Just Married & Hungry: Apple & Blueberry Pie

It was Thanksgiving in Canada this past weekend – my very first ever Thanksgiving! (as we don’t actually celebrate it in the Uk or Zimbabwe)..It was just how I imagined it to be, extremely cozy and filled with fun memories with family and friends. For a dinner that we were invited to, I made an apple & blueberry pie and served it with vanilla ice-cream. It was truly delicious… and the perfect final touch to my long weekend

I followed this recipe here – easy & yummy!

(Images: Aartifi-IT)

 

{steak pizza} with no cheese

it’s been a while since I’ve done a food post… which is odd considering how much cooking I’ve done recently.. and all the great restaurants we went to while my brother and sister were here… but here’s hoping this will make up for that!

Last night, I made this pizza…. with no cheese! Yup, a cheeseless pizza – some of you may be making faces of disgust right now, but I promise you it was truly delicious – and so much more healthy than if it did have loads of melted yumminess on it!

Here’s what I did:

1. Bought a pizza base from our local grocery store

2. Heated some olive oil in a wok/pan. Then added chopped up garlic (3 cloves) and sauteed them till brown.. and added approx 1lb of beef cubes and sauteed them till cooked. I also added salt and pepper to taste.

3. Added garlic (1 clove) and chilli (1x chilli) to a can of diced tomatoes, and blended this until it formed a nice thick puree – then boiled it quickly, adding some italian spices while it was boiling.

4. Cut up some red peppers, mushrooms, spring onions and cilantro/coriander.

5. Spread the tomato sauce over the pizza base, added salami slices and beef cubes and then continued by sprinkling all the vegetables on top.

6. Baked in the oven at 400F for 8-10mins (or as per the instructions on the pizza base packet).

Et voila… you  have yourself a really scrumptious and healthy pizza!

Give it a try – you won’t regret it, I promise.

Happy Friday Lovelies!

I leave you with a song that I can’t help but bopping my head to when it plays…

flying beaver

Following on from my last post.. last night we went to the Flying Beaver Bar for dinner. I think I have found my favourite pub in Vancouver (I have a favourite in Victoria, but we’ll leave that for another post).

This pub has such an amazing atmosphere (even on a Tuesday night!), the friendliest staff.. and the food!! hmmm… so very very good. I meant to take photos of the food for you, but we were so hungry that we didn’t really get a chance to stop for photos! We had pizza and nachos… and of course, for M – hot wings! Which actually were really good. I am not a huge fan of wings.. but these were great. The pizza was my favourite.. oh and the dessert! We got a a trio of their desserts.. a raspberry cheesecake, a Belgium pecan chocolate brownie and apple pie & ice-cream! … I’m getting hungry thinking about it.

I was in quite a bit of pain during the meal… hence the reason why I look a bit tired and not very comfortable… but I really did fall in love with the place and will definitely be going back again soon. It’s right on the water in Richmond, and we managed to get a table on the patio.. it kind  of felt like we were floating..  and the view (as you can see) was beautiful. I love the photo where you can see the reflection from the window, so you can kind of see the inside of the pub as well as the water…

I did get to wear my new Joe Fresh jumper too.. which is sooo comfortable and the perfect choice for a night of trying to be as comfortable as possible!

xxx

Just Married & Hungry – Tiramisu!

Some of you might know that I have a food blog – Just Married & Hungry. I love cooking – well I newly love cooking and M loves to cook as well. So I started a food blog… however it kind of got a bit forgotten, and all the attention was going into Aartifi-IT. So I decided to merge the two blogs together… and so I have! You can view all my “Just Married & Hungry” posts here… or you can click the polaroid in the right-hand column to check them all out. I have also updated the About section of the blog.. and there is a little bit as to why I started the food blog in the first place..  if you are interested, have a little read.

Also to celebrate the merging of my blogs…  I leave you with this amazing tiramisu recipe that I made for M on his birthday last month. It’s brilliant and turned out so well! The layer of chocolate ganache really is the perfect addition to a tiramisu… enjoy

 

Here’s what you need:

3 large eggs (split)

4 tbsp extra-fine sugar

300 gr mascarpone

3 tbsp whiskey/brandy/amaretto – I used whisky

2 dl strong freshly made coffee

2 packets of lady fingers

chocolate for decoration

For the ganache: 125 gr dark chocolate and 90 ml double cream

 

1. Beat the eggyolks with the sugar to a creamy yellow. Stir the mascarpone with the whiskey and add this to the sugar/egg mixture. Beat the eggwhites stiff and fold through the mixture.

2. Mix the coffee with the 1 dl water. Dip your ladyfingers into the mixture and put them in a large enough bowl to hold it all. Make sure the bottom is covered with the ladyfingers.

3. Add half of the mascarpone mixture to the bowl and smooth the top.

4. Add another layer of dipped ladyfingers.

4. Make the chocolate ganache by putting the cream and chocolate into a bowl and heat this au bain marie untill it becomes silky and smooth. Allow to cool before adding it to the tiramisu layers. Once cool add to the ladyfingers layer and smooth the top of the chocolate.

5. Add another layer of dipped ladyfingers.

6.Finally add the other half of the  and sprinkle with either cocoa powder or chocolate sprinkles (you can also add a layer of whipped cream first if you feel like it).

7. Allow to set in the fridge overnight … or for atleast 6 hours before serving.

I made mine in little glasses…. just to be a little different. You can do this too.. just follow the recipe over, but create the layers in the small glass instead of in the large glass bowl….  it makes serving the dessert very easy too! I also topped mine with blackberries – just to make it look that much better!

(Recipe adapted from: Jungle Frog Cooking)

Rule #3 – always eat good food

My Saturday night was spent at home, in my pjs with a lovely glass of wine, while my husband spoilt me with one of his delicious three course meals! It’s become a little bit of a tradition for us… every now and then, he’ll buy a bunch of ingredients, pour me a glass of wine and I’ll sit on the breakfast bar while he cooks. We tend to eat while he cooks as well – which is the fun part

This time the courses were:

1st – Tomato & olive bruschetta

2nd – Garlic prawns in a white wine sauce – SO GOOD!

3rd – A perfectly cooked medium rare peppered steak, with asparagus in a mustard vinaigrette & roasted peppers stuffed with mushrooms

It really was a perfect way to spend an otherwise extremely busy weekend.

I will eventually post the recipes for these delicious meals – if not here, then on my food blog (I have a list of recipes that I  have been meaning to add to it, but haven’t found the time!). I am actually thinking about merging the two blogs together – so we’ll see what happens with that!

I hope you all enjoyed your weekends as much as I did!

Pasta-less Spaghetti!

This one was all down to my delightful husband Such a brilliant idea and oh-so-very yummy!!! It is perfect for those who are always counting calories and trying not to eat carbs It’s also very delicious and easy to make!

Here’s what you need:

• 1 large Spaghetti Squash
• 1 pound of Minced Meat (chicken, lamb or beef – all of them will work – so it’s upto you! In the photos below we used beef, however have used chicken too)
• 1 small Onion, diced
• 3-4 cloves Garlic, chopped/crushed
• A piece of Ginger, chopped/crushed (roughly 1 tbs)
• 1 green or red Chilli, chopped/crushed
• 2 Tomatoes, liquidized – or 1 small can of crushed Tomatoes
• 1 tsp Madras Curry Paste (Pataks)
• Salt to taste
• Olive oil/Cooking oil

1. Pre-heat oven to 350. While the oven is heating, cut the spaghetti squash in half and remove the seeds and pulp.
2. Once the oven is ready, place the 2 spaghetti squash halves into an oven try and bake for 40-45 minutes.
3. Heat the oil in a pan and once hot add the onions and cook until brown.
4. Add the ginger/garlic/chilli and allow this to cook with the onions for a few minutes.
5. Add the minced meat and cook this through thoroughly.
6. Add the tomatoes and madras curry paste and mix well. The meat and tomatoes will give off water, keep cooking this until the water starts to evaporate.
7. Ensure the meat is thoroughly cooked before serving.
8. Remove the spaghetti squash from the oven – and allow this to cool. Once cool, gently scrape the tines of a kitchen fork around the edge of the spaghetti squash to shred the pulp into strands. (Look here for more info on cooking spaghetti squash)
9. Pour the minced meat over the spaghetti squash and there you have it

You can sprinkle some grated cheese over it if you like.  We had it with our (still) favourite wine, Apothic Red. It’s healthy and really yummy – you can’t get any better than that

Veggie Tuesdays: Falafel Wraps

Sorry for being so quiet – we have been travelling around Canada and been extremely busy. We have actually done a fair bit of cooking, but unfortunately silly old me accidentally lost all the photos of the delicious food we made! (Yes – I could have posted without the photos, but it’s not really the same is it?) SO we started again

Last week for Veggie Tuesdays, my husband was craving falafels – something I have never ever made before, but I figured it couldn’t be that difficult. So after looking up a few things online – I got to it

Here’s what you need:

• 1 15-19 oz can Chickpeas, drained
• 1 small Onion, chopped
• 2 cloves of Garlic, chopped/crushed
• 2 tbs All Purpose Flour
• 1 tps Coriander
• 1 tps Cumin
• 1/2 tps Baking Powder

1. Drizzle olive oil evenly in shallow baking dish. Preheat oven to 350.
2. While oven is preheating, mash chickpeas  in food processor. Add onions and garlic and blend.
3. Add remaining ingredients to make a thick paste-like consistency.
4. Shape into ping pong size balls and place in preheated baking dish.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, turning halfway through cooking.

We had the falafels stuffed in pita with salad (lettuce, cucumbers & tomatoes), with a yoghurt dip and chilli sauce.

For the yoghurt dip you need:

• 1/2 cup Plain Yoghurt (Greek Yoghurt would work too)
• 1/2 a Cucumber, grated
• handful Cilantro/Coriander, chopped
• Salt to taste

1. Mix all the ingredients together Easy!

It turned out perfectly! Make sure you let the falafels cook through and get crispy and brown on the outside. It was truly scrumptious – definitely a meal that will be a regular for us on Tuesdays! Enjoy

Peri Peri Prawns With Tomato Kissed Potatoes

A busy week meant no blogging for me – however it didn’t mean no cooking! My husband cooked a fair bit over the weekend, and he said he wants to blog about it instead of me – so you have that to look forward to.

For now – Peri-peri prawns with tomato kissed pototoes!

Here’s what you need:

• 1 kilogram queen or king sized prawns (in the shell or out works!)
• 3/4 cup Butter
• 2 tbs Paprika
• 1 tbs Red chilli powder or 1 Red chilli crushed
• 4 cloves (crushed) Garlic
• Salt
• 1 cup Lemon juice
• Olive oil

1. Clean the prawns, cutting the heads off but keeping the tail and shell. Ensure the prawn is devained and wash them thoroughly.
2. Marinate the prawns in a small amount of the lemon juice, a teaspoon of salt and 1 tablespoon of paprika.
3. Cook the peri peri sauce by melting the butter in a small pot – once melted add the garlic, red chilli powder/chilli, rest of the paprika & lemon juice and salt to taste. Cook until it is thick and creamy.
4. Heat a pan with some olive oil and add the clean marinated prawns - braise and cook quickly over heat. The prawns will change colour when cooked to a creamy pink tone and the tails tend to curl upwards.
5. Once the prawns are cooked – pour the sauce over the prawn and mix in well.

For the Potatoes you need:

• Potatoes (as many or as little as you want – depending how hungry you are)
• Cherry tomatoes
• 1 clove Garlic (crushed)
• Rosemary
• Salt
• Olive Oil

1. Cut the potatoes into thin slices (like french fries)
2. Place them into a oven-friendly dish and drizzle with olive oil and add the garlic, rosemary and salt to taste - mix well
3. Pierce a few cherry tomatoes and add these to the dish as well
4. Place in the oven at 180C / 350F and allow to bake for about 20mins – turning the pototoes over at regular intervals

We had it with a nice green salad & a bottle of white wine (Mission Hill Chardonnay) – it was a sunny warm day in BC and it was a perfect meal – truly delicious! You can have the prawns with rice or normal french fries too – whatever takes your fancy. The whole meal took about 45mins to make (including all the prep work).

Bon Appetit!

Veggie Tuesdays: Rajma – Red Kidney Bean Curry

Every Tuesday for us is veggie day! One day a week we are purely vegetarian – I’ve been doing it with my family for as long as I can remember and my husband has agreed to do it with me now too. SO veggie tuesday will be for all the vegetarians out there

Last night we made Rajma – an Indian red kidney bean curry and had it with rice. It was truly delcious! You can have it with naan or roti if you want to subsitute the rice – it works well with both!

Here’s what you need:

• 1 can of Red Kidney Beans
• 1/2 an Onion (diced very small)
• Mushrooms (optional)
• A piece of Ginger
• 4 cloves of Garlic
• 1 Red Chilli
• 1 can of Crushed Tomatoes (depending on how large the can is – if it’s a large can, you only need half) OR 3 tomatoes crushed/blended
• 1/2 tsp of Tomatoe Puree
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• 1 tsp Madras Curry Paste (Pataks)
• Coriander / Cilantro
• Salt
• Olive Oil / Cooking Oil

 

1. First thing you want to do is prepare the ginger, garlic and chillis.  Add the ginger, garlic cloves and red chilli to a blender and blend into a paste. (You can use ginger or garlic pastes, crushed ginger/garlic etc)
2. Heat the oil in a pot and once hot add the onions and cook till brown.
3. Add the ginger/garlic/red chilli mixture and allow this to cook with the onions for a few minutes.
4. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato puree, garam masala, madras curry paste and salt to taste – let this cook for about 5minutes.
5. Rinse the kidney beans and add these to the pot along with the mushrooms.
6. Add 3 cups of water to this – this will ensure you get the right curry consistency. The curry should be saucy but not took thick.
7. Add more water if you feel it’s needed and let this cook for a few minutes to ensure the mixture cooks through to the beans and mushrooms.
8. Chop up a small bunch of coriander/cilantro and sprinkle this on top just before the dish is served.

 

The mushrooms are a completely optional addition – I’ve never actually had mushrooms in rajma before, however my husband swore by it and insisted I added them! It was actually a very nice combination!

We had the rajma with hot basmati rice, a fresh green salad & an onion pickle! It was yum – my husband had seconds (yay!) Enjoy!

Related Articles

• Just Married: My Experiments with Rajma (mysoulsongs.wordpress.com)

Stir-fry Beef with Ginger

Here’s what you need:

• Beef cut into strips (I used a steak & cut it up into strips)
• 1/2 an Onion (sliced)
• Sugar snap peas/Mange tout (as much or as little as you want!)
• Bok Choy (as much or as little as you want!)
• Big piece of ginger
• 4 Cloves of garlic (peeled)
• 1 Red chilli
• 1 tsp Chilli Powder
• Salt
• Sesame seed oil
• Sesame seeds
• Olive oil

1. First thing you want to do is prepare the ginger, garlic and chillis. Cut and peel the ginger and chop it up into big chunks. Take one of those big chunks, and cut the ginger into thin small slithers and put aside.
2. Add the rest of the ginger, garlic cloves and red chilli to a blender and blend into a paste.
3. Heat a little bit of  olive oil and sesame seed oil in a big wok. Once hot, add the sliced onions and let them fry until they begin to turn slightly brown – then add the ginger, garlic & chilli paste and let cook for about 5minutes.
4. Then add the beef strips and the slithers of ginger that you set aside.
5. Add a teaspoon of chilli powder & salt to taste.
6. Once the beef is nearly cooked – add the snap peas and bok choy.
7. Lower the heat slightly and let the beef and vegetables cook together – mix well.
8. Once thoroughly cooked – add a few sesame seeds and mix these in.

You could add a little bit of soy sauce if you wish, to add a bit of an Asian flare to it – but I thought it was good without.

Done We had it with rice and with a glass of one of our favourite bottles of wine (Two Hands Lucky Country Shiraz) – and it was truly delcious!!

Enjoy!

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