Wash a cauliflower, let it dry, cut the cauliflower as it is a finger and a half thick.
Make a liquid dough as for pancakes: salt, pepper, thyme, other spices and herbs optional (dried dill), eggs, water and flour. You have to decide for yourself how much from each of the ingredients you should put (around 3 eggs would be a good base but make sure the eggs don't come from some fatory type of farm).
Put the cauliflower in flour and than in the pancake mixture and fry in a oiled pan.
No need to boil the cauliflower for this recipe.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Salad a la Russe (a la "my mum")
A serving for 4 people includes:
-cleaned and boiled than cut in small cubes:
2 carrots
1 big celeriac
1 parsnip
5 potatoes
2 or 3 parsley roots
- 200 to 400g peas boiled separately because it boils different from the other ingredients
- 400g broccoli boiled for just 2 minutes at the end
- a jar of pickled cucumbers raw cut (400g)
The mayonnaise:
2 or 3 eggs
not to use so much oil you can use more mustard (200g)
oil depending on how thick it should be
pepper
lemon depending on how thick the mayonnaise is at the end
Mix mayonnaise with vegetables and voila... c'est ca!
-cleaned and boiled than cut in small cubes:
2 carrots
1 big celeriac
1 parsnip
5 potatoes
2 or 3 parsley roots
- 200 to 400g peas boiled separately because it boils different from the other ingredients
- 400g broccoli boiled for just 2 minutes at the end
- a jar of pickled cucumbers raw cut (400g)
The mayonnaise:
2 or 3 eggs
not to use so much oil you can use more mustard (200g)
oil depending on how thick it should be
pepper
lemon depending on how thick the mayonnaise is at the end
Mix mayonnaise with vegetables and voila... c'est ca!
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Unpicked grapes
For as long as I can remember living in this city I remember that the grapes in front of my aunt's apartment block where always picked by the people living in that building. I mean that's why they're there for, planted by people for them to give them fruit. But now the fruit went unpicked and I wonder how long will it take for the vine to get cut off and replaced by lawn just because the falling grapes dirty the cement walkway to the entrance? Sad times. I guess we've reached that point where buying either the grapes or wine uses less individual energy than climbing up a ladder to pick the fruit growing in front of one's house. Very strange twist...
Photo taken today the 25th Dec 2010.
Photo taken today the 25th Dec 2010.Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Vegetarian Moussaka (no eggplant either)
For six large servings you will need:
2 kilos of potatoes that you peel, wash and boil.
Peal two onions, chop them finely and boil with a bit of oil and water.
300 or 200g spinach washed and finely chopped
When the potatoes are almost boiled (they should still be hard) take them out and let them cool, cut them into slices and mix with the cooked onions, the spinach, 5 or 6 eggs with some 200g of cream and 300-400g of white salty cow cheese (Romanian telemea). Also add some salt and pepper..
Pour in a oven pan greased with butter and place in oven. Bake until it forms a crust on top.
*note: the more liquid the cream and the cheese are the more liquid the moussaka will be as well so it's good to use thick cream and dry cheese.
2 kilos of potatoes that you peel, wash and boil.
Peal two onions, chop them finely and boil with a bit of oil and water.
300 or 200g spinach washed and finely chopped
When the potatoes are almost boiled (they should still be hard) take them out and let them cool, cut them into slices and mix with the cooked onions, the spinach, 5 or 6 eggs with some 200g of cream and 300-400g of white salty cow cheese (Romanian telemea). Also add some salt and pepper..
Pour in a oven pan greased with butter and place in oven. Bake until it forms a crust on top.
*note: the more liquid the cream and the cheese are the more liquid the moussaka will be as well so it's good to use thick cream and dry cheese.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Vegetable Hotchpotch
Have other things to put in place so I will leave this one for tomorrow, but don't expect me to explain the difference between a hotchpotch and a stew... cus I won't.:)
LOVE
LOVE
Shopping day
All of Romania is in turmoil these days! Food Day is coming! Everyone has to buy as much and cook as much for the Food Day in which we celebrate the invention of mass commerce.
Both me and my mum went out to stock for the holiday which we mostly see as a time for the family to get together.
I took the following photos (more like snapshots) from my favourite market in Constanta where the supermarket feeling hasn't reached yet and people are still quite different from the rest of the McWorld:
"WE ARE ECO"
Black humour if you ask me.
Both me and my mum went out to stock for the holiday which we mostly see as a time for the family to get together.
I took the following photos (more like snapshots) from my favourite market in Constanta where the supermarket feeling hasn't reached yet and people are still quite different from the rest of the McWorld:
"WE ARE ECO"Black humour if you ask me.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Original Romanian Traditional Food!
Guacamole
Hehe, on top of the climatic conditions that don't allow avocados, the main ingredient of guacamole, to grow in Romania there is also the matter of the quite recent limited transport of this vegan Holy Grail to Romania that make it anything BUT traditional Romanian. But with more and more Romanians and Europeans in general using it how long does it take for a food to become "traditional"? It's an interesting question seeing that most of the recipes I will be writing here are 100% Romanian but at the same time 100% Turkish or 100% Greek or Arabic. People in the countryside of current day Romania will swear on that they are 100% Romanian and that's it! And they are being honest because they truly believe that. As well as the Turkish, Greek, Bulgarian, etc. peasants that hold on to their percentages like AXA insurances holds on to it's money (I've been told;P). So here follows what I would like to make myself believe is a ORIGINAL ROMANIAN TRADITIONAL FOOD; GUACAMOLE.
For two ripe (soft and blackened) avocados you will need two tomatoes, a small onion, a lime (or half a lemon), a spoonful of olive oil and salt as you feel plus tortillas to serve with (if you feel like it you can also add in a clove or two of garlic).
Cut the avocados in two, take out the pit and mash the interior that you've taken out with a spoon into a paste. You can either use a fork or a blender but the avocado should be soft enough to be easily mashed by fork with no effort. Add in the tomatoes cut in very small cubes, finely sliced onion, the juice from the lime/half lemon, salt and olive oil and serve in a bowl in which you can dip your tortilla.
We had it today but without the garlic and it felt like something was missing so maybe you should try with.
Hehe, on top of the climatic conditions that don't allow avocados, the main ingredient of guacamole, to grow in Romania there is also the matter of the quite recent limited transport of this vegan Holy Grail to Romania that make it anything BUT traditional Romanian. But with more and more Romanians and Europeans in general using it how long does it take for a food to become "traditional"? It's an interesting question seeing that most of the recipes I will be writing here are 100% Romanian but at the same time 100% Turkish or 100% Greek or Arabic. People in the countryside of current day Romania will swear on that they are 100% Romanian and that's it! And they are being honest because they truly believe that. As well as the Turkish, Greek, Bulgarian, etc. peasants that hold on to their percentages like AXA insurances holds on to it's money (I've been told;P). So here follows what I would like to make myself believe is a ORIGINAL ROMANIAN TRADITIONAL FOOD; GUACAMOLE.
For two ripe (soft and blackened) avocados you will need two tomatoes, a small onion, a lime (or half a lemon), a spoonful of olive oil and salt as you feel plus tortillas to serve with (if you feel like it you can also add in a clove or two of garlic).
Cut the avocados in two, take out the pit and mash the interior that you've taken out with a spoon into a paste. You can either use a fork or a blender but the avocado should be soft enough to be easily mashed by fork with no effort. Add in the tomatoes cut in very small cubes, finely sliced onion, the juice from the lime/half lemon, salt and olive oil and serve in a bowl in which you can dip your tortilla.
We had it today but without the garlic and it felt like something was missing so maybe you should try with.
Poftă bună! (Romanian for Bon Appetit)
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Snacks
Sesame paste with honey (NOTE on millet)
Roast in a empty pan with no oil two spoons of sesame (for the aroma). It's done when it becomes golden, dark orange. After cooling we mix it with two handfuls of raw sesame and we crush it in a grinder. We than mix in a blender with 500g liquid honey. You can spread it in the morning on toast with unsweetened tea or with fruit juice. The same can be done for almonds or hazelnuts or walnuts. It's easy to assimilate and very nutritious containing allot of calcium.
Millet has even more and is recommended to those who have a lack of calcium to be eaten half an hour before a meal with a glass of carrot juice witch contains vitamin D which fixes the calcium in the body. On top millet is the best brush as mum expressed it, for cleaning the intestines.
Sea buck-thorn
There are many types of sea buck-thorn, white, yellow, orange, red but the most common is the orange one. It is a berry that contains allot of different vitamins especially vitamin C (15 times more than oranges) and many essential oils. It's very efficient for strengthening the immune system.
Sea buck-thorn juice/syrup
Wash half a kilo of sea buck-thorn and blend them. Sift them to get the seeds out and than mix with 100g honey and water until it becomes liquid or depending on taste, how diluted or strong we want it. Like this use it immediately because otherwise the nutritional value drops. For prolonged use mix only with honey and keep in the fridge. We use it as a syrup or just take a spoon full every morning after waking up. It's a great thing to have during these winter days and while many might not be accustomed with the taste for me knowing how great it is for the body it's one of the best juices.
Roast in a empty pan with no oil two spoons of sesame (for the aroma). It's done when it becomes golden, dark orange. After cooling we mix it with two handfuls of raw sesame and we crush it in a grinder. We than mix in a blender with 500g liquid honey. You can spread it in the morning on toast with unsweetened tea or with fruit juice. The same can be done for almonds or hazelnuts or walnuts. It's easy to assimilate and very nutritious containing allot of calcium.
Millet has even more and is recommended to those who have a lack of calcium to be eaten half an hour before a meal with a glass of carrot juice witch contains vitamin D which fixes the calcium in the body. On top millet is the best brush as mum expressed it, for cleaning the intestines.
Sea buck-thorn
There are many types of sea buck-thorn, white, yellow, orange, red but the most common is the orange one. It is a berry that contains allot of different vitamins especially vitamin C (15 times more than oranges) and many essential oils. It's very efficient for strengthening the immune system.
Sea buck-thorn juice/syrup
Wash half a kilo of sea buck-thorn and blend them. Sift them to get the seeds out and than mix with 100g honey and water until it becomes liquid or depending on taste, how diluted or strong we want it. Like this use it immediately because otherwise the nutritional value drops. For prolonged use mix only with honey and keep in the fridge. We use it as a syrup or just take a spoon full every morning after waking up. It's a great thing to have during these winter days and while many might not be accustomed with the taste for me knowing how great it is for the body it's one of the best juices.
Friday, December 17, 2010
The Apetizer
I couldn't go through all the recipes for all the food we've been eating and had just a short discussion with my mum about the Ayurvedic principles behind some ingredients without asking her for an explanation on what Ayurveda is. It should come in the following days. But for now we have a few recipes:
Mashed chickpeas with sesame sauce.
500g chickpeas should be put to soak in warm water overnight.
In the morning we boil them in a pot having in mind that the water might evaporate so we have another pot with warm water next to it. It boils until the chickpea becomes soft.
After it became soft we keep a glass or two of the water and we blend or put the chickpeas through the food processor. We add some of the water we've kept bit by bit until a very dense and thick paste forms. We add around 170ml olive oil, a spoon of salt (preferably rough salt) a spoon of coriander grains, half a tea spoon of pepper, a spoon of thyme, a garlic head and a half (crushed).
-the sesame sauce
roast in a empty pan with no oil two spoons of sesame (for the aroma). It's done when it becomes golden, dark orange. After cooling we mix it with two handfuls of raw sesame and we crush it in a grinder after which we mix in 200ml (a cup) of olive oil and blend them together. It's best eaten with pita bread or chili tortilla.
Mushrooms in cream sauce
6-700g of champignon mushrooms, washed and cut whole. Place them in a pot with a very little bit of water on the bottom (because the mushrooms leave water themselves). After they begin to boil turn down the heat and keep them boiling for max 10 minutes. Sift them if there is to much liquid (more than a ladle). In another pot we put a thinly sliced onion, 4 garlic cloves and a spoon or two of oil. It's better to place them all together so the oil doesn't have time to start burning. And when the onion starts sizzling mix the mushroom liquid and the mushrooms, aprox. a spoon of salt, a third tea spoon pepper and let boil for about 10 minutes. Add 500g cream, mix and let boil. If to thin add a spoon or two of flour mixed with water (so that the flour doesn't form lumps). Leave to bubble for two or three times and than add the juice from half a lemon, let bubble once more than turn of the heat (don't add the cream and lemon together because the cream might lump because of the chemical reaction with the lemon). Add freshly cut dill and mix.
To be translated once I will be more rested:
Sare grunjoasa
Este naturala si neprelucrata, neiodata. Iodul in exces si consumandul zilnic din sara deregleaza tiroida.
Susan
este in acceptiunea Ayurveda este triplu yang, contine grasimi nesaturate care nu se depun pe artere (conditia sa nu fie prajit). In Ayurveda exista 3 niveluri yin si 3 yang.
Nautul
contine foarte multe proteine si e bine sa fie folosit de cei ce fac munci foarte grele si care sunt devitalizati. Curata foarte bine intestinul.
Mashed chickpeas with sesame sauce.
500g chickpeas should be put to soak in warm water overnight.
In the morning we boil them in a pot having in mind that the water might evaporate so we have another pot with warm water next to it. It boils until the chickpea becomes soft.
After it became soft we keep a glass or two of the water and we blend or put the chickpeas through the food processor. We add some of the water we've kept bit by bit until a very dense and thick paste forms. We add around 170ml olive oil, a spoon of salt (preferably rough salt) a spoon of coriander grains, half a tea spoon of pepper, a spoon of thyme, a garlic head and a half (crushed).
-the sesame sauce
roast in a empty pan with no oil two spoons of sesame (for the aroma). It's done when it becomes golden, dark orange. After cooling we mix it with two handfuls of raw sesame and we crush it in a grinder after which we mix in 200ml (a cup) of olive oil and blend them together. It's best eaten with pita bread or chili tortilla.
Mushrooms in cream sauce
6-700g of champignon mushrooms, washed and cut whole. Place them in a pot with a very little bit of water on the bottom (because the mushrooms leave water themselves). After they begin to boil turn down the heat and keep them boiling for max 10 minutes. Sift them if there is to much liquid (more than a ladle). In another pot we put a thinly sliced onion, 4 garlic cloves and a spoon or two of oil. It's better to place them all together so the oil doesn't have time to start burning. And when the onion starts sizzling mix the mushroom liquid and the mushrooms, aprox. a spoon of salt, a third tea spoon pepper and let boil for about 10 minutes. Add 500g cream, mix and let boil. If to thin add a spoon or two of flour mixed with water (so that the flour doesn't form lumps). Leave to bubble for two or three times and than add the juice from half a lemon, let bubble once more than turn of the heat (don't add the cream and lemon together because the cream might lump because of the chemical reaction with the lemon). Add freshly cut dill and mix.
To be translated once I will be more rested:
Sare grunjoasa
Este naturala si neprelucrata, neiodata. Iodul in exces si consumandul zilnic din sara deregleaza tiroida.
Susan
este in acceptiunea Ayurveda este triplu yang, contine grasimi nesaturate care nu se depun pe artere (conditia sa nu fie prajit). In Ayurveda exista 3 niveluri yin si 3 yang.
Nautul
contine foarte multe proteine si e bine sa fie folosit de cei ce fac munci foarte grele si care sunt devitalizati. Curata foarte bine intestinul.
WHY?!!!
This question, "WHY?!!!" I found one morning written in BIIIG letters on a cupboard in Slovakia where I was volunteering for just three days.
When working and living with other people there are always differences that make us unique and add colour to community life but at the same time drive us mad if not open to difference.
So this is WHY I am letting you know what this is all about and opening a conversation with you in which you are welcome to leave comments and discuss so we don't end up writing on the furniture in big letters "WHY?!!!" when all there is is wonderful difference.
And this blog is just about that, differences and hopefully their appreciation by you, the reader. I have been volunteering for the last two years all around Europe while at the same time being a vegetarian. A peculiar vegetarian that doesn't buy eggs, milk, yogurt or any other animal products at that. It's been an interesting period for me. I found so many nuances of vegetarianism, from people who don't eat any other meat than fish to people who don't eat any animal products (vegans) but also lots of different religious and personal beliefs driven diets and life styles. I realize myself am not a typical vegetarian so I am using my own term coined from the two important life choices that I adopted, VOLUNTary work and the vegeTARIAN lifestyle.
The next big step in my life I will take in Luxembourg where I will volunteer in a free radio station for one year on a limited budget that I want to use to cook mostly vegan, whole, organic and fair trade food. Will I success and at what level? Will I afford it financially? Will I still have a healthy life style without to many cheap refined foods? Lots of questions I will have to answer in due time. At the moment I can just prepare. I will be at home, here in Constanta, Romania for one month and I will cook and buy ingredients with my mum and learn from her experience with combining Romanian traditional food, Ayurveda and Yoga with vegetarian cooking for the last 11 years. Hopefully after this one month I will have enough information to last me a year in Luxembourg and enough recipes to satisfy every one's interest in delicious Romanian traditional food (with a vegetarian twist).
LATER EDIT: Since I'm now in Luxembourg and I've already started answering some of the questions I was posing before I will start answering them on this blog from now on. Read more about it here.
Poftă bună
Raw vitamins will be ever-present.Bon appétit
They look so good there by the bed!
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