Sausage & Egg Quesadilla

Sausage & Egg Quesadilla

6 eggs
1/4 cup milk
3 sausage links, chopped
200g marble cheddar cheese, shredded
10 cherry tomatoes, halves
salt
pepper
oregano
lemon juice
3 10" tortillas
olive oil

1. Preheat oven at 350F.

2. In a small mixing bowl, beat the eggs, milk, lemon juice and seasoning.

3. Meanwhile, in a oven proof pan fry sausage pieces until slightly brown.

4. Add the egg mixture to the sausage. Let the egg settle before adding the cherry tomatoes.

5. Place the pan in the preheated oven and continue cooking for 20 minutes or until the egg is not runny.

6. Meanwhile, place 3 tortilla shells on a baking sheet. Once the egg mixture is cooked through separate the omelet into 3 pieces. Place one piece in each tortilla, cover with the shredded cheese, fold over to close and drizzle olive oil on top of each quesadilla.

7. Bake for 15 minutes to allow the cheese to melt.

Shrimp & Orzo Salad

Shrimp & Orzo Salad

200g orzo
2 litres of water
salt
olive oil
1 lbs. shrimp
3 garlic cloves
4 stalks of celery hearts, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 cup kalamata olives, pitted
1 can palm hearts, sliced
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp mustard
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tbsp garlic powder
salt
pepper
1 tbsp oregano

1. Boil the 2 litres on a medium sauce pot with olive oil and salt. Bring to a roaring boil before adding the orzo. Cook for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, saute the shrimp with 1/2 of the lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Saute until pink and cooked through.

3. Place all the vegetables in a large mixing bowl. 

4. Mix the mayonnaise, mustard, the other 1/2 of the lemon juice, the red wine vinegar, garlic powder, salt, pepper and oregano to create a dressing.

5. Once the shrimp is cooked add to the vegetables, followed by the orzo (make sure to drain the orzo) and last the dressing.

6. Serve it at room temperature for a light lunch or dinner or chill and serve as an appetizer.

La Cocina Peruana

Lomos Saltado

Every once in a while you receive a gift that is unexpected which turns out to be very valuable everytime you use it. This is true of the gift my Father-in-law sent me with my Mother-in-law when she came to visit us last summer. La Cocina Peruana has become my most treasured recipe books. It is full of educational facts about Peruvian cuisine. The recipes are easy to follow and delicious when prepared with time and love. Yesterday, I made one of my favourite Peruvian dishes - Lomos Saltado. Of course, I always add my own little twist to classic recipes but I always stay true to the cooking method and flavours directed by the original recipe.

2 lbs steak, cut into thin strips

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

1. Place the steak in a large bowl and marinade with the red wine vinegar and soy sauce for a couple of hours. This allows the steak to tenderize and absorb the flavour of the vinegar and soy sauce.

3 peppers (red, orange, yellow), cut into thin strips

1 large red onion, cut into thin strips

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 soy sauce

pepper

1 tbsp aji colorado (ancho chili paste)

1 tbsp oregano

1 cup chopped cilantro

2. Place all the above ingredients into another large bowl and marinade for the same amount of time as the steak.

5 large potatoes, cut into thick french fries

3. Fry the potatoes in a non-stick pan or deep fryer before stir frying the steak and veggies. Set aside in a warming oven.

4. In a wok, heat a good amount of canola oil. Make sure the oil is nice and hot before adding the steak. Stir fry for 10 minutes or until brown. Remove the steak and set it aside.

5. In the same wok, add all the marinaded veggies and the marinade into the wok and stir fry for another 10 minutes or until slightly tender.

6. Replace the steak back into the wok and combine with the veggies. If the liquid has evaporated too much add 1/2 cup of water. There should be some juices at the bottom of the wok.

7. Lastly, stir in the cilantro.

8. Serve over a plate of rice and french fries.

Slow Cooker Navy Beans with Ham

Slow Cooker Navy Beans with Ham

Once in a while even the most seasoned cook needs a break and finds ways to make the cooking process easier and faster. The other day I wanted to make Fasolada, a traditional Greek Navy Bean soup but I didn't have time to make it the traditional way. I asked around if I could make this dish in a slow cooker but whom ever I asked had misgivings. When all else fails I go to my favourite source for inspiration - The Internet. Luckily, I found a recipe to cook navy beans in a slow cooker. I took the concept from the recipe I found and made it my own. 

1 1/2 cups dried navy beans

5 cups of water

1 cup of tomato juice

1 onion, diced

200 g smoked ham, diced

salt

pepper

1 tbsp mint

1 tsp cumin

1 tbsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tbsp olive oil

1. Soak the navy beans in a bowl of water overnight.

2. Early in the morning, boil the beans in 5 cups of water.

3. Meanwhile, in the slow cooker add the ham, onion, tomato juice and seasoning.

4. Once the navy beans have boiled for 30 minutes, add the beans with the water to the slow cooker. 

5. Stir everything together and set the slow cooker to 10 hours.

Blueberry Bliss

 

INTRODUCES

Gee's Blueberry Bliss

For information contact

Eleni's Empanadas at

elenisempanadas@gmail.com

Three Pepper Black Bean Chicken Chili

THREE PEPPER BLACK BEAN CHICKEN CHILI

Here is another variation on the classic chili dish. This time I used three varieties of peppers and my homemade cilantro salsa that I made for empanadas. By far I believe this is the best Chili I have made to date. Give it a try!

2 chicken breast, boiled and diced

2 cans of black bean, drained

3 peppers, red, yellow, orange, diced

1 red onion, diced

3 to 4 garlic cloves, diced

2 cubes of chicken stock

4 cups of water

2 cups of cilantro salsa

salt

pepper

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp paprika

1 tsp aji colorado (ancho chili paste)

canola oil

1. I used chicken that I had boiled to make chicken soup from the day before. Cut away the bone and dice the chicken in bite size pieces. Set aside.

2. In a large stock pot, heat the canola oil and add the vegetables to brown for 4 to 5 minutes.

3. Stir in the seasonings.

4. Add the beans and combine with the vegetables.

5. Pour in the cilantro salsa. Mix together for 2 to 3 minutes.

6. Pour in the water and chicken stock. Simmer for 30 minutes.

7. At 15 minutes of simmering add the diced chicken. Stir together and continue to simmer.

CILANTRO SALSA

1 bunch of fresh cilantro

1 pint of cherry tomatoes

salt

pepper

4 to 5 garlic cloves

oregano

juice of 1 lime

1. Place all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend together until smooth. 

Chocolate Banana Galette

CHOCOLATE BANANA GALETTE

I could not longer resist the delicious combination of chocolate and banana because that is one of my all time favourite flavour combination. Yesterday, at around 9:30 a.m. I was getting hungry for some breakfast and I could not think of what to make. What to do? What to do? Thankfully, it only takes me a few minutes to get inspiration from the ingredients I already have in my kitchen. Soon, I was gathering all the items I needed to make this scrumptious breakfast pancake.

1/2 cup of oat bran

1 egg

1/4 milk

pinch of salt

pinch of icing sugar & cinnamon combo

Nutella

1 banana, sliced

canola oil

1. In a small bowl, add the oat bran and egg first. Beat together to create a dough consistency. Then add the milk to smooth it out. Sprinkle with salt and the icing sugar cinnamon combo.

2. In a non-stick pan, heat the canola oil well. Pour in the oat bran mixture. Flatten out with a spatula and let the galette do its magic. 

3. When you see the edge bubble and little holes on the top that is when you can flip over the galette. Be very careful when flipping it over. The galette is a bit heavier then your average pancake. Let it brown on the other side of a minute or two.

4. Transfer to a plate. Let it cool down before spreading the Nutella and banana slices.

Ham & Gouda Omelette

HAM & GOUDA OMELET

You might think that I ate this for breakfast but in fact this was my lunch a couple of days back. Eggs are so versatile and can be eaten for any meal. One of my favourite dishes to make is an omelet. In the past I have experimented with a variety of ingredients to enhance the natural flavour of the classic egg. A couple of days ago, I married the salty flavour of the ham and the smoky flavour of the Gouda to give texture to my omelet. 

2 eggs

splash of milk

100 g of black forest ham, diced

100 g of smoked Gouda, diced

salt

pepper

canola oil

1. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Add the milk and add the salt and pepper. Combine together. Set aside.

2. In a non-stick pan heat the canola oil. Add the diced ham and brown for 2 to 3 minutes.

3. Slowly add the egg mixture. Lower heat and allow the egg to bubble around the sides. It is important to let the egg cook well before folding over otherwise the egg will break and you will not have a nice half moon.

4. In the last minute, add the diced Gouda onto one half of the omelet. Fold the other side gently. Press down a bit, turn off the heat and cover with a lid. This will help the cheese to melt but it will also cook the egg right through so you don't have to turn it over and risk damaging the omelet.

Shrimp with Artichokes and Tomatoes

Shrimp with Artichokes & Tomatoes

This is one of my favourite dishes to make because it is simple to prepare, it tastes delicious and it is versatile. You can pair this dish with pasta, rice or simply on its own as an appetiser or if you are watching your carb intake. It is also versatile because you can experiment with different cheeses for a unique flavour each time you make this dish. 

2 bags of shrimp

2 cans of artichoke quarters

1 pint of cherry tomatoes

200 g pecorino regiano, grated

3 to 4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tbsp basil

olive oil

juice of 1 lemon

salt

pepper

1. Rinse and peel the shrimp if they still have the shells on. Set aside.

2. Place the drained artichoke quarters, tomatoes and shrimp in a rectangular Pyrex dish. 

3. Drizzle with a generous amount of olive oil. Squeeze in the lemon juice and garlic. Stir together. Add the basil, salt and pepper.

4. Cover with foil and bake in preheated oven 425 for 30 minutes.

5. After 30 minutes, uncover and continue to bake for another 15 minutes. This allows the liquid to evaporate and brown the shrimps slightly.