We first had this delicious dish, disguised as a salad, in our friend Sylvie’s house. Being that my husband is a huge lover of fish I of course had to recreate it, many times over, and in the process it became part of my usual repertoire.

It is a perfect dish for both small and large gatherings, the only “sticky” part is that it is best served warm. So, even though the ingredients can be prepared ahead of time, the actual assembly is best done right before serving. It is not a huge obstacle really, even if you’re planning to take it to a friend’s house. All you need to do is warm up the ingredients (a microwave will do fine), assemble, mix, and serve. All in all a five minutes process. And did I mention it is quite impressive?

Ingredients:

750 grs (frozen weight) fish fillet cut in four (Perch is what I use, because that’s what I find locally!)

sea salt

1 tsp paprika

olive oil

 

1 ½ cups basmati rinsed well

water as per cooking instructions of your rice

 

1 ½ cups cooked chick peas

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup chopped red & yellow pepper

1 tsp curry powder

1 soup cube

1 cup water

 

1 cup peeled & chopped apple

1 cup sliced green & black olives

6 anchovies chopped

1 large lemon

parsley chopped rough

Method:

place fish in baking tray

sprinkle with salt & paprika

add a bit of olive oil

bake in a 200centigrade pre-heated oven until done

set aside

 

saute onion & pepper

add curry powder

add chick peas

add a bit of water

simmer until the flavours are well combined

when done, make sure that there is enough liquid/sauce left (picture #3) & that it hasn’t all dried up as it will add flavour to the final dish (you may need to add more water when simmering)

set aside

 

cook your rice

set aside

 

as mentioned above, do not go further until you’re ready to serve

 

when ready, make sure all the above (fish, rice, and chick peas) are warmed up before assembling

in a large serving dish

start with the fish

add the rice

add the cold ingredients (apple, olives, anchovies)

add the chick peas w/their sauce

add the parsley

squeeze the lemon

mix well with your hands until well combined (I find that using my fingers to mix is a lot more efficient and less “traumatizing” to whatever it is you’re mixing then using a spoon or other utensil)

finish up by decorating with a couple of slices of lemon

 

Enjoy!

Looking through my pictures & recipes (in the hope of getting semi organised with my long neglected blog!!), I found a few that are totally ready but hadn’t been posted yet! So, apologies if you get an avalanche of recipes all of a sudden. I promise I’ll try to do no more than two postings a day until I catch up with myself.

This dish is an absolute winner! It is healthy, it is easy, it is quick, and it is a life saver in large gatherings. Any vegetable you can think of qualifies, the rule is: if you fancy it, then it definitely goes.

Have fun with it and experiment, you can not go wrong believe me!

Below is the variety I used, it changes often depending on what’s available in the market, and to some degree also on what’s available in my fridge & freezer at the time.

Ingredients:

300 grs frozen flat green beans

300 grs frozen peas

2 small red peppers halved then quartered then sliced about ½ cm thick (if you want you can use 1 red and 1 yellow, it adds to the colour)

2 medium onions halved then quartered then sliced medium thin

2 aubergines halved then quartered then sliced about ¾ cm thick

4 medium-large zucchinis halved then sliced ½ cm thick at an angle

1 extra large tomato halved and sliced (or 1 can crushed tomatoes)

1 large tbsp tomato paste

2 soup cubes

2 cups hot water

Method:

place all vegetables in a large oven tray and mix roughly with your hands

add some olive oil

combine the soup cubes, the hot water and the tomato paste

add to the liquid some olive oil

pour on the vegetables

mix well

place in pre-heated 200 centigrade oven on 3^rd shelf from the bottom until golden brown and cooked to your liking

P.S. after 20mns get the tray out and mix the vegetables carefully to make sure that all the vegetables get their fair exposure to the heat. If you don’t, the top layer will “bake” nicely and the bottom one will be “steamed”.

Repeat again after 20 more mns

Overall timing in the oven should be around 1 hour in total. If

you like your vegetables on the crispy side, you may have to

reduce the cooking time. Just taste as you go along.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s post is for my sister-in-law Jiji, who graciously traveled thousands of miles this past summer in order to help heal my broken bones (and my broken spirit!). Thanks “Sis”, you were here when you were most needed; we could not have managed without you!

Jiji asked me for this recipe a few days back, so here it is my dear, your mom’s Cream of Tomato Soup….

This delicious creamy soup is a favourite of my husband’s as well. One of their mom’s many specialties, and a regular must on her table in the cold winter months during their growing up years. It has of course become a regular must on our table as well, and an all-time favourite of Maggie & Mona. A gentle warm reminder of their loving Nana.

Ingredients:

8 medium size tomatoes

1 onion

2 carrots

2 small potatoes

2 cups milk

cream to dribble on top before serving

Method:

place the tomatoes in a pan

boil some water in a kettle

pour over the tomatoes to cover

let stand one minute then core the tomatoes and remove their skin

chop them roughly & set aside

chop the onion, carrots, and potatoes and place in a pan

add a bit of olive oil, sea salt, and sautee for a minute or two

add the tomatoes to the same pan, salt, cover and simmer

do not add any liquid at this point, the tomatoes will bring their own liquid

simmer for about an hour or until the potatoes and carrots are soft when tested

blend with a hand held mixer, the mixture will have a thick-ish puree consistency

add the 2 cups of milk and return to the stove on medium heat

adjust salt if needed

simmer for a couple of minutes

if it is too thick, you may need to add a bit of water, it all depends on how juicy the tomatoes were. I added about a ½ cup of water to mine, just use your own judgement

dribble a bit of cream in each dish before serving

Enjoy!