CEiMB: Spinach, Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizza

Just a short post for now, just came back from the cinema: saw 'Avatar'. Wow!! What a movie!

Up above is my gorgeous pink bike, covered in the snow. I haven't seen this much snow since I live in this appartment... It's been like this since Christmas: crazy!

So, this is my first CEiMB-post in a while. I must admit it's great to be able to eat again and even better to be able to enjoy the things I eat again! This weeks recipe for Craving Ellie in My Belly was picked by Half Meatball/Half Matzoh Ball Children.




Argula was nowhere to be found at the supermarket, so I used spinach instead. I also added some yellow pepper I still had laying around in my fridge. The second time I made these I added a drizzle of balsamic vinegar to the veggies. This is another winner by Ellie: easy to put together in no time whatsoever and tasty too!! I will most definetely be making this one again!


The recipe can be found over at Half Meatball/Half Matzoh Ball Children and at Foodnetwork. Check out what my fellow Ellie-istas thought of the Arugula, Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizza here!

Risotto with Spinach, Roasted Peppers and Goat Cheese

After making the Garden Risotto for last weeks Craving Ellie in my Belly I really wanted to make some more risotto, so I searched for some great recipes over at Tastespotting. I loved the idea of both Jamie Olivers Spinach and Goat Cheese Risotto of Cheese Plus Everything and the Roasted Bell Pepper Risotto with Chorizo Cubes by Delicious Days. I couldn't pick one so I decided to simply combine the ingredients of the two of them Ellie-style.

To start with I roasted the bell peppers the evening before I made the risotto, this was actually quite easy. From now one when I need roasted bell peppers for a recipe I won't buy them but make them myself! Here's what to do (adapted from Delicious Days):

• Preheat the oven at 225 degrees.
• Wash the bell peppers.
• Cut off top and bottom of the bell peppers.
• Remove the seeds and inner ribs.
• Cut the bell peppers into quarters.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
• Place the quartered bell peppers on the parchment paper.
• Roast for 15 to 20 minutes or untill the bell peppers are evenly blistered and charred.
• Put the bell pepper quarters into a ziploc bag while still hot.
• Squeeze out residual air, then seal and chill the grilled bell peppers in the fridge over night.
• When you're ready to make the risotto, remove the bell peppers from the ziploc bag.
• Remove the charred skins.
• Cut the bell peppers into thin strips.

I was a bit scared that the taste of the goat cheese would overpower the other flavours in the rissotto, however I found it to be really subtle. Next time I'll probably double the amount of roasted bell pepper.

Risotto with Spinach, Roasted Peppers and Goat Cheese

1 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 cup Arborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
3/8 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
700 ml low-sodium chicken broth
200 grams spinach leaves
2 roasted bell peppers, sliced
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, I used Pecorino Romano
100 grams goat cheese

Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan over moderately low heat and cook the onion, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring occasionally for about 1 minute. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute.

Add wine and simmer, stirring constantly, until absorbed, about 1 minute. Add 3/4 cup of the hot broth, the salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper and simmer, stirring constantly, until broth is absorbed. Continue simmering and adding hot broth, about 3/4 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing the broth to be absorbed before adding more, until rice is almost tender and creamy-looking, about 18 minutes.

Add the spinach and cook until the spinach is wilted. Add the roasted bell peppers and cook just until the vegetables are hot. Stir in the Parmesan, then stirr in the goat cheese and more broth if the risotto seems too thick. Serve in soup plates. Enjoy!

Tomorrow I'll post about todays Barefoot Bloggers Tuna Salad!

CEiMB: Garden Risotto and Confession Time...

I have a confession to make: I've never made risotto. For some reason I've always been quite intimidated about it. But there's a first time for everything and thanks to Jessica of A Singleton in the Kitchen yesterday I finally made risotto for the first time in my life!

I was amazed by how easy it was put together, although the risotto did need to be stirred a lot..... My entire family loved this dish: I cooked this at my parents house, my mom couldn't eat it as she's not allowed to eat rice at the moment, so I brought leftovers to my brother and put one portion in the freezer.

From now on I'll be making more risotto!! I did make three small changes in the recipe: I used Pecorino Romano instead of Parmesan, red onion instead of regular onion and I added a bit more spinach and peas to the risotto 'cause I love veggies! My risotto was paired with köfte from the Turkish butcher. What a nice combination: the creamy softness of the risotto toned down the spicyness of the köfte. Jessica, thank you so much for picking this recipe and showing me that risotto is made easy-peasy: you've made my entire family happy!!

Check out what my fellow Elie-istas thoughts on the Garden Risotto were here, the recipe can be found here at Jessica's blog or here at Foodnetwork. Up next are:

• May 14th: Jerk Chicken with Cool Pineapple Salsa, hosted by Jen B. of Notes from the Table
• May 21st: Thai Style Halibut with Coconut Curry Broth, hosted by The Not So Skinny Kitchen
• May 28th: Crispy Fish Fingers, hosted by Anne of Rainforest Recipes

Taste & Create XVIII - Mirch Masala - Asparagus Spaghetti

This month I decided to join another interesting cookgroup: Taste & Create.
I had seen this event over at Grumpy's Honeybunch and instantely fell in love with the idea of Taste & Create: it’s whole purpose is to create a community of bloggers who test each others’ recipes and share links. Every month you send an email to let Nicole from For the Love of Food know that you'd like to participate that month, she makes pairs and then you select one (or more) recipes to recreate from the persons blog that you're paired with.

This month I'm paired with Superchef of Mirch Masala. Superchef is a very talented cook that has a lot of Indian recipes on her blog. My intention was to go ahead and try to recreate one of the lovely Indian dishes, but time flied this month and before I knew it it was time to post. As I was in a hurry today I made this easy-to-prepare pastadish.

I really enjoyed it, it was put together very quickly and very tasty. It gave me a chance to use my leftover spinach from the CEiMB-recipe. I absolutely loved it: the way the egg-parmesan mixture coats the pasta that makes an ordinary sauce completely absolete. Go here to check out Superchefs pasta. To see what the other creators made, visit Taste & Create.

Asparagus and Spinach Spaghetti with Garlic,
Basil and Parmesan Cheese

250 grams Spaghetti

300 grams Spinach

4 cloves garlic, minced

8-10 stalks of Asparagus, cut into 1 inch length

1 egg, beaten well
1/2 cup, grated Parmesan + more for garnish

a few basil leaves, chopped finely

a handful of sweet cherry tomatoes, halved

2 tbp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

salt and pepper, to taste

Cook the pasta as per package instructions, drain and keep aside.
In a sauté pan, heat the olive oil and sauté the asparagus, spinach and garlic.
Add the spaghetti to it and toss well.

Meanwhile, mix the egg and the grated parmesan in a bowl and keep aside.
Remove the sauté pan from the heat and then add in the egg-parm mix to it.

DO NOT add this mix while the pasta is on the stove as this will only scramble the eggs.
This way, the eggs cook enough in the heat of the pasta and forms
a nice smooth sauce with the parmesan.

Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Toss in the cherry tomatoes and serve with the basil leaves and
more grated parmesan as garnish.

CEiMB: Balsamic Chicken with Baby Spinach

Well, it's Thursday today and we all know what that means: Craving Ellie in My Belly. And I am especially exited about this weeks pick. Guess why.... Because I got to choose a recipe!!! It was really difficult to decide on one recipe, 'cause The Food You Crave by Ellie Krieger is filled with wonderful dishes.

I eventually selected Balsamic Chicken with Baby Spinach and Couscous. Chicken is one of my favourite meats to cook with, simply because it's so versatile and I love both spinach and couscous allthough I would never have thought of putting them together in one dish.

Since I wasn't able to find baby spinach, I simply used normal spinached: it just needed a bit more time in the pan than indicated. It took about 15 minutes to cook and I really enjoyed it! I loved the combination of the tomatoes with the balsamic vinegar. This dish is perfect for one of those nights where you don't feel like cooking, but still want to eat a healthy and tasty meal and it will definetely be made again by me!

Check out what my fellow Ellie-istas thought of the chicken here!!

Balsamic Chicken with Baby Spinach and Couscous

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 (8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved
8 ounces baby spinach
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup low-sodium canned chopped tomatoes with juice
2 cups whole wheat couscous, cooked

Directions
Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the chicken and cook about 4 minutes per side, or until cooked through and juices run clear. Remove the chicken and set aside.

To the same pan, add the spinach and cook just until wilted, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Lower the heat to medium and add the balsamic vinegar and chicken broth to the pan and stir, scraping the bottom of the pan to remove any browned bits. Add the tomatoes, bring to a simmer and cook 3 to 5 minutes.

Place the couscous in a serving bowl. Top with the spinach, chicken and balsamic-tomato sauce.