Den Haag

Visit to The Hague (Den Haag) to visit the lovely Ellen and Silke in early March. Very cold!

Den Haag

Room with a View

Paradise! Views from St. Thomas and St. John, US Virgin Islands. 

Trunk Bay, St. John (above)

Beach along Trunk Bay (above)

Greek Zucchini Fritters

Recipe is from the New York Times' health and wellness section, Recipes for Health

It feels odd cooking with zucchini in the dead of (what seems like) endless winter, but these reminded me of gardening, which then reminded me of squash borers. Ugh. Then I sighed, and started shredding the zucchini, and learned the Flemish word for them courgette. This is pretty much my train of thought whenever I cook.

Beware that while this dish is delicious and will be devoured immediately (and probably without leftovers) it takes a while (2 hours) to prep. First you have to drain and squeeze all the water out of the squash, and then refrigerate the mixture. It's a fried dish. Mmmm, but with healthy ingredients, so it makes you feel better. Of course I thought it was too much olive oil and reduced the amount - only to be left with gooey-undercooked insides. Use the recommended amount - they'll cook faster and absorb less oil.  Serve with yogurt or tzatziki sauce.

To make a proper meal, I served with some roasted potatoes:

Roasted potatoes:
5-6 small to medium organic potatoes, quartered
1 onion, sliced
1 T fruity olive oil
1/4 cup chopped green beans
1/4 cup mixed green olives (mine contained roasted peppers and pearl onions)
salt and pepper to taste
2 medium skinny chili peppers (like Thai chili peppers)
1/2 of one lemon to be used at the end

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 F
2. Put the potatoes and onions in a roasting dish and drizzle olive oil on top. Mix well and roast for 20 minutes until either soft or just barely golden.
3. Fold in green beans, olives, and chili peppers and season with salt and pepper. Continue roasting for another 15 minutes. When golden and cooked, remove and squeeze in lemon juice. Adjust salt and pepper if needed.

Cabbage Gratin

I had a huge cabbage sitting in the fridge that was leftover from my cabbage kofta, and so I went searching for a recipe to get rid of the rest.  This is a wonderful vegetarian main dish. It's from my fave cookbook, presumably you may have picked up which one that is.

I served with a spicy mustard sauce and some truffle salt toast. Basically I drizzled whole-grain bread with olive oil and sprinkled truffle salt on top (like the flatbread from Columbia Winery =) and the sauce is basically yogurt with enough mustard in it to taste tangy and mustard-y. Truffle salt has to be one of the best purchases I have ever made. Delish.

Ingredients:
1-2 T butter
1/2 cup shredded parmesan
1 large to medium green cabbage, cut in 1" to 2" squares
1/3 cup flour
1 cup milk (I subbed in soymilk - it was fine)
1/4 cup creme fraiche
2 T tomato paste
3 eggs
3 T parsley or dill
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Put on a large pot of water, and bring to a boil.
2. Next butter a casserole dish and coat the sides with the parmesan cheese.

3. When water is boiling, add the cabbage and cook for 5-7 minutes.
4. Combine the flour, milk, eggs, cream, tomato paste, eggs and herbs.
5. Season with salt and pepper. Drain the cabbage through a colander, and squeeze out extra water with the back of a ladle. Combine the cabbage with the flour/milk mixture, and stir to combine.
6. Place this mixture in a casserole dish and bake in the oven for 1 hour, or until browned on top.

Verjaardag!

For the hubbies birthday I tried my hand at some very yummy Indian dishes: cabbage kofta, mushroom and peas curry and some fresh naan. The naan is remarkably easy to make as long as you give it enough time to rise. Links for recipes are below photos (they include video instructions too).

Cabbage Kofta from Vah Chef (above)

Mushroom and Peas Curry from Manjula's Kitchen

Naan from Manjula's Kitchen