Vanilla sugar

   It is very easy to make vanilla sugar at home. All you need is just one vanilla bean, sugar and some time. You could use this vanilla sugar in all kind of bakes or in tea or coffee. So to make vanilla sugar you will need:

• 450 g of sugar;
• 1 vanilla bean.

   Cut vanilla bean in half, scrape all seeds and add them to sugar with vanilla bean itself. Mix sugar with vanilla seeds and bean a bit to combine well and leave vanilla sugar for two weeks. After two weeks you will have wonderful vanilla sugar.

   Enjoy!

Caesar salad with prawns in cheese cup

   Caesar salads are very popular, so I thought I have to show you my version of this amazing dish. I made Caesar salad with prawns. However it is very delicious with chicken or just plain. For two portions of Caesar salad you will need:

• 70 g of ciabatta bread (you can use any kind of bread you like);
• 2 big handfuls of Romaine lettuce (also you can use any king of lettuce if you like);
• 1 tomato;
• 12 shelled and cleaned prawns (you can use chicken or nothing if you like);
• 120 g of fermented cheese such as cheddar;
• 1 anchovy fillet (true Caesar salad recipe asks for 3 fillets but for my taste just 1 is needed);
• half of garlic clove;
• salt, pepper;
• 1 egg yolk;
• 1 tbsp of freshly squeezed lemon juice;
• half tsp of dijon mustard;
• 1 tbsp of olive oil;
• 1/4 cup of vegetable oil;
• 3 tbsp of freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

   Cut bread into cubes. Drizzle some olive oil. Sprinkle pinch of salt and pepper. Preheat your oven to 190° C. Bake bread pieces for 7 - 10 minutes till they are golden.

   While bread is baking, lets prepare cheese cups for our salad. Grate your cheese and divide into two pieces for about 60 g. Put gated cheese in circles in preheated pan. Bake it for few minutes till cheese is melted and bottom of cheese pancake is firm and golden.

   When cheese pancake is baked put it onto cup. When firmed, It is going to get cup shape.

   Lets make dressing for Caesar salad. Crush anchovy fillet, half of garlic clove and pinch of salt in mortar. Mix this paste with egg yolk, 1 tbsp of lemon juice and 0,5 tsp of dijon mustard.

   While whisking dressing put drop by drop 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil. Then while whisking constantly slowly add 1/4 cup of vegetable oil (I used eco sunflower oil).

   When dressing is ready, add 1,5 grated parmigiano cheese and pinch of pepper into dressing. Also you can add more salt and lemon juice if you want. I found that this amount of dressing is too much for two portions of this salad. So you can keep extra dressing in the fridge or make more salad.

   Cut or shred lettuce into desired sized pieces. Cut tomato and bake prawns (I baked prawns with garlic and dried Provence herbs into butter).

   Finally put lettuce, tomato, bread pieces and prawns into cheese cups. Add dressing and grate some parmigiano cheese on top.

   Enjoy!

Boeuf bourguignon

   I guess that boeuf bourguignon is one of the most known french cuisine dishes. So with Julia Child help we are going to make this delicious dish. This is Julia's Child recipe and as she says - "there is jus one way to make boeuf bourguignon". You can prepare this dish even a day in advance and it only gains in flavour when reheated.

   Boiled potatoes are traditionally served with this dish. Serve with the beef a fairly full - bodied, young red wine, such as Beaujolais, Cotes du Rhone, a St. Emilion claret, Burgundy.

   For two portions of this dish you will need:

• 60 g of bacon;
• 450 g of beed rump;
• olive oil;
• 1/3 carrot;
• 1/3 onion;
• salt;
• pepper;
• 10 g of flour;
• 200 ml of red wine (best is the one you will drink with this dish);
• 200 - 270 ml brown beef stock;
• 1/3 tablespoon of tomato paste;
• 1 clove of garlic;
• 2 g of fresh thyme;
• 1,5 of dried bay leaf;
• 6 - 8 small onions;
• 27 g of butter;
• 1 parsley;
• 115 g of champignons;
• 2 - 4 potatoes.

   Firs we are going to prepare meat, because it is going to stew for 3 - 4 hours.

   Preheat oven to 230° C.

   Cut bacon into lardons. Sauté bacon in 1/3 tablespoon olive oil on medium heat to brown lightly (saute bacon in the pot where meet will be stewed). Remove from the pot.

   Cut beef into 10 cm cubes. Dab meat with paper towel to remove excess moisture (it is very important step to brown meat properly). Heat the pot on hight heat and sauté beef in bacon fat few pieces at a time till meat all sides are browned. You could add more oil in pot if you needed. Brown all bacon cubes and remove them from the pot.

   Cut 1/3 carrot and 1/3 big onion into round slices. Sauté vegetables in the same pot and remove them from the pot.

   When bacon, beef and vegetables are sautéed, remove fat from the pot.

   Mix flour with 1/3 tea spoon of salt and 1/2 g of pepper. Lightly coat beef cubes and bacon lardons in flour mixture. Then put beef and bacon into the same pot again. Put uncovered pot in the preheated to 230° C oven for 4 minutes. After 4 minutes turn over meat and bake for more 4 minutes. This helps  to form a gently crust on meat.

   Take pot from the oven and reduce heat to 160° C.

   Then put wine and enough brown beef stock in the pot to just cover the meat. Put tomato paste, crushed garlic clove, 1,5 g of thyme, 1 bay leaf and baked carrot and onion pieces. Bring pot content to simmering point on the stove. Then put covered pot onto lowest shelf of the oven.

   Slowly simmer stew for 3 - 4 hours. Meat is done when fork pierces easily.

   While meat is simmering we can prepare other parts of that dish.

   Peel potatoes and put in the pot with water and pinch of salt. Start boil potatoes at least 30 min before serving meat.

   Peel small onions. In hot pan put 7 g butter and 1/3 table spoon of oil. When butter and oil starts to bubble bake onions on medium heat for about 7 minutes. Onions are done when they are lightly browned on all sides. Put browned onions in the pot with 100 ml of beef stock, 1 parsley, 1/2 bay leaf, 1/4 thyme twig and pinch of salt and pepper. Simmer onions on low heat for about 20 - 30 minutes. Onions are ready when they are tender and keeps them shape.

   Cut champignons into quarters and drain. Sauté mushrooms with 20 g of butter and 10 g of oil for about 6 - 8 minutes till they are golden brown.

   You could prepare small onions and mushrooms in advance, they can become cold.

   When beef is tender, drain liquid form the pot to pan. Remove as much fat as you can from sauce.

   Put small onions and mushrooms in pot with the meat.

   Simmer sauce for about 1 - 2 minutes in a pan. You should get about 150 ml of sauce. Sauce should be not to thick, just to cover the spoon lightly. If the sauce is to thick add more stock, if the sauce is to liquidy boil it down a bit. Taste the sauce and add more salt and pepper if needed. Then put sauce on meat in the pot.

   Till this point you can prepare boeuf bourguignon in advance. Before serving this dish simmer it for about 2 - 3 minutes repeatedly pouring the sauce on meat. If the dish was in the refrigerator, simmer it for about 10 minutes repeatedly pouring the sauce on meat. Serve boeuf bourguignon with boiled potatoes and don't forget a glass of red wine.

   Enjoy!

Cottage cheese pie

   I always want something sweet with my coffee or tea. So if you have some time and simply ingredients lets bake this delicious pie with me. For cottage cheese pie you will need:

• 500 g. chocolate cookies;
• 225 g. of butter;
• 1 kg. of cottage cheese;
• 400 g. of sweetened condensed milk;
• 5 eggs;
• juice of 1 lemon and peel form half of lemon.

   Melt butter. While butter is melting, crumble cookies with food processor or with rolling pin (keep cookies in a bag while crashing with rolling pin).

   Mix melted butter with crumbled cookies and cover (with pressure) cake mold with mixture. Bake pie base in preheated oven to 200° C for 15 minutes.

   Sift cottage cheese and mix with sweetened condensed milk and lemon juice. Grate lemon peel of half lemon in cheese mixture. And finally mix eggs one by one with pie mixture.

  Fill baked pie base with cottage cheese mixture and bake in preheated oven to 170° C for 60 minutes.

   Wait till pie is cold and enjoy!

Cream of tomato soup

   Summer is over. However, our home is full of garden goodies. I was thinking what to do with tomatoes and discover tomato soup on internet. It was experiment for me. But I was totally happy with it. This soup is very delicious. Even my husband, who doesn't like soups, liked it! So for three plates of this yumminess you will need:

• 900 g. of sliced tomatoes;
• 1 head of garlic (divided in cloves) plus one clove of garlic;
• 30 g. of balsamic vinegar (I used thick balsamic vinegar sauce);
• few splashes of olive oil;
• salt;
• pepper;
• 1 tea spoon of sugar;
• 1 onion;
• 1 celery stalk;
• 1 tea spoon of dried basil;
• 0,5 l of vegetable or chicken stock;
• 3 spoons of cream;
• 3 slices of toasting bread;
• cheese of your choice (I used red cheddar).

   Sliced tomatoes, and crushed garlic cloves (from 1 head of garlic) put in baking dish. Sprinkle salt, pepper, sugar and splash olive oil and balsamic vinegar on tomatoes and garlic cloves. There will be some liquid from tomatoes, so make sure that your baking dish is with edges.

   Tomatoes with garlic bake in preheated oven to 200° C for 35 minutes.

   Chop onion, garlic clove and celery stalk. Bake onion with a bit of oil on stove in soup pot. When onion is tender, add garlic, celery and tea spoon of dried basil. Everything in the pot slightly roast. Then add baked tomatoes, garlic with all liquid to the pot. Add stock of your choice.

Wait till soup comes to a boil and turn off the stove. Then blend soup in a blender, till it is creamy.

    Stain soup through a sieve to make sure there is no chunks and tomatoes peels in this goodness. Then again come cream soup to a boil and make sure that you don't need more salt or pepper. That is it. Soup is ready.
 

While soup is coming to a boil, prepare cheese toasts. Toast bread in toaster and put some cheese between two breads. To melt cheese in bread, heat cheese toast for a few seconds in a microwave or in the oven.







 












   Serve cream of tomato soup with spoon of cream, a pinch of dried basil (fresh basil is even better) and cheese toast.

   Enjoy!

Fried rabbit with oven baked potato strips

   

I am so happy that I can share this recipe with you! Cause it is simply awesome. It is so delicious, so crispy, so beautiful... I am sure that your family or friends will be impressed. So lets start. For this gorgeous dish you will need:

• 1 rabbit, divided in pieces;
• 1 clove of garlic, divided in cloves;
• cup of stock (chicken, rabbit or vegetable stock);
• salt;
• pepper;
• splash of olive oil;
• 1 egg;
• cup of flour;
• handful of hard cheese (Parmigiano Reggiano is best option);
• 6 branches of rosemary;
• cup of panko crumbs;
• 4 potatoes;
• oil for frying (vegetable, sunflower oil etc.).

   So, first step is prepare rabbit meat for frying. Put rabbit, garlic, 4 branches of rosemary, stock, pinch of salt and pepper, splash of olive oil in the pot.

   Put the lid on the pot, and pot on the stove. When  it comes to a boil, reduce heat to low and let it simmer for 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes, till meat is  tender and almost falls from the bone.

   During this time, peel potatoes and cut in to strips. Wash all starch from potatoes and let it sit in cold water with salt (you can prepare this ahead of time).

   When meat is tender, take it of the stock and let to cold.

   Strain off potato strips and drain it. Then add splash of olive oil, pinch of salt and pepper and branch of rosemary divided in strips. Bake potatoes in one layer in preheated 200 °C oven till they are tender and golden.

   While potatoes are cooking, prepare beaten egg, flour and hard cheese mixed with panko crumbs and rosemary (from one branch) in different plates.

   Coat rabbit pieces in flour, then in egg and crumbs.

   Put meat aside to dry a bit, while oil is preheated. Fry rabbit pieces in hot oil till they are crispy and golden. Serve rabbit pieces with potatoes strips and slice of lemon.

Enjoy!

Chili oil

 Chili oil is used in asian cuisine. However we like it so much, that we use it almost every day. Chili oil is spicy and tasty and it is very easy to make. You will need:

• 15 small dried chili;
• 150 ml oil (I used extra virgin olive oil).

 Blend dried chili peppers in a blender till they are as small as sesame seeds.

 Then heat up oil till it starts to smoke and remove from heat. Drop all chili flakes in the oil and wait till oil colds.

 When oil is cold, strain all chili flakes and reserve chili oil in bottle.

 Thats it. Use it with rice, salads, pasta and all dishes when you want some spicy taste. Enjoy!