Delicious Vegetarian Asian Salad

   In winter hearty meals are quite often the go-to ideas in our household because we want to counterbalance the cold outside, but sometimes, even in the dead of winter I feel I need a veggie break and this is how this recipe was invented: a bit of online research, finding a sauce and then Oli's creativity :) It's so delicious I promise you'll want to have it again and again! Let's learn how to make it!

Ingredients for 2 servings:

*It's difficult to estimate the exact quantities of the veggies, so just use a little bit of each and add more at the end if you feel like it, otherwise you'll have enough to feed an army and you don't want that :P

- Noodles (2 nests /100g)

- Shaved red and green cabbage

- Shredded carrot

- Chopped green onion

- Julienned red pepper

- Steamed broccoli (or celery) cut into very small florets *steam just for 2-3 min so that it's not raw, not soft, but still crunchy

- Chopped unsalted peanuts

Sauce:

- 2 Tbsp oil

- 2 Tbsp rice vinegar

- 2 Tbsp peanut butter

- 2 Tbsp soy sauce

- 2 Tbsp honey

- 2 tsp sambal oelek/sriracha

- 2 tsp grated ginger

- 2 tsp grated garlic

Steps:

1. Chop the veggies as indicated above and steam the broccoli. Mix in a bowl.

2. Make the sauce.

3. Boil the noodles as written on the package. Drain and set aside.

4. Add the noodles and the sauce on top of the veggies and mix well. 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:

Tuna Salad

   After having some heavy winter dinners we felt like switching things up so tonight we prepared this tuna salad that we love so much (my parents are raving about it even though they don't really try out new dishes a lot). It's so easy, fresh and healthy you will want to go for seconds! :)

Ingredients for 2-3 servings:
2 cans of tuna chunks (I'd recommend chunks instead of shredded tuna because you can get a better taste of the fish this way)
1 can of red beans
4-5 cherry tomatoes
2 cucumbers
1 medium red onion
2 green onions
some olives
a small can of corn
Optional: lettuce

Dressing:
4 Tbsp oil (from the tuna can)
3 garlic cloves
2 tsp grainy mustard
2 Tbsp water
A pinch of salt

Steps:
1. Dice the veggies.
2. Strain the tuna chunks but keep the oil from the can.
3. Make the dressing using oil from the tuna can.
4. Put the veggies, the tuna, the beans and the dressing in a bowl and mix well.
5. Enjoy your healthy dinner! :)