Kitchen Inspirations #1.

Challenge accepted! see my kitchen inspirations below. Let me know what you think!

Broccoli, jackfruit and tofu stir-fry

Salmon with salad greens

Chocolate cake with walnuts minus frosting

Fake duck with buckwheat and bokchoi

Non bake dessert with berries

Feel free to check out my previous posts with recipes:

• My Version of Vinegret,

• My Version of Olivier,

• Vegetable Ragout,

• Fajitas with Salsa Salad,

• Easy Apple Pie

• Cooking Pumpkin.

They are all tried and tested easy recipes under 30 min. Enjoy!

Vegetable Ragout

The summer is here, so we need to think more of summer foods / dishes. Vegetarian cooking is easy and fun! Cooking time 30 min, yields 2-3 portions.

I am cooking ragout today and sharing it with you for inspiration. This dish can be eaten hot or cold. If you need more protein in your diet, add tofu with soy sauce. See the ingredients and feel free to change the recipe as you see fit.

• 2 potatoes diced

• 1 onion diced

• 1 bell pepper (sweet pepper)

• 3 cloves of garlic diced

• 1 zucchini sliced

• 1 broccoli crown cut

• 1 tablespoon of hot pepper sauce / salsa

• salt to your taste

Place potatoes in the skillet, fry them for 10 minutes, add onion, garlic, pepper, and in 5 minutes add zucchini and broccoli. Stew under the lid for another 5 min, add red sauce and salt. Sprinkle with lemon or lime juice. The dish is ready. Feel free to serve it with rice or pasta.

P.S. You can add eggplant into the mix of vegetables and use tomatoes instead of red sauce. It will make your dish less acidic. You can cook them separately and add into the mix. Make sure not to overcook veggies, consider undercooking them instead.

• Do you like cooking vegetables? What are your favorite summer recipes?

I am looking forward to hearing from you soon. Enjoy your weekend!

Sleepy Sunday, Foodie Funday

It’s raining and I am sleepy. Yesterday was a bit better, we went for a walk along the river which was really nice and pretty. We stopped by to eat at a place that has a great view. I loved the experience of eating pasta with breads, carbs are always welcome when celebrating life is the point. It was pretty epic. Spring makes things look better, it brings the much needed optimism to your heart. I love spring walks, when the flowers start to bloom and birds sing all day about their dreams and aspirations. I don’t know exactly what they are singing about but if I was a bird, I would probably sing about food, since we all know that early bird catches the warm. Does it also sing about the gain?

50 Best Songs About Food & Eating

I found this list for better food inspirations, I am sharing it with you. Enjoy!

I will sing today about the food that I can’t live without. I do it because Devang, my friend told me to use it as a writing prompt. If he didn’t mention that, I might have still do it on my own initiative.

1. Pad Thai.
   • It’s the dish I can’t imagine my life without. I know there is a saying of a famous guy, who claimed that ‘Without music life would be a mistake’, I can use it as a template and say: Without Pad Thai life would be a mistake. It has to be spicy, and it has to be meaty, no exceptions. I usually have to go out for this kind of a treat, sometimes I buy it as instant noodles thing, which is not as good as freshly cooked one. I also order Thai iced tea if I go to a place that has it, it’s always the best combo in my humble opinion. It’s a good thing I am not hungry right now because otherwise I would have to run some place to get it. You can have it meat-free if you want.
2. Chicken with mushrooms in white sauce. (chicken and mushroom julienne)
   • This is my mom’s specialty. You can also make it at home it’s super easy, put chicken meat with mushrooms, onions and garlic in the frying pan, add salt and black pepper, at the end mix 2 tablespoons of sour cream and the dish is ready. You can serve it with any sides, like green vegetables or pasta or potatoes. You can’t go wrong there. And after that I have hot black tea with sugar. Satisfaction guaranteed. You can make it without chicken, it’s called ‘Julienne’.
3. Garlic Bread.
   • Garlic bread is something you can order or make at home. I do it either way but at home I don’t usually marinara so I use salsa instead. It’s not the same but it’s tomato-based, so it’s close enough. I order garlic bread when people I am with drag me along to have pizza, not a big pizza fan, I found a perfect solution. I have it with lemonade, so it’s always a pleasure to pair those two.
4. Potato Stew.
   • This dish is always cooked at home, although I see it sometimes on the menu at some Mexican restaurants. It’s called green chili stew, or green chili potato stew. It’s quite a rarity, so you are better off cooking it at home. It’s like a thick chicken soup with vegetables in it. Absolutely my favorite. It can be as spicy as you want or not spicy at all. It can be made with other meats as well. You have to serve it with pickles.
5. Cabbage Rolls.
   • Golubtsy or golabki are cabbage rolls with meat and rice for filling. You can make them at home or you can buy them at the Polish, Ukrainian or Russian restaurant / food truck. They are not hard to make but it takes some time, usually like 1.5 hours at least. My advice if you want to make them, use Chinese cabbage instead of regular one, it cooks a lot faster and tastes exactly the same. Also you can make them meat-free. The main secret is the sauce.

• What is your favorite food? Do you cook it or have it made? Let me know if you tried any of my favorite 5 dishes I listed here. Or if you would like to try any of them.