Honey & Ginger Windmill Cookies - Speculaas Cookies of Holland

Isn’t it great to receive an unexpected gift?!  I think it’s amazing!

Green Salad (Cucumber, Zucchini, Avocado) with Plum Sweet & Spicy Dressing

The spring is finally here and I feel like eating more vegetables, fresh fruits and berries. I start mornings with a glass of freshly made juice and my lunch becomes lighter and healthier. I present this special salad which is good for any diet. It has few ingredients but many flavors. I use all organic vegetables and highly recommend the same in your cooking. The dressing is slightly sweet with a touch of cayenne pepper, but you may change your ingredients if you’d like. My husband had this salad with broiled salmon for dinner and he was very pleased. Enjoy these simple, but nutritious recipes.

Chocolate Panforte - Christmas Sweets

Christmas is probably the favorite holiday for many people. And I think it's not because of religious believes, but because it's family time, and time for magic and forgiveness. Christmas is different for everyone of us. Every house has its own traditions and rituals with special food and Christmas decorations. What is your perfect Christmas? How do you see it?

Gingery Pumpkin-Apple Soup with Roasted Carrots (Dairy-Free, Vegan)

With its sweet, earthy taste, butternut squash soup with apples and ginger is my favorite for the month of October. I like to play with spices when I am cooking pumpkin soup, but you can use your favorite seasonings and herbs. The roasted carrot chips are a perfect addition to this soup.

Summer Jams

When summer is approaching, I start contemplating visits to local farms to collect some berries and fruits for my jams and preserves. Over the past few years I have cooked many scrumptious jams, but every summer I have developed more unique recipes. Without having some homemade preserves on the shelf any house is not complete.

When we cook breakfasts on a weekend my kids like to pick their favorite jams and syrups for waffles and pancakes. Sometimes we have our breakfast outside on the porch and freshly made berry jams are an important part of it, just like they are part of any summer sweet gatherings.

Roasted Spicy Orange Chicken Thighs

This is a real show-off chicken dish with a citrus flavor. Serve it on a hot rice with avocado salad. A company meal, "but it couldn't be easier!"

Russian Monday: Lemon "Keks" - Lemon Tea Cake

"Keks" - Russian tea cakes are a tradition in Russian households and have been since the last century when the technology was perfected for milling fine, smooth white flour. Before, lemons were prized for there medicinal and cosmetic qualities. Today, at breakfast, lemon tea cakes enriched with honey are perfect for a cup of coffee or aromatic tea.

Roasted Chickpeas with Ginger, Spices & Sesame Seeds - Tasty Snack/Appetizer

These crispy and spicy roasted chickpeas conceal a mouth-watering collection of flavors and make a delicious appetizer. You could make this dish any time of year, and I think they make a wonderful New Years Eve party snack.

Christmas Cookies #7: Orange Ginger Biscotti

These orange ginger biscotti are delicious served with ice cream or on their own with coffee. They should be stored in a cool, dry place…but they may not remain there for long. Once you have tasted one, the sheer pleasure will tempt you to eat at least another couple, so I suggest you provide 3-4 biscotti cookies for each of your guest.

Apricot-Ginger Bites with Cocoa Nibs

I don't recall when we had such beautiful August. Nice weather, zero humidity, it feels like September is touching us already, but it's only beginning of the last month of summer. We spend our evenings outside. When sky darkens you can see bats flying around. Squirrels come out to eat wild walnuts on a big tree next to our deck. There is so much harmony, peace and quiet... After dinner we always have a tea or coffee. And of course my family usually asks for some sweet bites. Today I would like to introduce you to unbelievably delicious apricot-ginger cookies, that I baked purposefully for such cool summer evening. They are full of flavors and perfect with tea. I made them extra small, just one perfect bite, but I have to warn you, they are extremely addictive-) Enjoy!

Green Curry, Coconut, Garlic & Ginger Clams

This recipe is one of my favorite spicy seafood dishes - there's nothing better than eating this with your family for a relaxing night at home. Serve with chilled white wine. I personally like it with good riesling like Zind Humbrecht or Richter Veldenzer Elisenberg. Enjoy!

Chicken Dumplings

These dumplings, when shallow-fried, make a good first course to a multi course meal. The can also be steamed and served as a snack or poached in large quantities for a complete meal.

Guinness Stout Ginger Cake for St.Patrick's Day

"An invitation to tea in Ireland is no small matter of a simple cup of tea and biscuit! You sit down at the table in the dining room and the usual everyday tea stars with slices of brown Irish soda bread and slices of homemade white bread lavishly buttered, a pot or two of jam for the bread, hot crusty scones, a plate of cookies, a "sponge sandwich" cake (two layers of sponge cake, jam between and sugar sprinkled on top) and a chocolate cake with thick, creamy, chocolate icing - or warm gingerbread full of spices. Cups of hot tea all around three or four times and you"ll last till suppertime."

Honey Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Icing

There is something special about home-baked cakes. It's not just that they are really delicious, nor even that they are delightfully different from those you can buy. Homemade cakes and slices turn any occasion into a special one, whether served with morning coffee, or an old-fashioned afternoon tea party, or as a luxurious dessert at the end of a celebratory meal. Honey Spice Pumpkin Bars with Cream cheese Icing make great after-school snacks and any-time-of-day nibbles.

Carrot Spice Scones with Lemon-Cranberry Icing

Wishing you all the Blessings of this happy Christmas Season!

Sesame Chicken Stew with Shiitake Mushrooms

Sesame Chicken Stew with Shitaki Mushrooms

The Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) (from Japanese 椎茸, シイタケ (Shiitake)) is an edible mushroom native to East Asia, which is cultivated and consumed in many Asian countries, as well as being dried and exported to many countries around the world.

Mulled Wine - Perfect Drink for a Holiday Season

We have many beautiful holidays a head of us, Thanksgiving, Hanukah, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. For these occasions, nothing is too beautiful. Once a year, one can indulge in an accumulation of crystal, silver, china, an abundance of light and reflections, without fear of criticism. But as always, good taste will keep the display within bounds. A successful holiday party can be an enchanted memory for a whole year.

Portobello Mushrooms in Curried Coconut Milk Sauce over Pumpkin Puree

A little history about pumpkins from "the Frugal Gourmet Cooks American"

"We received the gift of the yellow gourd from the Indians, of course. When European explorers hit the New World they found the Native Americans eating all kinds of squashes, but pumpkin was a favorite. The white men thought the pumpkin to be a form of giant melon. They were partly right, as the pumpkin belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae, which also includes cucumbers, gherkins, and melons. The wild ancestor of the grate orange vegetable goes back to the Aztecs, Incas, and Mayan peoples, who enjoyed eating the rich seeds. The pumpkin spread north and was common by the time of European exploration, and the seekers of New World took the squash back to Europe with them. But it remains an American vegetable, absolutely American.

The uses that we found for pumpkin in the old days where wonderfully varied and formed a basic part of our diet. The pumpkin was among the most common foods of the settlements and an old verse proves their indispensability:

For portage, and puddings, and custards, and pies,
Our pumpkins and parsnips are common supplies. 
We have pumpkins at morning and pumpkins at noon;
If it were not for pumpkins, we should be undoon."



There is something exciting about food cooked in coconut milk. Typically, the effect comes from the edition of several assertive spices - such as coriander, cumin, and cardamom - in conjunction with this rich liquid. Ginger and hot peppers are added to give zest and dimension.



Hint: Save the pumpkin seeds for the kids! Wash the seeds and dry them. Place them in a large heated frying pan along with some olive oil, and toast until they begin to show a few very tiny brown spots on the husk. Add a bit of salt and cool. These are great snacks and they are good on salads or in soups.

Ingredients:

For the mushroom sauce:

• 1 can of unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp. minced garlic
• 1 tsp ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 2 jalapeños or any hot chiles of your choice 
• 1/2 tsp curry powder
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp ground cardamom 
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 pound baby portobello mushrooms (or any other variety)
• sea salt
• 3 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, finely chopped

For the pumpkin puree:

• 1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 2 Tbsp. butter (optional)
• salt and freshly ground pepper

For the roasted pumpkin:

• 1 cup butternut squash, peeled and diced
• salt and freshly ground pepper

Direction: 

For the mushroom sauce:
Place the oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add the onions and sauté until they begin to brown, about 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and chiles, and sauté for another minute. Add the curry, coriander, cardamom, and cumin and stir for another minute. Add the mushrooms and the coconut milk and stir well. Simmer for 15 minutes.Remove from the heat when thickened. Season to taste and add the cilantro.

For the pumpkin puree:
Bring about 3 quarts (or more if need it to cover the pumpkin) of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the butternut squash, cover, and cook until the squash is soft when pierced with a fork, about 15 minutes. Drain the squash , place in a food processor, and proceed until well pureed. Add the milk and blend until the mixture is smooth. Place the puree in a saucepan and reheat, stirring. Add salt and pepper to taste and keep it warm.

For the roasted pumpkin:
Preheat an oven to 400°F.
Spread the diced pumpkin out on a baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Roast until all the cubes are cooked through and golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Evenly divide the warm butternut puree among plates. Arrange the coconut mushrooms sauce in the middle, top with roasted cubes of pumpkin. Serve immediately.

Spiced Apple Cider - Have a Sweet Weekend!

"It was the sight of apple blossom 
on the tree outside the kitchen window
that set me to begin a book.
I didn't know then what I saw
or what it was I did
but hope was there, full as buds.

and now I eat the apples
and the book feeds me.

Yesterday
I dragged the ladder out
and climbed the tree,
its branches circled my waist
as if we where about to dance.
I plopped the apples down,
they made the beat of music"...

Kate Llewellyn



Ingredients:

• 6 cups apple cider
• orange juice from one orange
• brown sugar to taste
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 whole cloves
• cardamom to taste
• 2 small pieces of peeled fresh ginger (optional)

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring to boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer mixture 15 minutes to blend flavors. Strain cider into mugs, and serve hot with a pie crust tops.

Melon Jam with Candied Ginger and Lemon Peel

There is something magical about making jam at home with ingredients that you planted and harvested yourself. It brings back memories from my childhood. We did not have the sweets readily available at the store year round. Thus, my mother would preserve the berries for the cold and snowy winter days. It was a bliss to have the fresh berries in syrup over homemade crepes for breakfast. As a mother myself I use different and unique recipes every year for my children. There are always various sweet pleasures in a jar stored in my pantry, such as strawberry with chocolate mint, sour cherry jam, pears with vanilla beans and apricot with lavender among others. In the fall I even make jams from different varieties of pumpkin. 

This summer I wanted to try something new and unique. I had a batch of honey dew melons that gave off a deliciously sweet aroma when you cut them. I wanted to enjoy this taste during the change of seasons and decided to use them in a new jam recipe. When I was making it last night - the house became filled with the sweet honey taste that lingered in the air. I hope that you will try making this and enjoy it with your own family during your mornings or giving it as a holiday gift to your loved ones.



Serves: 3 jars (250ml each)

Ingredients:

• 2 medium honeydew melon, seeds & skin removed, diced to 1/4-inch cubes
• 60% of the melon weight in sugar 
• 1 organic lemon, juice and peel (cut thin slices of lemon rind)
• candied ginger, cut it in thin slices about 2 Tbsp.

Directions:

In a big bowl mix together the melon, lemon juice, lemon peel, ginger and sugar. Stir well. Let them macerate in the fridge for 12 hours.

When ready, drain the pulp and put it in a smaller bowl. Put the juice and sugar (by now they are well mixed) in a large pan (cast iron, heavy stainless steel, or copper), and bring slowly to a boil. Then reduce heat to low and let simmer for 20 minutes. Then add the pulp and cook 30 more minutes, or until melon cubes become translucent and liquid has thickened.

A good way to check if jam is done: pour a little of the cooking liquid onto a cold plate. If the cooled liquid wrinkles slightly when touched, the jam is ready. Serve jam on scones or toast, or with pâtés and fine cheeses on bread, or over plain yogurt.