healthy lullaby & my favourite shake recipe

hi guys,

after my last post I believe you should be updated as to what is happening in my life at the moment. well, to be honest there's really not a lot happening since all I am doing is preparing for my exams which start in 6 days. however there is one thing that I didn't write about in my previous post just because I thought it would deserve it's own little post; I have decided to live somewhat of a healthier life.

StudentFood: Red Lentil Curry

I've been talking about publishing tasty and budget friendly recipes for a while now so I thought it was about time. I've had a bag of red lentils in my cupboard for a while, I bought it from the supermarket on curry mile just after I moved in. I've never been brave enough to take the plunge and actually do something with it until today when I suddenly fancied red lentils so I went to the kitchen and literally got together what was left in the cupboard and fruit/veg basket and created this quick and easy meal. I am definitely going to make this more often, maybe add some more things to it and I also want to experiment a bit more with lentils in general.

1:2 red lentils and vegetable stock

1 carrot

1/2 onion

1 clove garlic

100 ml coconut milk

2 tsp madras curry powder

1 tsp turmeric

salt

• chop up the onions, garlic and carrot into little cubes. 
• heat some oil in a pan and stir fry the veg for about 5 minutes, then add the spices. 
• add the vegetable stock and then stir in the lentils. 
• leave to simmer until the lentils are soft (about 15 minutes). 
• add the coconut milk and salt to taste. 

 

Magdalena.

#49 SWISS CHARD AND POTATOES

Hi everyone, wow, it's really been a while!  thought it's about time I share a little recipe again, this is something I made a while ago while I was still back in austria but I thought I'd still share it as it's one of my favourite things and it'd also be a great as a student meal as it's super simple and will give you plenty of energy. I've had way too much pizza in the last few weeks even though I cook for myself most of the time, but I've just not been able to create any recipes just yet. so this is something to get started and after planning my weekly timetable I do think I'll fit some blogging in there in the future so don't worry, there will be recipes and all those things up here soon, but for now, here's some swiss chard and potatoes for you!

I don't know how many of you clicked on this asking themselves 'what is chard actually'. I actually don't know, as I grew up knowing what Mangold (the german word for chard) is, but the day I was making this my boyfriend asked me what I was having and I said chard and he said 'what?!' and he usually knows a lot of things when it comes to food so maybe it's just not that popular (you can find more information about what it is here in case you did ask). thinking about it it's probably not that popular over here either as I was very surprised to find some beautiful leaves of it at the market one day. (sorry for the bad quality phone picture)

of course the first thing that came to mind was to make chard and potatoes as that's what I've had many times when visiting croatia and slovenia as it's a very common side dish over there. I thought it can't be that difficult to make myself and as it was super easy and really delicious I couldn't not share it with you guys.

Swiss Chard and Potatoes

for two as a side

4 leaves of swiss chard

4 big potatoes

1 clove of garlic

salt

start by cooking the potatoes as you do, don't worry if you leave them for a bit longer, it works well when they're a bit mushy.

remove the big bit of the chard's stalk if you want to and cut the leaves into big pieces. add chart to the boiling water for about a minute. take off the heat and pour it all into a colander. rinse chard with cold water and set aside.

take a pan and heat some olive oil (not too high heat though) peel the potatoes and cut into small pieces, add to the pan and also add the chard. mince your garlic and add to the pan too, add salt to taste.

and there you go! that's all you need to make this lovely delicious side dish which you can easily also enjoy as a lovely summer meal with some salad if you like.

hope you liked this little different recipe idea, I fell in love with this dish in croatia and it always gives me that mediterranean feel. I love to enjoy it just by itself on a summer day. do let me know what you think and if you've ever tried chard and what you think about it.

Magdalena.

#48 MEDITERRANEAN 'SHEPHERD'S PIE'

this is actually a recipe I 'created' a few weeks back, you can see it being mentioned here. I am sorry it took me a while to get around to posting it but that's what seems to happen with many recipes lately. however, I also thought it would be appropriate to post it now as I've just moved to the UK and this is most definitely inspired by the british cuisine. I have to say though, that I have only once before eaten an actual shepherd's pie made in a proper british way, so this version is really just what came to my mind when I thought I'd make a shepherd's pie.

now, I wouldn't know how to make an actual shepherd's pie, as I said, but this version is definitely incredibly easy as well as good for the summer as it's quite light and fresh. it's also really versatile, the day I made it, me and my mum had it as a main meal in the evening which was really nice, but I also decided to make some in little oven proof dishes to keep. these kept in the fridge for about two days and were great as a light dinner with a big salad. I also thought it would be lovely to serve them as a starter if you're having a proper meal, they're definitely not too heavy for it.

Mediterranean 'Shepherd's Pie'

for two normal size ones

250 g mince

4 carrots

start by boiling your potatoes until they're soft, this will depend on the size of the potatoes you're using but it'll take about 30 minutes. then, take the mince out of the fridge to bring it to room temperature.

then, take your carrots and onions and chop them finely to create little pieces.

heat up some oil in a pan, add carrots and onions first and then the mince, fry until the mince has browned, then add the stock and leave it to simmer over low temperature.

when the potatoes are done, peel them and mash them, then add the parmesan, butter and nutmeg and make a smooth mash.

preheat the oven to about 160°C

when the stock has reduced, take your oven proof dishes and fill them about half way with the mince mixture.

now, grate your courgette and finely chop your tomatoes, arrange them on top of the mince making sure to leave space for the mash.

finish it off with the parmesan mash, then you can put your shepherd's pies in the oven, they'll need about 15-20 minutes, be patient, they're better when you give them more time at a lower temperature.

once you've waited long enough, take them out of the oven and enjoy whatever way you want if it's as a main or a start, but be careful! HOT!

Magdalena.

#47 VEGETABLE (AND BACON) LASAGNA

I made this when I had really been fancying lasagna for a while (that seems to happen to me all the time with all sorts of food) but I really didn't have the time (or kept telling myself so) to make a proper lovely sauce for it and everything, I like to do it properly when I do it. but as I've always wanted to experiment with the lovely baked pasta dish I thought well, why not do a quick and easy one with a little twist because I love bacon and tomato sauce.

if you also feel like making lasagna is too complicated to make it as a quick meal then maybe this is the recipe for you. it's not mega quick but certainly quicker than many other lasagna recipes and it's also got lovely fresh veg in it.

Vegetable (and Bacon) Lasagna

1 pack of pasta sheets

1 can tomato puree

1 courgette

1 onion

1 green/yellow pepper

8 olives

1 clove of garlic

olive oil

salt

(8 slices of streaky bacon)

1/2 L milk

1 tbsp flour

salt

nutmeg

1 mozzarella

parmesan

now this sounds like a lot of things but it really isn't and for this lasagna you don't have to spend hours in the kitchen, it's as quick as it gets.

start by pre heating your oven to about 180°C and straight after cut up all your vegetables and the bacon. heat a frying pan with the bacon in add the vegetables and stir fry for about 7 minutes. add olive oil and salt to taste. set aside.

in the meantime you can mix the flour with the milk and heat in a pan, this might seem tricky but don't worry if it gets lumpy, just grab your hand held blender and blend until smooth. add more flour if needed to make it a creamy sauce. add salt and nutmeg to taste.

now take your dish and start with some of the vegetable sauce, pasta sheets, then vegetable sauce again, then white sauce and so on. on top it should be (well that's how I like it) pasta sheets and a bit of vegetable sauce and then top it all off with the cheese.

put that in the oven for about 20 minutes (it'll state on the pack of your pasta sheets how long they will take). take it out of the oven and leave to rest for about 10 minutes.

you can now cut it into pieces and enjoy with some salad and iced tea.

do you love lasagna as much as I do? I do love to make it with the sauces you can buy from time to time when I have a night in with the boy, but I wanted to show you how easy it can be to make a vegetable version even if you don't have as much time. let me know what your favourite lasagna is.

Magdalena.

#46 BLOG BIRTHDAY DOUBLE LAYER LEMON CHEESECAKE

as promised, here's today's special little blog birthday cake recipe. it's nothing too special in fact but cheesecake is just something I love and haven't made for a while, it's also a nice and fresh kind of cake which is perfect for any time of year in my opinion.

I made this cake in my little cake tin just because I won't have a massive amount of people over and I don't want it to go bad before me and my mum manage to eat it all, I also love this little tin for trying out things. however, the measurements in the recipe will all be for a full size cake so don't worry about having to convert or anything. it's a really quick and simple cake recipe, I hope you enjoy it.

Double Layer Lemon Cheesecake

300 g biscuits

150 g melted butter

zest of 2 lemons

700 g cream cheese

4 eggs

150 g sugar

100 g flour

2 tsp vanilla extract/vanilla sugar

start by simply buttering your cake tin. set it aside afterwards.

you'll then want to somehow crumble all your biscuits to really fine crumbs, you can use whatever method you want to (tea towel and hammer etc) I just like to do it like that because it's the most fun. just make sure you don't hit them too hard because then you'll end up with the biscuits all over your floor and yourself.

then, melt the butter and mix it together with the crumbs. you'll also want to now preheat your oven to 160°C.

take half of this mixture and line the cake tin with it, press it down and put in the fridge for ten minutes.

next you take the cream cheese, eggs, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla and simply whisk it all together to make a smooth paste.

now take out the cake tin and spread half of the cream cheese mixture on top of the biscuit lining.

take the other half of the biscuit mixture and add spread it over the cream cheese.

you'll now add the final layer of cream cheese mixture (also try not to have wasps eat it before it goes in the oven like this one wanted to do with mine). it's now ready to go in the oven. you have to be patient once it's in the oven, keep checking on it using a wooden skewer kind of thing seeing if there's still bits of cake sticking to it. altogether it'll need about 30-40 minutes, but the easy preparation makes up for that.

once it's ready, you can leave it like that or if you're using it as a birthday cake decorate it as you wish and enjoy.

Magdalena.

#45 BLUEBERRY PANCAKES WITH BERRIES AND YOGURT

you know that feeling when you suddenly think want to make something you never usually make? well that's what happens to me when I'm studying or my main focus is not food or cooking. I tend to still cook relatively healthy even when I'm preparing for an exam but there are those days when something like this makes its way into my mind telling me that it's exactly what my brain needs right now, and well, most of the time that's exactly the case.

Blueberry Pancakes with Berries and Yogurt

for me two (about 6 pancakes)

150 g flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp blueberries
1 egg
100 ml milk

1 handfull of frozen or fresh berries (I used strawberries and raspberries)

2 tbsp greek yogurt

for the pancakes, beat the egg with the milk. mix the flour with sugar and baking powder and stir into the liquid mixture. add more milk if you need to and leave to rest for a bit.

while it rests, heat up the berries for the sauce in a pan with a bit of sugar.

mix the blueberries with the pancake mixture and make the pancakes.

serve with the fruit sauce and greek yogurt and enjoy.

hope you like this little recipe, it's a really light way to enjoy pancakes either for a special breakfast or as a lovely dessert. let me know what you think about it in the comments.

Magdalena.

Blog Every Day in May: Food, Glorious Food

'let's talk about food!'

being a food blogger I have been looking forward to this topic ever since I first saw the BEDM calendar. also, with all of this blogging every day in may thing going on I've had several people say that they miss my recipes. there have also been people saying that they like the posts I'm doing and I guess in the future I'll try and do a little bit of both as I do enjoy some lifestyle kind of posts every once in a while, but I surely do love my food and recipes.

so of course I am going to share a recipe with you today and it is a recipe that I can't take all the credit for as me and the boyfriend created it together. it's nothing too fancy either but it's a lovely meal that you can make for a little dinner with the family or friends or even if it's just the two of you. it's hearty but not heavy and it surely is suited for the warmer months as well as the colder ones (which hopefully won't be around too much longer).

I really do love creating some little recipes for myself and my blog and everyone who reads it and to get awesome feedback and people telling me that they miss my recipes really means a lot to me (even if it's my friends) so I look forward to sharing more with you in the near future. but I do love this challenge and I will most definitely finish it, including as much food as possible. but here come's a little recipe for all of you. hope you like it.

picture by Geraint Photography for Lullaby For Pies

Pork Medallions with Polenta Hearts and Carrots

pork tenderloin

onion

garlic

beef or vegetable stock

polenta

parmesan cheese

butter

carrots

cornflour 

preheat the oven to about 180°C. chop up some onions, garlic, and prepare the stock.

starting with the pork, take a frying pan and heat some oil/fat and over high heat fry the pork

about 1 minute each side. then transfer the pork to an ovenproof dish.

also add some chopped onions, garlic, salt and a bit of the stock. transfer this into the oven.

it'll need about 20-25 minutes in there. but keep checking it.

while the pork can do its work in the oven, peel the carrots (or just wash them if they're fresh and nice).

and steam them or cook over low heat with a litte bit of water until soft but not too soft.

(I'll leave it up to you how you like them, I don't want them to be too soft anyway)

keep the water after the carrots are done and add to the stock (don't wanna waste the taste do we)

make sure you keep checking the pork from time to time and adding stock when it says it needs some

(it won't talk to you but, you can ask I guess, but do it every 7 minutes if it doesn't talk to you)

for the polenta, bring three times the amount of water to polenta to a boil. (ok so if you choose a mug

and fill that with water three times, and bring that to a boil, and then fill the mug with polenta once)

add the polenta when it's boiling but oooh be careful because this can turn into lava. stand back and

lower the heat and stir while it's bubbling. this can be scary but it is necessary.

when it's done (it'll take about 4 minutes of lava-state) grate up some parmesan and with

a bit of butter add that to the polenta. then you'll want to get a baking tray or something which you can line

with greaseproof paper. spread the polenta on to the paper and wait for it to cool down.

once it's set you can get a cookie cutter in any shape (we chose hearts) and cut out some nice

polenta shapes. you can then leave them as they are or put in the oven for a bit of crunchy-ness.

once the pork is done take it out and wrap in tinfoil for a little bit while you take the gravy and pour it into 

a pan. add some cornflour (ideally dissolved in cold water) and butter and stir away until the consistency

feels right to you. I know everyone likes their gravy a different way.

then you just have to serve it all up nicely with the carrots (which you can keep warm in the oven)

and polenta hearts for everyone. and don't forget the pork and a lot of gravy! and you have a lovely

spring/summer dinner that everyone will enjoy (hopefully).

tip!! add a little bit of parsley to the gravy if you want to give it that little something something

spring feeling.

picture by Geraint Photography for Lullaby For Pies

picture by Geraint Photography for Lullaby For Pies

Magdalena.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

this post is part of the Blog Every Day in May series.