Vegetarian TexMex Style Dish

Omnomnom...

Is the only thing you'll be able to say!

I love Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisine! You probably know this by reading my chili con carne recipe or the refried beans recipe, so I'm not going to bore you again by telling how much I love it!
The reason I like this vegetarian recipe is because in the first place it is a really easy dish and secondly it is delicious and cheap!
This dish is something you can serve to anyone! Kids love it, grownups love it, vegetarians love it, meat lovers love it and the fun is... you can eat it with your hands! ... or with fork and knife.
It can perfectly be served as a starter or main dish and you need some guacamole (recipe) and sour cream with it!
For you who really can't live a day without meat: add some ground beef to the tomato salsa. But before you do so, why not try it vegetarian style first?!

Vegetarian Tex-Mex dish

Ingredients:

• 2 cans (2x400gr) of diced tomatoes
• 1 small can of sweet corn
• 2 red capsicums/paprikas, diced
• 1 green capsicum/paprika, diced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, diced
• vegetable oil
• grated cheddar/other cheese (to taste)
• 2 tbs paprika powder
• 1,5 tbs cumin
• 1 to 2 tbs chili powder (to taste)
• salt and pepper
• 1 big bag of tortilla chips
• guacamole
• sour Cream
• cilantro
• lovely people to share it with

Preparation:

Heat some oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion and garlic. After 5 minutes add the capsicum and stew for a few minutes. Add both cans of diced tomatoes, the paprika powder, cumin and chili powder and let it simmer on low heat until most of the moisture has vaporized. Add the corn and let it simmer for a few more minutes. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Preheat the oven on "grill" setting.

Take a large oven-resitant dish. Spread out some tortilla chips so they cover the plate and top with 2/3 of the tomato salsa. Scatter some cheese on top to taste (want a heavy dish? put on loads of cheese! Want a light dish? wel, take it easy with the cheesy!). In the middle put a layer of tortilla chips smaller than the circle underneath and top with the remaining tomato salsa and some cheese.

put in the oven until the cheese has grilled nicely.

Sprinkle some cilantro on top and serve with some fresh guacamole, sour cream and the remaining tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Hummus (and tahini)

Hummmmmus

The awesome Middle Eastern dip!

Dibs on the dip! 

I have never been to any Middle Eastern country, although I'd love to, but Ghent is a multicultural city with lot's of different cuisines and that is how I got to know hummus.

Hummus is a puree made from chickpeas and tahini, a sesame seed paste. It is healthy and contains a lot of fiber. However it also contains a lot of fat, but because the fat comes from olive oil, this isn't saturated fat.

Hummus is perfect for aperitif, side dish or even as a vegetarian main dish.

In order to make a good hummus you need tahini. You probably can get this in your local store but it is really easy to make yourself.

You need about 125gr sesame seeds and 4 tablespoons of olive oil.

Roast the sesame seeds in a casserole or for about 5 minuted in a 180°C oven.

Mix the roasted seeds with the olive oil. You should get a paste which is liquid enough to pour. You can keep tahini in your fridge for few weeks.

Hummus

Ingredients:

• 1 can (400gr) of chickpeas, drained
• liquid from the can of chickpeas
• 5 tbs lemon juice
• 2 tbs tahini (see text above)
• 1 garlic clove
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 tsp olive oil
• you can also add: 1 tbs cumin or a dash of cayenne pepper or ½ tbs paprika powder, ...

Preparation:

Combine all the ingredients, except the chickpea liquid, in a food processor and mix until you have a smooth mixture. Add about 4 to 5 tablespoons of the chickpea liquid and mix again. If the structure of the hummus is to thick you can add more liquid.

Garnish with some parsley.

Serve cold or warm with some toasted pitta bread!

Enjoy!

Hummus garnished with parsley

Hummus with olive oil and cayenne pepper

Spaghetti alle Vongole (clams)

Mama mia!

Is the best pasta ever! (read with Italian accent)

I can not believe it took me so long to post this recipe. This is my all-time favorite pasta!
Where would you say is the perfect place to live in Italy? I'd say Ostia Antica! It is a 20min. train ride from rome and a 10min. train ride from the sea, just perfect! Growing up there when I was with my father, I spent a lot of time playing in the fields surrounding his house, and once in a while we went to the shore, Ostia Lido, for lunch or diner. And what did I always eat? Pasta Vongole!
Not only the Italian restaurants can make a killer vongole but also my father himself!
And now I am learning to make it. The recipe is simple, but somehow I can't compete with my father's spaghetti vongole. But I keep practicing.
Anyways here is the recipe, and if you should give it a try... don't hesitate to put it on Instagram and tag @eatitblog in your picture!

Pasta alle Vongole

Ingredients:

• 1kg vongole (clams)
• 3 to 4 garlic cloves
• 1 small bunch of parsley
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small dried hot red pepper
• 400/500 gr spaghetti
• Salt & Pepper

Preparation:

Vongole can contain some sand, and you don't want this in your pasta! Be shure to let them soak at least an hour in some salted water. Hint from my father: drop them with the open side on a clean surface and look carefully if they drop any sand. 

Start boiling slightly salted water for the pasta. 

Prepare the vongole in a large pot and on high heat, until they open. When opened turn of the heat and set aside. 

Put the spaghetti in the boiling water and cook until al dente.

While the spaghetti is cooking take a large pan and put in olive oil until the whole surface is well covered with oil. Crush the garlic and mince the hot pepper and add it to the oil on low heat (you DO NOT want the garlic to brown!) If you see the garlic is almost ready add some liquid from the the vongole and let it cook down a bit. Meanwhile chop the parsley and add half to the oil-garlic mixture.

Add the clams and the drained spaghetti and give it a good stir.

Serve with some parsley and black pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Andalusia Part 2

FINALLY!

The rest of the Andalusia!

After a long writing pause ... 31 days!?! really!? ... We continued our Andalusian road trip to Cordoba, a town with a beautiful old city center and let's not forget: The Mesquita, a mix between a Catholic cathedral and a Moorish Mosque.

Tower from the Mesquita seen from the inner garden.

We only were in Cordoba for 2 days and one night and we stayed in the AC Hotel Cordoba, where we got a free upgrade to one of the best rooms in the hotel!
After Cordoba, which food-wise was a bit disappointing, we moved on to Sevilla. On the way we stopped in Ecija , called 'la sarten de España'. This town got it's nickname because in summer temperatures can easily get above 40°C. On first sight a small, boring town. But we stopped there because the town of Ecija got 11 beautiful towers! After eating, again, some tapas we moved on to Sevilla.

San Juan tower in Ecija

On the way we decided to make another stop in Carmona, a small town on top of a hill with a beautiful view over the andalusian landscape. Besides some Roman leftovers, narrow streets with old houses and the wonderful Parador, almost like a Moorish fortress, there isn't much.
Sevilla... finally we got there!

Sevilla is a lively city which has a lot to offer!
We stayed in an apartment at only 1 minute walking from the cathedral! Surrounded by little bars, locals and tourists and loads of horse carts passing by.
Here are some really good restaurants and tapas bars to go to in Sevilla:

Gastronomic tapas bar "Petit Comite": The pricing isn't as low as traditional tapas bars but the food is exquisite! I know the best tapas are the most simple ones. But gastronomically speaking this was the best we had in Spain.

Risotto from "Cerdo" with foie - Petit Comite

Tapas bar "Infanta": A big place which was completely full! Pricing was fine and the food really nice!

Salmon tartare with pumpkinseed ice-cream - Infanta

Tapas bar "De Varia Commensuracion": It seemed like a newly open place to us. Nice interior, good pricing and wonderful food!

Clockwise: Iberico kebab with cheese sauce, Duck with red wine sauce and fried banana,
the restaurant from outside & Grilled beef with garlic and cherry tomatoes. - De Vaira Commensuracion

After a week in the Andalusian inland we really needed the sea, so we decided to make a day trip to Faro, Portugal. If you should go there definitely take the speedboat to "Ilha Deserta" and after a long day go for a drink in restaurant/bar "O Castelo" back in Faro. Take a Caipirinha or a Mojito and enjoy the sunset over the Ilha and the sea... and the airport.

Caipirinha & Mojito - O Castelo

After Sevilla, and Faro day trip, we moved on to Cadiz where we stayed in the Parador de Cadiz. All the rooms have ocean view and you can open the window completely which gives makes your room one with the balcony. The breakfast in this hotel is overwhelmingly big, but Nutella-lovers be warned: they have none!
A few days cadiz and a visit to the Royal Andalusian Horse School in Jerez De La Frontera it was time to move on to our final destination on the road trip: Tarifa!
Tarifa is the place to go if you are a wind-sports person! Also whale- and dolphin watching can be done from the port of Tarifa and even day trips to Morocco.
If you are looking for a chill place to eat, go to "Pachamama". This grill-restaurant is along the beach road and serves an awesome mixed grill!

After two weeks of driving the Andalusian roads, visiting the beautiful cities and tasting the best tapas, it was time for us to head back home. It was an awesome trip and I've learned a lot from the Spanish cuisine which I can integrate in my own cooking!

Andalusia, you stole our heart!

The End.