Monday Breakfast Baked Eggs with Beans Ingredients 1 onion sliced 1 tomato sliced 2 Tbsp olive oil Lemon 1/2 Tbsp cumin Handful dry red chili Salt and pepper to flavor 250 gm boiled beans (you can use the baked beans tins) Fresh coriander leaves 2 Tbsp tomato sauce Spring onions 4 eggs 2 Tbsp grated cheese 1 Tbsp honey Instructions Preheat the oven at 160 degrees for 20 minutes. Chop the onions and tomato. Heat up the pan with olive oil and add cumin and some dry red chilies. Add the onions and tomatoes to the pan. Add the beans, salt, pepper, fresh coriander leaves and lemon juice. Mix well. Add tomato sauce and honey. Break the egg in the above mixture. Garnish with spring onions and grated cheese. Put it in the oven for 10 minutes at 170 degrees. Sprinkle some onions and coriander leaves. Then serve it with a drizzle of olive oil and salt & pepper. Source: NDTV Cooks Monday Lunch Spaghetti marinara Ingredients - 2 tbs olive oil, plus extra to toss - 1 onion, finely chopped - 3 garlic cloves, crushed - 1 cup (250ml) dry white wine - 3 tbs tomato paste - 2 x 410g cans crushed tomatoes - 500g spaghetti - 500g marinara mix* - 300g black mussels, washed, de-bearded - 2 tbs chopped flat-leaf parsley Instructions Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, add onion and cook for 3-4 minutes or until softened. Add garlic and wine, and simmer 2 minutes. Add paste and crushed tomatoes, and simmer 15-20 minutes further, stirring occasionally until slightly thickened. Season well. Cook the pasta in boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain and toss in a little olive oil. Add marinara mix and mussels to tomato sauce, cover with lid and cook 3-4 minutes over medium-high heat, discarding any mussels that do not open. Stir in parsley, then toss the sauce through the pasta and serve. Notes & tips * A mix of fresh seafood, from fish-mongers and good supermarkets. Serves 6 Monday Dinner Potatoes with spring greens Ingredients 1,5 pounds potatoes 0,5 cups plain yogurt 0,1 pound spring onions a bunch of dill salt and pepper to taste Instructions Wash the potatoes throughly and cut unpeeled into slices approx. 0,3 inhes thick. If using small potatoes, halve or quarter them. Transfer into a pot, cover with water, add 0,25 tsp salt and bring to boil. Cover and cook for 12-15 minutes, or until tender throughout. Drain and let cool. Trabsfer the cool potatoes to a serving dish. Wash and finely mince the spring onions and dill, add to the potatoes. Add yogurt, salt and pepper to taste and toss to combine. Tuesday Breakfast Whipped fruity porridge Ingredients 4 cups water 1/4 tsp salt 0,5 cups fine semolina 0,25 cups sugar 0,4-0,6 pounds pureed fruit or berries such as baby food Instructions In a large pot bring water to boil. Gradually add semolina, stirring continuously. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sugar and pureed fruit. You can use berries instead of baby food, defrosted if frozen. Mix throughly to combine and let cool completely. Using an electric mixer whip the porridge for 2-4 minutes, until frothy. Photo courtesy Elaine Ashton с Flickr Tuesday Lunch Irish lamb stew Ingredients 1 to 1 1/2 lb. Leyden Glen Farm lamb stew meat or 1/2 lamb shoulder (bone-in) 2 small to medium onions 1 1/2 lbs. potatoes (see potato notes above) 1 small to medium turnip 7 carrots salt and pepper 2 T. olive oil 16 oz. water, lamb stock or beef stock 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme 1 bay leaf Instructions Chop the onions. Heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil in a soup pot and brown the onions until translucent. Remove and reserve the onions leaving a bit of the juice in the bottom of the pot. Add the lamb and brown. Add salt and pepper. Remove the fat if your lamb is too fatty. The fat from the lamb will add flavor but too much isn’t pleasant. Step One: Peel and dice the potatoes. I like to dice the floury potatoes small and leave the waxy ones in larger chunks. When the lamb is brown, add half the potatoes (use the smaller floury potato dice) and the reserved cooked onions. Add your liquid of choice (water, stock or beer) and dried thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a very low simmer. Cook for 1 1/2 to two hours. It may be necessary to add more water to avoid scorching. By the end of the cooking time, the potatoes should have disintegrated and become the thickener for the stewy-sauce. If they haven’t, use a potato masher and squash them down to thicken the stew. Step Two: In the meantime, peel the carrots and turnips. Cut into chunks about an inch square. Add the remaining waxy potatoes, carrots and turnips to the stew and cook until the newly added vegetables are to your liking. A half hour usually does it for me. Some people like their veggies more whole and crunchy and some like them mushier. You decide! Photo courtesy jeffreyw via Flickr Tuesday Dinner White bean salad Ingredients 1 pound canned white beans or butter beans 3 celery stalks small bunch fresh parsley 3 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp white wine vinegar 1 tbsp mustard 1 tsp sugar salt pepper Instructions Drain the beans and rinse well. Chop the celery stalks and parsley. Transfer the beans, celery and parsley to a serving bowl. Reserve some parsley to garnish. In a separate bowl combine the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, salt, pepper and sugar, throughly whisk to combine. Pour the dressing over the bean mixture, toss to combine. Sprinkle with parsley to garnish. Wednesday Breakfast Cauliflower and Radishes Salad Ingredients 6-8 large radishes approximately half of a cauliflower head green, yellow and red bell peppers – just cut a piece of each of them whipped salad dressing dill salt to taste Instructions Shred the radishes with the fine side of a shredder. I should look almost like puree. Cut several cauliflower flowerets from the stems; then cut just the flower part, and mince it into really small pieces. There will be lots of “waste”, try to plan using the remaining parts of the cauliflower in some other dish. Depending on how much radishes you’ve got, cut enough cauliflower so that it’s volume will be approximately the same, as of the shredded radishes. Cut a piece (about 1/8 of a large pepper) from each of 3-color bell peppers you’ve got, and cut them into squares. Add a pinch of salt (to taste). Add some whipped salad dressing: the key is not to overdo it. I usually start with 2 tbsp, stir them in, and try the salad. May be, it will be enough! Place the salad in the salad bowl and sprinkle with finely chopped dill – done! Recipe coutersy Henrietta Dombrovskaya, http://hettiecooking.wordpress.com/2013/12/25/cauliflower-and-radishes-salad/ Wednesday Lunch Spaghetti with shrimps and asparagus Ingredients 300 g asparagus 200 g shrimps 30 g oil 10 g garlic salt, pepper parsley leaves spagetti Instructions First cook spaghetti according to the package instractions. While it cooks, prepare the asparagus and shrimps. Peel the asparagus and cut off the tops, slice the rest finely. In a small pan bring water to boil and cook the asparagus heads for 3 minutes. Drain. In a large saucepan heat oil on a medium heat, Add finely chopped garlic an dcook for 1 minute. Add sliced asparagus and cook for 10 muntes. Add peeled and defrozed (if necessary) shrimps and cook for another 3 minutes. Add asparagus tops, salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat. Distribute spaghetti to the serving plates, put the asparagus and shrimps on top of spaghetti and sprinkle with chopped parlsey leaves. Serve immediately. Wednesday Dinner Quinoa with roasted vegetables Ingredients 1 pound dry quinoa 1/2 butternut pumpkin 3 large beets 0,25 pounds olives, or to taste 0,25 pounds goat’s cheese 0,3 pounds baby spinach 0,3 pounds baby rocket 3 tbsp olive oil salt and pepper Instructions 1. Preheat your oven to 420F. 2. Cook quinoa according to the instructions on the pack. Peel and cube the beets and pumpkin. Crumble the goat cheese. 3. Line a roasting tray with foil or baking paper, place the pumpkin and beetroot in a single layer. Add 1 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper, and mix to combine. Roast for 30 minutes or until the vegetables just begin to color. Remove from the oven, add the olives, mix to combine and bake for another 20 minutes, or until the vegetables start to turn crisp. Remove and let cool. 4. In a large bowl combine cooked quinoa, vegetables, spinach, rocket, goat cheese and remaining olive oil. Mix well to combine. Photo courtesy Naotake Murayama via Flickr Thursday Breakfast Perfect porridge Ingredients 50g porridge oats 350ml milk or water, or a mixture of the two Greek yogurt, thinned with a little milk and clear honey, to serve Instructions 1. Put the oats in a saucepan, pour in the milk or water and sprinkle in a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil and simmer for 4-5 minutes, stirring from time to time and watching carefully that it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. Or you can try this in a microwave. Mix the oats, milk or water and a pinch of salt in a large microwaveproof bowl, then microwave on High for 5 minutes, stirring halfway through. Leave to stand for 2 minutes before eating. 2. To serve. Pour into bowls, spoon yogurt on top and drizzle with honey. Source: BBC Food Thursday Lunch Rice with wok Ingredients - rice - tomatoes - mushrooms - zucchini - broccoli - pepperoni - wild cabbage - tofu - red chili - wok paste - curry sauce - coconut milk - pineapple - soya sauce Instructions 1. Prepare the rice (cook with water for 10-12 min. --> read on ur rice package). 2. Wash and slice the vegetables. 3. Add some soya sauce to the wok. 4. Add all vegetables to the wok. 5. Cook. 6. Add coconut milk. 7. Spice. 8. Add curry sauce. 9. Add the different pastes. (as much as you like) Thursday Dinner Minestrone Ingredients 1 large purjo 2 carrots 1 zuccini 100 g green beans 1 cellery leaves 45 g olive oil 400 g tomato sauce 15 g basil leaves 5 g thyme 400 g beans salt and pepper to taste Instructions Cut all vegetables, put into a large pot, add olive oil , cover and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes, occasionally stirring. Add water, tomatoes and spices and cook for 30 minutes. Add beans and cook for 10 minutes. Friday Breakfast Creamy rice with oranges Ingredients 1 cup rice 2 cups water 1/2 tsp salt 2 large oranges 1 cup whipping cream 1 tbsp sugar Instructions 1. In a medium-sized pot cook the rice in water until done. Let cool. 2. Peel the oranges and cut into bite-sized pieces. For more uniform consistency also carefully remove the pith and membranes. 3. Whip the cream. 4. In a large bown mix the whippen cream, cooled rice, ornages, salt and sugar. Refrigerate before serving. Friday Lunch Stewed chicken with prunes Ingredients 1 pound chicken breasts 1 tbsp vegetable oil or butter 0,5 pound prunes 1 tsp salt 1 tsp pepper Instructions 1. Clean the chicken breasts, remove the bones and skin if necessary. Cut the meat into small pieces. 2. In a large pan over a medium heat fry the chicken pieces in oil or butter until golden-brown. 3. Transfer to a pot, add enough water to just cover the chicken, add prunes, salt and pepper. Bring to boil, decrease heat to medium-low, and cook for 20 minutes, or until very done. 4. Serve with rice and fresh vegetable salad. Friday Dinner Hungarian vegetable stew Ingredients 3 onions 2 celery stalks 2 green peppers 3 tbsp vegetable oil 1 tsp pepper 1 pound potatoes 1 cup water 1-2 cloves garlic 1 tbsp salt 1 pound canned tomatoes Instructions Peel and slice the onions and celery stalks, Wash and slice the green peppers. In a large pot heat the oil on a medium heat, strir in the pepper. Add the vegetables and fry for 2 minutes, until translucent. Peel the potatoes and cut into bite-size pieces. Pour the water to the pot and add the potatoes. Cover and cook for 20-30 minutes, until tender. Add mined garlic and salt. Add canned tomatoes, slicing tomatoes if needed. Bring to boil and serve immediately. Photo courtesy of Marylin Acosta via Flickr Saturday Breakfast Fluffy French Toast Ingredients 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 cup milk 1 pinch salt 3 eggs 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 tablespoon white sugar 12 thick slices bread Instructions 1. Measure flour into a large mixing bowl. Slowly whisk in the milk. Whisk in the salt, eggs, cinnamon, vanilla extract and sugar until smooth. 2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium heat. 3. Soak bread slices in mixture until saturated. Cook bread on each side until golden brown. Serve hot. Source: Allrecipes.com Photo courtesy Ralph Daily via Flickr Saturday Lunch Ratatouille Ingredients 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced 1 large onion, quartered and thinly sliced 1 small eggplant, cubed 2 green bell peppers, coarsely chopped 4 large tomatoes, coarsely chopped, or 2 cans (14.5 ounces each) diced tomatoes 3 to 4 small zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch slices 1 teaspoon dried leaf basil 1/2 teaspoon dried leaf oregano 1/4 teaspoon dried leaf thyme 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley Instructions In a 4-quart saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and onions and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 6 to 7 minutes. Add eggplant; stir until coated with oil. Add peppers; stir to combine. Cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep vegetables from sticking. Add tomatoes, zucchini, and herbs; mix well. Cover and cook over low heat about 15 minutes, or until eggplant is tender but not too soft. Serves 4. Photo coutresy John via Flickr Source: http://www.toptastes.com/recipes/entrees/ratatouille.htm Saturday Dinner Leeks and potato cream soup Ingredients 1 tbsp vegetable oil 1 medium onion 8 medium potatoes 1 large leek 4,25 cups water or vegetable or chicken stock 0,75 cups cream salt and pepper to taste Instructions Peel and mince the onion. Peel and cube the potatoes. Wash thoroughly and slice the leeks. In a large pan heat the oil and fry the vegetables on medium heat for approx 10 minutes, or until just beginning to brown. Transfer to a pot and add water or stock and salt and pepper. Bring to boil, cover and simmer for 10 minutes minutes, or until the vegetables are tender throughout. Using an electric blender blend the soup to desired consistency, add cream. Mix to combine. Serve hot, with rustic bread and butter. Sunday Breakfast Berry smoothie Ingredients 1 ripe banana 8-10 strawberries (you know, there is never such a thing, as too many strawberries!) 3/4 – 1 cup of skim milk 3/4 cups of frozen strawberry yogurt 1/4 cup of peach or raspberry sorbet (any tart sorbet) Instructions Cut banana and strawberries into small pieces, put into blender, add milk, yogurt and sorbet, turn blender on “chop” for about 30-40 sec, and then to “blend” till it’s… blended :) Pore smoothie into cups, and put some fresh blackberries and raspberries on top. Photo courtesy A Rosie Sweet Home via Flickr. Recipe courtesy Henrietta Dombrowskaya, http://hettiecooking.wordpress.com/2014/06/01/summer-desserts/ Sunday Lunch Mushroomy spaghetti Ingredients 1 pound spaghetti 2 tbsp oil 1 medium onion 1 tsp herb mix - oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme or as desired 1,2 pounds champignons 6 cloves garlic 0,25 cups white wine or vegetable stock 1 tsp soy sauce 1 tsp parsley, chopped Instructions In a large pot bring water top boil and cook the spaghetti according to package instructions. Clean and chop the onion and mushrooms, peel and mince the garlic. In a large pan heat the oil, add onion and herb mix and cook for 6 minutes, stirring frequently. Add mushrooms and garlic and cook for 10-15 minutes more, or until the mushrooms are browned and well cooked through. Add wine or stock and the soy sauce and cook for 2-3 minutes more. Add salt if desired. Strain the cooked spaghetti and transfer to individual serving plates. Put the mushrooms on top and sprinkle with the parsley. Serve immediately. Sunday Dinner Colourful herring soup Ingredients 1 pound Baltic herring, bones, heads and fins removed 1 onion 1 carrot 0,5 sweet pepper, use yellow or orange for more colourful soup 1 celery stalk 1 orange 1 large potato 1 tsp oil 0,5 tsp salt 0,25 tsp pepper Instructions Wash and peel the onion and carrot, chop finely. Wash the celery stalk and sweet pepper, chop finely. In a medium-sized pan heat the oil and fry the vegetables for appox. 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Then cover, reduce heat to low and continue cooking for 5-7 more minutes. Wash the herring, cut into bite-sized pieces. In a large pot bring water to boil, add fish pieces, bring back to boil. Meanwhile wash and peel the potato and chop into bite-sized pieces. Squeeze the orange to get the juice. Add the potato, orange juice, fried vegetables, salt and pepper to the boiling soup. Bring back to boil and cook covered for another 7-10 minutes, or until all ingredients are done.