Garlic shrimp with broccoli and Brussels sprouts

 

   I'm used to eating shrimp in stir fries or pastas, but I never tried it on its own so I decided to try another recipe from Anna's table. She recommends eating it with sauteed spinach and garlic bread, but I felt it needed a side so I added broccoli and Brussel sprouts. I guess that's pretty similar to a stir fry but oh well, at least it's not all mixed. I'm REALLY happy with how this dish turned out! I would not put garlic bread AND broccoli and Brussels sprouts as it's too much in the end (choose the bread or the veggies) but other than that, spot on! Now you go try it!

Ingredients for 3 servings:

- 500g shrimp, peeled and deveined

- 60g spinach (I used frozen but you can also use fresh if you want)

- 60g unsalted butter

- 3 Tbsp oil

- 6 garlic cloves

- 1/2 cup dry white wine

- 2 Tbsp fish sauce

- 1 tsp each: ground coriander, ground cumin, cayenne pepper, black pepper, smoked paprika

- 2 Tbsp lemon juice

SIDE:

- garlic bread OR your choice of veggies (I used broccoli and Brussels sprouts)

Steps:

1. Grate the garlic into a bowl. 

2. Add the shrimp, 1 tbsp oil, fish sauce, coriander, cumin, cayenne pepper, smoked paprika and black pepper. Toss and set aside for 10 minutes. Note! It’s important to prepare everything fast and cook over a high heat.

3. Heat the remaining 2 Tbsp oil in a large skillet. Place the shrimps in a single layer, sear for 1 minute. Flip and sear the other side, 1 minute. 

4. Pour white wine, cook for 1 minute. 

5. Add butter, stir until melted. 

6. Then add spinach and toss until wilted, 30 seconds to 1 minute max. 

7. Sprinkle with lemon juice. 

OPTIONAL:

8. Prepare the garlic bread OR Steam the broccoli + Stir fry the Brussels sprouts with some salt and orange juice. 

Bon appetit!

Teo's Sweet and Spicy Meatballs and Rice

   One of my favorite Romanian home cooks is Teo Rogobete from Teo's Kitchen. She puts a lot of passion in cooking and you can tell. She recently cooked this mouth watering meatball recipe that I really wanted to try first because it looked so good and second because it's so healthy (baked instead of fried)! I really loved the delicious surprise of the sweet and spicy sauce on the meatballs! Try it too and see for yourself :)

Ingredients for 3 servings:
Meatballs:
- 600g of pork minced meat (Teo used beef)
- 1/2 cup of bread crumbs
- a large egg
- salt and pepper
- 1 tsp ginger, grated
- 1 tsp Tabasco sauce
- 1 onion, minced
- 2 cloves of garlic, grated

Sides:
- 300g rice
- 250g broccoli (my addition, you can replace it with something else), slightly boiled

Sweet and spicy sauce:
- 200g apricot jam
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp Tabasco sauce

Extra:
- some leaves of parsley or some green onion for decor on top

Steps:

1. Add the minced meat, the bread crumbs, the egg, salt, pepper, ginger, Tabasco sauce, onion and garlic in a bowl and mix well. 

2. Let the composition rest for 10-15 min.

3. Preheat the oven at 200ºC.

4. Form the meatballs and put them on a baking tray, over some baking paper.

5. Put the meatballs in the oven for about 20 min, making sure you turn them around at half time.

6. Cook the rice and the broccoli.

7. Make the sauce by mixing the apricot jam, the soy sauce and the Tabasco sauce. Heat the sauce for a minute and keep stirring.

8. When the meatballs are ready, put them in a bowl, then add the sweet and spicy sauce over them. Let them cool down.

9. Plate your dish: a bed of rice, some saucy meatballs and the broccoli on the side. At the end sprinkle some parsley leaves on top of the meatballs and enjoy! :)

P.S. Add some refreshing craft beer to go with your dish!

For Romanians, here's Teo's recipe video:

Oliver's Chicken "Alfredo"

   This is the very first dish Oliver cooked for me. And I fell in love with it (and him) from the first bite! It's soooo creamy and delicious, a real comfort food for bad days and unhappy times, one of my favorite dishes ever!

   Oliver kind of played with the ingredients and put this recipe together in his own way without taking an already written recipe as inspiration. Because of this and because it's so creamy and reminds us of an Alfredo sauce (even though it's more of a ragu), we decided to call it Oli's chicken Alfredo dish :D It's really easy to make, so why not try to make it tonight? :)

Ingredients for 2-3 servings:

- 1/2 chicken breast, diced

- 4-5 white mushrooms, sliced

- 1 small white onion, finely diced

- 50ml cooking cream

- 2 Tbsp of your favourite Chicken Seasoning

- 1 Tbsp oil for cooking

- 150g rice

Sides: 

Broccoli 

- 250g broccoli

Caprese Salad

- 2 tomatoes

- 1 large mozarella ball

- fresh basil 

- balsamic reduction

Steps:

1. Bring some water to a boil and cook the rice.
2. Heat up a pan, add oil and the diced onion.

3. After the onion caramelizes a bit, add the chicken and half of the seasoning (1 Tbsp).

4. When the chicken is 75-80% cooked on both sides, add mushrooms and the remainder of the seasoning. 

5. Let the chicken cook completely and the mushrooms caramelize, then add the cooking cream and reduce it.

6. Make the side: chop the broccoli into small bites, then put it in some boiling water for about 5 min.

7. Slice the tomatoes and the mozarella, then alternatively place a slice of tomato and a slice of mozarella, add chopped basil on top and drizzle some balsamic reduction. 

8. Set the dish: bed of rice, chicken ragu and broccoli and the Caprese Salad on the side.

Bon appetit! Let me know what you think about it! :)

Chicken casserole

   Do you want to cook something new, healthy and easy to make? Try this delicious recipe! I haven't cooked it in years and it surprised me by how much I still love it even after all this time!

Ingredients (3 servings):
- a chicken breast or some boneless chicken thighs
- 2 big potatoes
- around 250g of broccoli
- a medium white onion
- your preffered seasoning for the chicken
- salt and pepper
- a cup of cooking cream
- around a cup of milk
- water to fill the tray

Steps:

1. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces and season it with your favorite chicken seasoning.

2. Roughly chop the broccoli, potatoes and onion.

3. Add all the ingredients in a pyrex dish, season with salt and pepper, then mix everything well.

4. Add cooking cream, milk and water over the veggies and chicken until you fill the tray/dish almost completely. Alternatively, you can use milk and sour cream. I used what I had at home.

5. Cook the dish for about 45 minutes at 180 degrees. Check to make sure everything is cooked properly.

6. Enjoy your healthy dinner! :)