TOMATO TART

Summer is in the full swing and we have been enjoying all the wonderful produce available. This is the time of the year I wish I had a garden. Or allotment, somewhere close enough. To grow my own peas and radish and blackcurrants. But most of all, the seasonal tomatoes which are more flavoursome, sweet and tangy. All different kinds are available from the markets at the moments. Like a colourful painting you can smell and eat.
My mother came to spend some time with me an my sister. I wanted to cook something nice for her. She is a big fan of healthy food, so something fresh and light came to my mind.

I found this recipe on another blog. I was a bit worried that the tomatoes might be a bit too sweet. But it was wonderful. The crust is from wholewheat flour mixed with butter and cheese. The filling has a touch of honey and spring onions. My mum asked for fish so I bought some cod and quickly panfried it. It was flaky and soft. I also made a salad from everything I found in the fridge. Fennel, carrots, radishes and some rocket. We both enjoyed our dinner on the balcony. The warm weather is very unstable in London, I'm trying to enjoy every moment. It was lovely to have her around. In the morning, to say thank you I guess, she cleaned the kitchen before I even woke up.

SLOVAK SUMMER FOOD

This dish is very dear to my heart. When I go home to Slovakia, this is the dish I ask my mum to cook for me as a welcome home meal. It is traditionaly a summer dish, because peppers used to be a summer food. Everything is more seasonal in Slovakia. We have a different type of peppers, which I have not seen anywhere else so far. They are pale green colour with thiner flesh and they can be very spicy, or not. Its a russian roulette. Normally it can be established by smell. I always take a few back to England with me.

Because these peppers are not available in Uk, I've chosen these little baby peppers. The skin is not as thick so they will cook through in the sauce. They are stuffed with a mixture of mince pork and rice. Any leftover mixture is rolled into meatballs, slightly bigger then the Italian version. Some recipes use uncooked rice, I've tried it but the rice didn't quite cook inside the peppers and it was a bit crunchy. My mums recipe uses cooked rice and this worked very well .
Everything is cooked in rich tomato sauce. The sauce picks up the flavour of the peppers and the meat cooking in it. This gives it an irresistible flavour.

Chorizo, Potato, French Bean

Recently I didn't have much inspiration to cook. I spent most of my time baking macarons and then Im too tired to spend any more time in the kitchen. Hence the posts were a bit sparse.
In summer I always want to eat light. Make the most of the fresh vegetables. Most of the times I just chop everything in a big bowl. Everything I find. My mother was quite surprised with some combinations during my recent trip to slovakia. But she did enjoy it and so did I.

But today I want to talk about Chorizo. I think its my favourite spanish food. Along with Padron peppers which are so hard to find in London.

I buy the cooking chorizo. It releases all the spices and juice when cooked adding incredible flavour to the dish. It comes in a small pack of 9 mini sausages. But if you are not able to find this, use what you can.
This dish is simple, quick and very tasty. And there are leftovers too, sometimes.
All you need is a pack of new potatoes, pack of french green beans and a pack of cooking chorizo.

Boil, fry and eat.

HOMEMADE GRANOLA

Breakfast are very important to me. I am not able to do anything else before I eat. And most of the time I eat cereals for breakfast, I particularly like granola. I have been planning to make my own for a while but I guess I was a little lazy. Recently I found a great recipe that allows me to experiment a little. Add a nut or leave out the fruit. So I can make exactly what I love and I know exactly whats in it. I add more of things that I should be eating but don't particularly enjoy on it's own, such as pumpkin seeds. They are full of zinc and great for healthy nails and hair...or so my mum always used to say.

The preparation is fairly quick and the baking time is 40-50 minutes. I have managed to make one before I went to work. I don't think I will be buying granola ever again. It really does taste amazing, fresh, crunchy and not too sweet.
I normally eat it with yoghurt and fresh fruit such as blueberries, sliced apples, or other berries in season and recently I've been enjoying sessional rhubarb which I stew with a bit of honey. Just delicious. It is equally as nice with almond milk. Not to mention that its gluten free and full of goodness.

If you're a fan of healthy morning cereals like me, I urge you to give it a go. I bet you will be hooked.
Just follow this easy recipe.

Langoustines

Whether fresh or frozen, cooking "langoustines" (Nephrops norvegicus) should be performed with the greatest care. What makes the difference is the attention to detail in the composition of the court bouillon, which will be used to cook our delicate shellfish. Then the cooking time will be a major element for the full success of the preparation of our graceful ladies, which can also be found under the name of Norwaigan lobster.

No time to cook? Grilled ricotta and courgette salad

Spring is such a wonderful season. After long months of brown and beige food it's very refreshing to see some colour on the store shelves again. And with produce that is local, not exported from south america or Spain. In Spring, everything is small but full of flavour. Here I want to share a vibrant, simple plate of food just perfect for this season.
There is not much to say about this salad – it is as charmingly simple and straightforward as it appears . I'm sure you could replicate it even without the recipe. I have come across this dish while on a trip in Australia and i was bold over by its simplicity, yet exciting taste. Its fresh and light, the perfect lunch for a warm day. You can substitute the apricots for different fruit, figs for example or use different nuts, almonds will work nicely here.

To make this salad you will need some fresh ricotta, rocket leaves, nuts, olive oil, apricots,  baby courgettes, salt and pepper. 

Put a little bit of olive oil on the pan and fry the ricotta until golden. Cut baby courgettes in half lengthways and add them to the pan and cook until lightly brown and soft. Then put some rocket leaves on the plate, place the grilled ricotta in the middle. If you wish you can place the ricotta on a slice of toasted bread. Put the baby courgettes and nuts on the top of your ricotta. Garnish the salad with some fresh sliced apricot or figs. Taste and season with olive oil, salt and pepper. 
Lets start this season in a healthy way. 

"Du Pain et Des Idées"

«Du Pain et des Idées» is Paris’ prettiest bakery of traditional handcraft located near Canal St. Martin. The bakery dates back to 1889 and was re-envisioned by former fashion industry executive Christophe Vasseur in 2002.

All of the breads and pastries are made the most traditional way (here, a baguette is made in seven hours) and with the best ingredients (only fresh, seasonal fruit is used for the pastries.)

This bakery is full of flavours, a little wonderland full of exciting products. The star however is their signature bread "Pain des amis", with a thick caramelised crust, aerated middle and slightly nutty flavour. Christophe recommends to eat it with a good slice of ham, a Pata Negra or a piece of Bellota. Alain Ducasse serves this bread in his restaurant at the Plaza Athénée.

You should also taste the «Brioche Mouna», a traditional North African speciality. It's a butter brioche with orange blossom. Its so fragrant, its possible to smell it before you even walk inside. It is delicious with just a smear of salted butter.

MAKING MACARONS

Macarons a true French classic, so well know around the world, a little luxury we can enjoy ever so often. The first time i tried them i was hooked. Of course there are flavours I prefer to others, for example pistachio and Salted caramel. I would never choose Rose or Licorice, but they are all incredibly popular. Laduree are the market leaders, Pierre Herme is more experimental, but many bakeries are making macarons. I always wanted to be able to bake my own. The first time I tried it was a catastrophy. They looked like a colourful flat biscuits that stuck to the baking sheet. I was very disappointed and demotivated and it took another few years before I tried again.

Practice makes perfect, as the saying goes and after few times I had some positive results. My colleague was organising a Hen night at the beginning of march and she mentioned to me she wanted to get some macarons from Laduree. I offered to make some for her. It was an exciting challenge. And I had to make them all Lactose free, which isn't easy as the non dairy product don't have the same rich taste. In the trial I made Lemon and raspberry, but eventually we decided to make pistachio and salted macarons. I enjoy the process of making them. It takes time and I am always improving my skills.