Whole Wheat Pasta and Arugula Salad

This is more of a warm weather dish but I love to prepare it in the morning to have for a quick lunch.

It's super easy.

About 150 - 200 grams of your favorite whole wheat pasta

double the amount of freshly washed arugula lettuce

add feta cheese and tomatoes 

(in the winter I use sun-dried tomatoes because I avoid buying non- seasonal fruits and veggies )

olives are also a tasty addition

add about a spoon full of olive oil and double the amount of balsamic vinegar

plus salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

mix and enjoy

stores well in the fridge for 24 hours

Spicy Tomato Ginger Soup

This is one for all my peeps in the Midwest who are freezing and need a little something spicy and very easy to prepare after all that shovelling!!

all you need is ...

a can of tomatoes

orange or multivitamin juice

ginger - preferably fresh

a cinnamon stick

ground chiles

and if available vegetable boulion if not available sea salt, pepper and parsley to taste

empty tomatoes into blender

fill empty tomato can with 2/3 juice 1/3 water

add ginger to taste (I usually use and ear of fresh ginger)

add spices (except cinnamon !!!)

blend

put in sauce pan

add cinnamon stick

and simmer for about 30 minutes

(the longer you cook it the spicier it will get)

get warm from the inside out :)

(Non-Steamer) Easy Chicken Lasagna Wraps

What you need for a serving of 2:

mozzarella or pizza cheese mix
4 lasagna noodles
2 chicken breasts
tomato sauce
cherry tomatoes
mushrooms
(or basically any veggie you like in your Italian food)
Italian spices (sea salt, oregano, basil, peperoncini)

Start by:

boiling noodles for about 2 minutes

Place in casserole dish and add chicken and cheese

and cherry tomatoes and spices 

wrap up and cover with remaining veggies

and sauce

and cheese

back at 200 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes

serve with salad or steamed veggies!

Enjoy!

Mission Statement

Like most of you, I (have to) cook a lot.  And although I enjoy preparing an extravagant meal from time to time, my daily schedule doesn't allow for such menus. However, that doesn't mean cooking cant be enjoyable, creative and healthy.

This blog is mostly dedicated to easy, healthy, seasonal, locally grown dishes made primarily from scratch - yet can be whipped up in no time at all.

cranberry sauce (stove top recipe)

Americans love cranberries.  Some prefer the canned ones and others to make them from scratch.
Here in Switzerland I started making them from scratch.

Here's what you need.

frozen cranberries

brown sugar and orange or multi-vitamin juice

add brown sugar and cinnimon

and cranberries of course

cook until able to smash 

then add a little kick before serving (about 2-3 Tbsp)

serve room temperature as a side

or as jam for breakfast

traditional Turkey dinner (NON-steamer recipe)

The US holiday in which I look back most fondly is Thanksgiving.  Around that date, I make a turkey feast for my girlfriends to show them how thankful I am to have them in my life.  Here is what it looks like ...

First off you need a turkey.  I always order one fresh from a local butcher.  They can tell you how big your bird should be based on how many guests you are serving.

The night before I wash the turkey, coat it with sea salt, place breast down in a baking pan, cover with a plastic bag and store in the fridge over night.

Also the night before I start to prepare the stuffing by cutting up a loaf of toast bread in to squares and leaving out to harden over night.  (I also add croutons for taste and texture)

The next morning I continue the stuffing by adding fresh mushrooms, leeks, onions, and parsley.

In addition you'll be adding a bit of olive oil, vegetable or chicken bouillon, garlic and butter.

dice garlic and heat in melted butter

mix bread mixture, veggies, garlic butter and 1 cup of bouillon together 

rinse salt off turkey

fill turkey with prepared stuffing

use remainder of stuffing mix to fill the bottom of pan

(only do this if you have a feesh turkey that isn't too fatty)

bake covered at 150 Celsius for about 4 hours 

basting with bouillon if necessary

remove cover and bake for about 30 minutes more

serve with your favorite kind of potatoes, veggies and cranberries (recipe to follow)

Mmmmmmmmm

Maybe your peeps will enjoy this as much as my girls do!

Cheesy Spätzlis (streamer or oven recipe)

after a bit of a Christmas break - I'm back with some ideas for winter recipes!

For all my US friends - this is a fun Swiss recipe

Ingredients:

Spätzlis (small dumplings or any kind of fresh pasta i.e. gnocchi)
a few cooked potatoes
carrots
onions
leeks
Gruyere
cream or milk

cut and/ or shred up all the veggies

add to taste:
garlic
sea salt herbal mix
pepper

measure cheese

and milk or cream

mix together cheese, veggies and Spätzlis

separate into portion size casserole dish or into a large one

add milk / cream

sprinkle over with a spoon full of cheese

FOR STEAMERS:

steam at 100 degrees for about 20 minutes

FOR COMBI-STEAMERS:

steam at 100 degrees for 15 minutes and grill at 220 for 5 minutes 

(this gives it a crunchy crust)

FOR OVENS:

double the amount of milk/cream 

bake covered at 375 for 20 minutes 

uncover and bake 5-7 minutes longer

ENJOY!!!!