Long live
the Summer! Or at least according to the calendar. When I look outside, there’s
a whole different story. But I don’t mind. Rain is good sometimes. It makes the
mushrooms grow and our cabin’s grass roof flourish. Soon we can make a
picnic on our roof and eat delicious mushrooms! But until there aren’t any shrooms,
I offer you five (!) new great recipes to make your summer dinners and
get-togethers even more tastier.
this feast is for 4 – 6 people
Pan-fried shashlik
I have
discovered a way to make these bland dried soy cutlets absolutely delicious. Over the years, I have tried many different versioins, but this crispy and juicy
pan-fried shashlik is my favorite. The secret to the best dishes made out of
dried soy products, is that you have to soak or boil them first and then
carefully squeeze out all the extra water. That way they will get nice and
crispy on a pan and absorb all the good flavors.
·
4 ½ oz / 125 g dried
soy cutlets
·
4 Tbsp oil
·
3 onions
·
1 tsp salt
·
½ Tbsp (apple cider)
vinegar
·
3 Tbsp soy sauce
Soak the
dried cutlets in plenty of water for an hour or more. If you are in a hurry,
you can boil the cutlets for 10 minutes until they are soft. Drain the cutlets
and carefully squeeze out all the extra water from every cutlet. Now cut the
cutlets into strips. Heat up some oil on a pan. Add soy strips and let them
cook without stirring for at least a couple of minutes. Then stir and cook some
more, until the soy strips are getting crispy and golden brown. Add sliced
onions and salt and another tablespoon of oil if you wish. Stir and cook until
the onions are golden brown. Add vinegar and soy sauce. Stir and cook for a
couple of minutes. Remove the heat.
Vegan cottage cheese salad
This
sauce/salad reminds me of a good old cold cream sauce or cottage cheese salad I used
to eat with young potatoes. And I just cannot get enough of my favorite thing –
sunflower seeds! These cheap fellas will always come to my aid when I’m in need
to make a creamy sauce. Tofu will give this sauce a nice cottage cheese
texture but you can leave it out if you want.
Sunflower seed cream:
·
2 cups / 300 g peeled
sunflower seeds
·
1 ¾ cups / 400 ml
water
·
1 tsp salt
·
1 Tbsp lemon juice
Salad:
·
one bigger cucumber
·
4 big ripe tomatoes
·
9 oz / 250 g firm tofu
·
fresh dill and spring
onions
·
1 tsp salt
Soak the
sunflower seeds for a couple of hours or boil them for 15 minutes. Drain and
rinse. Add water, salt and lemon juice. Blend until smooth.
Wash and
chop the cucumber and tomatoes. Crumble the tofu. Finely chop the dill and
spring onions. Mix all the ingredients together. Add salt and sunflower seed
cream and mix some more.
Rustic wheat bran bread
with fried onions
This
earthy bread is packed with fiber since it contains a whole lot of wheat bran
flakes. So you shouldn’t have any problem digesting this whole feast! Fried
onions and thyme add a really nice smell and taste to this lovely loaf.
9 inch x 5 inch / 23
x 13 cm loaf pan
Caramelized onions:
·
3 – 4 Tbsp oil
·
2 big onions
·
1 tsp dried thyme
·
½ tsp salt
Wheat bran bread:
·
⅔ cups / 100 g
all-purpose flour
·
¾ cups / 100 g
whole-wheat flour
·
1 ⅓ cups / 50 g wheat
bran flakes
·
½ tsp baking soda
·
1 tsp baking powder
·
¾ cups + a couple of
tablespoons / 200 ml water
·
1 tsp (apple cider)
vinegar
·
⅓ cups / 75 ml oil
Preheat
the oven to 350 F / 180 C. Heat up some oil in a pan. Add finely chopped
onions, thyme and salt. Cook for a couple of minutes until the onions are
slightly crispy and golden brown. Remove the heat.
Mix the
flours and wheat bran flakes with baking soda, baking powder and salt. When the
oven is ready, mix water with vinegar and add the water-vinegar mixture to
the dry ingredients along with onions. Add oil and mix some more. Grease a medium sized loaf pan
and pour the batter in. Smooth it with a spoon and sprinkle some wheat bran
flakes on the top. Bake the bread at 350 F / 180 C for 35 minutes. Let it cool down
before cutting and serving.
Avocado hummus
So simple
but it works so well. Avocado adds a fresh and „eggy“ taste to this hummus so
you will have a nice buttery spread to eat with you wheat bran bread.
·
1 ripe avocado (peel it)
·
14 oz / 400 g canned
chickpeas or white beans (drain and
rinse)
·
½ Tbsp lemon juice
·
¾ tsp salt
·
1 tsp grated lemon
zest
Blend
everything together until smooth.
Melon boats with fruit
salad and strawberry and coconut cream
I cannot
believe this dish. It was absolutely heavenly! And it doesn’t contain a single
grain of added sugar. I used golden raisins to make the strawberry and coconut
cream sweeter. You will get a nice big bowl of cream so you can smother it on
fruits or just eat it alone. I couldn’t keep my spoon away from this creamy
dream!
PS! Before making this cream, be sure the coconut milk can has been in the fridge over night.
Strawberry and coconut cream:
·
5 ⅓ oz / 150 g golden
raisins
·
14 oz / 400 g fresh or
frozen strawberries
·
14 oz / 400 g can
coconut milk (full fat!)
Fruit salad:
·
1 ripe melon
·
1 ripe mango
·
3 ripe kiwis
·
1 batch of red grapes
Pour some
boiling water over the raisins. Let them soak for a couple of minutes. Drain
and blend smoother. Add strawberries (if you are using frozen strawberries,
thaw them and drain out the extra liquids). Now take the coconut milk can out
of the fridge. Flip it upside down and then open it. Pour away the liquids. Now
you are left with a coconut cream in the bottom of the can. Scoop it out and
add it to the blended raisins and strawberries. Blend some more until you have
a smooth strawberry and coconut cream.
Cut the
melon in half. Scoop out the flesh and cut it into chunks. Add peeled and
chopped mango, kiwis and grapes. Mix everything together and fill the melon
boats with fruit salad. Serve with strawberry and coconut cream.