Courgette Salsa - Grow Your Own #9

¡Viva Cinco de Mayo!

This tasty salsa can be used as an appetizer, spooned over a steak or as salad dressing.

I used organic zucchinis (or courgettes) from the family farm located about 150 miles (about 250 km) from where we live. We go there once a month and that's when I have plenty of time to experiment with home grown ingredients.

This is my entry for Grow Your Own event that promotes the use of ingredients we grow or raise ourselves and also the dishes we make using our homegrown products. To view other entries and participating blogs, please visit Andrea's blog!

Courgette Salsa
From Woman and Home magazine

2 ripe tomatoes, core removed, finely chopped
1 medium courgette, finely chopped
2 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
finely grated zest and juice 1 lime
handful fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
3 tsp sweet chilli sauce (optional) - I used 1 tsp chilli powder
1 lime, cut into wedges, to serve
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1) Mix the chopped tomatoes and courgette with the rest of the ingredients, plus a pinch of sugar if not using the chilli sauce. Set the salsa aside at room temperature. Serve as appetizer.

Zucchini plants

Flavors and colors from foreign lands

From India: My husband spent a few days in India and brought home some nice spices, like Curry and Garam masala, and colorful bracelets and pashminas.

From England: I set up a meeting between my husband and Val, a blogger friend whom I have not met yet. The gift exchange was mutual, we had bought each other magazines, chocolate bars and spices. The wellies are so cute...

A few spices my husband got to buy at Tesco.

A big thanks... My Moo cards are here!!!

My birthday present came in a week earlier and it was a huge surprise! A signed contract with Foodbuzz and a free gift!!! Moo mini cards with my name and blog name printed on the back of the cards that have such nice food pictures!

You have a food blog and have not yet joined Foodbuzz... Why not do it now? Just click here to sign up! Please remember to type in http://fromourhometoyours-en.blogspot as your referrer!

Thank you!

Stuffed Crab Shells - Casquinha de Siri

Stuffed crab shells or "Casquinha de siri" is a Brazilian appetizer made with sautéed crab meat, coconut milk, palm oil, tomatoes, bell peppers, parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. You bake them in scallop or crab shells, either molds made of silicone or real ones, and then sprinkle lime juice on top. These taste even better if served with cold beer and preferably on the beach!

• If you are strict vegetarian, try using shredded cabbage instead of crab meat.
  

An this recipe goes to the Leftover Queen forum! This month we had to use an ingredient from the sea, coconut and lime or lemon.

Ingredients:
1 pound (500 g) crab meat, drained
1 small onion, cubed
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and cubed
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cubed
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1/2 tablespoon palm oil
1 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Bread crumbs
Grated Parmesan cheese
Crab or scallop shells
Lime wedges

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°) or use the broiler inside the oven.

1) In a skillet, heat olive oil and sauté onions, garlic and bell peppers until soft. Stir in crab meat and cook 3-5 minutes. Add tomatoes and simmer for about 5 minutes.

2) Add coconut milk, salt, pepper and palm oil, cooking about 3-5 minutes. Stir in parsley. Remove from heat.

3) Fill the shells with the crab mixture and top with bread crumbs mixed with Parmesan cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly brown. Sprinkle lime juice when serving.

Bom apetite!

Mixed Pepper Vinaigrette - Grow Your Own # 8

While visiting the family farm I picked different types of pepper and made this vinaigrette that goes so well as an appetizer, with any side dish or as a dressing for grilled vegetables.

Straight from the farm

This is my entry for March's Grow Your Own event at Andrea's Recipes. Click the badge to view all events listed on the page and get to know some wonderful blogs that participate and share their passion for homegrown ingredients.

Ingredients: (quantities may vary, pick assorted colors)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
2 fresh hot peppers, seeded and diced (chili, malagueta or Aji)
1/2 cup chopped onions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon vinegar or lime juice
1/4 teaspoon italian seasoning or oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup anchovies, sliced (aliche) - optional

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Serve over sliced italian bread as an appetizer or with any kind of grilled vegetables.

With anchovies and extra parsley.

Happy Easter!

The homework: dye a batch of eggs and write messages to kids from school. I was already planning on coloring eggs with them, and my little one was so helpful as we dyed the eggs together. One simple task turned into a nice way of not only decorating but creating memories with the kids. Eggshells, water and food coloring: all we needed for some fun! Have a nice Easter!

Re: Cheddar Bay Biscuits - WBB #20 Balanced Breakfast

My husband's birthday could only fall on a saint's day, but now we're talking about another saint... the patron saint of Ireland, St. Patrick! So, if March 17th is the date for many Irish and non-Irish to wear green, enjoy a parade, drink a lot of Guinness beer and wish good luck, why can't we celebrate it with food?

The garlic butter brushed on top added a special flavor and to me they seem to taste like the ones sold at Red Lobster.

I made these Red Lobster-inspired biscuits recipe because I feel homesick for the US and also this is my contribution for Mansi's Balanced Breakfast event at Fun and Food.

Did you know that Red Lobster alone sells over one million biscuits a day?

Cheddar Bay Biscuits

(Adapted from Diana's Kitchen and Kraft)

1 cup skim milk

1/3 cup Mayonnaise

1 tablespoon sugar

2 cups self-rising flour

1/4 cup shredded American cheese

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 tablespoons melted butter

10 fresh flat leaf parsley leaves

Muffin paper liners

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C.

2) In a mixing bowl combine the milk, mayo, sugar, and flour until completely combined. Add cheese to the dough and combine. Drop batter into 10 paper-lined muffin tins. Batter should "drop" from spoon.

3) Melt butter; mix in garlic, and brush tops of dough. Place one parsley leaf on top of each biscuit; lightly brush again.

4) Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden. Serve freshly baked and hot.

Substitute self-rising flour: use 2 cups all-purpose flour plus 1 tablespoon baking powder.

Black-eyed Peas - Feijão-Verde

Cow peas or Black-eyed peas - not the band... make wonderful salads, stews, and fillings. These beans were a gift from farmworkers and can be eaten green or dried. They are staple in North and Northeast regions in Brazil but can be easily cultivated anywhere.

Baked T-bone Steak with Pineapple Sauce - Royal Foodie Joust

A simple dish that gets a unique flavor with spices from different countries that blended so well together along with the pineapple sauce that is an incredible complement.

I use mirin, the Japanese cooking wine, to enhance the flavor of all kinds of meat and also tabil, a Tunisian spice mix to add some zest to the food.

I became a huge fan of Tunisian spices when a friend of mine who lives in Montreal and is married to a French-Tunisian, gave me some last year when we met for the first time here in Brazil.

A beautiful friendship that started with a comment on my blog. To make a long story short, we found out that our grandparents and also my father and her father were long-time friends, even though we had never met! Things that only internet can explain...

This month's joust at the Leftover Queen forum was an easy one for me with pork, citrus and pink or white peppercorns. The hard part was to choose the pictures for the post, as I ended up taking 149 photos of the same dish!

Baked T-Bone Steaks
6 T-Bone steaks
1 tablespoon salt (or to taste)
1/3 cup mirin (Japanese sweet cooking wine)
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon tabil (Tunisian spice mix)
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons chopped scallion
Juice of 1 lime

2 potatoes, cut into wedges
5 shallots, cut in half
Dried rosemary leaves
Pink peppercorns

Directions:
1) Mix salt, mirin, evoo, tabil, garlic, scallion, oregano and lime together. Pour over steaks. Marinate overnight or at least one hour in refrigerator, turning occasionally.

2) Transfer the steaks and the marinade to a large baking dish. Add potatoes and shallots. Season the potatoes with rosemary leaves and pink peppercorns. Bake, uncovered at 400ºF/200ºC for 45 minutes/1hour or until cooked to your taste. Usually, when the potatoes are done too. Serve with rice and pineaple sauce.


Pineapple sauce - from the kitchen of my sister-in-law's mother
1 fresh pineapple, cored, cut into chunks
3/4 cup sugar
1 malagueta pepper, finely diced.

1) Put the pineapple and the sugar into a blender and puree until smooth.

2) Cook for 10 minutes, stirring often, until most of the liquid has evaporated and sauce is thick. Let cool and then add the malagueta pepper.

Bolognese Polenta - Grow Your Own # 7

Polenta and pizza: two magic words! Travel anywhere in the world, even if you do not speak the language, and these simple words will put food on your plate. So, to celebrate the end of the cold season in the Northern hemisphere and the beginning of possible colder days here... I couldn't think of anything more comforting than the traditional italian dish: a Bolognese Polenta!

My mom used to make a lot of polenta when we were kids, like chicken polenta soup, fried polenta as appetizer and even a very soft sweet polenta which we had for breakfast or dessert.


My contribution to this month's Grow your own event at Andrea's blog has basil from my indoor garden. My dad makes sure I never run out of basil, he always sends me basil seeds and also dried basil!

Ingredients for hard polenta - from my mom's kitchen
1 cup yellow cornmeal or instant polenta
4 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 cloves garlic, grated
2 tablespoons onion, thinly diced
2 tablespoons canola oil

Directions
1) Combine the cornmeal and 2 cups of cold water into a large bowl and whisk, this will avoid lumps forming.

2) In large sauce pan, sauté onion over medium heat until translucent, add garlic and sauté 1-2 minutes more, until fragrant, do not brown. Add the remaining 2 cups water, boil, add salt and gradually stir in the polenta and water mixture.

3) Let the polenta and water simmer stirring frequently with wooden spoon to prevent sticking. It will take about 15 to 30 minutes until it's very thick, or 5 minutes if using the instant polenta. If it is too thick, add more water.

• You know the polenta is ready when it pulls away from the side of the pan.

4) Grease a baking dish or ramekins with butter. Add the polenta. Let it stand a few minutes. Spoon your favorite sauce. Garnish with grated parmesan cheese, chopped parsley and fresh basil leaves.

• The polenta will be creamy if you eat it right away and very firm for your next meal or if you let it set for 15 minutes while you make the topping.

Bolognese Sauce

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1⁄4 cup finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1⁄4 cup shredded carrot
1⁄2 lb (250g) Italian smoked sausage, cubed or grated (remove casings)
1 lb (500 g) ground meat, preferably chunk
1 can (14-ounce/500g) peeled, crushed tomatoes with the juice
(or 1 can (6oz/180g) tomato paste)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup milk
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Fresh basil leaves
Chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions
1) In a large sauce pan, heat extra-virgin olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and sauté over medium heat until the onions are translucent.

2) Add carrot, sausage and sauté for 5 minutes. Raise heat to high and add the ground beef. Break up any large lumps and cook until meat is no longer pink, about 6 minutes. Add parsley, basil and nutmeg.

3) Add the milk and let it simmer gently stirring frequently. Then add the wine, let it simmer until it has evaporated, add the tomatoes and stir throughouly. Cook over medium low heat until the sauce thickens, for at least 1/2 hour. Check for seasoning. Serve hot over the polenta and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Fresh eggs from the farm

We visit my husband's family farm once a month but I would love to live closer to enjoy all the good things there. A good reason to have chickens is to be able to collect fresh eggs and have a regular supply of delicious eggs to try new recipes.

Chickens there have room to roam free and eat outside. The kids love to throw kale from the garden fence and watch the chickens running torwards their natural food!

Much different from this other farm... Birds that live short lives, 40 to 45 days, under confined conditions, without ever seeing natural daylight. There is a campaign called Chicken out in Europe and you can read more about it here too.

And that reminds me of the British movie "Chicken Run," released a few years ago, about the miserable lives of a clan of chickens at a farm in 1950's England that plan to escape their prisonlike coop. Did you notice that they have teeth?