Roasted Porc Tenderloin (for sandwiches)

I was looking for a healthier alternative to cold cuts (which are anything but baby friendly) and I came across the option of using thin slices of cold roast meat, which is much tastier and - obviously - healthier than the processed meat from the supermarket.
You can use chicken or turkey breast, but our favorite is the porc tenderloin.

The spices can vary, depending on your taste, here is what I use:

Ingredients:

- 3 pieces of porc tenderloin ("filet mignon") - mine had about 300g each;

- 6 garlic cloves, sliced or crushed;

- one sprig each - fresh rosemary and thyme; 

- 1 Tbsp sweet paprika;
- 1 tsp dry chives;

- 3 bay leaves;

- 2 Tbsp oil;

- pepper and salt by taste (if no restrictions).

Method:tt.
Pat the meat dry using paper towels, lightly coat it with oil and place it in a Pyrex (or similar) pot. Sprinkle the spices on top, except for the bay leaves that should be placed next to the meat. Cover the pot with Se șterg bucățile de carne cu un prosop de hârtie, se ung cu ulei (cu mâna) și se așazăcling film and and put it in the fridge for a couple of hours (if you are in a hurry you can skip this step and roast the meat right away). 

When you want to roast the meat, turn on the oven at 180 degrees Celsius. Add water to the pot to come halfway up meat, cover the pot with a lid (if it doesn't have a lid, make a cover out of baking paper).
Roast in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, then roll the meat on the other side and bake for 20 more minutes (also under the lid). In the end, roll the meat again, remove the lid and roast some more, until the meat forms a crust on top.

To check if it's ready, try the meat with a fork - it should be tender. If necessary, roast it some more, but make sure it has enough water, otherwise it gets dry. When ready, remove from the oven and let cool.
Once cooled, remove the meat from the sauce and keep it in the fridge, covered in cling film.

My kids love to have fine slices of roast meat on bread and butter. Obviously, you can also serve this warm, with some vegetables on the side.

Enjoy!

Stuffed sweet potatoes

The sweet potato has gained a lot of popularity in our family, in the last year, as it is a very versatile food. We equally like oven baked sweet potato wedges, with garlic and rosemary and sweet potato pancakes or brownies. Because I wanted to try something different this time, I made some stuffed sweet potatoes, very savory and tasty.

Ingredients:
-1 large sweet potato;
- 300g ground beef;
- 1/2 courgette, diced;
- 2 spring onions (or one small onion), finely chopped;
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed;
- 3 cherry tomatoes, chopped + 2 cherry tomatoes, sliced (to put on top of the stuffed potatoes);
- 1/2 bell pepper, diced;
- one small carrot, morcov mic, ras;
- optional: any other vegetables, mushrooms, apio, etc.
-  one tsp ground cumin;
- a few slices of yellow cheese or mozarella (to top);
* this recipe does not contain salt; if you don't have any restrictions, season with salt and pepper, by taste.

Method:
Half the sweet potato lengthwise, put the pieces in a pot with water and let it boil, over low fire.
Meanwhile, in a large non sticky pan add the vegetables (onion, courgette, tomatoes, pepper, carrot, garlic, etc.) and fry them a little bit, in their own juices, stirring continuously. After a few minutes, add 100 ml of water (you can also add a few Tbsp of oil) and let simmer over low fire until the vegetables soften. Add the ground beef and keep stirring so it doesn't stick together. Turn the meat on all sides, until completely cooked (it will change its color). Add the cumin, salt and pepper (if using). Remove from heat.
When the sweet potato is boiled, remove it from the water and scoop out most of the flesh, leaving just a small part next to the skin. Add the flesh to the meat and vegetable mixture and use this to fill each of the potato halves. Top with the cheese and tomato slices and bake in the oven for 10 minutes (at about 180 degrees C), until the cheese melts. Serve hot and enjoy!

Lasagna

Lasagna is one of our family's favorite foods. This recipe is inspired by Chef Mario Batali (his original recipe here) and modified by me to be more "baby friendly".

Ingredients:
- 1 pack lasagna noodles - I use 9 noodles for a lasagna, they fit perfectly on 3 layers in the ceramic dish I use and I like to put a lot of ragu between the layers.
- 200g grated Parmesan cheese + extra, to sprinkle on top when serving.

For the ragu bolognese:
- 1 kg minced meat (I like to use beef and turkey, but any combination should work);
- 3-4 Tbsp oil;
- 400g champignon mushrooms, sliced;
- one big onion, finely chopped;
- 1 clove garlic;
- 400g tomato paste or diced tomatoes;
- 1 cup of milk;
- 1 cup beef or vegetable soup or 1 cup water;
* if you don't have restrictions to sodium, season with salt and pepper to taste.

For the bechamel:
- 5 Tbsp butter;
- 4 Tbsp flour;
- 3 cups milk;
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg;
* if no restrictions, add 2 tsp salt.

Method:

Start with the ragu bolognese: place the mushrooms and the onion in a non-sticky pan, over medium fire and cover with a lid. Add a splash of water (50 ml). Cover with a lid and wait until the water starts to seep out of the mushrooms. Add 3-4 Tbsp of oil and the crushed garlic and let everything simmer without the lid until the mushrooms soften a bit and most of the water evaporates. Rise the temperature and add the minced meat, stirring continuously to prevent it from sticking together, until all the meat changes color to golden brown. Reduce the heat again, add the tomato paste, milk and soup / water and let everything simmer over medium-low heat for about 1h and 30'. Finally, remove from heat and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

About 15 minutes before the ragu is ready, turn on the oven on 200 degrees Celsius and start preparing the bechamel.
Melt the butter in a non-sticky saucepan. Meanwhile, heat the milk until it reaches the boiling point and remove from fire. When the butter has melted, add the flour on top and stir vigorously. Add the milk one cup at a time and let the sauce boil, stirring continuously, until you feel it starts to thicken. From that point, boil it about 30 more seconds and remove from fire.

Now you can start layering the lasagna: in a ceramic rectangular pot, alternate a layer of ragu, a sprinkle of grated Parmesan, a layer of noodles and a layer of bechamel. Continue with the same order until you finish the sauces. At the end you need to have ragu on the bottom of the pot and bechamel as the top layer. Sprinkle some more Parmesan before putting the pot in the oven.  Bake for about 40 minutes at 200 degrees Celsius, until the crust becomes golden brown.

Enjoy!

Chişcă - Romanian traditional Christmas sausage (with pork and rice)

Every Christmas, although spent far away from home, gives us the opportunity to explore (in our own kitchen) some of our traditional meals that our grandparents used to prepare.
This year I am going to prepare (for the first time ever) a special kind of sausage, made of meat and rice. I tried yesterday a simple recipe (adapted to be baby friendly) and in the next days I am planning to make another version, just to see which one is closer to the taste I know from childhood (that one I will also prepare for Christmas).

Ingredients:
- 500g minced pork;
- 4-5 Tbsp short grain rice;
- one large onion;
- 3 Tbsp oil;
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper;
- 1/2 tsp sweet paprika;
- 4 bay leaves;
- 1/2 tsp coriander seeds;
- 1/2 tsp dry thyme;
- a few pepper corns;
- sausage skin (I used pork intestine, very well cleaned)
* if you are not cooking for babies, add 1tsp salt.

Method:
Finely chop the onion and place it in a pan, over medium heat, with 6 Tbsp of water and 3 Tbsp of oil. Stir continuously. Once the onion is soft add the rice (washed and drained) and 150 ml of water. Let ot boil until all the water evaporates (the rice should be partly boiled). Set aside and let cool.
Add the minced pork, ground pepper, thyme and paprika (and salt, if using) to the rice and onion mixture.
Using a sausage accesory or a funnel fill the sausage skin with the meat and rice mixture. Make tight knots at both ends of the intestine or sausage skin and form more sausages (at the preferred length).
Pierce the sausage skin a few times using a toothpick (so that they won't swell while boiling).
Place the sausages in a pot and cover them with cold water (plus 2cm above). Add the pepper corns, coriander seeds and bay leaves. Boil over low fire for 1/2h. Remove the sausages from the water and let them cool.
Before serving, fry the sausages for a few minutes in a pan (no oil) or on the grill. They go perfectly with fresh onion and polenta.
Enjoy!

Roast duck with cabbage

I have to admit that, before I had kids, the only meats that I would cook were chicken and pork. That was mainly because I didn't have time to make complex culinary experiments so, most of the times, dinner (which was the only meal we had at home) was either roast chicken or cheese salad. Lamb, fish, rabbit and even veal were too "exotic" to be prepared at home so we ate them at restaurants (not to mention that I hadn't even heard about quinoa, chia, amaranth - stuff that only recently started being imported into Romania).

Duck was for us in the same category, of "exotic" food, as it wasn't easy to find in supermarkets. I had heard though that duck with cabbage was a delicious meal so I decided I needed to cook that once.

When we started solids with the first kid, I began to be more interested in diverse nutrition and in offering her a variety of foods, so I started to cook all kinds of meats, veggies and recipes from all around the world. Finally, the time has come to prepare the "famous" duck with cabbage and, as time is still an issue, I tried to make the simplest possible recipe, which needed the least amount of attention from my side. What can I say, I still needed to keep an eye on the duck, as I was afraid it might have too much fat, so at some point I separated it from the cabbage and cooked them in different pots. All in all, duck with cabbage turned out to be delicious and the method was not too complicated after all so I suggest you to try it!

Ingredients:

- one whole duck (cca. 1.8-2.0 kg);

- one cabbage (cca. 1.5 kg);

- 250g tomato paste (or 4 fresh tomatoes);

- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper;

- one sprig fresh thyme and one sprig fresh rosemary;

- 4-5 dry bay leaves.

* this recipe does not contain salt; if you don't have restrictions you can add salt by taste and/or you can (also) use sauerkraut. 

Method:

Finely slice the cabbage and place it in a tray.

Put the duck in a pan, and fry it (in its own fat) over medium fire, on all sides, until the skin gets a bit crispy and it releases some fat. Remove the duck from the pan and place it in the tray, over the cabbage. Pour about 150 ml of water and add the spices. Place the tray in the oven, at 180 degrees C. If the tray doesn't have a lid, use some baking paper to cover it (at least for the first part).

After about 45-60 minutes remove the tray from the oven, make 2-3 cuts on the duck's skin and turn it on the other side (the juices will flow from the cuts you made).

Put the tray back in the oven for 30 more minutes.

Take the tray out, move the duck to another tray, without a lid and roast it some more in the oven until the skin becomes light brown and crispy.

Meanwhile, transfer the cabbage to a pot (you can add all the sauce from the tray or just a part of it) and add 250g tomato paste. Cook it on the stove over medium fire for about 10 more minutes or until it gets to the right consistency. 

To serve, place a few spoons of cabbage on a plate and add some duck breast slices or a whole duck leg on top.

Enjoy!

Three (absolutely delicious) types of quiche

The quiches were the absolute stars of the Sunday party. I made them the day night before, without having a specific idea about how they should turn out. I just got creative and used the ingredients I liked in a random way. I made three quiches: one with prosciutto, hard cheese and spring onions, one with chicken fillet, hard cheese and red bell pepper and one with 2 kinds of cheese, mushrooms, bell pepper and spring onion.

I made the crust after one of Jamie Oliver's recipes (the original here), with just three ingredients:
- 300g white flour;
- 150g unsalted butter,
- 90-120 ml cold water.

(I tripled the quantities, to get 3 tarts.)
Place the flour in a bowl, add the cold butter, diced and mix with your fingertips until you get a sandy mixture. Add about 100 ml cold water (add it slowly, as you might need a little bit less or a little bit more water, depending on the flour), until you get a firm dough. Form a ball,cover it with cling film and leave it in the fridge for about 30 minutes (I made 3 balls of dough, for the 3 tarts).

Meanwhile, prepare the toppings. You can choose virtually any combination of meat, cheese, vegetables. I used 3 combinations and the quantities I used were inspired by another one of Jamie Oliver's recipes (the original here).

Prosciutto and hard cheese quiche


Ingredients:
- 200g prosciutto;
- 200g hard (yellow) cow cheese, grated;
- 2 spring onions, finely sliced;
- 2 whole eggs;
- 2 egg yolks;
- 250 ml cow's milk;
- 250 ml sour cream;
- a pinch of nutmeg.

Method: Take the dough out of the fridge and roll it out on a flat surface (little floured) until you get a shape and a size similar to the tart tin. Place it over the tin (lightly buttered) and press with the fingers to make sure it covers the whole surface and the sides. Cut the excess dough that hangs out from the tin, using a sharp knife. Place the tin back in the fridge for 30-40 minutes.

Remove the tart tin from the fridge, pierce it a few times with a fork (so that it wouldn't form air bubbles underneath) and place in the oven. Bake at 190 Celsius until the dough becomes golden (about 20 minutes).
Remove from the oven, let cool for a few minutes and add the toppings - prosciutto, grated cheese and spring onions.
Mix well  the eggs, egg yolks, cream, milk and nutmeg and pour the resulting liquid carefully over the tart. Place back in the oven for 30-40 more minutes or until the top becomes golden brown.
Once completely baked, remove the tart from the oven and let it cool in the tin. When it's cooled you can remove it from the tin and place it on a platter.


Quiche with chicken breast, hard cheese and red bell pepper  

Ingredients:
- 200g chicken breast / chicken fillet, roasted or boiled;
- 200g hard (yellow) cow cheese, grated;
- half of a red bell pepper, finely chopped;
- 2 eggs;
- 2 egg yolks;
- 250 ml cow's milk;
- 250 ml sour cream;
- a pinch of nutmeg.

Method: Remove a ball of dough from the fridge, roll it out on a flat surface (little floured) until you get a shape and a size similar to the tart tin. Place it over the tin (lightly buttered) and press with the fingers to make sure it covers the whole surface and the sides. Cut the excess dough that hangs out from the tin, using a sharp knife. Place the tin back in the fridge for 30-40 minutes.

Remove the tart tin from the fridge, pierce it a few times with a fork (so that it wouldn't form air bubbles underneath) and place in the oven. Bake at 190 Celsius until the dough becomes golden (about 20 minutes).
Remove from the oven, let cool for a few minutes and add the toppings - chicken, grated cheese and bell pepper pieces.
Mix well  the eggs, egg yolks, cream, milk and nutmeg and pour the resulting liquid carefully over the tart. Place back in the oven for 30-40 more minutes or until the top becomes golden brown.
Once completely baked, remove the tart from the oven and let it cool in the tin. When it's cooled you can remove it from the tin and place it on a platter.

Vegetarian quiche, with 2 types of cheese, mushrooms, red bell pepper and spring onions 

Ingredients:
- 200g fresh cow's cheese (or any other cheese you like);
-200g hard (yellow) cow's cheese, grated;
- 5-6 champignon mushrooms;
- 1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped;
- 2 spring onions, finely sliced.
- 2 eggs;
- 2 egg yolks;
- 250 ml cow's milk;
- 250 ml sour cream;
- a pinch of nutmeg.

Method: Take the dough out of the fridge and roll it out on a flat surface (little floured) until you get a shape and a size similar to the tart tin. Place it over the tin (lightly buttered) and press with the fingers to make sure it covers the whole surface and the sides. Cut the excess dough that hangs out from the tin, using a sharp knife. Place the tin back in the fridge for 30-40 minutes.

Remove the tart tin from the fridge, pierce it a few times with a fork (so that it wouldn't form air bubbles underneath) and place in the oven. Bake at 190 Celsius until the dough becomes golden (about 20 minutes).
Remove from the oven, let cool for a few minutes and add the toppings - the twi kinds of cheese and the vegetables.
Mix well  the eggs, egg yolks, cream, milk and nutmeg and pour the resulting liquid carefully over the tart. Place back in the oven for 30-40 more minutes or until the top becomes golden brown.
Once completely baked, remove the tart from the oven and let it cool in the tin. When it's cooled you can remove it from the tin and place it on a platter.


Enjoy!


Photo credits: Tamara Boskovic Dereta (facebook  / instagram)

Beef soup

I admit, I'm not a big fan of soups (nor of the other foods of the same range), therefore I only cook them on special request.  This time, my older daughter asked for "soup" and she actually offered to help me make it (which increased the preparing time, but it was fun).


So, after a quick stop at the green market, I got all the goodies necessary to make a fa-bu-lous beef soup (I know you're wondering, the fruits were only for the picture, I didn't add them to the broth).
I decided to cook a semi-creamy soup (I blended a part of the veggies, while I left others in pieces).
  


Ingredients:

- 300-500g beef (you can use virtually any piece, with or without bone)
- one large onion;
- 2 carrots;
- 1 parsley root;
- 1 piece celery root;
- 1/2 cauliflower;
- 1/2 courgette;
- one handful green beans;
- one handful yellow beans;
- one potato;
- 2 large tomatoes;
- 1 bell pepper;
- o Tbsp mix of green leaves (tarragon, parsley etc.).


Place the meat (whole piece or cut in 2-3 pieces) in a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil, Discard the foam that will form in the first minutes, add the onion, cut in halves, the piece of celery and the potato, cut in quarters. Then cover with a lid and let it simmer over low/medium heat.
In the meantime, place the tomatoes and bell-pepper in a tray and bake in the oven, for about 30 minutes at 200 degrees Celsius. (You can also boil them directly next to the meat, but you should peel them first, since it's unpleasant to find the skin later, floating in the soup.) When they have softened, take them out, peel them, cut them in cubes and add them to the boiling meat and vegetables.

Cut the courgette and the cauliflower in small pieces and add them as well to the soup. Let it boil 10-15 more minutes (until all veggies are soft).
Take the meat out of the soup and cut it into pieces (as large as you prefer). Place the soup in a food processor and blend until smooth. Put it back into the pot and add the pieces of meat.

Discard the ends of the bean pods, then cut every pod in 2-3 pieces. Grate the carrot and the parsley root. Add the beans, the carrot and the parsley over the boiling soup and let it simmer 10-15 minutes more. In the end, add the green leaves mix and turn off the heat,
Serve with sour cream and, if you have the courage, with a pickled hot pepper.
Enjoy!

Beef burger

This 100% home made beef burger (inspired by Jamie Oliver's Insanity Burger) is a healthy alternative to a fast food meal or it could impress the kids at a cool birthday party. 

The burger can be adapted to match any tastes and preferences. I made the buns myself, but your local bakery might provide nice alternatives. The baby potatoes on the side can be replaced with oven baked "French fries" or with some vegetables. The layers of the burger can vary, according to your taste, as virtually any combination of fresh veggies and salad would go perfectly.

So, for the buns I used:
- 600 g mix of white, integral and rye flour (app. equal amounts);
- 40 g fresh yeast;
- 350 ml warm milk;
- salt by taste (I didn't use any, because of the kids);
- one egg, lightly beaten (to brush them at the end).

Dissolve the yeast in milk, then pour the mix on top of the flour. Knead the dough for 5-10 minutes and let it rise in a warm place for about one and a half hours. Form the buns, place them on a tray lined with baking paper and let them rise for another 20-30 minutes. Bake in the preheated oven at 180 C for about 20 minutes. Take the buns out, brush them with egg and place them back in the oven until the crust becomes golden brown (about 10 more minutes, depending on the oven).

For the burgers:
- 600 g lean beef, minced;
- a drizzle of olive oil;
- 1 tsp mustard;
- 4 slices of yellow cheese of your choice;
- one red onion;
- a drizzle of balsamic vinegar;
- a few pickled cucumbers (if they are salty, keep them for the adults' portion);
- one handful rucola:
- one handful baby spinach;
- 2  Tbsp sour cream or full fat yogurt (or any combination of the two)
- 1 Tbsp tomato puree;
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce.

Divide the minced beef in 4 pieces and form them into flat patties. Place them on a plate slightly greased with olive oil  and let them rest in the fridge for 20 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare the other "layers" of the burger:
     -- slice the onion and dress with balsamic vinegar;
     -- slice the pickled cucumbers;
     -- "salad": mix the rucola and baby spinach with the sour cream, yogurt, tomato puree and Worchestershire sauce.

Place the burgers in a non sticking pan, without oil, over medium to high heat. After a few minutes, flip them and brush the cooked sides with mustard. After a few more minutes, flip them again and brush the other side with mustard as well. Add a splash of water to the pan (about 50 ml), cover with a lid and let the burgers fry over medium heat. After 5 minutes flip them over and let them cook some more under the lid. The cooking time depends on the heat and on the thickness of the burger, but it's important to make sure the meat is properly cooked (especially for the kids). You can add a little bit more water if necessary.
When the patties are completely cooked, remove from the fire and place a slice of yellow cheese on top of each burger, Put the lid back and let them covered for 30 seconds, until the cheese slightly melts.

In the end, build the burgers: 1/2 bun + "salad" + burger + pickled cucumbers + onion + 1/2 bun.

As a side dish, I made some baby potatoes boiled in water with a bit of duck fat (but you can use a drizzle of olive oil instead). I added some garlic and dill, for some extra tastiness and some chives as a salad.

Enjoy!

Oven baked meatballs (basic recipe)

Trying to make oven baked meatballs (baby friendly) taste like fried ones was a "trial and error" kind of process. In the end, I found the perfect recipe to make tasty meatballs, juicy and with a slightly crispy crust. This is the "basic" recipe, though, so be creative and add any ingredients you like: vegetables, greens, ground nuts or seeds.

For this recipe I used:
- 700g ground beef;
- one egg;
- one onion;
- 2 garlic cloves;
- 2 Tbsp bread crumbs + some extra, for the crust;
- a few sprigs of fresh thyme.

Finely chop the onion and garlic, add the meat, egg and bread crumbs and mix well. Leave in the fridge for 12 h. Wet your hands and form the mixture into meatballs, rolling every one of them into breadcrumbs to coat. Place the meatballs in a tray lined with baking paper and bake in the preheated oven, at 210-220 C until they are browned.

To obtain meatballs with a perfect texture, similar to those fried in oil:
- The mixture shouldn't be soft, you should be able to shape spherical meatballs that won't lose their shape in the tray;
- If you don't have bread crumbs, you can use a slice of bread soaked in water (and drained) or a grated raw potato (drained);
- The bread crumb crust gives a crunchier note;
-  Baking at very high temperature has the role of sealing the crust so that the juices stay inside;
- If you use less than 700g of meat, you might need to add less than 1 egg; slightly beat the egg in a separate bowl and then add as much as you need; if you think the mix is too moist, add some more breadcrumbs.

Enjoy!

Veal tongue with olives

The veal tongue with olives has a special taste, given by the tomato and white wine sauce... but this time, since we have two (very) young guests at dinner, we decided to  enjoy the wine separately and to make the recipe baby friendly.

For this meal, you only need a few ingredients:

- one veal tongue (you can use pork as well);

- one jar of tomato paste / canned tomato cubes or pieces / 2 medium tomatoes, chopped; 

- one onion;

- 100 g black, unsalted olives;

- a few dried bay leaves.

Wash the tongue well and boil it on low heat for approximately 2 h, until it becomes tender and the skin starts to peel off.  

Peel the white skin off and cut the tongue in slices (about 1,5 cm thick). Place the slices in a Pyrex tray, add the finely chopped onions, the olives and, on top, the tomatoes or tomato juice. 

Place the bay leaves on the side, pour a cup of the water in which you boiled the tongue and bake in the oven for about 40 minutes at 200 degrees C.

Serve with potato puree.
Enjoy!