Tagliatelle Spinach-creamsauce

serves 2 - 3

Ingredients:

* 250g chickenbreast

* 1 can of tomato cubes

* 200g fresh spinach

* 100g feta cheese

* 100 to 125g tagliatelle per person

* 1 spoon of chicken herbs 

* 125ml creme fraiche 

* 2 spoons of barbecue sauce

Additional:

Change the chicken for smoked salmon, it will taste fabulous as well!

Preparation:

Cut the chicken in cubes and heat up a wok. Meanwhile cook the pasta. Stir fry the chicken while adding the chicken herbs until brown. Add the spinach batch by batch until it shrinks. Now add the tomato cubes and stir well. Be sure to blend everything before you add the creme fraiche. Stir until everything is blended once more. Now add the barbecue sauce. Stir until blended and add the feta. Turn to low heat so the feta doesn't melt (like it did for me unfortunately) and remove from the heat after 1 minute. Serve together with the tagliatelle. If you want extra bite, use a spoon of Parmesan cheese as topping. Bon apetit!
I hope you like the recipe and I hope to see you soon again.

Yours truly,

Mike

Omelette a la Hartje

serves 1 

Ingredients:

* 1 croissant

* 1 slice of cheddar cheese

* 2 eggs

* 1 tomato
* A handful of small mushrooms

* Pepper to taste

* Salt to taste

* 1 spoon of parsley

Preparation:

Cut the croissant open and put the cheese in the opening. Scramble the eggs in a bowl. Slice the mushrooms and cut the tomato in cubes. Heat up a skillet and stir fry the mushrooms until they start to color. Add the tomato and stir fry for about one minute. Add the herbs, and then the scrambled egg. One minute on maximum heat, and then 2 - 3 minutes on medium. Fold the omelette in half and turn around.
Now heat up the croissant in the oven or microwave, and serve with a red sauce if you like. I used barbecue sauce, but you could also use tomato ketchup or sweet chili sauce.
I ate this for lunch, I hope you like the recipe and I hope to see you again soon.

Chicken sweet-sour with pineapple

serves 3 to 4

Ingredients:

* 1,5 spoon of flour
* 3 spoons of milk or 1 protein ( I ran out of eggs so I used milk instead)
* 1 teaspoon of sea salt
* 1 teaspoon of pepper
* 0,5 teaspoon of chili flakes
* 250g chicken breast
* 1 can of pineapple in pieces
* 1 green paprika
* 1 yellow paprika
* 1 middlesized onion
* 1 garlic clove
* 3 to 5 spoons of tomato ketchup (depending on how thick you want the sauce)
* 1 spoon of ginger syrup
* 1 spoon of brown caster sugar
* 2 spoons of vinegar
* 1 spoon of soy sauce
* Pineapple syrup from the can ( if you have a big can use half of the syrup)

Preparation:

Cut the paprika and onion in slices and finely chop the garlic. Make a marinade out of the flour, milk ( it is better to use protein because it sticks better ), sea salt, pepper and chili flakes. Stir well until it becomes smooth. Cut the chicken breast in cubes of 1 cm. Put in the marinade, mix well and make sure every piece of chicken is covered. Leave along for about 30 to 60 min. Heat up a wok or saute pan with preferable wok oil. Use enough or else the chicken will stick to the pan because of the flour. Stir fry until the chicken is brown. Add the paprika, onion and garlic and stir-fry until the onion looks glassy. Now add the pineapple with the syrup, the tomato ketchup, the ginger syrup, the soy sauce, the sugar and the vinegar. Mix well until the sauce looks smooth. Cook for one minute more and turn off the heat. Serve with rice or noodles, I found that serving with macaroni tastes well too so be sure to consider that and give it a try!

I hope you like the recipe and I hope to see you soon again.
Yours truly,

Mike

Noodlesoup with chicken-satay stock

serves 2 - 4

Ingredients:

* 250g noodles

* 250g chicken breast

* 200g vegetable mix suitable to wok (preferable Eastern vegetables)

* 1 spoon of peanut butter

* 1 spoon of sambal badjak

* 1 cube of chicken stock

* 1,5 liter water
* 2 spoon of ketjap asin ( one for the vegetable mix, one for the stock )
* 1 spoon of chili flakes
* 1 spoon of coriander powder
* 2 spoons of ginger powder  ( one for the vegetable mix, one for the stock )

* 2 spoons of garlic powder ( one for the vegetable mix, one for the stock )

* 2 spoons of cumin powder ( one for the vegetable mix, one for the stock )

* 1 spoon of cinnamon

* Sea salt to taste

* 1 spoon of turmeric
* 1 spoon of lemongrass powder

Preparation:

Cook the noodles following the instruction on the package. Once done put in the bowl. Cut the chicken breast into cubes, and the vegetables small if you have to. Heat up a pan and stir fry the chicken until brown. Add the vegetables. Meanwhile cook the water and add the chicken stock cube, keep stirring. Now in the pan with the chicken add the following; 1 spoon of:  Ketjap, ginger powder, garlic powder, cumin powder, cinnamon, turmeric, lemongrass and salt to taste. Mix well and turn off the heat. Serve above the noodles.

Now back to the chicken stock. Let's add the rest of the herbs and spices. Add 1 spoon of peanut butter and a spoon of sambal. Do not use too much peanut butter or the soup will become thick. Once everything is blended, turn off the heat and pour over the noodle - vegetable mix. Bon apetit!
I hope you like the recipe and I hope to see you again soon!

Yours truly,

Mike

Sauerkraut with shawarma and yogurt garlicsauce

serves 3 to 4

Ingredients:

* 500g shawarma
* 500g sauerkraut
* 1 red paprika
* 1 small onion
* 1 spoon of curry powder
* 1 spoon of thyme
* 1 spoon of garlic powder
* Sea salt to taste

Yogurt garlicsauce:

* 500g Turkish Yogurt
* 5 garlic cloves
* Mint to taste
* 1 spoon lemon juice
* 1 teaspoon  cayenne powder
* Sea salt to taste
* Garlic powder to taste
* Sugar to taste

Preparation:

For the sauce:

Peel the garlic and use a garlic press to press the garlic into the yogurt. Add the mint, lemon juice, cayenne powder and stir well. Taste, if you don't like it add garlic powder, more salt, or sugar. Mix well and put in the fridge once you are satisfied.

For the sauerkraut:

A colleague of mine suggested me I tried shawarma in combination with sauerkraut. Sounds odd, but worked surprisingly well! Now on the the preparation!

Finely cut the onion and paprika. Stir-fry until the onion looks glassy. Add the shawarma. Stir fry until done. Now add the sauerkraut. Stir until the sauerkraut it mixed evenly. Now add the herbs and mix well. Make sure everything is blended well, and leave along on low heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Serve with fried potato parts, or wedges. I used ready to serve Tuscany potatoes, I only had to fry them.
I hope you like the dish and I hope to see you again soon.

Yours truly,

Mike

Albóndigas

serves 2

Ingredients:

* 300 g half and half minced meat
* 1 half teaspoon cayenne powder
* 2 medium sized eggs
* 4 garlic cloves
* Parsley
* Breadcrumbs
* 1 yellow paprika
* 1 green paprika
* 1 red paprika
* 1 middle sized onion
* 1 bay leaf
* 1 pack of Heinz tomato frito (or other brand)
* Water to make the sauce thinner if you want

Preparations:

This is also a recipe my father taught me. There are many ways to prepare this dish, but this is the way how my dad taught me.

Take a large bowl and put together the minced meat, eggs, parsley to taste and the cayenne powder. Use a garlic squeezer to squeeze the garlic in the bowl. Mix well. Add the breadcrumbs until the meat starts to gain structure. If you think it is strong enough to make a ball with, do so, if not add more breadcrumbs. Now put some breadcrumb on a kitchen towell. Roll the balls through the breadcrumb and let them rest on a plate or whatever you have.
Cut the onion in half rings, and the paprika in slices. Cut these slices in half.
Heat up a saute pan and fry the meatballs until brown at every side. Remove them. You should have some oil left. Now stir-fry the paprika and onion until the onion looks glassy. Add the tomato frito, with the bay leaf, and water (if you want). Mix well and add the meatballs. Put the heat on low and place the lid on the pan.
Leave alone for a while, stirring every now and then. After 15 - 30 minutes the meatballs should be thoroughly cooked. Turn of the heat and serve. This dish tastes well with boiled potatoes, rice, or bread. You could also use this dish as tapas or appetizer. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do, and hopefully until soon!

Yours truly,

Mike

Kapsalon

serves 1

Ingredients:

* 150g chickenbreast or calf meat
* 1 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1 half teaspoon cayenne powder
* 1 teaspoon paprika powder
* 1 teaspoon coriander powder
* 1 spoon of oil
* Cucumber
* 1 tomato
* Lettuce
* 1 small onion
* Cheese
* Fries

Additional:
* Garlic sauce
* Sambal Ulek

Preparations:

First of all a little bit of history. Kapsalon is the Dutch word for barbershop. You probably wonder why this dish is called "barbershop", I am going to tell you. The Kapsalon originated in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. A guy owning a barbershop asked a kebab take-away restaurant to put together a meal with his favourite ingredients; fries, kebab, salad and cheese. The restaurant would take this order and tell the staff it was for the barbershop, or Kapsalon in Dutch. This is the way the Kapsalon came to exist today.

Mix together all the herbs with the oil in a bowl. Cut the chicken in small slices, and add to the mixture. Leave alone for a while.
If you are using fresh potatoes for the fries, peel the skin off and cut them in sticks. If you are using frozen fries like I did, prepare them following the instructions. I used the oven for this as I don't like them fried.
Cut the lettuce in small strips, and the cucumber and tomato in small cubes. Cut the onion in half rings.
Now stir-fry the chicken until done. Add the fries to a small tray and put the chicken above it. Place the salad on top of that. If you want you can add the sauces over the salad, but I recommend not to, as it still has to go in the oven/grill/microwave (personally I used the oven) for the cheese to melt, that you just placed on top. Once the cheese is molten, the dish is ready. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did, and hopefully until soon!

Yours Truly,

Mike

Chicken satay baguette

serves 2 to 3

Ingredients:

* 1 baguette
* 1 tomato
* cucumber
* lettuce
* spring onion

Chicken:

* 200g chickenbreast
* 4 spoons ketjap manis
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1 teaspoon cumin powder
* 1 teaspoon ginger powder
* 2 teaspoons coriander powder
* 1 teaspoon sambal ulek

Satay sauce:

* 125ml coconut milk
* 3 spoons peanutbutter
* 3 spoons of sambal badjak
* 3 spoons of ketjap manis
* 3 garlic cloves
* 1 small onion
* 1 teaspoon ginger powder
* 1 teaspoon coriander powder
* 1 teaspoon cumin powder

Preparations:

For the chicken, mix everything in a tray. Cut the chicken in small cubes and add to the marinade. Mix well and leave alone for 30 minutes to 2 hours. Meanwhile cut the onion and garlic as fine as possible for the sauce. Heat up a skillet and stir-fry the chicken until done.
Meanwhile use a saucepan to heat up the coconut milk on low heat. Add everything for the sauce except the peanutbutter. Stir well until blended. Now add the peanut butter scoop for scoop and keep stirring until the sauce thickens a bit. Stir until you are satisfied.
Cut the baguette in half and slice open. Decorate with the lettuce, cucumber and tomato to your taste.
Add the chicken and pour the satay sauce over it. Decorate with spring onion.

Tip:

This is also the base recipe for satay skewer. You could also use any other meat you prefer.
For skewer, combine with fries, rice or just as an appetizer or side dish.

This was definitely a good meal for me and I do hope you can enjoy it as much as I do!

Yours truly,

Mike

Tortilla de patatas (with mustard honey salad)

serves 1 to 2

Ingredients:

* 4 medium sized eggs
* 4 medium sized potatoes
* 1 medium sized onion
* A handful of parsley, fresh or dried
* Salt to taste
* Pepper to taste

Additional:
* Garlic powder

For the mustard-honey dressing:
* 1 spoon of mustard
* 1 spoon of honey
* 2 spoons of lemon
* 1 spoon of dill

Preparations:

Cut the salad like you want to, or use a prepared salad like I did because I was lazy. Mix every ingredient for the dressing and pour 1 or 2 spoons over the salad.

This recipe is how my dear father makes the tortillas. It is one of my favorite dishes from his (the Spanish) cuisine. The recipe is very special to me as I never quite knew how to make them myself until my dad taught me. Ever since this is a very dear recipe to me and I am sure to continue the legacy.

Peel the skin of the potatoes and cut them in slices as thin as possible. Cut the onion in half rings. Whip the eggs with the herbs and salt. Fry the potatoes until they start to color and soften. Add to the egg mixture. Fry the onions, but keep them half raw, and add to the mixture too. Stir well and make sure everything has egg over it. Leave alone for a bout 5 to 15 minutes. Heat up a skillet with less than a spoon oil. Make sure the skillet is hot and the oil is spread throughout the whole skillet.
Pour the mixture in and make sure the potatoes are covered over the whole skillet. Fry at maximum heat for about one minute. Now turn the heat to medium and leave alone for 3 minutes. Now put a plate on the skillet and hold well. For this part it is important that you use little oil as I burned my wrist once using too much oil! Now this is tricky, but if you do it right it is well worth it. Turn the skillet upside down, it is best to do this over the sink so if something falls out, the stove will be unharmed.
Put the skillet back on the stove and slowly slide the tortilla back in the skillet with the undone side down. Use a fork to help it slide back in. Fry for about 2 minutes if you want the tortilla to be a bit moist, fry for 3-4 minutes if you want the eggs to be well done.
Now slide back on the plate, and cut in parts if you want to use it as tapas. Eat the whole if you are hungry, but if you are like me and have enough with half and one salad, cut them half!
I hope you enjoy this recipe and have a good meal!

Yours truly,

Mike