Pasta al forno Siciliana.

Pasta al forno Siciliana recipe - Telegraph:
This mouth-watering recipe for a typical Sicilian Sunday lunch was passed on to the London-born food writer Tessa Kiros, who lives in Tuscany having travelled, and cooked, all around the world.
The recipe is very versatile, and it’s delicious warmed up later.
Eat it, as the Sicilians do, with a green salad.

Ingredients:
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1.2kg (2lb 10oz) minced beef
1/2 tsp chopped oregano
1/2 tsp chopped thyme
1 bay leaf
250ml (9fl oz) red wine
500ml (17fl oz) tomato passata (puréed tomatoes)
200g (7oz) frozen peas
450g (1lb) rigatoni pasta
150g (5½oz) thinly sliced ham, torn up
250g (9oz) mozzarella, roughly chopped
About 4 tbsp grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Heat the oil in a deep frying pan and sauté the onion until golden.
Add the garlic and sauté until it smells good, then add the minced beef.
Brown the beef over quite a high heat, stirring often to break up any lumps.
Stir in the oregano, thyme and bay leaf, and season with salt and pepper.
Stir through the wine and when that has been absorbed add the passata and 250ml (9fl oz) water.
Cover and simmer for an hour, stirring now and then.
It must be a lovely loose ragù, so add a little water towards the end of the cooking if necessary.
Toss in the peas and remove from the heat.
Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook the rigatoni for a couple of minutes less than the instructions on the packet. Drain.
Scoop a couple of ladlefuls of the ragù on to the bottom of 30 x 22 x 6cm (12 x 8½ x 2½in) baking dish.
Add half the pasta, pressing it along to level it.
Ladle over half the remaining ragù and top with all the ham.
Scatter half the mozzarella over, then follow with 2 tbsp of Parmesan.
Now add the rest of the pasta and press it down firmly.
Scrape out the rest of the ragù over the top.
Scatter the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan over.
Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until it is a bit crusty on top here and there, and golden around the edges.
Scoop out portions and serve with extra Parmesan.

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Frittata.

How To Make a Frittata — Cooking Lessons from The Kitchn | Kitchn:

Frittata Pans:
I do recommend a cast iron or oven-safe nonstick skillet.
Stainless steel pans will work, but you'll need extra oil to make sure the eggs don't stick to the pan.
Heat the oven:
Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 200°C/400°F.
Sauté the ingredients: If the meat is raw, cook that first in a large nonstick frying pan or cast iron skillet and then remove it from the pan to add back in later.
Cook the vegetables with a little oil over medium-high heat, starting with the longer-cooking veggies like onions and potatoes and ending with softer veggies like red peppers, until cooked through.
Add any meat or tofu and cook just enough to warm through.
Season the ingredients:
Add oregano, basil, thyme, smoked paprika, cumin, chili powder, minced garlic.
Add the cheese:
Spread the vegetables into an even layer.
Sprinkle the cheese on top and let it just start to melt.
Add the eggs:
Whisk the eggs (4-6) together and pour them over the vegetables and cheese.
Tilt the pan to make sure the eggs settle evenly over all the vegetables.
Cook for a minute or two until you see the eggs at the edges of the pan beginning to set.
Bake the frittata:
Put the pan in the oven and bake until the eggs are set, 8 to 10 minutes.
To check, cut a small slit in the center of the frittata.
If raw eggs run into the cut, bake for another few minutes; if the eggs are set, pull the frittata from the oven.
Cool and serve: Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then slice into wedges and serve.
Leftovers will keep refrigerated for a week.
Recipe Notes
Storage: Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
For a browned, crispy top: Set the frittata under the grill for a minute or two at the end of cooking.

Cookbook Recipe Database

About CBRDB | Cookbook Recipe Database:
The Cookbook Recipe Database is a free site where cooks, both amateur and professional, can easily search though the recipe indexes within a large collection of cookbooks. The site contains some complete recipes but it is not a source for every recipe in every cookbook.
It is a reference to find them, so if you are looking for a certain recipe within a book in your library, or one you would like to own, then this site will help you find it.

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Moroccan harira soup.

Moroccan Chickpea & Lentil Soup.

Serves 4–6
Ingredients
1-2 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped into 1cm pieces
2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
Spices:
1 tbsp cumin seeds
2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
A good pinch of saffron fronds (optional)
3 bay leaves

450g lamb, cut into 1cm pieces (optional)
3 tbsp tomato purée
1.2 litres chicken or vegetable stock
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
150g brown lentil
two handfuls of chopped coriander

Instructions:
Heat oil in large pot over medium heat.
Add onion, celery, carrot, red chillies, garlic cloves.
Saute 5 minutes or until onion is soft.

Stir in all Spices and bay leaves - saute 5 minutes.
Stir in tomatoes and tomato purée - saute 5 minutes more.

Stir in meat and stock bring to a boil and reduce heat to low and simmer 1.5 hour.

Stir chickpeas, lentils and simmer 30 min more or until lentils are tender, stirring occassionally.
Add salt and pepper to taste if you prefer it spicier.
Stir in the chopped coriander and serve in bowls.
This soup tastes even better the next day as the flavors have had time to deepen.

Fermented cabbage.

Homemade Sauerkraut red cabbage Russian.
Recipe!

No-Knead Ciabatta.

No-Knead Ciabatta - Budget Bytes: (with Step By Step Photos).
Ciabatta bread, which according to Wikipedia literally means, "carpet slipper".
The recipe and technique in the video are a little different from the basic no-knead recipe.
The dough is wetter, it ferments for 18 hours at room temperature and is shaped into a long, fairly flat, ciabatta shaped loaf.
If you can’t time the dough just right to ferment for 14-18 hours, you can actually slow the fermentation by putting it in the refrigerator for a few hours.
When I need to leave it for about 24 hours, I pop it in the fridge over night (8 hours), then let it come to room temperature before continuing.
Ingredients:
4 cups bread flour (I used 3 1/2 cup white and 1/2 cup wheat)
Note: you can use All-purpose flour if you want
1/4 tsp/teaspoons yeast
2 cups water
1 1/2 tsp/teaspoons salt

OR for make a “half batch” loaf:
2 cups all-purpose flour (plus some for dusting)
1/8 tsp/teaspoons instant or "bread machine" yeast
3/4 tsp/teaspoons salt
1 cup water
1/2 Tbsp/Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tbsp/Tablespoon corn meal

I made a “full batch” loaf!
In a large bowl combine the flour, salt, and yeast.
Stir the dry ingredients well until they are evenly combined.
Add the water and stir it until a wet, sticky ball of dough forms and no flour remains on the bottom of the bowl.
Loosely cover and let sit at room temperature for 14-18 hours to ferment.

After fermentation, the dough should be wet, sticky, very bubbly, and fluffy.
Dust the top of the dough and your hands with flour.
Carefully scrape the sticky dough from the bowl, adding a small amount of flour if needed to keep your hands from sticking.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and stretch it into a long, 12-16 inch loaf.
It's okay if the loaf is lumpy and uneven.
The dough will be very soft and sticky, so don't worry too much about the shape.
Prepare a baking sheet by smearing olive oil over the surface and then sprinkling with cornmeal.
Carefully pick up the loaf and transfer it to the prepared baking sheet, reshaping it as needed.
Let the dough rise for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 220C/425F.
Make sure the oven is fully preheated before the bread goes in, because it needs that sudden blast of hot air to really puff up.
Put in preheated oven (220C/425F) and bake the loaf for 35-45 minutes (for half batch - 25 minutes, or until it is golden brown.
Let the bread cool on a wire rack before slicing.

Note:
- An interesting thing about this bread is that you use only 1/8 tsp of yeast!

- how to time no-knead bread:
If you wish serving a meal with bread around 5PM - 6PM.
Start the loaf at 5PM.
The first rise is 12-18 hours (longer rise=tastier bread) so that would take you to 11AM.
The second rise for 2 hrs, which takes you to 1PM/13:00.
For baking ~1 hr - 14:00.
You need at least 2-3 hr to cool cover it with cloth before slicing - the famous health reformer Sylvester Graham said bread shouldn’t be eaten until at least twelve hours old!
Bread fresh out of the oven needs time for the gluten to set completely.
Breads is best when they are completely cooled to room temperature.
So, I'm serving a meal with bread around 17:00!

Caldo Verde, Green Kale Soup with Chorizo & Potato.

From Rick Stein’s long Weekends.
This recipe is inspired by a traditional Portuguese dish but with extra heat courtesy of chilli flakes and an abundance of chorizo, perfect for a winter warming meal!

1 onion, finely chopped
1 large clove garlic, finely chopped
100g chorizo or chouriço (sausage), cut into chunks
3 tbsp olive oil
400g potatoes, preferably floury, peeled and cut into 4 chunks each.
1 litres water or Vegetable stock
100g spring greens or kale, finely shredded
1 tsp salt
6 turns black peppermill
Large pinch chilli flakes

Fry the onion, garlic and chorizo or chouriço in the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat until the onions and garlic are soft and translucent, 5 to 8 minutes.
Add the potatoes and the stock and let this boil until the potatoes are cooked, about 20 minutes.
Pulverize the potatoes in the broth with a potato masher.
Add the kale, bring back to the boil and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes until the kale is cooked but still a vibrant green.
Season with salt and pepper and serve in warmed bowls with chilli flakes sprinkled on top.
Enjoy!

Better No-Knead Bread Recipe.

Better No-Knead Bread Recipe | Serious Eats:

Today bread!

Let's take a quick look through a time lapse of the dough as it sits overnight.
- 0 Hours: dough is still lumpy. Gluten formation is minimal.
- 4 Hours: Enzymatic action has broken down some proteins, causing the dough to slacken and spread.
- 8 Hours: Yeast has produced quite a bit of carbon dioxide. As these bubbles slowly grow, their stretching causes proteins around their edges to align with each other.
- 12 Hours: Slowly but surely, the bubbles moving through the dough, effectively forming the same gluten that would be formed by manual labor.
- 16 Hours: The yeast have completed their task, both leavening and kneading the dough for you. Thanks guys!

After allowing it to rise at room temperature overnight, I'll stick mine directly into the refrigerator for three days. There's another advantage built into this as well: cold dough is much easier to handle. Gluten gets stiffer as it cools, which means that refrigerated dough will be much simpler to shape into a ball or a long loaf, or whatever shape you wish to bake it in.

After shaping, cover is with a bowl or a flour-coated kitchen towel and let it rise at room temperature for a couple of hours to take the chill off it and leaven for the final time before slashing it with a sharp knife (this allows it to expand faster in the Dutch oven, and makes it look pretty), and baking.

If you want to make your life even easier, get yourself a good gram scale to allow you to easily calculate ingredients without having to dirty up measuring spoons, cups, or bowls. Using a scale and a metal bowl, you can make bread and end up with only a single bowl to wash!

Here's the basic method I use:

To 100 parts flour,
add 1.5 parts salt and
1 part instant yeast.
Whisk those together.
Add 70 parts water, and stir to combine.
Cover, then let rise overnight.
Transfer to the fridge, let ferment for three days, then turn dough out on to a well-floured surface.
Shape dough, sprinkle with flour, and cover with a floured cloth.
Let it rise for at least two hours and up to 4 at room temperature.
Slah, then bake in a preheated 230°C/450°F Dutch Oven for 15 minutes with the lid on.
Remove the lid, and continue baking until it hits around 100°C209°F, 30 minutes or so.
Let it cool.

Today bread!
-
- Better No-Knead Bread Recipe | Serious Eats:
- The Food Lab: The Science of No-Knead Dough | Serious Eats:

- Bread baking in a Dutch oven - Flourish - King Arthur Flour:
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Cannoli pound cake.

cannoli pound cake – smitten kitchen:





Verdict: a little sweet for my liking.

Next time I will try Orange Ricotta Pound Cake - Baked Bree:

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Homemade Sauerkraut. Eastern European style.

Homemade Sauerkraut. Eastern European style.
Sauerkraut is row fermented product.



I have:
1400g thinly and long cut raw white cabbage (1 big cabbage)
210g largely grated row carrots
28g sea salt (I use Malden flakes)
7g sugar
1,5 teaspoon caraway seeds
Homemade Sauerkraut red cabbage Russian.

Blueberry Buttermilk Cake.

raspberry buttermilk cake – smitten kitchen
You can just ignore the word “blueberry” up there and swap it up with any which berry you please, like blackberries or raspberry or bits of strawberries or all of the above. This is a good, basic go-to buttermilk cake!

Perfect everyday cake!

Azu, the Tatar meat stew.

Времена года / Four seasons: Azu.: Tested and proved!

Verdict: delicious!

Fluffy Ricotta Pancakes.

Recipe: Fluffy Ricotta Pancakes — Recipes from The Kitchn | The Kitchn:
Extra-fluffy with creamy, custard-like middles - ricotta pancakes are something you need to try tout suite/right now!
Adding ricotta to the batter is truly a genius idea.
Verdict: delicious!



Makes 8 to 10 pancakes
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
3/4 cup milk (not nonfat)
2 large eggs, separated
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Butter, for cooking

If your ricotta seems to have a lot of liquid, set it in a fine mesh strainer to drain off excess liquid about 30 minutes before you start cooking.
If your ricotta seems fairly dry and compact, you can skip this step.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a small bowl.
Combine ricotta, milk, egg yolks, and vanilla in a separate, larger mixing bowl.
Add the dry ingredients to the ricotta and milk mixture, stirring gently until just combined.

Beat the egg whites with a handheld electric mixer until stiff. (Alternatively, whisk the egg whites by hand.)
Stir a small scoop of the egg whites into the pancake batter to lighten the batter, then fold in the remaining whites with a spatula.

Heat a griddle over medium-high heat. Melt a small bit of butter in the pan, just enough to coat the surface.
Use a 1/3-cup measure to pour batter onto the hot griddle.
Cook the pancakes for about 3 or 4 minutes, until the undersides are golden and you see a few bubbles popping through the pancakes.
Flip the pancakes and cook another 2 to 3 minutes, until golden.
Repeat with the remaining pancakes.

Serve the pancakes immediately, with maple syrup, fruit jam, lemon curd, or powdered sugar.

Recipe Notes:
In Elizabeth's original recipe, she used 3 large eggs (separated) and just 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour.
If you'd like even more custard-y pancakes, try those amounts!
It's easiest to use a handheld mixer to beat this small amount of whites.
If you only have a stand mixer, start on low speed and gradually increase to the highest speed as the whites start to form bubbles and thicken.
You may need to stop the mixer partway through and stir the whites to make sure they are all getting incorporated.

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Nigel Slater's lentil soup with ricotta.

Nigel Slater's lentil soup with ricotta | Life and style | The Guardian:

Verdict on the new lentil soup recipe I tried:
- not appetizing in appearance but gustable soup.
The recipe

French Apple Tart.

From Chef Eric Lanlard /French Guy Cooking/!

Verdict on the new French Apple Tart recipe I tried...50/50!
I like idea of the applesauce.
But I prefer apples mixed with the dough not baked in crust, similar TO:
- Времена года / Four seasons: Marie-Hélène's Apple Cake!

The recipe by Chef Eric Lanlard:

Vinegret - Russian salad with beetroot.

Vinegret or Russian vinaigrette is a salad in Russian cuisine.
From book "Mamushka: Recipes from Ukraine & beyond" - tried and tested.

Verdict: delicious!






And try to make more Russian from Olia Hercules: Eight delicious, rich and nourishing recipes from Ukraine and beyond | Life and style | The Guardian:
- Stuffed cabbage leaves - tried and tested. Verdict: delicious!

- Ukrainian beetroot broth (borshch) - tried and tested. Verdict: delicious!

Brussels Sprouts Oven-roasted.

20 – 24 small brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, plus more to toss
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 200C/400F.
Toss Brussels sprouts with oil, salt and pepper on a rimmed baking sheet and roast, stirring once or twice, until deep golden brown, crisp outside and tender inside.
- 30 to 35 minutes.
The leaves that are loose will be especially brown and crispy.
Transfer to a bowl and serve.
Verdict: delicious!

Optional:
Put the water and salt in a saucepan (it’s really important to add enough salt) and bring to a fast, rolling boil.
Toss in the sprouts, cover for 1 minute, until the water returns to the boil, then uncover and continue to cook for 3-6 minutes (depending on size), until the sprouts are cooked through, but still have a slight bite.
Drain very well.
After - as above: Toss...

Optional:
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
After oven:
Place brussels sprouts in bowl.
Add tablespoon olive oil, balsamic vinegar and honey and toss to coat evenly.
Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, then serve.

OR: Rosemary Parmesan Brussels Sprouts
Add 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary to Brussels sprouts before roasting.
During the last 5 minutes of roasting, add 1/4 cup pine nuts.
Stir well and continue roasting until Brussels sprouts are tender.
Before serving, toss with 1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese.

OR: Cranberry Pecan Brussels Sprouts
During the last 5 minutes of roasting, add 1 cup dried cranberries and 1/4 cup pecan pieces.
Stir well and continue roasting until Brussels sprouts are tender.

OR: Brussels Sprouts and Kale Salad
After roasting, allow Brussels sprouts to cool to room temperature.
Toss with 4 cups baby kale mix, 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese and 1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette.

Nutritional Info:
Per Serving: 110 calories (70 from fat), 7g total fat, 1g saturated fat, 320mg sodium, 10g carbohydrates, (4 g dietary fiber, 2g sugar), 4g protein.
/From WHOLE FOODS MARKET./

OR:
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Crispy Baked Tofu with Honey-Sesame Glaze - Cookie and Kate:

Pasta with Cavolo nero & garlic cream sauce by Monty Don.

450g cavolo nero
6 plump cloves of mild garlic
300 ml dble cream ( we used creme fraiche cos I actually prefer it)
1 tbs Extra virgin olive oil
50g freshly grated Parmesan cheese (+ extra for serving)
Sea salt + pepper

NOTE: I mixed curly kale+cavolo nero+sweet potato.

Strip out the middle rib of the cavolo nero & discard
Blanch in boiling salted water for 5 mins, then drain well
Peel the garlic cloves, prick them with a fork, but leave whole, & put in a pan with the cream & creme fraiche).
Bring to the boil & simmer for 10 mins.
If you want a mild sauce, remove the garlic (I didn't)
Now put the cavolo nero + the cream mixture in the food processor - blend tll you have a pale green sauce with dark green flecks.
Return to the pan to warm through, then add the Parmesan & the oil.
Mix cooked pasta into the sauce to coat it well & serve with extra Parmesan to sprinkle over.

Verdict: delicious!

Butternut Squash, Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup.

Verdict: delicious!

Ingredients:
SERVINGS 4-6
1 butternut squash
1 large sweet potato
3 medium carrots or 2 large carrots
1 large red onion
2 celery ribs
1 red pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 vegetable stock cube
salt and pepper
1 large fresh parsley sprig

Directions:
Peel the squash, sweet potato, carrots, and onion.
Dice the above ingredients and the red pepper and parsley.
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and soften all the above ingredients for a few minutes.
Make up a pint of stock with the stock cube and pour this over the softened vegetables.
Add the salt and pepper to taste, add more water if required.
Put a lid on the pan and simmer until the carrots, sweet potato and squash are all completely cooked.
Take the pan off the heat and leave to cool a bit, then liquidise the whole lot until smooth.
Serve with nice fresh crusty bread.

Moussaka.

Tried, tested, proved.