Grandma's Hutspot

This is one of the dishes my Grandmother, who was Dutch, prepared for us kids when we visited her - and we all loved it. Hutspot is a traditional Dutch dish, that everyone in the Netherlands knows. It's simple to prepare, very filling and delicious as both a side dish or a main course - real comfort food.

Prep and cook time: 30 min
For 4 servings as a side dish or 2 servings as a main course:

• 500 grams potatoes 
• 300 grams carrots
• 1 large white or yellow onion
• 500 millilitre vegetable stock *)
• 3 table spoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 tea spoon dried dill
• salt
• black pepper

Peel and cut the potatoes, carrots and onion into pieces. Heat vegetable stock with dill in a large pot, add the cut vegetables and cook until they are soft.

Mash the vegetables and the vegetable stock with a potato masher. Add vegetable oil and as much salt and pepper as you like. Stir well.

*) I like my hutspot rather soft and creamy, if you want a firmer hutspot, use 350 to 400 millilitres of vegetable stock.

Enjoy your meal & eet smakelijk,

Vegan Dashi - Step by Step

I really love Japanese food and dashi is a staple, not only for miso soup but for many Japanese dishes. Usually dashi is made using konbu seaweed and bonito fish blakes, but I'm not a big fan of fish, so I usually make vegan dashi using konbu seasweed and dried shiitake mushrooms. Of course, this is not the original - but it tastes delicious and goes really well with any kind of Japanese dish.

I usually prepare 2,5 litres of dashi at once and freeze it in ice cube forms. You can store it up to 6 months in the freezer.

Prep and cook time: 45 minutes.

For 2.5 litres of dashi you need: 

• 2,5 litres water
• 3 pieces of dried konbu seaweed (~ 10 * 7 cm in size)
• 5 dried shiitake mushrooms

Cut the konbu pieces from the side to increase surface.

Pour 2.5 litres of cold water into a large pot, add konbu seaweed and shiitake mushrooms and let it soak for 30 minutes.

Bring to a boil and remove konbu seaweed when it starts to boil. Boil the water with the shiitake mushrooms for 10 minutes.

Remove the shiitake mushrooms (you can cut these and use them as e.g. a soup vegetable for miso soup). That's it, your dashi is ready.

Enjoy your meal!

Orange & Pepper Sharmûlah

Sharmûlah or Chermoula (in Arabic: ‏شرمولة) is a kind of marinade used with fish, seafood and meat. There are many versions of this marinade, but there is alwaysfresh herbs, olive oil, garlic and lemon juice in it.

This version is prepared with orange juice, orange blossom water and green pepper. It's great with chicken or vegetables, such as slices of zucchini or eggplant, eiter for a tajine or a BBQ. 

Prep and cook time: 5 minutes

• 1 handfull fresh coriander leaves
• lemon juice of 1/2 lemon 
• 1 red onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 2 teaspoons orange blossom water
• 2 table spoons pickled green pepper
• 3 teaspoons baharât
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 2 teaspoons salt

Cut coriander, garlic and onion into piecees. Blend with all the other ingredients until you have a smooth marinade. That's it. Yes, really!

Enjoy your meal!

Berry & Almond Smoothie

I drank a smoothie very similar to this one in Chicago a couple of years ago. Unfortunately I can't remeber the name of the smoothie bar or where it was ...

Serves: 2
Prep and cook time: 10 min

• 100 grams raspberries (fresh or frozen)
• 100 grams blueberries (fresh or frozen)
• 1/2 lemon
• 2 table spoons honey
• 2 table spoons ground almonds
• 1/2 vanilla fruit
• 1/2 tea spoon ground cinnamon
• 300 ml almond drink 

Cut vanilla fruit lengthwise, remove vanilla pulp. Squeeze juice out of the lemon. In a blending container add raspberries, blueberries, lemon juice, honey, almonds, vanilla pulp, cinnamon and almond drink. Blend until it's smooth.

Enjoy your meal!

Lentil Soup à la Hatice

Yes, it's another soup recipe. I don't know how you feel about it, but in Winter I'm really into soups and eat some rich soup almost every day. Soups keep you warm and are the perfect Winter dish. 

This is a Turkish lentil soup, I followed recipe I gor from my friend Hatice and it's not only one of the best, but also the fastest lentil soup recipes I know. 

Serves 3-4

Prep & cook time: 45 minutes

• 0,75 liter vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup dried red lentils 
• 1 celery rib
• 1 hand full of celery leaves
• 1 yellow carrot
• 1 tsp fresh chopped ginger
• 1/2 onion
• 2 potatoes
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp ground curcuma

Grate carrot, chop onion, cut celery rib & potatoes into small pieces. Fry the vegetables with the ginger in a large pan until they start to brown. Add vegetable stock, lentils, potatoes, cumin, coriander and curcuma and cook for 20 minutes.

Enjoy your meal!

Minestrone

Minestrone is a very popular Italian vegetable and pasta soup. There are as many recipes for Minestrone as there are Italians. This version is really fast and easy to prepare. I usually cook this soup after a long day of work when I don't feel like spending a long time in the kitchen.

Serves: 4

Prep and Cook Time: 30 minutes

• 200 grams (~ 2 large) carrot
• 100 grams (~ 1 large) yellow carrot
• 100 grams celery
• 100 grams cauliflower
• 50 grams leek
• 3 tsp frozen spinach
• 2 tsp tomato purée
• 1/2 tsp harissa (optional)
• 1 liter vegetable stock
• 1/4 liter water
• 2 tsp fresh parsley
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 chopped garlic cloves

Cut vegetables (carrot, yellow carrot, celery, cauliflower, leek)  into pieces, put in a large pot with garlic, harissa, cumin and tomato purée. Cook and stir on high heat for 5 minutes until the vegetables and tomato purée start to brown. Add water, vegetable stock, spinach, cinnamon and cook for 20 minutes.
Serve with fresh parsley. 

For a real minestrone you can add some cooked pasta, but it's also delicous as simple vegetable soup. 

Enjoy your meal!

Vegetable Salad

This salad is popular all over the Middle East, especially in Lebanon and Israel. It goes by the name "vegetable salad", "Arabian salad", "Israeli salad". 

It is really easy and fast to prepare and tastes great with both Middle Eastern and European dishes and especcially all kinds of grilled meat.

Serves 4 as a side dish: 

• 200 grams red cherry tomatoes
• 200 grams yellow cherry tomatoes 
• 1/2 cucumber
• 1 red onion
• 1 handfull fresh parsley leaves
• 2 lemons
• 1 garlic clove
• salt
• black pepper
• 2 table spoons olive oil 

Squeeze juice out of one lemon. Chop garlic clove. In a salad bowl mix olive oil, lemon juice, salt, black pepper and chopped garlic. Cut the vegetables (cherry tomatoes, cucumber, onion) into small pieces and add to the bowl. Cut parsley and add to the bowl and stir it.
Serve with slices of lemon. 

If you like it hot, you can add some fresh chili peppers or pepperocini.

Enjoy your meal!