Cucumber Finger Sandwiches

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This was yet another appetizer that was served at my friends birthday party a few weekends ago. I was not the one that originally made them but I decided that they were so good that I wanted to make them soon. I went out and bought all the ingredients and then made a few little sandwiches here and there throughout the week for my husband and I.


These are super quick and easy to prepare but are best if assembled shortly before serving. They were definitely a hit at the party and with my husband and would be the perfect addition to any get together where something light and fresh tasting was needed. In case you were wondering, I was able to get this cute shaped bread by baking some bread dough in my scalloped bread tube.


Cucumber Finger Sandwiches
adapted from Allrecipes

Ingredients
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian salad dressing mix
2 loaves French bread, cut into 1 inch slices
2 medium cucumbers, sliced
1 pinch dried dill weed

Directions
In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, mayonnaise and Italian dressing mix. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, or preferably overnight.
Spread the cream cheese mixture onto the slices of French bread. Top with a piece of cucumber and sprinkle with dill.
Note - The cream cheese mixture keeps for a week in the fridge so you can make as many or few as you need at a time.

The Basics - Blueberry Lemonade

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The Basics - Blueberry LemonadeNothing is as refreshing as a glass of freshly squeezed lemonade on a hot summer day! - Why not make that delicious summer drink even better with some of your
 Home Canned Blueberry Syrup?


7 cups water (preferably filtered water)
2/3 cup lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
1/2 cup sugar (or to taste but remember - the blueberry syrup has sugar also)
1/2 cup Blueberry Syrup

Before squeezing the juice from your lemons - I always make sure that they are at room temperature and just before cutting them in half - I press down with the palm of my hand and roll the lemon on the counter for just a few seconds (this will help you get the optimum juice from 1 lemon) (see picture below).


Now, in a large pitcher, stir all ingredients until the sugar is totally dissolved.  .
Chill or serve over ice and ENJOY!
If you have some frozen blueberries - add those instead of ice!



Linked to:Ready 4 SummerFoodie FridayFlour Me With LoveStone GableToo Cute Tuesday

Freezing Fresh Strawberries

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Freezing Fresh Strawberries
Another easy and tasty garden fresh item to preserve for the winter - Strawberries.  If you use a "Vacuum Packer" (like I do) then, in the middle of winter, your frozen strawberries will taste as if you just picked them from the garden. 

Wash, drain and hull your strawberries.  (There are many "experts" that say that you cannot wash any berries before freezing.  Well, I try to be as "organic" as possible and the farm where I bought these berries was not an organic farm - I wash my berries before freezing and I have never had problems).  Spread your prepared strawberries on a wax paper lined cookie sheet (see picture above).  Place them in a freezer for about 3 to 4 hours (or until strawberries feel frozen).  Freezing the berries first will help prevent them from sticking together in the bag.

Now fill your baggies - I put 2 cups of frozen strawberries in 1 bag. I use a vacuum packer but using ziploc baggies is also an option.  

Then seal each bag according to the manufacturer's instructions. Label and then it will be ready for winter usage. 
ENJOY!! 
Freeze before vacuum packing! - If you seal before freezing then you will have strawberry juice all over the counter and inside your vacuum packing machine (and the bag will not seal properly).

Heaven is like Yeast

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"He told them still another parable:  'The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.' "

Have you ever made bread from scratch?  I have and the yeast is the most important ingredient  - it is a living organism - without it the bread would not grow, it would not rise.  The yeast touches every grain of flour in the dough and works together with the other ingredients to make a loaf of bread. 

I believe this verse symbolizes not only the Holy Spirit working in us as Christians - working in every part of our being (mind, body and soul).  But also, it symbolizes all of us working together to make up the church - the kingdom of heaven.  Without that yeast (our heavenly Father, Jesus our savior and the Holy Spirit) we are nothing - we are just a pile of flour blown away by a draft.  This yeast penetrates every part of the dough and transforms it into a delicious and nutritious staple. It's the same with our life - we must allow the Holy Spirit to work through every aspect of our life and transform us into an image of Jesus.

"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children" Ephesians 5:1

When making bread - there have been times when I did not follow the directions exactly or maybe the temperature was not perfect and the bread was a flop - it did not rise or bake up correctly.  It is the same with our life - there might be 1 area of our life where we are not following God's instructions, 1 area that we have not allowed the Holy Spirit to infiltrate.  Even though it might only be 1 problem area - that is enough to affect our entire life in a negative way. 

Let us allow our heavenly Father, Jesus our savior and the Holy Spirit to enter every aspect of our life so that we will be able to rise to any problem that comes our way.

Tools - High Wheel Cultivator

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High Wheel Cultivator
This is my favorite garden tool.  There is no bending over or working on your knees - just simply walk behind this garden tool and push.  This was an anniversary present from my husband a few years ago..........yep - I'm strange - I'd rather have a tool like this as a gift instead of diamonds or bought roses.

There are a few flaws however, there are 3 different heights and it is not simple to change from low to high and since my husband is 6'3" and I am 5'5" - this causes a problem.  Also, there are different attachments for creating rows or for making a furrow and those are also not simple to change back and forth.

The good far out weigh the bad when it comes to the High Wheel Cultivator.


In the picture above - the right side has just been cultivated and the left side has not been cultivated.

Same idea as before - in the picture above the top has NOT been cultivated and the bottom has been cultivated.




ENJOY!!

Peppermint Patty Pudding Pops

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Peppermint Patty Pudding PopsPeppermint and Chocolate somehow really does cool you down on a hot summer day.  I love my pudding recipe - it is made from scratch and tastes so much better than instant pudding (you may use instant if you prefer).  In the picture above I have taken a bite out of the Peppermint Patty Pudding Pop but on the right is a plain Pudding Pop.

These are my Tuperware popsicle molds

1/3 cup corn starch                                         Printable Recipe1/3 cup cocoa powder1 cup sugar3 cups milk3 egg yolks (slightly beaten)dash of salt2 tablespoons butter5 or 6 Peppermint Patties (chopped)Popsicle molds
In a medium saucepan - stir the dry ingredients (sugar, corn starch, cocoa powder & a pinch of salt) until combined.  (see all 3 pictures below) Slowly add the milk while stirring.  Now whisk in the egg yolks.  Place on medium heat and continue stirring until it starts to boil (you will notice that it starts to thicken just before it boils).  Continue stirring and boil for about 2 minutes (you might need to turn the heat down a little - so that it won't burn).  Remove the pudding from the heat and stir in the butter until totally melted and combined.   


Now it is time to add the chopped peppermint patties.  There are 2 options:  you can either add the peppermint patty chunks to the entire batch of pudding or add some chunks into each Popsicle mold (the second option you can save a few Popsicle molds to be plain pudding pops) (Also, the second way makes the patty chunks to be more solid and chewy - it's up to your taste).  Place the filled molds in the freezer for at least 3 hours and then ENJOY!!
Note:  If you have any extra pudding then you may place in the fridge and top with some whipped cream to eat as regular pudding or wait until you have eaten the popsicles and then refill the molds with the leftover pudding (keep in mind that the pudding will only last 5 days when kept in the fridge - however in the freezer it will last for weeks).


VARIATIONS:  There are endless variations to this pudding recipe but here are some of my favorite ideas:
1.  Any other candy or chocolate bar can be substituted for the peppermint patties (eg - Peanut butter cups, snickers, mounds etc.....)2.  If you like coconut flavor - then substitute coconut oil for the butter3.  Add some instant coffee (about 2 tablespoons) for a Mocha Pudding.4.  Add some jam or jelly (1/4 cup) - Raspberry is delicious!5.  And my all time favorite - Chocolate and Orange - a wonderful combination - just add 1 tablespoon fresh orange rind to the pudding mixture before cooking.

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Nami-Nami Easter Brunch 2012

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On Easter Sunday we hosted yet another Easter brunch to our dear friends - something of a tradition by now, as we've done this for almost five years, I believe (see overview of 2009 and 2010). This year we were twenty people in total - 16 guests and our own little family of four.

Here's an overview of this year's table:



And here are the individual dishes, with links to recipes, where appropriate.



We started with Mimosa cocktails, using freshly squeezed orange juice and Spanish cava. We also drank wine, apple juice and water, followed by tea and coffee later:



Crostini with dill-marinated pork tenderloin and a dab of Meira's cognac-mustard (based on a Bon Appetit recipe):


Our friends Kristiina and Paavo brought along this delicious salad with alfa-alfa sprouts and various citrus fruits:


I had composed a salad of avocado, mango, pumpkin seeds and mozzarella cheese:


Liina (also a food blogger ) had baked this delicious savoury Italian pizza pie, using wild boar meat and Estonian goat cheese:


Estonian home cheese, SÕIR, which I had seasoned with roasted caraway seeds. This was especially delicious with home-baked rye bread (courtesy of our friend Kristiina again):


Fun focaccia shots, topped with sun-dried tomatoes (I got the idea from Kerstin Rodgers' inspirational Supper Club: Recipes and Notes from the Underground Restaurant):


Marinated olives (a mix of Kalamata, green Greek and black Amfissa olives) with Aleppo chili flakes, roasted garlic cloves and caperberries (inspired by Kerstin Rodgers again):


Our friend Piret brought along a bowl of wild mushroom salad:


A Mason jar full of beetroot-pickled quail eggs. I've written about them before, this time I used beetroot juice, balsamic vinegar, caraway seeds, salt and pepper. I find that 12 hours is more than enough to dye and flavour the quail eggs:


Thinly sliced cold-smoked salmon from my favourite fishmonger, Pepe Kala (this was especially delicious on top of all those boiled eggs we ate):


Thinly sliced Estonian "lardo" or Ristemäe's herb-crusted lard:


There were three desserts. First on the table, a traditional Easter pudding, paskha. Very creamy, rich and delicious. I added raisins, dried sour cherries, pistachios and flaked almonds to the paskha mixture:


There was also a cardamom-scented apricot and curd cheese cake, topped with almonds:


And a very traditional Estonian curd cheese sheet cake, cut into small pieces to feed loads:


Our friends Liina and Tauno also brought along a traditional Russian Easter cake, kulitch, that they had bought on a weekend trip to Narva:


What was on your Easter table?

Cardamom-scented apricot and curd cheese cake

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Here's a cake we served on this year's Easter Brunch. It's a simple and very popular curd cheese cake that's usually made with canned/preserved apricots or peaches, but I've recently fine-tuned the recipe by adding a generous amount of ground cardamom to the crust and topping the cake with sliced almonds before baking.

Make the cake day before you plan to serve it - it's much easier to cut into slices when completely cooled, and the flavour improves as well.

Cardamom-scented apricot and curd cheese cake

(Kardemonihõnguline aprikoosi-kohupiimakook)
Serves eight

Crust:
100 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
85 g caster sugar (100 ml)
1 large egg
180 g all-purpose flour (300 ml)
1 tsp ground cardamom
0.5 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt

Filling:
400 g canned apricot halves (you can also use peaches)
500 g curd cheese or creamy farmer's cheese
200 g sour cream
2 large eggs
85 g caster sugar (100 ml)
2 tsp vanilla sugar or 1 tsp good-quality vanilla extract

Topping:
a handful of sliced almonds (optional)

Making the crust: cream the butter and sugar until combined and pale. Add the egg, stir until combined. Fold in the dry ingredients. Press the pastry onto the base and sides of a buttered and lined 26 cm loose-bottomed springform tin. Place into the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.

Making the filling: combine the curd cheese and sour cream. Beat in the eggs, then add the sugar and vanilla. Whisk until well combined. Spoon the filling onto the cake tin.

Drain the apricots and gently press onto the filling, cut-side down. Sprinkle almond slices on top.

Bake in the middle of a pre-heated 175 C/350 F oven for about 50 to 60 minutes, until the cake is light golden on top and the filling is just a wee bit wobbly - it'll set overnight.

Mussels, and my kids

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April 2012

Our daughter is 3 years and 2 months now, our son 1 year and 3 months. They both adore mussels. We discovered our daughter's love for the shellfish back in October 2010, when testing recipes for my first cookbook. She was 1 year and 8 months at the time - way too early for enjoying mussels, I thought for some reason. We gave her one, just for fun, and she was immediately taken:


October 2010

She had 35 mussels in one go that night. I know, we counted them, amazed. She would have had more, if we had let her, but as we could visibly see her tiny belly filling up, we simply said stop at one point.


September 2011, France

Let me just say that choosing a place for lunch on our last trip to France (we went to Normandie and Bretagne in September 2011) was easy - we just had to go for a place that served mussels. She had mussels for lunch on pretty much every day :D


April 2012

Few weeks ago I saw some nice-looking mussels in my local supermarket, and decided to cook them for dinner. Nora was extremely pleased - she immediately recognised what's in the bag (well, net actually) and was clapping her hands in excitement. I made a quick mussel dish (recipe below), and when ready to serve, I also offered our son some. He loved them, too, just like his big sis'.


April 2012

I must have obviously done something right in introducing solid foods to my kids (I used the approach called baby-led weaning with both of them, and very succesfully), as there are both very keen to try new foods and I'd have to think very hard to come up with something that our daughter doesn't like, or would at least refuse to try.

The recipe below - Steamed Mussels with Basil Cream - is adapted from one of Rachel Allen's books (Rachel's favourite food for friends), and apparently it's the way mussels are prepared in a Fishy Fishy Café in Kinsale, Ireland. It's one of the quickest and easiest ways to prepare mussels and our family loves this.


Mussels in a creamy pesto sauce
(Rannakarbid basiilikukreemiga)
Serves six



2 to 3 kg fresh/live mussels
200 ml fresh cream (single or double)
3 heaped Tbsp good-quality basil pesto
sea salt
freshly squeezed lemon juice



Scrub the mussels very well and discard any that are not open and do not close when tapped.
Place the cream and the pesto in a large saucepan on the heat and bring to the boil. Taste the sauce - add some salt and lemon juice to get the taste just right.
Add the prepared mussels, cover with a lid and place on a medium heat. Cook the mussels in the pesto cream for about 5-8 minutes, or until all the mussels are completely open (discard any that do not open).
To serve, pour the mussels and the sauce into a big bowl. Serve with some crusty white bread on the side.
Remember to place another big bowl on the table for empty shells, and some finger bowls and plenty of napkins!


More lovely recipes using mussels:
Mussels in apple cider @ Nami-Nami
Memento mussel soup @ Lobstersquad
Potato and mussel stew @ Lobstersquad
Saffron tomato mussels @ The Passionate Cook
Curry mussels @ The Passionate Cook
Champagne and saffron mussels @ Chocolate & Zucchini
Coconut curry mussels @ Simply Recipes
Thai green curry mussels @ CookSister

Wild Garlic Hummus Recipe

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The wild garlic season has began here in Estonia. For almost a fortnight I see people foraging for the pungent wild leaves in a nearby forest, and I've been picking a small brown paper bag full of leaves twice myself. The other day I was browsing on Pinterest for lovely wild garlic ideas, and came across this lovely recipe for wild garlic hummus on Shaheen's blog Allotment2Kitchen.

I used my regular hummus recipe and simply added a generous handful of wild garlic leaves. The result was a vibrant green dip/spread, that had a wonderful garlicky element, but its Lebanese/Israeli heritage was still there.

Note that wild garlic is also known as ramson (Allium ursinum). It's closely related to wild leeks or ramps (Allium tricoccum). Very generally speaking, the first is common in Europe and the latter in North America. You can easily substitute one for the other in this (and other Nami-Nami's wild garlic recipes).

Wild Garlic Hummus 
(Karulauguhummus)
Serves four

400 g canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 handful fresh wild garlic leaves, rinsed
couple of spoonfuls of water
4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Drain the chickpeas and place to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until you've got a smooth paste (or slightly coarse, if that's how you prefer your houmous). Taste for seasoning - if you wish, add some more lemon juice or salt.

Excellent with toasted pita bread, or on a slice of toast, or spread on crispy crostini or as a dipping sauce with some crudités. We enjoyed ours with some Georgian bread, pictured.

More Wild Garlic recipes:
Wild Garlic Pesto with Almonds @ Nami-Nami
Wild Garlic Pesto with Pinenuts @ Nami-Nami
Wild Garlic Tzatziki @ Nami-Nami
Mashed Potatoes with Wild Garlic @ Nami-Nami
Wild Garlic Butter @ Nami-Nami
Ramson-Almond-Pesto  @ Küchenlatein
Creamy Wild Garlic Soup @ Cinnamon and Thyme
Wild garlic, courgette and mint soup by Angela Hartnett

More hummus recipes:
Harissa-spiked hummus @ Nami-Nami
Beetroot Hummus @ Nami-Nami
Hommus with pomegranate syrup and tahini @ Anissa Helou
Basil hummus @ Simply Recipes
Hummus en fuego @ 101 Cookbooks
Roasted jalapeno and lime hummus  @ The Kitchn
Beet Hummus @ Chocolate & Zucchini

Israeli food, and a recipe for Roasted Aubergine (Eggplant) with Feta

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 I'll be eating lots of Israeli food in the coming few days, together with few other foodbloggers from England, France and the US, and you'll bound to hear much more about it. In advance of the foodie journey, we were all sent a gorgeous coffee-table/cookbook by Riga-born and Israel-based food writer and cookbook author Janna Gur, called The Book of New Israeli Food: A Culinary Journey. I've been browsing through the book and sticking enough yellow post-it notes on the pages to give my family and friends menu ideas till Christmas. The first dish (and certainly not the last one) I tried was a little number with roasted aubergines/eggplants.

Lovely on some rye bread crisps!



Please keep your fingers crossed that this Nordic foodie won't collapse under the Israeli sun - the dry heat is somewhat intimidating, I must admit. Nordic summers with about 20 Celsius and few degrees above that are what I'm enjoying most, you see, but sometimes we need to challenge ourselves, especially in the name of good food and good company ;)

Roasted aubergine with feta 
Serves four to six



2 firm medium-sized aubergines/eggplants, rinsed
200 g feta cheese, crumbled
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
a pinch of sumac
a pinch of dried oregano or marjoram leaves
3 chopped spring onions
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Roast the rinsed eggplants either on an open flame (if you've got a gas grill) or simply in a hot oven until soft and blackened. Cool slightly, then peel (discard the skin) and mash the roasted flesh with a knife and/or a fork.
Add the crumbled feta cheese and olive oil, season with sumac and oregano (I used a close relative, marjoram). Add the chopped spring onions (I used a mixture of chives, green onions and Siberian garlic chives from my garden), season to taste with salt and pepper, if necessary.


Note: if you season the aubergine/eggplant flesh while it's still slightly warm, then the flavours are absorbed much better!

Serve at once or cover and keep in a cool place until ready to serve. 

Other bloggers cooking from this book:
David Lebovitz tried the Tu bi'Shvat Cake
Family Friendly Food baked the Apple, Cinnamon and Walnuts cake
Noshes, Thoughts and Reves made the Beetroot and Pomegranate Salad

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