VANILLA MUFFINS

Makes about 15 muffins.
2 eggs
2 deciliters sugar
50 grams butter
3 deciliters plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla sugar
1 deciliter water

Set oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Beat eggs and sugar until fluffy. Melt butter and let cool. Mix flour with baking powder and vanilla. Add this mix and the water to the batter, a little at a time. Pour into greased muffin tin and bake for about 15-20 minutes in the middle of the oven.

You might also want to try this recipe with some cocoa powder or chocolate, berries, citrus zest...

EASY PASTA SALAD

Perfect for those hot summer days we left behind us about a week ago here ;-)

Pasta of your choice
Cucumber
Leek or onion - you can boil the onions for a few minutes if you want them sweeter
Tomatoes
Bell pepper/chili pepper
Peas
Kidney beans/chick peas or whatever else you like
I usually add meat - pre-cooked chicken in small pieces or mortadella like in the pic
Olive oil
Lemon juice/white vinegar
garlic, crushed or finely chopped
Salt, pepper
Dried mint, if desired

Boil pasta, drain and cool. Prepare the other ingredients. Place everything in a bowl, add dressing and mix well. Let stand for a while for flavour to develop. This should last a few days in the fridge as long as you don't add lettuce or other vegetables that wilt easily.

STUFFED CHILI PEPPER

Chili peppers, preferrably not too small as they won't hold much!
Minced/ground meat
Cooked yellow lentils (or exclude these and just use meat)
Chopped onion
Finely chopped garlic
Tomato paste
Grated cheese
Salt, pepper
Harissa or hot sauce, if desired
Cumin

Set oven to 225 degrees Celsius. Fry minced/ground meat. Add onions and garlic. Add tomato paste (and harissa or hot sauce if desired) and a little water. Season and let simmer until some of the liquid has reduced. Let cool. Meanwhile, wash peppers, cut of stems and cut them open. Use cold water and be careful not to touch your eyes. When the meat mixture has cooled down a bit, mix with cheese and adjust seasoning. Stuff peppers and place in a greased, ovenproof pan. Place in middle of oven for about 20 minutes. Serve with for instance rice and a salad.

CHICKEN COOKED IN A CLAY POT

1 chicken
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 courgette, sliced
Fresh herbs - I used some from my window box; rosemary, lemon thyme and curry herb (it's actually called that)
Lemon juice
Salt, pepper

Soak clay pot for 8-10 minutes if it's been used before, 8-10 hours if it's the first time. Place all ingredients except chicken in a bowl and mix well. Pat chicken dry and stuff with this mixture, adding a little extra salt. Try to put some under the skin too, adding a little oil or butter. Close chicken using tooth picks. Place veg mix on bottom of pot, place chicken on top and add some water. Place in cold oven and set oven to 225 degrees Celsius. Cook for about 1,5 hours. Turn chicken over once wile cooking. Remove lid toards end if you want more colour.

If you don't have a clay pot, you can of course cook this in a large pot in oven or on stove. Cooking time will be shorter. One of the advantages to cooking in a clay pot though is that it keeps moisture in very well. If you have a large enough pot you can toss some potatoes in as well, otherwise you can cook some on stovetop, perhaps adding some turmeric for extra colour.

WHOLE GRILLED FISH

1 whole fish with firm, white flesh - in this pic I used a tilapia
herbs
lemon
oil
salt, pepper

Set oven to 150 degrees Celsius. Clean fish and rinse in cold water, pat dry. Smear with a little oil inside, and add fresh herbs to taste - I used rosemary and lemon thyme from my window box - and a few slices of lemon. Add salt and pepper. Smear lightly with oil on outside and place on a rack, if you wish you can place it on top of a tray with quartered potatoes, onions and vegetables to taste. You might need to let those roast for a while at higher temperature before adding the fish to make sure they are all done at the same time. Cook fish until done, perhaps 30 minutes or more if needed. Turn it over once during cooking. Serve with some fresh lemon slices.

BREAD CHEBBI STYLE

This recipe was basically worked out by my husband but I do it a little bit differently so here's my version.

6 deciliters tepid water
25 grams yeast
12-14 deciliters plain flour
1 egg
Salt
Turmeric
Harissa - or copped chillies, onions, olives... or whatever you like.

Dissolve yeast in water. Add most of the flour. Add salt, turmeric, harissa or what you want. Add the egg and the rest of the flour. Mix until a nice dough is formed, it should be a little sticky. Sprinkle with a little flour and cover with cling film and a towel. Let rest for 45 minutes. Knead well and form 8 patties or if you wish, 2 loaves (lower temperature a bit and bake for about 30 minutes if you do this). We don't use a rolling pin when forming the bread but you can of course do this if you wish. Place on trays covered with baking sheets. Cut a pattern if you wis, make sure to use a sharp knife and cut deep enough for the pattern not to disappear during proving. Cover with towel and let prove for about 30 minutes. Set oven to 250 degrees Celsius. After baking for about 10 minutes or when the bread starts to turn brown, lower temperature to 225 degrees - or just bake at 225 degrees if you are not as fond of brown bread as my husband is. Bake in total about 20-25 minutes, let cool on rack, covered with a towel.

QUICK BREAKFAST BUNS

5 deciliters plain flour 1 tablespoon baking powder
3 deciliters sour milk - I haven't tried, but I suppose you could substitute plain youghurt, not too thick
2 tablespoons treacle
Salt
Grated carrots, if desired

Set oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Add treacle (one tip when adding sticky ingredients: Press a tablespoon inte the flour so you get a dent that holds in this case one tablespoon, then pour the sticky ingredient into the dent. Saves you dishes and also you make sure you actually add it all) and sour milk.Add carrots, if desired. Form a dough - it will be sticky! Form 12 buns and place them on a tray covered with a baking sheet. Bake in middle of oven for about 10-15 minutes. Let cool on rack, covered with a towel. Surprise family for breakfast!

SWEDISH TENDER STICKS - FINGER COOKIES

Actually in Swedish these are called tender sticks... They are quite easy to make and will keep well in airtight container either in room temperature or in freezer.

5 deciliters all purpouse flour
200 grams butter or margarine
2 tablespoons vanilla sugar
Caster sugar for rolling cookies in

Blend flour, butter in pieces and vanilla sugar in blender or try to mix it quickly by hand. Form a dough, wrap in cling film and let rest in fridge for about 15 minutes. Set oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Make dough into long rolls, about as thick as a finger. Cut rolls in pieces, about 7 centimeters (3 inches). Place on baking trays covered with baking sheets. Bake in middle of oven for about 12 minutes. Roll cookies in caster sugar while still hot.

CHICKEN PIE

Easy to make and can be stored in freezer, well covered.
Dough:
2,5 deciliters all puropuse flour
0,5 deciliter graham flour
0,5 teaspoon baking powder
50 grams butter or margarine
1 deciliter Turkish yoghurt
Salt

Filling:
Shredded, pre-cooked chicken meat (or any leftovers you might have)
1 green chilli pepper, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Handful or two of pre-cooked chick peas
1 tomato, sliced
Parsley, chopped
1-2 deciliters Turkish yoghurt
1-2 tablepsoons tomato paste
Harissa or other hot condiment, if desired
Salt, pepper
Turmeric
Grated cheese

Make dough in blender or by hand. Press dough into mould and prick carefully with a fork. Place in fridge for about 30 minutes. Pre-heat oven to 225 degrees Celsius. Prepare vegetables. Fry onion, garlic and peppers lightly and set aside. Mix everything except parsley and tomatoes. Bake pie crust in oven for 10-20 minutes, until the edges turn a bit brown. Fill crust, top with cheese and tomatoes. Bake for 20-30 minutes - cover with aluminium foil if it looks like it might burn before baked through. Sprinkle with parsley before serving.

NECTARINE PIE

I should of course have tried to make a nice pic, with fresh nectarines and such surrounding the pie, but I was in such a hurry preparing everything for dinner when I made this... It is nicer than it looks though!

Crust:
3 deciliters all purpouse flour
100 grams butter
1-2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons water

Filling:
4-5 fresh nectarines
4 eggs
2 tablespoons all purpouse flour
1 deciliter sugar
2 deciliters sourcream (crème fraice)

Cut cold butter in pieces and add flour. Use a blender or mix quickly by hand. Add sugar and blend, then add water and form a dough quickly. Let the dough rest in fridge about 30 minutes. Set oven to 225 degrees Celsius.

Place dough in mould, approx. 28 centimeters across. Prick dough with a fork and place a strip of aluminium foil over the edges to keep them from sliding down while baking. Bake at bottom of oven for about 10 minutes.

Prepare filling: Remove pits and slice nectarines. Place slices in crust. Separate egg whites from yolks. Mix yolks, flour, sugar and sourcream (crème fraiche). Beat the egg whites until stiff. Carefully add the whites to the yolk mixture, using a spatula to fold them in. Do NOT whisk! Spread mixture on top of fruit. Bake at bottom of oven for about 20 minutes. Be careful not to burn it, place a piece of aluminium foil in top of the pie towards the end if it gets too dark, but be careful not to let it stick to the filling.

Let the pie cool a little (or prepare it in advance and heat it a bit before serving) and serve with for instance vanilla icecream or lightly whipped cream.

HERB PRETZELS

Makes about 20
7,5 deciliters all purpouse flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt/herbal salt
150 grams butter
3 deciliters milk
Water for brushing
Herb of choice - in this photo I've used oregano and rosemary, dried.

Set oven to 250 degrees celsius. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Save a litte flour for later. Add the butter, cut into small pieces, to the flour. Form quickly into a dough. Put the dough on a table lightly dusted with flour. Cut dough into 20 pieces. Roll each piece into an approximately 25 centimeters long roll. Form into pretzels and place on a baking tray, covered with a baking sheet. Brush pretzels with water and sprinkle herbs on top.

Bake in middle of oven 8-10 minutes.

SMALL MIXED BBQ SKEWERS

Ground/minced lamb
Chicken breast
Chilli pepper
Tomato
Red onion

For lamb kebabs also:
Harissa
Cumin
Salt, pepper

For chicken breast:
Turmeric
Rosemary
Chilli powder
Cumin
Garlic, thinly sliced or chopped
Salt, pepper
Vegetable oil

Soak wooden skewers in water for approx. 30 minutes. Set oven to 225 degrees Celsius, if cooking in oven, or prepare barbecue.

Cut chicken breast into pieces. Mix spices and oil with chicken pieces in a bowl and let marinate for a while.
Mix ingredients for lamb kebabs. Cut vegetables in pieces.
Wipe off excess oil from chicken pieces.Place ingredients on skewers. It's a good idea to start and finish with a "solid" vegetable, like some onion or a tomato wedge, as for instance a kebab might slide off.

Place on a barbecue or grill in oven in an oven proof, slightly greased dish. Serve with for instance fries/chips and my all-purpouse sauce made with Turkish yoghurt (or sourcream) and sambal oelek, or a hot salsa.

HEARTY CHICKEN SOUP

2 chicken breasts, cubed, or other chicken meat
2 potatoes
1/2 onion
1 clove garlic
1/2 green bell pepper
1-2 handfuls small pasta, I used star shapes
1 tin tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Water
Salt

Peel and dice potatoes. Fry in a little olive oil, stirring so they don't burn. Add onions. Cut garlic clove in pieces and using pestle and mortar, mash it up with basil, oregano and some salt. Add mixture to potatoes and onions. Add tomatoes and a little water and bring to a boil. Add chicken and some more salt. After a few minutes, add bell pepper. Add pasta with a few minutes left to cook, according to cooking instructions on packet.

Serve with for instance some home made bread.

PASTA AU GRATIN

Version of a classic Swedish recipe, but a bit spicier and halal unlike the original.

4 dl (1 3/4 cups) unboiled pasta (not spaghetti or such, use macaroni, farfalle or the like) or 1 litre (1 quart) boiled pasta
1 tomato, diced
1 handful green peas
1 chili, chopped (optional)
1/2 small onion or 5 cm (2 inches) leek, chopped and fried

For vegetarian version: Broccoli, sweetcorn, beans...
For non-vegetarian version: Any leftovers you might have, or chopped up meatballs (in the photo), sausages, smoked meat or poultry...
You can also use some smoked salmon and dill weed + lemon.
2 dl (just under 1 cup) grated cheese
3 eggs
4 dl (1 3/4 cups) milk
Salt, pepper
1-2 teaspoons harissa, if desired

Boil pasta. Fry onions and if desired, the meat or prepare veg accordingly. In a bowl, mix onions/meat/veg with tomato and chili. Add pasta, well drained, and most of the cheese. Mix well, season and pour into a greased, ovenproof dish.

Whisk together eggs and milk and pour into the dish. Top with leftover cheese.

Bake at 200 degrees Celsius (392 F) for 30-40 minutes. Cover with aluminium foil towards the end if it looks like it's going to burn before it's done.

Serve with a salad!

GHRIBA HOMS - TUNISIAN CHICKPEA COOKIES

These cookies are traditionally made to celebrate Eid al Fitr. My mother-in-law made them for our wedding too (but she made heart-shaped cookies...)

150 grams (just over 5 oz) butter
80 grams (just under 3 oz) flour
250 grams (just under 9 oz) chickpea flour
100 grams (2.5 oz) powdered sugar

Melt butter in a skillet at low temperature and leave until brown - but not black! Sift flour, chickpea flour and powdered sugar, one at a time, into a bowl. Add butter and knead until you have formed a dough. Heat the dough in your hands. Make rolls (I suggest you do not use a cold surface for this as it will make the dough very difficult to handle, use a table top or such) about 15 mm (just over 1/2 inch) in diameter. Cut into pieces approximately 5 cm (2 inches) in length. Place in fridge for about 30 minutes.

Bake at 130 degrees Celsius (266 F) for 15-20 minutes. Let cool and put on a plate.

These cookies will stick to the roof of your mouth in spite of being dry, so make sure you have a cup of some nice beverage handy!

MINTED LAMB/LENTIL KEBABS WITH PARSLEY

500 grams (approximately 1 lb) minced/ground lamb.
1 dl (just under half a cup) yellow lentils, or any kind you wish
2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
a little water or milk for soaking the breadcrumbs
1 egg
1/2 - 1 tablespoon dried mint
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
harissa, if desired
salt, pepper

Boil lentils according to instructions on packet and drain well. Soak breadcrumbs in liquid for about ten minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Rinse hands with cold water and form kebabs, or balls if you wish. Fry in a little olive oil. Serve with potatoes (spicy potato patties in this picture, I have posted the recipe), rice or pasta. I made a sauce mixing Turkish yoghurt with sambal oelek.

LASAGNA

Meat or veg sauce:
500 grams (approximately 1 lb) ground/minced beef, or subtsitute half of or all the meat with lentils and/or beans.
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 handful grean peas
1/2 bell pepper, colour of your choice
1 tin tomatoes
1-2 tablespoons tomato paste.
1-2 teaspoons dried thyme.
1-2 teaspoons dried chili, if desired.

Béchamel sauce:
7-8 dl ( approximately 3 cups) milk.
4 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter.
Salt, nutmeg
Grated cheese
9 lasagna sheets

Preheat the oven to 200-225 degrees Celsius (392-437 F).

Meat sauce: Brown the meat in a little olive oil. (If you prefer a vegetarian version, prepare lentils/beans/veg accordingly). Add onions and bell pepper and fry a little longer. Add garlic and tomatoes + tomato paste. Bring to a boil and season. Let boil for 10 minutes or as long as desired, at least until the liquid has reduced a bit. With a few minutes left, add peas.

Béchamel sauce: Melt butter in a skillet. Stir in 2 tablesppons flour. Add some milk and stir in rest of flour and milk. Let boil on low heat for a couple of minutes. Season with salt and a dash of nutmeg (not too much!).

Grease an oven proof dish. Pour some béchamel sauce into the dish. Add lasagna sheets, more béchamel, meat sauce, cheese, more lasagna sheets and so on until done, the last layer should be béchamel sauce topped with grated cheese.

Bake in oven for about 30 minutes. If the lasagna looks like it's going to burn before it's done, adjust temperature and/or cover with some aluminium foil (a kind that is suitable for oven use). Serve with a salad!

SPICY POTATO PATTIES

4-5 potatoes
1/2 onion, or less, chopped
Olive oil, to taste
1 egg
1-2 teaspoons turmeric
2 - 3 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon or to taste chili powder, if desired
Salt, pepper

Peel potatoes and cut into pieces. Boil in salted water for about 10 minutes or until tender. Drain water and mash the potatoes with some olive oil. Let cool (very important or you will have potatoes with scrambled egg). Add chopped onions, egg and all spices. Rinse hands with cold water and form the mixture into patties. Place on a plate and put in fridge for about 30 minutes.

Fry in olive oil. Be careful when flipping them as they sometimes tend to "break" easily. Serve with fish, meat, poultry or with vegetables.

MEAT LOAF

Yes, another exotic recipe... but I bought 3 kilos minced/ground beef yesterday and had to cook!
400 grams minced/ground beef
4 tablespoons breadcrumbs
(1 tablespoon potato flour)
2 dl (just under 1 cup) water or milk
1-2 eggs
1/2 small onion, chopped (raw or fried as desired)
1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
salt, pepper
Vegetable oil, soy sauce

Grease a baking tray or oven proof dish. Mix breadcrumbs and potato flour with liquid and set aside for about 10 minutes. Mix with remaining ingredients except for vegetable oil and soy sauce. Form a loaf in the middle of the tray. Brush with a mixture of vegetable oil and soy sauce. Repeat once during cooking. Place in middle of 175 degrees Celsius (347 F) for about 45-60 minutes.

I really recommend quartering potatoes and onions and slicing tomatoes (and whatever else you like) and placing them around the meatloaf. A very simple way of cooking the whole dinner in one pan!Just remember to add salt and a little oil to the veg too.

BEEF KEBABS WITH YOGHURT

400 grams (slightly under 1 lb) minced/ground beef or lamb
4 tablespoons breadcrumbs
(1 tablespoon potato flour)
1,5 dl (slightly over 1/2 cup) water or milk
4 heaped tablespoons Turkish yoghurt
1-2 eggs
1 tablespoon chopped parsley (or mint if using lamb)
1 dessert spoon (or as desired) sambal oelek
salt, pepper

Soak breadcrumbs and potato flour in liquid for about 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and blend. Form kebabs with wet hands (keeps kebabs from sticking to the hands) and fry in olive oil. Keep heat rather high in the beginning as the kebabs will give off a bit of liquid, then continue on medium heat for a few minutes on each side. Serve with what you like - potatoes, rice, pasta... sambal oelek mixed with some more Turkish yoghurt makes a nice hot or cold sauce.