A HEARTY STEW

Winter time is stew time, and this one definitely warms a cold winter night. Its also possibly one of the simplest things to make and very very healthy! Do you have a busy week a head, make a good portion of this and you have for a few nights. Or put it in the freezer, since its as good re-heated. I also love stews since all the goodness from the vegetables stays in the pot and nothing gets spilled!

It takes a bit of time to chop all the vegetables,  however its so worth it in the end!

For a BIG portion you need:

1000 g of chopped tomatoes/chunky tomato sauce
500 g of chicken mince or filets sliced into centimeter squares
3 cloves of garlic finely chopped
10 aroma button mushrooms chopped in four
1 big yellow onion or 5 shallots finely chopped
1 squash in small squares
1 chili finely chopped
1 tbsp of minced fresh ginger
400 g of kidney and white beans
2 sticks of celery chopped
salt and pepper for seasoning
1 tbsp of sugar
2 tbsp of tomato paste
3 tbsp of olive oil
1 dl of chicken stock

How to:

Fry the chicken in a big pot and add the tomato sauce and chicken stock. Stir. Add all the other vegetables, season to your liking and leave to simmer for at least 30 minutes. This is very important in that all the flavors will "merry each other" and become soft and yummy. Always taste your food before you serve to see if you need to add something in terms of seasoning.

Good luck and enjoy!

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OCEAN INSPIRATION

Let your self inspire by the colors of the ocean this spring and summer. Its fresh, natural and looks great on tanned skin! Use it for decoration in your home like this beautiful chandelier by Marjorie Skouras, or be inspired like the fashion houses such as Oscar De La Renta, Chanel, Acne and Emilio Pucci has been, and wear it!! Pastels and bright colors will be big this season - and I bet this color will be one of them!

WHITE THE NEW BLACK?

I am a dress addict, and the new Acne Lucille Lux PSS12 is my current favorite. I love how it has such a classic cut, yet the zipper in the back tells me something else. Big zippers makes a statement, and that is exactly what I think this brand manages in their collections.

Also, why wear dark colors during winter? Brighten up the night wearing white - you will stand out for sure. A bold gold necklace as seen on the photo is something I like using this dress with.

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MORNING BOOST

 Weekends allows for a bit more time in the mornings. I love a good breakfast to start the day. Why not a accompany it with a berry smoothie? Makes 4 glasses.

How to:

You need a blender.
2,5 dl berry yoghurt. I like forest berries.
2,5 dl apple juice
2 cups of frozen or fresh mixed berries (If you use fresh, you might like to add some ice cubes)
1/2 banana
1 tbsp of honey

As simple as it is, just add it all to the blender and mix until smooth. Serve in your favourite glasses and decorate with a mint leaf!

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DANCING WITH PAVLOVA

Pavlova, a dessert made from heaven and named after a Russian ballet dancer. However, it is the traditional dessert in Australia. When I was an exchange student in Australia, my host-grandmother made this. And it is devine! You should try it for your self. It takes 40 minutes to prepare.

How to:

4 egg whites
2,5 dl castor sugar
1 tsp of white winegar
1/2 tbsp of Maizena flour/cornstarch
1/2 tsp of vanilla extract or vanilla sugar - get the real deal and not synthetic vanilla, tastes so much better
2,5 dl whipped cream for topping - add 1 tsp of vanilla here as well. If you like your cream sweeter add a tbsp of sugar
Fruit for topping! I like the traditional Australian way with strawberries, passhionfruit, bananas and kiwi.
Vanilla icecream to serve on the side. I love Movenpick or yoghurt icecream

Set the oven on 140 degrees celsius. Premake a baking tray with baking paper. Use a metal bowl and beat the egg whites until fluffy. Then add the sugar, 1 tbsp at the time. Beat until the mix is glossy and stif. Now add the winegar, Maizena and vanilla. Gently stir that in. Now you can put the mix onto the baking tray. Make it a circle. I like to have it appoximately 20 cm in diameter and 5 cm high. make sure the edges of the meringue is a bit higher than the middle. The pavlova will cook in the oven for appoximately 1 hr and 15 minutes until you can see it has got a slight pale egg shell colour. When its done, just open the oven door and let it cool down. The meringue will crack slightly - however, that is ok when you are decorating it with yummy cream and berries!!!

ENJOY!!!!

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UNTRADITIONAL COD RECEIPT

I love when the season allows the special cod "skrei" to come into Norwegian waters. It is so yummy while also being an easy fish to prepare. Norwegians usually have it steamed with boiled potatoes, butter sauce with egg, mustard and carrots. HOWEVER, I thought that it would be fun to try something a little more untraditional!

It takes approximately 20 min max to make.

For 1 person you need:

1 good piece of cod - ask for a piece closer to the neck of the fish rather than tail.
8 sugar snap peas sliced in two
Some fresh thyme for seasoning
1 carrot sliced in long thin pieces as the peas
6 shallots sliced into four
6 aroma champignons cut into chunks
1-2 potatoes sliced into boats
Butter
Salt and pepper for seasoning
Some squeezed lemon to get some acid into the dish

How to:

Let both the carrots and the potatoes boil for 5 minutes (they should still be a bit hard). Now turn on the water you need for the fish. 2 liter and 1 table spoon of salt for EACH liter. Thus, 2 table spoons. Bring to the boil. When the water is boiling put the cod into the water and turn off the heat. The fish is in the water for 10-15 minutes. In the mean time fry the mushrooms and onions in some olive oil and butter - add the thyme. Then add the boiled potatoes and carrots. Add a good amount of butter. Season with salt and pepper. Have the temperature on high so you can see that the carrots and potatoes get some color and become a little crispy. Now its time to add the peas - you want to add them in the end so you maintain the crunchiness. In the end, when the fish is done - remove flesh and bones and add to the vegetables as well as a good squeeze of lemon. Carefully turn the fish into the mix and serve!

It is yummy, simple and healthy!

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DUCK ON THE MENU!

I don't know about you, but I absolutely LOVE a tender filet of duck when I am going to make something nice for dinner. This time I made it with thyme and glazed shallots. YUM! This receipt is for 2-3 people.

700 g of duck - filets - room tempered! Very important. Let the meat sit for a few hours on the kitchen bench before preparing it. 

Duck with thyme and glazed shallots

12 pealed shallots

2 handfulls of fresh thyme

4 sweet potatoes

2 normal potatoes

2 cloves of garlic

3,5 dl of red wine

1 carrot

2 bay leaves

1 pealed yellow onion

1 table spoon with organic duck stock mixed with 2 dl of water

cooking string

salt and pepper for seasoning

12 asparagus

Butter

How To:

First I like to get the sauce cooking. You want to reduce it to less than half until it becomes thicker and smooth. Roughly cut the yellow onion and the carrot, put it in a pot together with 2 good table spoons of the fresh thyme, bay leaves, all of the wine and the stock mix. Bring it up to the boil without a lid and turn down to simmer on a medium heat. 

Then I prep my duck filets. I carve the flesh so it get nice squares. This helps making it crispy while frying it and it looks nice. Then I season it with generous salt and pepper, ad a good half handful of thyme on top of the flesh. After that I take the cooking string and whirl it around the filet so the thyme does not fall out. It also makes the filet have the same thickness everywhere.      

After I have done the prepping of the duck I have also prepared my wedgies. I boil the potatoes in squares until soft, add the garlic, butter and some milk and mash it until it is creamy and soft. Season with salt and pepper. Do not leave chunks in your mash! 

The asparagus just need maximum 3 minutes to boil and it is important that you have taken away the ends - they can be quite stringy. You can also steam these.

While all this is almost done, I have cracked the frying pan up high and put in some butter. When the pan is hothothot I place the duck in the pan - SKIN down! Then you leave it until it has obtained a good colour. Turn it over and turn the heat down to medium. Now you can add the pealed shallots. When both sides have got a nice color you can put a lid on for 3 minutes. Keep turning. As you notise there are alot of fat coming from the duck - please use a spoon to pour some on the duck while frying it. The whole process of frying this duck does not take long!  We want it to be red in the middle. 

Now, take the duck of the stove and let it rest for 5 minutes. This makes it keep all its beautiful juices. Back to the sauce - use a shifter to remove all the vegetables so you have a smooth sauce. Add a table spoon of butter to it when it is off the heat. Taste for seasoning.

Now, you can  enjoy a spectacular meal!!! Hope you enjoy it as much as I do! 

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