeing these old friends again, catching up, eating good food, drinking Belgian beer and French wine and watching movies together till the wee hours of the morning. Shall we do it again in another 6 months?



Source: Jamie's America by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 284

Another picture-less blog post, I'm afraid. We were dead tired this Friday so we ordered in some kebab. We did cook though - I made Sunday's asparagus soldiers again with pancetta and soft-boiled eggs and Jochem made muffins.

Source: Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 283

Today I am going to Chantal's dorm to watch another episode of Wie is de MOL?! and I am curious to see what she will prepare for dinner. I had some great leftover cannelloni for lunch wrapped in a leftover tortilla. I would say that, in general, I think fusion (i.e. what I understand to mean mixing different kinds of food together and calling it new) is pretty dumb. Just pick a cuisine, perfect it, stick to it and, most importantly, don't mess it up! Jochem does not agree with me on this. Sometimes I wonder if anyone does, but that's okay. As a self-proclaimed food snob I reserve the right to have biased and unsubstantiated opinions about food. But despite this opinion, I suddenly decided today to put Italian food into a Mexican (is it indeed Mexican? Sorry if I just inadvertently offended tons of people!) holder. It was really nice and it reminded me of my good friend's chicken tikka massala burrito. I also had some tea with some leftover English pudding. Sadly, yet again, I have no pictures to prove it to you. All in all I had a pretty good day though. I had breakfast in my pajamas and read Lonely Planets before hitting my new bike. I now have a bike in my living room. It is indeed quite the monstrosity, but I am grateful to the mother-in-law for letting me borrow it. Last week I was so fed up with having back pains all the time and with my stomach just getting bigger and rounder every day that I finally gave in and decided to exercise again, despite my detest of the concept. I now combine biking with my hatha yoga five times a week (or at least that's the plan - perhaps I shouldn't jinx the plan since this is just day 1, even though I've managed to do yoga five times a week since July). I just had to do something to get back in shape and since the swimming pool I used to go to is closed due to a bacterial infection, a gym is too expensive, and my doctor pretty much forbid me ever to run again, here I am. Biking in front of the TV. I have even, and I am a little bit ashamed to say this, started eating less food than usual AND I am now choosing some low-fat substitutes. Jochem probably hates me for it, and I must say that going back to putting low-fat milk into your coffee after you've grown accusted to the full-fat kind is no fun at all. Yet I feel better than last week, which I guess counts for something. But I must run - I am going to use my 'real' bike to get some more cotton underwear from the HEMA, since I believe that I have finally surpassed the stage where I can truthfully say that thongs are "just as comfortable as normal underwear." Not to burst your bubble, men, but women who say that are liars. All of them.

Sorry for this rant.

"What I Cooked Today" Day 282

Today Jochem's mom and stepdad came over for dinner and we prepared one of our favorite pasta dishes: cannelloni filled with broccoli and cauliflower with homemade tomato and bechamel sauces. Of course we added lots of cheese, basil and olive oil to complete the dish. For dessert we made Sunday's English pudding again because we had some leftovers. Jochem has been taking pictures with his mobile phone since we are now completely camera-less, but unfortunately he forgot today. My blog is looking very sad indeed...

Source: Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver

"What I Cooked Today" Day 281

Today Jochem and I prepared another of my parents' treats: salmon. I like to keep my salmon simple so we used one of Jamie Oliver's recipes with lemon zest, fennel tops, sea salt, black pepper and olive oil. We served it with a cucumber, chili and yogurt salad and some fries (with mayonaise of course!). Pretty awesome.

Source: Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver