Tag: easy recipes


Apr
2017

Pasta Salad Niçoise

categories: Recipes

Pastasalade Nicoise met eiThis zesty salad is perfect for easy weekday lunches. And once the weather really shapes us, it would work well on a picnic, too. 

Serves: 4-6

  • 300g fusilli
  • 150g fresh green beans, trimmed and cut in half
  • 4 eggs
  • 5 tbsps olive oil
  • 2 tbsps red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1 ½ tsp dried basil
  • salt (preferably fleur de sel) and freshly-cracked pepper
  • 1 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
  • 100g black olives
  • 100g sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
  • 2 cans of tuna in water (195g each), drained
  • fresh basil leaves

Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package, adding the green beans in 5 minutes before the end of the cooking time. In the meantime, hardboil your eggs (8-12 minutes). Once cooked, rinse them under cold running water, peel them and let them cool. Drain the pasta and green beans, quickly rinse under cold running water and allow to drain well. In a large bowl, whisk the olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, basil and salt and pepper. Add the drained pasta and green beans and the rest of the ingredients. Carefully stir. Cut the eggs into sections. Transfer the salad to a serving platter and garnish with the egg.


Oct
2016

Slow-Cooked Roma Tomato Sauce

categories: Recipes

pastasauceTomatoes are still in abundance, and very temptingly displayed at my local organic shop. I buy the meaty Roma variety almost every week, mostly for salads. This week, however, I decided I was going to make a fragrant pasta sauce with them. With their succulent, juicy bite, they are especially good for this purpose!
If you’ve never made your own tomato sauce, this is definitely a recipe that will delight you with intense flavor and aroma. Besides perfectly ripe Roma tomatoes, you will also need a little patience. In the case of this sauce, about two hours’ worth.
Enjoy!

PS: Serve with spaghetti, fresh mozzarella and a scattering of Parmesan.

Slow-Cooked Roma Tomato Sauce
Serves 4

  • 800g Roma tomatoes
  • 2 tbsps olive oil
  • 2 red onions, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsps freshly-chopped herbs (I used oregano, thyme and rosemary)
  • pinch of dried chili flakes
  • 4 fat cloves of garlic, finely sliced
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsps Balsamic vinegar

Score the tomatoes on the bottoms with a sharp knife and submerge them under boiling water for three minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water and remove their skins. Chop them up making sure you save all of their juices. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and gently sauté the onions and herbs for 5 minutes. Add the chili flakes and cook for another minute before adding in the rest of the ingredients. Stir well, bring to a boil and allow to bubble for a minute or two. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pan and allow the sauce to cook gently for a good two hours, stirring every now and then. Serve with fresh pasta, mozzarella, Parmesan and fresh basil.

 

 


Jul
2016

Cherry Tomato & Grilled Courgette Salad

categories: In My Life, Recipes

I won’t be long before I’m back in my beautiful France. I am even looking forward to our fun but exhausting two-day journey, and especially to that much-anticipated ‘Welcome to France’ dinner on the first evening: steak-frites with pepper sauce and a nice bottle of wine. We are all so excited about going back to a place we can truly call our heart’s home.
sunflowerspaolaThere’s still plenty to do before our departure though. We need to round off the September/October 2016 issue of DUTCH, finalize plans for November/December, and I have to finish some articles for a few other magazines. I am not only happy about going back to France, but also about a two-week break — hopefully filled with lots of food and wine inspiration!
But on to today’s post!
Yesterday I promised I would share another summer salad with you today. If you haven’t checked out my watermelon and cucumber salad, make sure you do asap! It is very refreshing, light and great for this weather.
Today I will be sharing a grilled courgette and cherry tomato salad. Also quite zippy and full of summer flavor. I would serve this one with grilled chicken or even a proper steak from the barbecue. Here’s the recipe — have a great weekend!

Cherry Tomato & Grilled Courgette Salad
Serves 3-4
tomatocourgette

  • 1 courgette, sliced
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 3 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
  • fleur de sel
  • freshly-cracked pepper
  • 1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
  • small bunch of flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
  • 15 cherry tomatoes, halved

Grill your courgette slices on both sides and allow to cool. In a large bowl, whisk the lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Add in the rest of the ingredient, including the grilled courgettes, and serve!


Jul
2016

Watermelon & Cucumber Salad

categories: In My Life, Recipes

watermeloncucumberThese last few days, I haven’t cooked much. For me, nice weather is the perfect excuse to let hubby light the barbecue when he comes home from work while I pour us drinks and fix a quick apéro. My Latina blood loves this more than I can ever explain, hence the bitching when it’s cold (and it should be HOT).
The only action happening in my kitchen is the making of salads. I love salads, and I’ve probably said that a million times before. Even in the dead of winter, there’s no better lunch than a huge bowl of greens, a little protein and a nice, homemade dressing (I don’t use yucky stuff from a bottle, the ingredients scare me!).
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