Spanish spinach and ricotta penne

Our first dinner in the garden, spring has been cold this year... the blossoms have been blown away by storms of rain and hail. We have had a few days of fine spring weather in March and then winter came back to taunt us. All I want to do is sit by the stove and read a good Jane Austen novel. Wrapped in a blanket and sipping a cup of Earl grey tea...

This morning the sky looked a little blue so we left the house early to go to the organic market in Brussels. I bought fine looking Spanish spinach and found freshly made Ricotta at an Italian stall. That was dinner sorted. I just love simple pasta dishes, simple is gorgeous in Italian cuisine.

Asparagus ribbons and pomegranate pearls salad

Spring is finally here.

The trees are parading their lovely blossoms and the days are starting to get longer again.

The thing I love most about spring are the colors, the vibrant green of the new leaves on the trees and plants. The scent of flowers and the snow of blossoms when the wind blows through the trees.

I enjoy sitting in the garden enjoying the first rays of sun, wearing a warm jumper and big scarf. I'm reading a cookbook and the leaves of the Magnolia flowers are tumbling down on the pages of my book like bookmarks pointing out delicious recipes.

It's quite chilly, apart from the blossoms the branches of the trees are still bare and showing off their slender forms.

I run inside with rosy cheeks and try to create spring on a plate.

The first green, the first flowers.

This dish is spring for me, welcoming one of my favourite veg: the green asparagus.

Green asparagus aren't easy to come by where I' from. Mostly they are imported from Peru so I can only buy them the few times I can find them from local farms. There are loads of white asparagus, but I crave for the green ones. Asparagus grow red berries which are poisonous so here we have the pomegranate pearls to accompany the asparagus in color and in taste giving some acidity to the dish.

What do you need (serves 2-4)

1 bunch of green asparagus

half a cucumber

half a pomegranate

a bunch of Rucola

a handful of parmesan shavings

some good quality olive oil

Method

Use your mandolin or hand slicer to create ribbons from the asparagus.

You can use a knife, but try to slice it as thinly as possible.

Slice the cucumber into thin discs.

Wash you Rucola and arrange on a plate.

Remove the pearls from the pomegranate.

Boil salted water and blanch the asparagus, have a bowl with cold water standing by.

Remove the asparagus after you counted slowly to 10.

Add to the cold water to stop them cooking.

Arrange the slices of cucumber over the Rucola.

Dry the ribbons with some kitchen paper and arrange over the cucumber.

Sprinkle the pomegranate pearls over the dish.

Add the parmesan shavings

Drizzle some nice olive oil over the salad.

All done!

Lovely with a dry but flowery white wine.

Enjoy!

Next week I have a guest post for you!

Please leave a comment, I love reading them!

Pasta with Haak or Collard Greens

I had never seen this type of kale before and to be honest, I had to do some research.

'Haak' or 'Collard greens' is a leafy green vegetable from mustard – cabbage family. 

They are native to the Mediterranean region but I bought them in Kent.

The leaves look like outer cabbage leaves but darker in color and sometimes almost black. The aroma and taste is something between cabbage and mustard leaves and the leaves do not get very soft after cooking like spinach leaves tend to do.

'Haak' or 'Collard greens' are also very nutritious, a 1 cup portion of cooked collard greens has about 50 calories. It is an excellent source of vitamins C, A, and K. This same serving will provide a good source of calcium, fiber, and beta-carotene, as well as vitamin E. Rich in nutrients and antioxidants, 'Haak' or 'Collard greens' are beneficial for supporting the immune system. 

the paste

The taste does take some getting used to but after you do, you will enjoy the warm mustardy flavour. I made the leaves into a pesto-like paste and mixed them with parmesan. The parmesan softens the mustard flavour a bit and the Ricotta gives the greens a sweeter touch.

Vegan chocolate, beetroot and walnut cake

Today is my birthday, the day I look forward to all year...

I'm a child when it comes to my birthday, I start counting the days from August.
You would think I have it all planned out, but indecisive as I am about this -on the day- no reservations for dinner have been made and no outfit is chosen.
The only certain thing is that I will most likely be in a little village in East Sussex.
Today is my day, the day that I am allowed to be a child again, sing very loud, blow out candles and dance in the street.
I don't care what people think, I hold on to this joyful occasion and cherish it.
Because you have to hold on to your inner child and keep that little fire burning. That's where creativity thrives and tales are invented.
Today anything is possible, I have wings to fly to magical places, where the grass is greener, the flowers enormous and the food, of course the food delicious and plenty.
Today I fall into a hole in the ground and have tea with talking rabbits.
Today is truly mine.

So on this day I bring you a birthday cake.

The past year a lot of things changed, I started this blog, got married and got to know who my friends are. I feel I grew up just a tiny bit more.

One of the new things in my life is experimenting with vegan cooking, especially for cakes and cookies. I love to make sweet things slightly more healthy and as I don't really have a sweet tooth, I don't make them overly sweet.
As you might have guessed from my Parsnip and apple breakfast cake, I have a thing for putting vegetables into sweets. The classic carrot cake used to be my all time favourite tea time treat, until this cake came along...
This mouth full of yummyness is moist, full of the darkest chocolate and contains one of my favourite veg: beetroot.
Beetroot is incredibly healthy as it is a rich source of antioxidants, nutrients including sodium, magnesium and vitamin C.

I love the way beetroot colors your hands...

What do you need

220 g wholemeal spelt flour

40 g walnuts or pecans

baking powder: 2 heaped tsp

cocoa: 4 heaped tsp

100 g dark chocolate

360 g cooked red beetroot in cubes

50 ml olive oil

50 ml maple syrup

1 cup of soy yoghurt

a pinch of seasalt

• Peel the beetroots and slice into 1 cm cubes, cook until soft and mash.

• Preheat your oven to 160°

• Get your dry ingredients in one bowl and your wet ingredients in another.

• Add the baking powder and soda last as it has to get in contact with the wet ingredients straight away to give the best result.

• Melt the chocolate and add to the wet ingredients, mix the ingredients.

• Add the wet to the dry ingredients and mix.

• Line a spring form with baking paper and dust with some cacao.

• Pour the batter into the springform and put in the oven for 55 minutes.

• Be very careful when you take it out of the oven, let it cool in the tray.

Decorate with some melted chocolate drizzled over, and serve with yoghurt mixed with a teaspoon of beetroot juice

Enjoy with a glass of oat milk or Earl grey tea!