Chicken Curry Ragout

4 cups of water, 1 cube chicken stock, 2 cups rice, 500 g chicken breast, curry, 2 tablespoons sunflower oil, 250 ml water, 1 bag Maggy Curry-Sauce, 2 bananas, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 4 tablespoons grated coconut, 20 g butter

Boil the water with the stock, add the rice and cook for 20 minutes. Was the meat and cut into cubes, season with curry. Heat the oil and fry the meat. Add the water, mix the curry sauce and cook for another 2 minutes.
Cut the bananas into slices, pour over them the lemon juice, sprinkle the grated coconut and fry them in butter.
Serve the curry with bananas and rice.

Classic Roast Potatoes

6-9 medium potatoes (allowing 3 halves each), salt, cooking oil or lard, plain flour, seasoned

To achieve the right finish, these potatoes will take at least 1 hour to cook; for extreme crispiness, cook for 1½ hours.
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6.
Peel the potatoes and halve lengthways. The peeled side of the potatoes can now be scraped with a knife to give a smooth domed shape to all halves.
Place in a saucepan and cover with cold, salted water. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 5-6 minutes. Drain in a colander and leave to stand for 2-3 minutes before shaking the colander gently. This will begin to break down the edge of the potatoes. These slightly rough edges will become crisp and crunchy during the roasting.
Heat a frying-pan with 5 mm of oil or melted lard. Once it's hot, the potatoes can be lightly rolled in flour, shaking off any excess. Fry the potatoes in the oil, turning occasionally until completely golden brown. Now transfer the potatoes to a roasting pan. Pour some of the cooking oil into the pan (approximately 2-3 mm/ 1/8 in deep), sprinkle the potatoes with salt and roast in the oven for 30 minutes before turning in the paw. Roast for another 30 minutes. Remove the crispy roast potatoes from the pan and serve.
A knob of butter can be melted over the potatoes to enrich the crispy roast taste. For an ultra-crispy finish, increase the cooking time to 1½ hours, turning the potatoes in the pan half-way through.

David Garrett Flash Mob

My favourite violine player playing Smooth Criminal in an Italian Diner ;)
Isn't he a dream :P
Can't wait to see him live in Bucharest in September...

Aurora Borealis

How amazing it would be to witness such a phenomenon...

Savoury pancakes with leek and bacon filling

For the basic pancake mixture: 225g plain flour, pinch of salt, 2 eggs, 500ml milk, butter to grease the pan

For the leek and bacon filling: 5 leeks (white part only), washed and chopped, 5 rashers of bacon, chopped, 300ml bechamel sauce, 30g Cheddar cheese, grated

Sift the flour and salt into a big mixing bowl. Make a 'well' in the flour and break the eggs into it. Whisk the ingredients together, drawing in the flour from the sides. Add the milk, bit by bit. Beat until the mixture is smooth, and thick enough to coat a wooden spoon.
To make pancakes, the frying pan needs to be the right temperature and have the right amount of butter. If the pan is steaming the temperature is too high. Use a small knob of butter, melt it gently and then add a couple of tablespoons of pancake mixture. Swoosh it around the frying pan to cover the bottom. Flip the pancake when the mixture begins to bubble in the middle. Continue making pancakes, one at a time, until the mixture is all used up.
To make the leek and bacon filling, steam or boil the leeks, and fry the chopped bacon in a frying pan. Place a line of leeks and bacon down the middle of each pancake. Roll up the pancakes and arrange them side by side in a small baking tin. Pour the bechamel sauce over the pancakes and cover with grated cheese. Bake in a preheated oven, 180°C/350°F/Gas 4, for 20 minutes - the cheese should be bubbling and golden.

Chicken & Mushroom Salad

250 gr various salad leaves, 2 boiled eggs, 1 teaspoon mustard, 2 teaspoons vinegar, 4 tablespoons yoghurt, salt, pepper, 400g chicken breast, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 100 gr champignon mushrooms, 1 tablespoon red vinegar, 1 tablespoon brandy, 1 bundle green onions

Wash the salad and break it into pieces. Cut the eggs in half, mix the eggyolks with mustard, 1 tablespoon of vinegar and yoghurt, then season with salt and pepper. Cut the eggwhites in small cubes. Wash the meat and cut it in stripes, fry it in oil for 2 minutes, then add the champignons cut in thick slices and the green onions. Saute them for another 3 minutes. In the remaining oil add the vinegar and the brandy, then boil for 1 minute. Mix the salad leaves with the chicken and mushrooms, add the brandy dressing, the eggwhites and the yoghurt dressing. Serve while is hot.

Pink Glove Dance

This is an interesting way to raise awareness of breast cancer...

Tiramisu

Due to the fact we have an important guest for lunch today, I won't name names, but it's my niece from London ;)) I decided to make a quick dessert.

And what dessert is quicker than Tiramisu? I know that you have to leave it in the fridge for few hours, but it's sooo easy to make, and the taste is heaven :D

Here is the recipe:
4 tablespoons of espresso coffee, 1 tablespoon of grappa, 3 eggs, separated, 1/2 cup of sugar, 8 oz of mascarpone cheese, 24 savoiardi biscuits, 1 oz of sweet chocolate, grated

In a small bowl, combine the coffee and grappa, and set aside.
In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites until they are thick, and set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks together with the sugar until you get a thick consistency and the mixture is a lemon color. Add the mascarpone cheese and blend the mix.
Fold the egg whites into the cheese mixture. Folding simply refers to using a wooden spoon to lift the mixture from the bottom of the bowl and turning it over. Do this once, turn the bowl a little bit and repeat this same process until all the ingredients in the mix are fully incorporated. Don’t overdo it because you want to maintain as much volume as possible.
Place half of the savoiardi biscuits in the bottom of a 10 inch square baking dish. Sprinkle the biscuits with half of the coffee mixture. Cover with half of the cheese mixture, and repeat the process.
Refrigerate the tiramisu for 4 hours. Serve with grated sweet chocolate.

Instead of the savoiardi biscuits you can use the leftover cake or panettone from Christmas :D