White Onion Garlic Pizza
Crust
125g / 1 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp instant yeast
80ml / 1/3 cup warm water
oil, to coat
Topping
2 tbsp oil
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium onions (150g / 5.2oz) , thinly sliced
pinch salt
5 slices your favorite cheese (100g / 3.5oz)
pinch of smoked paprika
pinch of dried oregano
1) In a medium bowl, combine together flour, salt,baking powder and instant yeast. Add water and mix with a spoon. Start kneading the dough. Knead until very smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Form the dough into the ball and place in an oiled bowl. Make sure the whole dough is coated with oil. Cover with a plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place while you prepare the topping.
2) Preheat oven to 200C / 400F (grill function) and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
3) In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil. Add onions, garlic ans salt and fry until softened and golden brown.
4) Transfer the pizza dough to a surface and shape the dough into a disk, pressing down with your fingertips. If it sticks to the surface, sprinkle some flour to prevent it from sticking, however, I did not need to do that.
5) Transfer the dough onto the baking tray. Arrange cheese and onion mixture on top of it. You may first put cheese or onions. I've tried both options and both worked really well. If you put cheese on top, it browns nicely and onions remain soft covered with cheese. If you choose to put onions over the cheese, they may become slightly crunchy. Dust with smoked paprika and dried oregano.
6) Bake until nicely brown on top. Baking time is up to you. If you like a softer dough, it will only take a few minutes.
Recipe by collecting memories
Cranberry Walnut Grain Medley
1 T oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cl garlic, minced
100g / 3.5 oz dried cranberries
100g / 3.5 oz pearl barley
100g / 3.5 oz brown rice
60g / 2 oz walnuts, chopped
a pinch of pepper
a pinch of mustard powder
a pinch of thyme
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1) Cook rice and pearl barley separately and let cool.
2) In a small saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of oil. Add onion and garlic and cook until softened and golden brown. Let cool.
3) In a large bowl, combine together onion/garlic mixture, dried cranberries, barley, rice and walnuts. Season with salt, pepper, mustard, thyme and cinnamon. Mix everything until combined.
Makes 2-4 servings.
Recipe by collecting memories
Pan-Fried Chickpeas with Caramelized Onions
240g (1 cup) cooked chickpeas, very well drained
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch salt
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp chili paprika
1) In a saucepan, heat 2 tbsp of oil. Add onion and cook, over medium heat, until soft and translucent. When they start browning, stir with a wooden spoon and cook for another 10-15 minutes until caramelized, stirring occasionally. Add more oil if needed. Be careful not to burn them.
2) Add garlic, salt, smoked paprika and chili paprika. Stir to combine. Add chickpeas and stir-fry for 2-4 minutes.
Serves 1.
Recipe by collecting memories
Onion lovers, I have a perfect recipe for you. A mild flavor quiche filled with creamy Feta cheese and sweet onions, and drizzled with tangy balsamic vinegar reduction. Sounds good, right? It's also very light but filling enough.
I'm always so surprised that so many people don't like onions. I don't imagine any savory dish without them. Seriously, they're my favorite veggie. And this quiche, believe me, is FULL of onions. It's really good by its own, but balsamic reduction makes it irresistible.
Onion Feta Quiche with Balsamic Reduction
Pastry:
125g (1 cup) flour
28g (1/4 stick) butter, cold
1 egg
1 tbsp ice water
Filling:
2 tbsp oil
4 onions (450g), thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
180ml (3/4 cup) milk
100g feta cheese, divided
1 tsp dried herbs
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Balsamic reduction:
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp sugar
1) Make the crust: In a bowl, add flour and cut in the butter. Mix with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Beat in the egg. Now add 1 tablespoon of cold water and knead. The dough must be soft, elastic but not sticky. You may add more/less water. Roll out the dough and press into the bottom of a greased 18cm baking dish. Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.
2) In a large saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened and lightly caramelized. Remove from heat and let cool. Mix in salt, dried herbs and black pepper.
3) In a bowl, combine together milk and eggs. Set aside.
4) Crumble half of the Feta cheese on top of the dough. Spread onion mixture on top of the cheese and top with remaining crumbled Feta. Pour egg/milk mixture. Do not mix. Bake in a 180C (350F) preheated oven for 35-40 minutes.
5) While it is baking, you can make the balsamic reduction. Add balsamic vinegar and sugar to a small saucepan and bring to boil. Once it starts bubbling, reduce the heat to the lowest and cook, uncovered, until it's reduced by half.
Serve warm drizzled with balsamic vinegar. I actually loved it the next day. I didn't even reheat it and enjoyed it cold.
Recipe by collecting memories
Going to Chinese supermarkets can be a fun experience. Despite tons of different foods which definitely don't look edible and I'd never know what to do with them, and a strange smell which I find in most Chinese supermarkets, I really love shopping there. It's super fun to explore the shop full of unusual stuff. But I'm kind of scared to buy something I'm not familiar with so I usually choose something I know. Bean thread noodles, Bean sprouts and Teriyaki sauce is what I really love. And here's a simple dish with these 3 awesome Chinese ingredients. If you're not used to Chinese food, don't be scared. This recipe is super simple. Aaand it's probably my favourite dish now. Really, after I made this, I fell in love with mung bean noodles even more!
Bean Thread Noodle & Carrot Stir-Fry
2 tbsp oil
100g bean thread noodles
1 medium onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 carrot (140g), thinly sliced
1/2 chili pepper, finely chopped
1/2 tsp ground ginger
A handful of bean sprouts
salt, to taste
1 tbsp sesame seeds
2-3 tbsp Teriyaki sauce (I used this)
1) Pour some boiling water over the noodles and let sit for 3-5 minutes. Remove from hot water and rinse through with cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain completely.
2) In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil. Add onion and cook until lightly browned and softened. Add garlic, carrot, chili pepper, ground ginger and salt. Cover and cook for a few minutes, over medium heat, until carrots are softened. Add bean sprouts, sesame seeds and noodles. Stir-fry for 1-2 minutes. Add Teriyaki sauce and sesame seeds.
3) Serve immediately and enjoy!
Serves 2
Recipe by collecting memories
I'm obsessed with falafels. Seriously. I'm obsessed with food in general but falafels have always been my favourite thing. It's strange I've never made them at home before! I guess I didn't want to spend a lot of time soaking chickpeas, grinding everything, refrigerating, frying etc. But, surprisingly, it didn't take as much time as I thought. The only time-consuming thing was making the Tahini sauce but I wanted to make everything by myself and not use store-bought products. Another reason why I've never tried making them is that I try to avoid deep-frying food. But for falafels, I can make an exception. It's worth it!
Falafels with Tahini Sauce
Falafels
1 cup (220g) dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
1 small onion
4 cloves garlic
3 tbsp fresh parsley
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp flour
pinch black pepper
Oil, for frying
Tahini Paste
100g sesame seeds, lightly toasted
1 tbsp oil
Tahini Sauce
Tahini paste (recipe above)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp honey
3 tbsp (45ml) lemon juice
4 tbsp (60ml) water
1 tsp salt
lettuce, chopped
tomato, sliced
onion, sliced
1) First, make the Tahini paste: add sesame seeds into your food processor and process until it starts turning into a paste. Add oil and pulse for a few minutes until it's smooth.
2) To make Tahini sauce, add all the ingredients into your food processor and pulse a few times until smooth. Set aside.
3) To make Falafels: put all the ingredients into your food processor and process until chickpeas look like tiny grits. You don't want to turn this mixture into a paste. Test if the dough is fine by taking a piece of dough and trying to form it into a ball. If it holds together, stop mixing. Refrigerate the mixture for 30 minutes.
4) Heat oil in a pot or a saucepan. If you have a thermometer, make sure the temperature is 180C (350F) degrees. Form little balls and fry for about 4-6 minutes or until nicely brown. Drain on paper towels.
5) Serve with tahini sauce and salad (and some pita bread, if you like). Enjoy!
Recipe by collecting memories
Stir-frying has always been my favorite method of preparing food. You can experiment while you're cooking which is not possible when you fry or bake something. It's ridiculously easy and quick too, right?
And, yeah, vegetables again! I'm a real veggie person so I always have a variety of vegetables in my fridge. It's something that I could not live without. I simply need vegetables. Every day.
So this is another idea of a quick dinner which is ammmazingly delicious and filling. At the end of cooking, I added some teriyaki sauce and I loved it. It's good without it as well cause dried basil, oregano and thyme gives a nice flavor so you can try them without the sauce first. This makes enough for 2 people. Enjoy!
Stir-Fried Vegetables
2 tbsp oil (use olive or I sometimes like using sunflower oil)
1 medium onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
400g cauliflower, chopped into florets
400g zucchini, diced
2 small carrots (110g), thinly diced
1-2 tbsp thinly sliced chili pepper (optional)
1/2 tsp each: dried oregano, basil and thyme
Pinch black pepper
Pinch salt
1-2 tbsp teriyaki sauce (optional) (I love using this one)
1) Heat oil in a heavy saucepan. Add onion and saute until softened, browned and fragrant. Add garlic and saute for another minute or two.
2) Add the rest of the ingredients (except for teriyaki sauce), cover the pan and let simmer over medium heat until carrots are cooked throughly, stirring occasionally. The cooking time is up to you. (The whole process including sauteeing onions took about 30 minutes for me). You can cook them less but I like my veggies very soft. When they're cooked throughly, add 1-2 tablespoons of teriyaki sauce. Serve immediately.
Recipe by collecting memories
