Coriander & lemongrass vongole soup

Versiunea in limba romana: Supa de vongole cu lemongrass si coriandru verde

A  lemongrass clam/vongole soup, very easy to prepare and absolutely delicious. I love coriander and a touch of lemongrass. The only time consuming part was cleaning the clams :). If you want, you can easily add some spaghetti and transform it in a pasta dish full of flavor.

2 kg clams/vongole + tbsp olive oil
1 good hand of green coriander + 2 garlic cloves + the juice of 1 lime + 1 tbsp olive oil
100 ml dry white wine
500 ml boiling water + 1 stick of fresh lemongrass, cut into 1 cm long pieces

Wash thorough the clams (using a brush,  under running cold water). Discard any shells already opened. Heat the oil, add the clams, put a lid on. After 1 minute pour over the wine and cover again, turn the heat to high and wait for 4-5 minutes, until the shells open. Shake the recipient from time to time.
Remove the clams from the pot, sieve the wine sauce.
Mix in a blender the green coriander, garlic, lime juice & olive oil until you have a thick paste.
Bring to boil the water, the wine sauce and the lemongrass. Let it boil for 5 - 7 minutes, then add the coriander cream and remove from the heat.

 Put the clams in plates, pour the soup on top and serve immediately.

Simplu si delicios ♥

Beetroot & tahini cream

Reteta in limba romana: Crema de sfecla & tahini

I love beetroot... I love to "play" with it in the kitchen. Hypnotic effect of it's beautiful color? Is it  addictive? :) My beetroot risotto was amazingly delicious and I can't forget the  surprized/happy face  of my boys when they saw the dark carmin red risotto in their plate :). I have a permanent stock of beetroot in my kitchen, delivered every week by a  bio vegetables Romanian producer.   I wash it, cook it, peel it, and then store it in the refrigerator. This way, I can prepare in minutes any delicious beetroot combination: salad with spinach, salad with wild garlic and sunflower seeds, hummus & courgette tian, or with yoghurt, garlic and dill. Why not, maybe some beetroot brownies... 

Besides, beetroot is a power food. One more reason to like it...

♥ rich in calcium, iron, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B 9

♥ good source of fibers, manganese, potassium

♥ contains  phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin B6

♥ it's beautiful color comes from the betacyanin, a powerful antioxidant.  

♥ believed to impove cholesterol levels, lower blood pressure, help preventing heart desease, etc.

My kids love yoghurt beetroot salad. That's how I came up with the idea for this delicious cream. Served cold, with fresh dill. Perfect for a warm, sunny summer day ♥

1 medium beetroot
1 tbsp tahina (sesame paste) + 1-2 tbsp fresh lemon juice + 1 garlic clove + 250 g of  Greek yoghurt + 1 tbsp olive oil 
salt, fresh peper
Optional: dill, finely cut

Wash thoroughly the beetroot and pat dry on absorbant paper. To cook it, either boil it for 1 hour in a lot of water, making sure you add more boiling water if the liquid level decreases, or  wrap it in aluminum foil and  roast it in the heated oven, 1 hour, at 200 degrees C. Peel the cooked beet, cut it in small pieces. Mix all ingredients in the blender. Season with salt and fresh pepper. Serve cold, with fresh dill.

aprox 2 servings.

Avocado frosting brownies

Versiunea in limba romana: Brownies cu frosting din avocado 

While browsing a beautiful blog, Joy the baker, an intriguing cake recipe got my attention: chocolate cake with avocado cream. Wow... My first reaction? Skeptical. After thinking over and over again about it, an unbelievable desire to try this combination won me over :) My imagination started "working" and I decided that the only way to get rid of this obsession is to actually start cooking. The result: avocado frosting brownies. Perfect combination. Imagine dark chocolate  (>75% cocoa) and creamy, slightly lemony avocado. Not too sweet, as I'm not a big fan of sugary frostings. My favourite brownies! Ok, let's say equally good as my lovely  mascarpone brownies ♥ Enjoy!

200 g dark chocolate (minimum 75% cocoa), cut in small pieces + 200 g unsalted butter, diced
180 g sugar + 3 big eggs, room temperature + 1 tsp vanilla essence
80 g flour, sieved
50 g walnuts, cut in small pieces
1 avocado + 1 tbsp lemon juice (fresh) + 3-4 tbsp confectioner's sugar

Heat the oven at 180 degrees Celsius. Prepare  a cake ... with butter and baking paper (20x20cm).
Melt the chocolate over bain-marie, mixing from time to time. When chocolate is liquid, remove from heat and add the butter, mixing untill it melts, too. Don't let the chocolate to be in direct contact with the hot water vapors.

In another bowl, mix sugar, vanilla and eggs, untill you get a fluffy cream. Add the flour, little at a time and mix. Add the walnuts and mix. Add the chocolate mixture and mix with a silicon spatula. Pour the batter in the tray and bake it in the oven for 20 minutes.

In the mean time prepare the frosting. Take the avocado, ripe, but not brown, mash it, then add the lemon juice and mix it well. Start adding the sugar, little at a a time, mixing well. I did not use to much sugar, as I'm a big fan of not too sweet frostings, but feel free to adapt it to your taste.

Take the brownies out of the oven and force cool the cake: put the hot tray in a bigger tray with cold water and ice cubes. Let it cool down this way, then cut it. 

Serve the brownies with the avocado frosting. Keep both the brownies and the frosting in refrigerator. I love cold brownies...