Smoked Salmon with Pearl Onions baked in Filo Dough

Ingredients

1 sheet of Filo dough, (a very fine pastry found in the freezer section of most grocery stores)
2 large pearl onions, sliced
8 slices smoked salmon

The Sauce:

1 apple
1/4 cup capers
2 tablespoons crème fraîche
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup dill, finely chopped
Salt and pepper

This is how you do it:

Set the oven at 440 F (225 C).

Roll out each Filo dough sheet to double its size. Split it down the middle.

Fry the onion in a little butter and oil. This should not change its colour, only make it become soft (its flavour will become a bit milder).

Divide the onion between the sheets of Filo dough and set it all in the oven for about 15 minutes. The dough should rise, become crisp and turn a bit golden in colour.

The Sauce:

Peel the apple and slice it thinly. Mix it with the capers and dill in a bowl. Stir in the mayonnaise and crème fraîche. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove the dough from the oven, place the salmon over it and finish it off with dabs of the apple-caper sauce.

Salmon

Smoked Salmon with Pearl Onions

Italian Cuisine 2

Polenta Lasagna


--Ingredients--
2 tubes precooked refrigerated polenta, any flavor
2 26 oz jars marinara sauce
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup diced yellow onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup shredded carrots
8 oz sliced mushrooms
32 oz part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper


Method

Preheat oven to 350. Slice polenta into rounds about 1/8-inch thick; set aside. Stir balsamic vinegar into marinara sauce and set aside. Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add oil and tilt the pan to coat. Add onions and stir to coat with oil. Cook onions, stirring often, for about 3 minutes or until translucent. Add garlic and carrots; cook for 3 minutes, stirring often. Stir in mushrooms and cook until they are lightly browned. Set vegetable mixture aside to cool slightly. In a large bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan, 1 cup of the mozzarella and the all of the remaining ingredients. Stir to blend well. Spray a 9 x 13-inch pan with non-stick spray. Spread a thin layer of sauce in the pan and top it with polenta slices, trying not to have large gaps in-between. Spread another thin layer of sauce over the polenta. Top with half of the ricotta mixture, then half of the vegetable mixture. Add a second layer of polenta slices and repeat sauce and filling layers, ending with a layer of polenta that is covered with remaining sauce. Bake for 1 hour or until heated through. Sprinkle remaining cup of mozzarella on top during last 5-10 minutes or baking. Allow lasagna to rest for 15-20 minutes, loosely covered with foil, before slicing. Pass remaining Parmesan cheese for garnish

-Polenta Lasagna-

-A piece of Polenta Lasagna-

Italian Cuisine

Tiramisu


--Ingredients--
6 egg yolks
1 cup white sugar, divided
1 pound mascarpone cheese
6 egg whites, stiffly beaten
1/4 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons kirschwasser ( fruit brandy)
1 1/4 cups strong brewed coffee, cold
25 ladyfingers
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder


Method

In a medium bowl beat together the egg yolks and 1.3 cup of sugar. Using a wooden spoon, stir in mascarpone cheese, beaten egg whites, cream and kirschwasser. Stir until smooth and set aside. Dissolve remaining 2/3 cup sugar in coffee. Quickly, to avoid complete saturation, dip ends of ladyfingers in coffee mixture. Place ladyfingers in a single layer in a 9 x 13 inch glass baking dish. Spread a layer of cheese mixture over the ladyfingers, then repeat layers, ending with the cheese mixture. Cover and refrigerate for several hours. Sprinkle with cocoa just before serving.

-Tiramisu served in different ways..-

-Mouth watering tiramisu sprinkled with cocoa-

Phillipine's Cuisine 2

Chicken Paella


--Ingredients--
1 kilo chicken (cut into small pcs.)
1/4 kilo chicken giblets & liver
2 cans tomato sauce
2 large onions chopped
1/2 head garlic, minced
1 pc. bay leaf (laurel)
2 bell peppers, red & green (strips)
1/2 kilo tahong (cooked in shell)
3-4 crabs (cooked, quartered)
1 cup sweet green peas
2 chorizo de bilbao (sliced diagonally, 1/4' thick)
1 tsp. pimenton powder
1 tbsp. vetsin (Monosodium glutamate)
salt to taste
1 hard-cooked egg (garnishing)
3 cups rice
4-5 cups water


Method

Saute and brown garlic in oil. Stir in half of chopped onions. When wilted, add chicken. Stir unitl light brown and pour in tomato sauce. Add bay leaf, vetsin (Monosodium glutamate), and salt. Cover. Cook until almost done. Add pimenton, stir to blend well with sauce. Then, add pepper strips, tahong, shrimps, peas, chorizo, and crabs. Boil for 10 minutes. Set aside. This time a big wok or KAWALI. Saute' remaining onions until soft. Add 1 can tomato sauce, water, and rice (previously washed). Stir to blend water with tomato sauce. When it boils, cover, lower heat to medium temperature and continue cooking until rice is cooked. When done, toss rice with fork to make it fluffy. Then, add 3/4 part of cooked mixture to rice. Increase heat. Mix to blend the cooked mixture and rice evenly. Cook until dries. Place in a big dish, spread the remaining cooked mixture on top. Garnish with sliced hard-cooked egg and chopped spring onion.

-Chicken Paella-

-Chicken Paella served in few ways-

Phillipine's Cuisine

Chicken & Pork Adobo


--Ingredients--
1/2 kilo pork
1/2 kilo chicken
1 cup vinegar
2 tbsp salt
1 tsp vetsin (Monosodium glutamate)
1/2 tsp pepper (powdered)
5-6 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups thick coconut milk

Method

Cut pork and chicken into small serving pieces. Put in a pan and add all the ingredients except the coconut milk. Boil for 5 minutes and drain it and set both aside. Fry pork, chicken, and garlic in oil until it turns a little brown. Mix both again, cover and boil. When it is half cooked, pour in the coconut milk. Stir until it boils and continue cooking until pork and chicken are done.

-This is the Chicken Adobo served with rice-

-This is how the Chicken & Pork Adobo looks like-

Georgian Cuisine 3

Beef Shish Kebab (Basturma Mtsvadi)


--Ingredients--
1/2 cup dry red wine or pomegranate juice or sparkling juice
3 garlic cloves, crushed in a garlic press
1 small onion, grated
8-10 peppercorns, crushed
salt to taste
2 1/2 lbs boneless lean sirloin steaks, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
3 small onions cut into wedges
3 green bell peppers cored, seeded, and cut into wedges
1/4 cup olive oil

--Garnishes--
radicchio or red kale leaf
2 tomatoes
2 lemons, cut into wedges
8 scallions, trimmed
1 long zucchini, cut into six 1 inch thick slices

Method

In a large glass bowl, combine the wine, garlic, grated onion, peppercorns, ans salt, then add the meat and toss to coat well. Refrigerate, covered, for 6 to 8 hours, turning the meat occasionally. Bring to room temperature before grilling. Prepare a charcoal grill for grilling. Coals must be coated with white ash before starting the grilling of the meat. Or preheat the broiler. Toss the onion and pepper wedges in a bowl with the oil. Remove the meat from the marinade and string it on long metal skewers, alternating meat cubes with onion and pepper wedges and pushing everything closely together. Grill (or broil) the skewers 4 inches above the coals, turning frequently and sprinkling with the marinade every 3 minutes. Cook 9 to 10 minutes for medium rare, 12 to 13 minutes for medium.

To Serve:

Line two serving platters with the radicchio leaves or the red kale. Cut into the tomatoes as though you were going to cut them into quarters, but leave them intact at the stems. Place one tomato in the middle of each platter. Scatter lemon wedges and scallions on the platters. Stick the sharp end of each skewer into a zucchini slice. Place three skewers on each platter and bring the open ends together to form a tripod. Wrap the ends with a napkin to hold them together. Serve at once.

-A Charcoal Grilled Mtsvadi Basturma-

-Beef Shish Kebab also known as Mtsvadi Basturma-

Georgian Cuisine 2

Khinkali (Ground Meat Filled Pasta Pockets)

Ingredients

--Filling--
1 3/4 lbs ground lamb
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
3 large onions, minced
1 bunch cilantro, finely chopped

--Dough--
4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup lukewarm salt water


Method

Knead together the ground meat, salt, pepper, onion, cilantro and about 7 tbsp lukewarm water.
Prepare a smooth dough from the flour and the salted water. Roll it out thinly and cut out 6 inch circles using a plate. Put 1-2 tbsp of filling into the center of each circle. Gather up the edges of the dough to the center over the filling and pinch neatly together. Put the khinkali in a large pan with boiling, lightly salted water and simmer gently, gently agitating them with a wooden spoon now and again. When the khinkali float to the surface, continue to simmer for about 6 more minutes. Remove from the water with a wire skimmer, sprinkle black pepper over each and serve hot.

P/S: Best with chill cold beer..:P

-Khinkali-

-Lamb Khinkali-