Crumpled Pie (Pita Guzvara)

 

This recipe is good to make when you are upset with someone and need to relieve the stress. It involves crumpling phyllo pastry sheets and throwing them into the pot.

 



 

Ingredients:

1 package phyllo pastry (454g)

200 - 300g feta cheese

5 eggs

about 500ml sparkling water

1tsp baking powder

splash of vegetable oil

butter to cover the bottom and sides of a baking dish

 

 

Butter the bottom and sides of a baking dish. Turn the oven on 375 F (180 C).

In a bowl, beat 4 eggs (leave one egg for later). Add crumbed feta cheese, splash of oil and sparkling water.

 

 

Take two phyllo pastry sheets and line the bottom of your baking dish, folding it to fit the bottom.

Take one phyllo pastry sheet, put it into egg and cheese mixture and crumple it. Now fun part begins.

 

 

 Throw it like that into baking dish. Repeat the process until you have one layer of crumpled balls in a baking dish. Leave the air in these crumples, do NOT squeeze them too tightly.

 

 

Take one phylo pastry sheet and cover the layer of crumpled sheets.

Repeat the process and end with one or two flat, dry (without eggs and cheese mixture), phyllo pastry sheets.

In a bowl, beat the remaining egg and add a splash of vegetable oil. Mix it well and pour over the last sheet.

 

 

You can poke few times with a fork before putting it into the oven. Bake for 1 h 15 min. Check around 45min and if top is golden brown, put some aluminum foil over (do not close foil tightly, just put it lightly on the top of baking dish.

When it's done, take it out of the oven and let it cool a bit before cutting and serving. It can happen sometimes that when you start cutting it, top drops down. It is OK, it will be delicious that way, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Garlic Brussels Sprouts

 

If you don't like Brussels sprouts, like we didn't, try this recipe. It might change your mind. It certainly did change our minds about this healthy vegetable.

 

 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds (about 600g) fresh Brussels sprouts

4 garlic cloves, minced

1-2Tbsp oil (original recipe calls for some butter but I don't like cooking with butter so I put only oil)

1/2 cup (125ml) chicken stock or water+chicken soup cube

salt and black pepper to taste

 

Tip: To get all bulbs cooked at the same time, cut an x in the bottom of each bulb.

 

 

Sauté garlic in oil for about 2-3 minutes. Add Brussels sprouts and toss to coat.

 

 

Add chicken stock, stir and cover. Cook for 12-14 minutes or until sprouts are tender. I finish it here. It's done and delicious. However, original recipe says to drain sprouts, add butter and toss to coat.

 

 

 

 

 



Kimchi Bokumbap

 

Several years ago we had a Korean student living with us for awhile. He expressed a wish to cook a meal for us and that's how I got this recipe. It is my comfort food and everyone in my family likes it.

 

 

Ingredients:

500g kimchi from the jar

1 cup rice (steamed)

soy or tamari sauce

1 Spam

2 eggs

1Tbsp oil

about handful of wakame sea weed

 

 

Rinse and steam rice. If you don't have rice steamer, as I don't, it's OK. Put rice in a pot and add cold water to be just 1/2 inch or little bit more above the rice. Cover the pot and put on high temperature to cook. Once it starts boiling, stir with cooking spoon and cover but not all the way. Cover just a half of the pot and turn the heat to the lowest temperature. Cook until all water is absorbed, then turn the heat off and cover the whole pot. Leave it like that while you are preparing the rest.

 

 

Cut up kimchi and add with oil into big pan. Start frying, stirring occasionally.

 

 

While kimchi is frying, beat eggs in a bowl. Set aside.

 

 

Cut Spam in small pieces.

 

 

When kimchi is cooked (vegetables become softer), add Spam and continue frying for about 5 more minutes.  

 

 

Add rice and soy or tamari sauce and continue stirring. When everything is well mixed, add beaten eggs and stir fast so you don't get scrambled eggs on top of your kimchi :) Cook stirring for few more minutes. Sprinkle with crumbled wakame weeds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Zuccini And Carrot Fritters

This is the recipe I've got recently from my FB friend. I made it and it became instant family favourite.

 

Ingredients:

2 zucchinis

3 carrots (if you are using huge carrots, use only one)

2 eggs

flour

salt

oil for frying

 

 

Peel and grate zucchini. Put it in a strainer, salt it and leave it to get out as much liquid as possible (about 1/2 an hour). Press it with the back of the spoon to get even more liquid out.

 

 

 In a bowl, beat eggs. Add zucchinis and grate carrots in. Add some flour to get a thick mixture (not very thick).

 

 

Pour the oil in a frying pan and turn the heat on. When oil is hot, lower the heat to medium. Use tablespoon to take out mixture and drop it into hot oil.

 

 

After awhile, turn fritters over and flatten them with the fork.

 

 

Continue frying, Turn over again and again if necessary until you think they are done inside. Take them out from the pan and onto the plate covered with paper towels to absorb excess oil. Then transfer to the serving plate. They are good hot or at the room temperature.

 

 

The other day I made sandwich for Filip for lunch at school with bread, fritters, feta cheese and roasted pepper salad. After school, he told me that his lunch was awesome!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Fruity Sponge Cake

 

 

 

Ingredients:

5 eggs

300g white sugar

300g white flour

1tsp baking powder

10Tbsp oil (some kind that doesn't have a taste, like sunflower)

10Tbsp hot water

200g - 300g fruit, frozen or fresh (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, apricots, cherries...one kind or a mix, whatever you like. My favourite is a frozen mix of raspberries, blueberries and blackberries. If you use for example diced apricots with blueberries you'll have a beautiful colour combination. )

 

 

 

Butter the baking pan and sift some flour to cover the bottom of the pan.

 

 

Turn the oven to 375 F (180 C).

 

Break the eggs in a mixing bowl and start mixing with electric mixer. While mixing start adding sugar. Mix until you get almost stiff batter. Leave your electric mixer aside, you will not need it anymore. Mix flour with baking powder and add to eggs. Add oil and hot water and mix with a cooking spoon until you get smooth batter without any flour clumps. Pour the batter into the baking pan and even it out with the back of a spoon.

 

 

Add fruit all over the batter.

 

 

Put in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes. Check with toothpick if center of the cake is baked, then take out of the oven.

 

 

Dust with icing sugar (it's the best if you have a small sieve to use it for dusting).

 

 

Let it cool, then cut and serve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

Chicken Stir-Fry

 

 

Ingredients:

1 cooking onion, sliced

1-2 garlic cloves, minced

ginger, grated

sesame oil

vegetables, any that you have in the fridge (except starchy kinds like potato)

200g skinless, boneless chicken breast cut into thin strips

soy or tamari sauce

1tsp corn starch and 1tsp brown sugar (both are optional)

rice noodles or steamed rice to serve with

 

 

 

When you are cooking Chinese food be sure to cut up all the ingredients in advance.

 

If you are cooking noodles, put water to boil in the big pot and cook noodles according to directions on their package. If you are going to have your stir-fry with rice, start cooking it now. This way, noodles or rice will be ready at the same time as stir-fry.

 

At the same time as you start cooking noodles or rice, put sesame oil into frying pan. Add onion, garlic and ginger and fry it until onion is cooked. If you think it's going to start burning add just a little bit of water and continue frying. Stir with a cooking spoon continuously.

 

 

Then add chicken and continue frying. When chicken is fully cooked, add vegetables. I always add hard vegetables first and then after few minutes add softer ones. Broccoli might look hard but it's cooking fast so add it at the end. Splash soy or tamari sauce and continue cooking.

 

Now comes the optional thing. If you want you can mix 1tsp corn starch and 1tsp brown sugar with some water or soy sauce and add to vegetables. Cook few more minutes.

 

If you are going to eat all in one seating, you can serve stir-fry over noodles. In case you see that there will be left overs, mix noodles with stir-fry. That way noodles will not get dry.

 

 

Tip: If you are watching your salt intake, you can use chicken stock instead of some soy sauce. Add just enough soy sauce for the taste and for the rest, chicken stock.

 

 

 



Potato Moussaka

 

Originally, Greek moussaka is made with eggplant and béchamel sauce. This version is lighter and better if you ask me :)

 

 

Ingredients:

4-5 russet potatoes

about 450-500g lean ground beef

1 cooking onion

1l or less milk

4 eggs

salt

black pepper

oil

 

Put oil in a frying pan and add diced onion. Fry or sauté onion until translucent. Add meat, salt and black pepper and brown the meat. Set aside.

 

Take a baking dish that can hold all that you plan to put in it :) Turn the oven to 375 F (180 C).

 

Peel potatoes. Slice first potato and cover the bottom of baking dish. Put some of meat over it.

 

 

Slice second potato and cover the meat. Repeat the process until you have material, ending with potato on top.

 

 

In a small bowl beat the eggs and add some milk and little bit of salt. Pour milk over potatoes in a baking dish somewhere to the half of the stack. Now, pour beaten eggs with milk. If there is more space, add more milk, it should be grazing the top of your stack.

 

 

Cover tightly with aluminum foil. And put in the oven for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes, take foil out of the oven and continue baking 45 more minutes. Check with fork if all potatoes are soft. Take it out of the oven and let it cool down. If you are really hungry, you can eat it immediately but it will have lots of liquids from milk. Once it cools down, liquid is absorbed and not visible.