Enchiladas Hondureñas

This has to be my favourite Honduran dish. I don't really know why but what they call enchiladas in Honduras is quite different from what they call enchiladas in Mexico. I recently found a place where they sell real corn tortillas here and since then I'm just enjoying the original flavors of Honduras and of my youth. It does take some time to prepare but it is all worth it!

Ingredients and steps:

For the meat

- 300gr minced meat (ground beef)
- 1/2 an onion, diced
- 1/2 green pepper, chopped
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- about 4 tbsp cumin
- salt and pepper

Mix all well, cover and leave it for a few hours.

For the sauce

There are different ways of doing the sauce, I like this version the most

- 3 tomatoes, chopped
- 1 red pepper, sliced
- 1 onion, sliced
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp cumin
- 1 tbsp sweet chili powder
- 1 cup chicken broth
- pepper, salt if needed

Fry the red pepper for 5 minutes. Add the onion and saute for another 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and fry at medium-high heat for again 5 minutes. Add the sugar, cumin, chili powder, and half of the chicken broth.

Put the mixture in a blender. When ready, strain the mixture into to the pan. Let it cook at medium-low heat for a few minutes.

Prepare the rest of the ingredients:

- 2 potatoes
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cabbage
- dry cheese (queso seco). If you cannot find any, Parmesan will do.
- corn tortillas
- oil

Cook the potatoes and the eggs. When ready, cut the potatoes and slice the eggs.

Finely shred the cabbage.

Shred the cheese.

Fry the corn tortillas until crispy and set them aside.

In a large pan, fry now the meat at high heat until cooked through.

Putting all together:

Take a tortilla. Add the meat, some potatoes. Add the shredded cabbage, the egg and then the sauce. Cover with queso seo (or Parmesan cheese).

Gazpacho (cold spanish soup)

It's summer again so time for Gazpacho! It is so good, so healthy and so easy to do! Gazpacho is a typical cold spanish soup, it is served in the hot summer months. I don't know anyone that does not like it!

Ingredients and steps:

- 2 slice white bread, shredded
- 3 or 4 tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 1 red pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 garlic clove (or more if you like garlic!)
- 1/2 cucumber, roughly chopped
- 1/2 a green pepper (optional), roughly chopped
- about 4 to 5 tbsp good olive oil
- about 1 tbsp vinegar
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 cups of water

Put the bread, all the vegetables and the olive oil in a blender and blend. Strain the mixture into a pitcher to get rid of the skin of the tomatoes and paprika and get a smooth mixture. Add the water, the vinegar, salt and pepper. And that's it!

If you want to eat it immediately, add some ice cubes in the blender so that the gazpacho is nice fresh. But ideally leave it for a few hours in the refrigerator and serve nice cold!

Toppings:

- some finely chopped green pepper
- some finely chopped red pepper
- some finely chopped red onion

Chicken with satay sauce and noodle salad

When I try I new recipe, I often love it the first couple of times I do it but after a while I get bored with it and never do it again. That is certainly not the case with this one and that's why I want to share it with everyone! I found this chicken satay and noodle salad recipe in a Jamie Oliver cooking book and I can't get enough of it!

Ingredients and steps:

Satay sauce:

- coriander
- 1 red pepper
- 1/2 a garlic clove
- 3 full tbsp peanut butter
- soy sauce
- about 2 cm ginger piece
- 1 lemon - the zest and the juice

Put the coriander, red pepper, garlic, peanut butter and the soy sauce in a food processor. Add the peeled ginger, the zest of the lemon and the lemon juice. Add a bit of water and purée the ingredients till you get a nice paste.

Put half of the satay sauce in a nice bowl. We will be using the rest to marinate the chicken.

Chicken:

- about 2 to 4 chicken fillets

Put the rest of the satay sauce in a baking dish, put the chicken on top and mix well. Drizzle some olive oil and salt over the chicken. Place the baking dish in the oven under a hot grill for about 12 minutes. Turn the chicken half way.

Noodle salad:

- 250 gr noodles
- 1/2 a red onion, chopped
- 1/2 a hot red pepper (or more if you like it hot!)
- about 4 tbsp coriander
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 lemon
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp fish sauce

Cook the noodles according to package instructions. Add all the ingredients. Note: sesame oil has a very distinctive taste; it really adds a special touch to dishes but be careful not to put to much!

Dhal Soup (red lentils soup)

This recipe is for my brother and for my sister. Because we all love Indian food so much. Because my sister is a vegan and always needs new ideas of healthy and easy to prepare meals. Because my brother needs to cook nice, tasty and healthy meals for his pregnant wife!

A delicious dish that even my kids love!

Ingredients and steps:

- 25 gr butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 tbsp garam masala
- 1 tsp kurkuma
- 1 tsp paprika powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp cumin

Saute the onion and the garlic for a few minutes, till soft. Add the garam masala, kurkuma, paprika powder, chili powder, cumin and fry for about 30 seconds.  I always prepare all the spices in a plate in advance so that they are ready to go in the pan in one time and I don't need to stress!

- 3 skinless tomatoes, diced

- about 300 gr red lentils



- juice of half a lemon
- about 1/2 l vegetable broth
- 1 can coconut milk
- salt and pepper

Add the tomatoes, the lentils, the lemon juice, the vegetable broth and the coconut milk. Bring to a boil and let it cook at medium-low heat for about 20 minutes. Taste to make sure the flavor is right and add salt and pepper if needed.

Most of the time we serve it with home made naan breads.

Flan d'Onion

Ingredients and steps:

- 800 gr of onions, sliced. I usually use shallot because it has such a nice sweet taste.
- 60 gr butter
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 tbsp flour
- 20 cl milk
- 10 cl crème fraiche
- 1 tsp mustard (de Dijon)
- some muscat nut
- salt/ pepper
- puff pastry

Saute the onions in the butter for a few minutes. Add some water to it and let them cook till they are completely soft, about 20 minutes or so, stirring occasionally and adding water if necessary.

When ready, add the flour and mustard.

Mix the milk and crème fraiche and warm it in a pan. Add the egg yolks to it and then add the onions.

Add the salt and pepper and the muscat nut.

Place the puff pastry in a cake shape and add the onions. Bake it for 25 minutes and a pre-heated oven at 200 degrees. Serve with a nice salad.

Albondigas (Spanish meatballs)

This recipe is from my mother and my Spanish grandmother, it is a typical Spanish dish. My mother used to cook it often when I was young and still does when we gather with all the family in their house in Spain because everybody likes it (except my sister who is a vegetarian then!). Real comfort food!

Ingredients and steps:

For the meatballs:
- 300 gr minced meat (I use 100% ground beef)
- 2 white bread slices
- 1 cup of milk
- 2 tbsp parsley
- 1 egg
- 1 or 2 tbsp pine nuts
- salt/ pepper
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- flour
- 4 tbsp oil

Cut the bread in peaces and let it soak in the milk for a few minutes, till completely soft.
In a large bowl place the minced meat, add the soaked bread, the garlic, the parsley, the egg, the pinenuts and salt and pepper to taste.

Form the meat balls with your hands and roll them in the flour.

Fry the meat balls in a large frying pan for about 10 minutes at medium high heat. When they are nice brown, place them in a large pan.

 

For the sauce:
- 1 or 2 carrots, sliced
- 1/2 a green paprika, finely chopped
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp red paprika powder (sweet)
- some flour
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 to 3 cups vegetable broth (enough to cover the meatballs in the pan)

In the frying pan where you fried the meatballs, saute now the onions and the green paprika for about 5 minutes.

Add the onions and green paprika to the pan with the meat balls. Add the red paprika powder, the bay leaves, the carrots and the broth and let it cook at medium-low heat for 30 minutes. If you want to thicken the sauce, add a tbsp of flour that you have previously mixed with water to make a thin paste.

 

 

 

And that's it! Serve with tagliatelle or with rice.

 

 



tagliatelle with zucchini

This is the easiest way to make my kids eat vegetables! The kids love it, the parents love it, it's a win-win situation! It is therefore frequently served in our house!

Ingredients and steps:

- 2 zucchinis
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 onion finely chopped

Fry the onions and garlic for a few minutes, till soft. Add the zucchini and fry at medium heat for about 10 mn.

- 2 to 3 tomatoes, skinless, diced
- 1 tsp sugar
- a cup vegetable broth

Push the zucchini a bit to the side of the pan and add the tomatoes in the middle. I always add a pinch of sugar when I fry tomatoes, it gives them a nice sweet taste. Let it cook for about 5 mn.

Add the vegetable broth, mix well and let it cook at medium heat for about 15 mn.

- tagliatelle
- olive oil
- parmesan cheese or grana padano chees

In the meanwhile, prepare the tagliatelle according to instructions. Add some some olive oil to avoid that they stick toghether, add the zucchini and cover with a lot of parmesan cheese or grana padano!