Recipe: Fresh summery salad

Here is a nice recipe for a salad that is bound to brighten any day.

Ingredients

1 bag of mixed salad (or make your own)

Strawberries

Blueberries

Mozzarella

Basil

Pistachios

Pickled red onions

Some salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar and olive oil

I simply opened the salad bag and poured it onto a serving plate, removing any leaved that had gone bad. I then halved the strawberries and scattered them over the salad. I was going to use ready made small mozzarella balls, but I couldn't find any in the store so I got a large mozzarella ball and pulled pieces off of it and tossed them with the salad. I decorated with the basil leaves, mixing some into the salad as well. Lastly I scattered the blueberries and pistachios on the salad and decorated with the pickled red onions.

Serve with a little bit of ground black pepper and salt and add olive oil and balsamic vinegar. This is a very summery salad and is perfect with light meals like fish or chicken. I served mine with some honey-marinated grilled chicken, grilled halloumi cheese and couscous.

Have a lovely day!

~Stella

Recipe: comforting ramen

Spring is upon us here in Finland and I am being plagued by the spring cold. So here is my recipe for a comforting ramen dinner. I just used what I happened to have in my pantry and fridge: some greens and leftover teriyaki chicken.

Here are the ingredients:

Salad
Daikon
Cucumber
Avocado

Ramen bowl
Ramen
Soft boiled egg
Red bell pepper
Carrot, about a five cm piece
Two small shiitake mushrooms
About 1 dl of left over teriyaki chicken
Fresh spring onions

Broth
Half a cube of vegetable broth
One package of instant miso soup
Spring onion
2,5 dl water

Making this takes about 15 minutes and is super easy. I never measure ingredients precisely, I just use what I happen to have around and what I feel like eating. But let's jump into making this, starting with the salad:

Making the salad

Prepare a bowl with ice cold water. Start by grating some daikon. I had a piece lying around and grated enough that I could fit in my hand by lightly squeezing it. Julienne the cucumber into thin strips. I used half of a 6 cm piece. Add the cucumber strips to the ice water and let them sit there with the daikon for the rest of your prep time. Peel and slice some avocado.

When you are ready to serve, gently squeeze the water out of the daikon and cucumber mix and add to a bowl or plat together with the avocado.

The ramen bowl

Lets make the eggs first: Bring a good amount of water to the boil and gently lower an egg into it. Boil for 6 minutes and then remove the egg, dunking it into ice water to stop the cooking process. Before serving, cut the egg in half.

Cook your ramen noodles according to the instructions on the package. Mine took about 3 minutes. Pour them into a strainer and run them under cold water until cool to prevent them from going mushy.

For the vegetables: Slice the shiitake and julienne the carrot and pepper. Thinly. Since you will only be adding hot broth to the ramen bowl and won't cook the veggies it is best to slice them as thinly as possible. Slice the spring onions thinly at an angle.

Assemble by placing the noodles in the bottom of a bowl and arranging all other ingredients on top: vegetables, mushrooms, chicken and egg halves. Add the spring onion garnish last.


The broth

Add water to a saucepan and add in the vegetable broth cube, the instant miso soup (or a couple of teaspoons), and the spring onions. I usually save the white spring onion part for this and use the greener bits as garnish. Bring to a boil and simmer for a few minutes. Pour over the ramen bowl.

The cool crunchiness of the salad adds a nice juicy contrast to the ramen bowl. Need more salt? Add a splash of soy sauce. Enjoy while hot with some nice green tea.


~Stella

Pumpkin and goat cheese pie

Pumpkin is in season and it is so very versatile. It is one of my favourite ingredients to use in food. So here is my recipe for this savory treat. 

Ingredients

Pie dough 

You can use a store bought one or make your own. If I buy mine I usually go for a rye dough. Here is one recipe I use when I make my own:

100-150g butter (at room temperature)

1,5 dl shredded cheese

2 dl flour

2 dl rolled oats

3 table spoons cold water

Filling

500g pumpkin, cubed
100g goat cheese
100g ricotta
3 eggs
3/4 dl milk
Fresh basil
Salt
Pepper
(Curry)
Olive oil

Cube the pumpkin and toss the cubes in some olive oil. Put them on a roasting tray and roast for about 30 minutes (175°C) or until soft. While they bake, combine all ingredients for the dough, knead and press into a pie dish. Cool for 15 min. When the pumpkin is soft, take it out an let cool. While the cubes cool, prebake the pie crust for 10 minutes. Mix eggs, milk, ricotta and the spices. Place pumpkin cubes and goat cheese in the crust and pour the eggmixture over it. Bake for about 40 minutes in 175°C. Garnish with more basil and enjoy.

Enjoy!

~Stella