Borani Banjan

4 small eggplants, 1¼ cups (300 mL) vegetable oil, 4 cloves garlic, crushed, 2 green chili peppers, sliced lengthwise, 3 medium tomatoes, chopped, 2 Tbsp (30 mL) canned tomato paste, ½ tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp salt, 1 medium yellow onion, sliced into ½ cm thick rounds, 2 medium tomatoes, cut into 1 cm thick rounds

Garlic yogurt sauce: 1 cup (240 mL) unsweetened yogurt, 2 cloves garlic, crushed, ½ tsp salt

Peel the eggplants. Cut them through the middle horizontally and then slice them into 1 cm thick planks.
Heat the oil in a saute pan over high heat.
When the oil is hot and shimmering, carefully add a few eggplant slices so that a single layer of eggplant is cooking in the oil. Allow them to cook until golden on both sides, about 2 - 3 min. Flip the pieces as needed to ensure even browning. Transfer the fried eggplant to a strainer set over a bowl to allow any excess oil to drain. Repeat until all the eggplant is cooked.
There should be leftover oil after frying the eggplant. For the following steps, we will need ¼ cup (60 ml) of oil. If there is more than that in the pan, carefully scoop some oil out. If there is less than that, add a bit more oil to the pan.
Reduce the pan temperature to medium. Add the garlic, and be careful as it may cause some of the hot oil to splatter. Cook until the garlic is fragrant and golden, about 30 seconds. Stir throughout.
Add the green pepper, chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, turmeric, and salt. Stir and cook for another 1 - 2 minutes.
Drop the heat to medium-low, and then place the sliced onion over the sauce in a single layer. Then lay half the eggplant over the onions, layer the tomato slices over that, and finish with the remaining half of eggplant slices in a single layer.
Cover the pan and allow to cook until the onions are soft, about 20 minutes. Try not to stir, if possible, so that the onion and tomatoes retain some of their shape, otherwise they get "mushy".
While the dish is cooking, make the sauce by combining the yogurt, garlic, and salt in a small bowl.
You can serve this straight from the pan with a some of the yogurt dressing drizzled on top. Alternatively, you could transfer some fo the yogurt sauce to the base of a serving dish. Then scoop up the eggplant, tomato, and onions mixture and transfer it to the dish. Remove the peppers from the bottom of the pan and place them decoratively on top of the dish. Scoop any remaining sauce and drizzle over the dish.
Finish with another drizzle of yogurt sauce, dried mint, and paprika powder for garnish. Serve with bread and enjoy!

Ciorba de burta

Finally is time to cook some traditional romanian food: Tripe Soup
It takes a long time to make it, but it's soo tasty it's worth the wait

1 kg of beef bones, 2 kg frozen tripe, 3 bay leaves, 1 tablespoon black peppercorns, 4 L cold water, 4 teaspoons grated salt
Plus: 1 large carrot grated finely sauteed with 1 tablespoon oil, 15 cloves garlic (crushed), 6 yolks, 400 ml cream for cooking (30% fat)

Place the beef bones in a large pot with 4 L of cold water, 4 teaspoons of salt, bay leaves and peppercorns. Wait for it to start boiling. Pick up the foam from the surface as it forms. Reduce the heat to medium and covered the pot halfway with a lid, let it boil for 2 hours. After 2 hours, take the bones out and strain the soup.
Wash the tripe stripes, drain them and add them to the filtered soup. Put the pot back on the fire and bring it to a boil. Boil the tripe for another 20-30 minutes.
Until the soup boils again, grate a carrot on a fine grater and sautee it with 1 tablespoon of oil, for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Add it to the soup and boil it for another 15 minutes.
Mix the crushed garlic with the cream and eggyolks. Temper the mixture by adding a laddle of hot soup and then pour it over the rest of the soup. Mix well, add salt if necessary.
Serve with a little bit of vinegar.

Crochete de cartofi dulci cu mozarella

500-600 g sweet potatoes peeled and grated, a finely chopped white onion, 100 ml vegetable stock soup, 30 g butter + a tablespoon of oil, mozzarella, 100-150 g panko, salt, pepper, frying oil

Saute the onion together with butter and oil in a wide pan with high walls, then add the potatoes. Fry for about 3-4 minutes, then pour the soup. Boil everything until the liquid drops completely. When it is ready, it is cooled, blend it and add the egg and 50 gr breadcrumbs.
Cut the mozzarella in small cubes. Form a ball of potatoes with the cheese inside and roll it in the rest of panko. Fry in sunflower oil until is golden brown.

Orzo recipe with saffron, chorizo ​​and spinach

I saw this recipe in a video and decided to give it a try. Such an easy and tasty dinner

1½ tablespoon olive oil, 250g cooking chorizo, roughly chopped, 1 onion, finely chopped, 200g cherry tomatoes, 2 garlic cloves, mashed, 500 ml poultry broth, good pinch of saffron, 250g orzo pasta, 125g washed spinach leaves, torn, 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley

Heat the olive oil and sauté the chorizo ​​and onion until the onion is tender and golden. Add the tomatoes and cook them until they are blistered and start to burst. Stir in the garlic and cook for a few more minutes.
Add the broth and saffron – stirring to help the saffron color the broth – and bring to a boil, then add the orzo.
Season, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes. You can stir several times to keep the pasta from sticking, but try not to overdo it. At the end, the broth should be absorbed, and the pasta becomes soft, but with a little firmness. If there is no more broth before cooking the orzo, add more water.
Stir in the spinach, which will wilt. Sprinkle with parsley and adjust the seasoning.

Pulpe de pui cu gutui la tigaie

Traditional romanian food, inspired by Laura Laurentiu Pulpe pui cu gutui

4 upper chicken legs, with bone, 2 large quinces, 250 ml chicken soup, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 medium-sized onion, 1 tablespoon oil, 25 grams of butter, 30 ml good brandy, salt and freshly ground pepper, chopped green parsley

Peel the quinces and cut into slices, keep them in cold water. Peel and chop the onion. Season the meat with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Add the chicken legs, skin down, and brown well, then turn to the other side, about 7-8 minutes on each side.
After browning well, remove the chicken legs from the pan and keep aside, covered. Add the chopped onion and reduce the heat to low. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and fry the onion, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens (about 8 minutes).
Once the onion is done, add the chicken legs back to the pan, along with the juice they left on the plate. Add about 100 ml of soup and cover with a lid. Cook the thighs for about 15-20 minutes, over low heat, under the lid, so that they are well done.
While the chicken legs are simmering, put the sugar in a pan. Turn on the heat and let the sugar caramelize until it turns golden brown. Add the quinces immediately, all at once. Stir to coat the quinces in caramel as well as possible, then, optionally, add the brandy. 
The cognac may light up when it comes in contact with the pan and hot caramel. Burning will quickly consume alcohol and the flames will go out on their own when it runs out. Then add the remaining soup (about 150 ml). Grate well on the bottom of the pan, so that all the caramelized sugar comes off and dissolves. As soon as the caramelized sugar has dissolved, pour the entire contents of the pan - the quinces and the syrup around them - over the chicken legs.
Stir and bring to the boil. Boil everything together for about 7-8 minutes, until the quinces are penetrated, without losing their shape or becoming too soft.
Finally, season the food with salt, freshly ground pepper and sprinkle with the chopped parsley.

Kartoffel-Brokkoli-Suppe fürs Minibudget

1 onion, 500 g broccoli, approx. 500 g potatoes, 3 tbsp butter, 2 tbsp vegetable stock (instant), 250 g frozen peas, salt, pepper, 1/2 bunch of flat-leaf parsley, 4 tbsp creme fraiche

Peel and dice the onion. Clean and wash broccoli and cut into florets. Peel and wash the broccoli handle and potatoes and roughly dice them. Heat 2 tbsp butter in a saucepan. Sauté the onion, potatoes and stalk in it. Pour in 1 1⁄2 l of water, bring to the boil and stir in the stock. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Cook broccoli after approx. 8 minutes, frozen peas after approx. 10 minutes. Wash the parsley, shake dry and chop. Puree the soup very finely. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with cream and parsley.

Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie

 It's just a cookie, but a giant one. Easy to make and soooo tasty. Found the recipe here: Just Love Cooking

2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened, 1/2 cup sugar, 3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar, 1 large egg, 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract, 1 1/2 cups (about 9 ounces) chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together flour, baking soda, and salt.
Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Add egg and vanilla, then mix until they are incorporated.
Add flour mixture, beat until just combined, then stir in chocolate chips.
Transfer dough to a 10 inch ovenproof skillet, and flatten until the dough covers the bottom of the pan. Bake until golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes, not more.
Let cool at least 15 minutes. You can serve it with ice cream and sauce.