Coconut shrimp tortellini

A while ago I started to cook very often with coconut milk as an alternative to cooking cream. I've been using it for soups, curries, and even desserts, until I decided it might be a fun idea to try it for pasta as well, although it seemed a little out of place. But by adding ingredients that usually go well with it, such as shrimps, I realized there is nothing that can go wrong. So I just threw in the pan some shrimps, spinach and coconut milk and the end result was amazing. Instead of regular pasta I used tortellini filled with cheese because this is what I had around the house. But this recipe is so flavorful that it will also turn out great with plain pasta. So with this post I hope to inspire all of you to use coconut milk more often in your recipes.

Ingredients (for 2 portions):

• 200 ml coconut milk
• 200 g spinach
• 200 g shrimps
• half a big onion
• 1 garlic clove
• 200 g dry tortellini 
• salt 
• pepper
• garlic powder
• chili flakes
• nutmeg
• 100 ml white wine
• juice from 1/4 lemon
• olive oil

First I started with marinating the shrimps a couple of hours before cooking. To do this I added 2 Tbsp. of olive oil, lemon juice, chilly flakes, 1 tsp. garlic powder, salt and pepper over the shrimps and made sure they are evenly coated. Important thing to keep in mind is to take the shrimps out of the fridge on time, so they can reach room temperature by the time you are cooking them.

Then I boiled some water and cooked the tortellini according to the packaging instructions. In the meantime I chopped the onion and garlic clove and roasted them on medium heat in 1 Tbsp. of olive oil until golden, and afterwards I added the wine and reduced. I continued by adding the coconut milk (if you find the coconut milk too heavy or too intense in flavor, you can replace some of it with pasta water, as it will make the sauce lighter, but with the same creamy consistency), followed by the shrimps and spinach. I cooked for another 2-3 minutes until the sauce reduced and the shrimps got nice and pink (shrimps need very little time to cook). I turned off the heat, added the tortellini and as final touch I seasoned with some salt, pepper, and nutmeg. 

Enjoy! :)

Veggie Frittata

Romana:

    Mic dejun, brunch sau pranz? Exista un preparat potrivit pentru toate aceste mese, gustos, satios si usor de gatit. In esenta, Frittata este un preparat italian ce se aseamana cu o omleta, insa este mult mai complex prin varietatea ingredientelor folosite, de la legume, la carne si paste si prin modul de preparare, fie pe aragaz, fie la cuptor. Astazi prezint reteta mea proprie in care mi-am explorat creativitatea cu legumele pe care le aveam in frigider. De asemenea, am preferat sa gatesc preparatul doar pe aragaz, si desi ouale si pot amesteca cu lapte sau cu smantana lichida, am preferat sa raman in limitele unei retete light si clasice.

Ingrediente:

• 5 oua
• 2 Lg ulei de masline extra virgin
• 100 g spanac proaspat
• 1 ceapa mica
• 1/3 dintr-un dovlecel mediu
• 150 g ciuperci mix 
• 3-4 bucati rosii deshidratate
• branza de capra 
• fulgi de chili
• sare
• piper

    Intr-o tigaie am pus pus uleiul de masline la incins, apoi am calit la foc mediu ciupercile si dovlecelul taiate in bucati medii si am adaugat apoi spanacul si ceapa tocata marunt. Nu am uitat sa asezonez cu sare si piper dupa gust. Intr-un bol am batut cele 5 oua, am adaugat sare, piper si fulgii de chili. Cand legumele din tigaie au fost gata, am adaugat rosiile deshidratate tocate marunt si am presarat branza de capra, apoi am turnat imediat ouale batute si am dat focul la mic. Este important sa lasam legumele sa se gateasca bine inainte de a adauga ouale pentru ca sucul lor sa se evapore, astfel Frittata se va gati uniform. Dupa ce ouale au fost pe jumatate coagulate, am pus capacul tagaii si am lasat in continuare la foc mic pana cand ouale au fost complet coagulate si preparatul era auriu. La final, pentru extra gust, am presarat inca putina branza de capra.

Pofta buna!

English:   

    Breakfast, brunch or lunch? There is a dish that suits all of these meals, tasty, nourishing and easy to cook. Essentially, Frittata is an italian dish that resembles omlette, but is more complex due to the variaty of ingredients used, from vegetables to meat and pasta, and due to its cooking procedure, either on the stove or in the oven. Today, I'm presenting my own recipe in which I explored my creativity with the vegetable I had in the fridge. Also, I preferred to cook the dish just on the stove, and although the eggs can be mixed with milk or cream, I prefered to stay in the range of a light and classic recipe.

Ingredients:

• 5 eggs
• 2 spoons extra virgin olive oil
• 100 g fresh spinach
• 1 small onion
• 1/3 medium zucchini
• 150 g mushroom mix
• 3-4 sundried tomatoes
• goat cheese
• chili flakes
• salt
• pepper

     In a pan I heated the olive oil on a medium heat and then I cooked the mushrooms and the zucchini medium chopped, then I added the spinach and the finely chopped onion. I didn't forget to add slat and pepper. In a bowl I whisked the eggs and I added salt, pepper, and chili flakes. When the vegetables in the pan were ready, I added chopped sundried tomatoes and goat cheese and I quickly poured the eggs and let them cook on low heat. It is essential to cook the vegetables well before adding the eggs, thus their juice will evaporate and the Frittata will cook properly. After the eggs were half coagulated I covered the pan and let them fully cook until golden brown. In the end, for an extra taste, I sprinkled more goat cheese.

Enjoy!

Guacamole

   Nu im doresc sa-mi petrec zilele toride utilizand cuptorul, bucataria mea ajungand chiar sa concureze cu vremea de afara, si cred ca nici tu nu esti prea dornic sa invarti in supa fierbinte de pe aragaz la aproape 40 de grade. Asa ca vara asta ma adaptez si incerc sa gasesc si sa reinvintez preparate simple care nu degradeaza placerea de a gati si de a manca si iti propun o serie de mancaruri si deserturi light, rapide, ce nu implica prea multa preparare termica , dar care sunt la fel de gustoase, satioase si nutritive. 

Astazi facem Guacamole, un preparat mexican pe baza de avocado ce se serveste cu chipsuri tortilla sau paine prajita. Nimic complicat: se adauga niste legume, se asezoneaza pe ici-colo si in 10-15 minute preparatul e gata. Pentru acesta ai nevoie de:

• un avocado
• o rosie mica
• o jumatate de ceapa
• zeama de lamaie
• sare si piper
• patrunjel sau coriandru proaspat

Intr-un mojar am pasat avocado pana a devenit o pasta cremoasa, apoi l-am amestecat cu ceapa si cu rosia tocate marunt. Am adaugat sare, piper si zeama de lamaie dupa gust la final patrunjelul.

                        Enjoy!