December, December!

Tired of white mushrooms and looking for  another type of mushroom to replace it with? Try oyster mushrooms and make a difference for your holiday dinner. 

Sautéed oyster mushrooms with garlic, lemon, green peppers and herbs is a delicious and easy recipe. 

200 gr/ ~7 ounces oyster mushrooms (sliced)

2 green pepper (cut in pieces) 

2 tbsp olive oil, 

1 clove garlic (crushed),

2 tsp lemon juice

Rosemary, thyme,

A touch of black pepper, red pepper flakes, 

Salt.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large skillet, add mushrooms and sauté until they begin to release their juices and soften. Add green pepper cuts and the crushed garlic, sauté for 2 more minutes. (Low temperature) Add lemon juice, salt, black pepper, red pepper, thyme, rosemary mix and cook for 2 minutes more. Remove from the stove and serve.

Happy Holidays!

            Stay Healthy and Happy 💝

A Quick and Easy Sunday Salad

I’m a huge salad and soup lover! If you are new to my blog maybe you haven't noticed yet but even my button is a bowl of soup ;) Do you like mushroom??? Here is the recipe; Cream of Mushroom Soup on yonca is cooking. Whenever I make this soup, my family and friends love it. Hope you like it too!

Sundays usually after a huge breakfast or early lunch, we have an early dinner. I prefer to cook soup and salad especially if we had alcohol drink one night before. Drinking can make it difficult to digest food and absorb vital nutrients.

Mmmm...our bodies need soup and s a l a d !!!

A bowl of warming  soup is the best for comforting a stomack. Also a colorful salad helps filling your bodies with full of vitamins. Powerfull! Vitamin C speeds up the metabolism of the alcohol by the liver. So, your stomach will thank you!!!

Here is a salad idea with red cabbage, rich source of Vitamin C and Vitamin E, is also cholesterol-lowering.

RED CABBAGE / POTATO SALAD

6 potatoes (peeled, cubed after boiled)
3 scallions (sliced)
  a quarter of a small red cabbage(shredded)
  red wine vinegar, olive oil, pepper and salt
 I garnised it with a few olive on top after took the shot.

When making this salad, cutting and tossing the veggies, dressing together, I feel like making an art!
The beauty of purpple makes me feel calm, serene and happy :)
I am curious what your favorite salad is??

Powerful! Delicious! Easy!
Enjoy the colors!!

Recipes!!!

Let's have  some fun in the kitchen! Ready???
You choose any of these recipes and I'll help you!
Chat me, email me, message me, text me, call me..anything :D

 

 

Everybody loves zucchini except Aria!

 

Zucchini with mint and tomato sauce

A good recipe for zucchini with simple on-hand ingredients.

 

5 zucchini (cut into half moon)

1 onion, chopped

4 gloves garlic, minced

4 tbs olive oil

1 tsp dry mint,

 like more mint?..me too!! Let's add one more :D

salt , pepper

1 cup chicken broth

2 tomatoes

or 

 1/3 cup crushed tomato/canned

or

if you have homemade tomato sauce I gave

the recipe earlier you might want to use it now.

I'd like to get more zucchini taste instead tomato,

so, I didn't use more sauce or tomato though.

But if you like it in more tomato, just scoop more sauce, less chicken broth in it!

 

 

Saute onion and garlic.
Add tomatoes (if you use raw tomatoes,

 cook for a few minutes stiring)

Add half moon sliced zucchinis to the pot..
..salt n pepper and finally dry mint!

 

Zucchini and Bulgur Pilaf

Some leftover zuccini and bulgur was my last night dinner.

 

 

I tried bulgur pilaf with sauteed egglant, served with spicy chicken wings

and arugula salad.

Hmm...We liked it!

 Eggplant Bulgur Pilaf

1 big onion(crushed)
2 eggplants(cubed)
(OK..I have to note this..if you would use Italian eggplant
 which is equals to 2 eggplants in Turkey, So,
only one would be good enough.(cubed)
1 cup bulgur(washed in cold water)
2 tomatoes(peeled and diced)
1/2 tbs paste(add to the tomatoes)
2 green peppers(sliced)
1 glove minced garlic
3 tbs oil
2 cups hot water,salt, pepper

How to make Eggplant Bulgur Pilaf ?

Saute onion, green pepper a few minutes in olive oil and
add eggplant cubes, garlic.
Cook the eggplant in oil, stirring occasionally,
 untill the eggplant is fork-tender,
about four-five minutes.
You combined the diced tomateos and the tomato paste, right?
Cook a few minutes more..until tomatoes soft.

Ok, well it's time to add bulgur and boiled water.
Don't forget to salt n pepper!!
That's all! You made a yummy pilaf :)
Cook until the water is absorbed.
 Remove from heat and let stand, covered,
 until bulgur is softened, about 25 minutes

Chicken Wings!
 

Sprinkled with spicy chicken mix and grilled!
 We started to like wings, lately. :)

 

Hmm...yummy Arugula Salad with grated tomato sauce.
I use cherry tomatoes for this salad but i tried a different way
 to add tomato taste to the salad
and added grated tomato to the sauce. 

Taste was good!
 

Arugula Salad
 1 tomato
 2 garlic cloves pressed
 1 tbs vinegar
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil, salt

It has been a while I haven't made Dolma;
(Ground beef stuffed cubanelle pepper)

Served with spaghetti and famous Turkish Yogurt Cucumber Salad,
CACIK!

Especially ideal for summer time!
 

 

CACIK

Ingredients
3 cups plain yoğurt
1/4 cup water
2 gloves garlic(minced)
3 cucumbers(diced)
1tbs olive oil
1 tsp vinegar
salt and dry mint

Beat yoğurt; mix with garlic, salt and water.
Pour the yoğurt mixture over cucumbers.
You might prefer peel cucumbers but I don't..
I like more color in salad :)
Drizlle vinegar and olive oil.
Garnish with mint.
Serve cold in bowls!

And final recipe for this week;
Dolma!


Dolma/ recipe

Dolma means to stuff,..We all love it. Many versions of Dolmas...
from stuffed vine leaves, zucchini, eggplant and more more....
Stuffed wine leaves are very common.

Ground beef/rice stuffed cubanelle.
Pictured just after placed into pot before cook it!
 Colorful bell peppers are also pereferable.
Mmmm..beautiful color combinition on the plate!!!

Stuffing İngredients

11 adet cubanelles(I have small ones.
So, you might need to use less pepers for this stuffing)
1 pound ground beef;
2 chopped onion
 1/4 cup uncooked white rice
 2 gloves minced garlic
One handful of parsley, chopped
1 tsp tomato paste
1/4 cup crushed tomato
salt n pepper
---
rest of the ingredients
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes,
1 teaspoon butter
2 tbsp olive oil
hot water, salt

Cut of the tops off the peppers and
clean out the seeds inside. Now, the peppers are ready!

Mix all the ingredients and stuff the peppers with a teaspoon.
 The rice will need some room to expand during cooking.
So, don't over do it.

Place the pepers into pot..I have already have hot water in the kettle:)
Fill the pot half way up with hot water.
Pour the hot water and rest of the ingredients all over the peppers
and cook them until rice is soft.

Smells like heaven!!!
 

 Have a tasteful weekend !

Brussel sprouts taste so different now!

If you don't like the flavor of brussel sprouts;

Mix olive oil, garlic salt and a drizzle of vinegar together in a small bowl.
Brush trimmed brussel sprouts with this mixture and grill them until soften...
It gives brussel sprouts a whole new flavor!

A slice of whole wheat bread and...

watermelon!!!

yum!;))))

Asparagus& mushroom in olive oil (zeytinyaglı mantarlı kuskonmaz)

I had some asparagus left in the fridge and cooked them in olive oil with mushroom, carrot and potato cubes.

Half a bundle of asparagus (Snap off tough ends of asparagus)
10 mushrooms(cut in half)
1 small potato(cubed)
1 carrot(sliced)
I tomato(cubed)
1 onion(chopped)
4 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic (minced)
fresh parsley(chopped)
lemon zest and lemon juice
salt,pepper

In a large pan, saute the onion and garlic for a few minutes. Add the asparagus(cut in half), mushroom, carrot and the potato cubes, lemon zest, spicy and saute for 10-12 minutes. Add the tomato cubes and chopped parsley in last a few minutes. Serve with lemon juice hot or cold. We had grilled lemon chicken thighs with this delicious veggie recipe.

It's worth a try. Cheers!

For mushroom lovers!

It has been a while I haven't made this mushroom recipe.
I almost forgot how much I liked it..
Then I took a bite..



Mmmm...Love mushrooms:) Don't you?

Recipe

Our weekend was relaxing and yummy!!!

It was beautiful out here on Friday and Saturday.

After the school we hanged together around our house!

He's eating his lollipop he brought from the school:-)

and telling me about his day..

Somehow he can't talk without using his hands:-)

On Saturday, Aria and I went to the Venetian Shore Park

and enjoyed to spend a few hours together...

and enjoyed the warm sand..

Sun was shining brightly over the ocean...

The shore was beautiful and so relaxing...

When we got back home I baked a few eggplants and potatoes.

I got those baby eggplants last week. They were yummy!

Baked&Stuffed Eggplant;

Combine cubed tomatoes, cucumber, chopped scallion, parsley,

finely chopped Romain lettuce and stuff each eggplant with this mixture.

Drizzle with the dressing.

Dressing;

Olive oil, garlic(minced), balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper.

It was delicious! Aria loved it.

Even though he is not a big fan of eggplant :)

Baked Potatoes;

We all love baked potatoes mixed with Parmesan cheese,

topped with a teaspoon whipped butter each

and sprinkled with chopped chives...

Mmmmmm that was a quick ride to heaven!!!

Mom's Spinach Dish

It is 30 something degrees outside. Brrr, cold. It snowed today. We didn't get lots of snow this time. A quick and easy spinach recipe for a cold-weather food..Warm, tasty, healthy and easy! Lol, it is weekend. So I looked for an easy one and made my mom's spinach recipe today.



Spinach..spinach...spinach...

9 0z. fresh baby spinach(chopped)

1/4 pound ground beef

2 tbsp oil

3 tbsp tomato puree

1 onion(chopped)

2 tbsp rice

1 cup hot water, salt

Saute onion in oil in a large pot. Add ground beef and brown. Then stir in tomato puree and add spinach. I know it seems a lot of spinach:-) Not really. Combine, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add rice and water(hot water) and cook until rice is soft(15-20 minutes). It depends on the type of rice chosen. I used- Uncle Ben's Enriched Parboiled Long Grain. You can add some black pepper to this dish if you want. I always had this spinach dish with plain yogurt. That 's how my mom used to serve it.
If you want to make this recipe easier, grab yourself one of those great little bags of thoroughly washed spinach from the store.
How are all your weekends going ???