50-th Birthday

I'm exhausted! It took me 10 days to cook all the food, decorate, and organise everything else - lighting, heating, serving...
Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures along the process. I thought I'll set the table and then take pictures....BIG MISTAKE! I didn't have time to do that,so - NO pictures :-(

Zabava je bila otkazana, pa ponovo zakazana 2 sedmice kasnije. 10 dana mi je trebalo da sve organizujem i skuham sta sam planirala. Posteno sam se umorila. Slikala usput nisam; mislila sam slikati kad sve postavim. GRESKA! Nije bilo vremena za slikanje kad su gosti poceli pristizati. NEMA slika :-(
Evo sta sam odabrala i pripremila.

Here is my selection of food that I prepared.

- Pesto cheesecake from Foodforthought blog
-'Slani prutici' Salty Sticks from COOLINARIJA blog
-Selection of cheeses and fruits
-TORTA Setteveli (double recipe)
- Anzac biscuits (recipe coming in next post)
- Choko-Mint slice (coming in next post)
-Wiener Poppy seed cake
-Greek Orange cake
-Raspberry Hazelnut cake
- Osso Bucco
-Quiche
-Honey-Soy Chicken wings (recipe coming soon)
-Samosas Indijske Samose
-Indian spiced beans Mahune / Boraniju na Indijski nacin
- Spit Lamb, from local bucher
-Italian filled tomatoes Punjeni Paradajz na Italijanski nacin
-Basil Pesto pasta
-Thai Fried Rice-
-Sushi
-Creamy Seafood
-Cauliflower/Brocolli




Spinach and Cheese Filled Puff Pastry












Ingredients:
(For 48 small muffin cups)
3 sheets of puff pastry (frozen)
500 g Cottage cheese (or Ricotta)
250 g spinach (frozen or fresh), chopped
1 egg
salt to taste
Method:
Take the pastry out of freezer, cover with a clean tea towel and let it defrost.
Preheat oven to 200*C. Spray muffin tin with oil.
Mix spinach, cheese, egg and salt. Cut pastry into squares - each sheet will give you 16 small pieces. Place each piece into muffin mould, fill with 1/2 tbs of cheese/spinach mixture. Bake 10 minutes, or until slightly golden.



Spinat i sir u lisnatom tijestu

Potrebno:
3 lista smrznutog lisnatog tijesta
500 gr 'Cottage' sira (ili obicni)
250 gr spinata, sjeckanog
1 jaje
so po ukusu
Nacin:
Odmrznite tijesto; svaki list isijecite na 16 komada. Utisnite kocke tijesta u kalupe za (male) mafine. Pomijesajte preostale sastojke; ubacite 1/2 kasike u svaku modlicu i pecite 10 minuta na 180-200*C.

Chick Pea Rhogan Josh

I'm very busy organising 50-th Birthday party for my husband these days; cooking a lot. Many of my dishes will be served thanks to you, my friends. Next week I will show you what I prepared, and what I 'adopted' from your blogs. A couple of years ago, I tried to introduce a meatless day every week to my family. My boys weren't delighted; exceptions were nights when we would have chick pea Rhogan Josh. It is very filling and tasty vegetarian dish. For those who can't find readily prepared Roghan Josh, here is the link for mixing your own blend: http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/curry-recipes/easy-homemade-curry-pastes Ingredients: 1-2 tbs oil 1 large onion, chopped 1 large clove garlic, crushed 2 cans chick pea 3-4 tbs Rhogan Josh curry 1 can diced tomatoes, or 4 fresh 1-2 tbs tomato paste 250 g spinach, fresh or frozen 1 small bunch coriander leaves 1/2 lime, zest and juice Method: Heat oil, fry onion until soft. Add garlic and chick peas, then Rhogan Josh, tomatoes and tomato paste. Mix well, cover and cook for 5-20 minutes. Stir trough spinach, lime juice and zest, and coriander leaves. Serve with rice or Dahl 'Rhogan Josh' sa Slanutkom (ili vecera bez mesa!) Jako sam zauzeta ovih dana, jer sam pocela kuhati i organizovati proslavu 50-og rodjendana moga dragog. Kasnije cu vam pokazati sta sam sve odabrala, i koji od vasih recepata sam 'prisvojila'. Ovaj recept je iz 'Drafta'. Pokusavala sam uvesti jedan dan u sedmici bez mesa; Moji decki nisu bas bili odusevljeni! ;-) Potrebno: 1-2 K ulja 1 veci crveni luk, sjeckan 1 vece ceno bijelog luka, sitno sjeckan 2 konzerve slanutka (ili skuhajte sami) 3-4 K Rhogan Josh karija (vidi link gore) 1 konzerva sjeckanog paradajza, ili 4 svjeza 1-2 K Gustog paradajza 250 gr spinata 1 manji svezanj korijanera 1/2 limete, kora i sok Nacin: Zagrijte ulje, proprzite luk. Ubacite bijeli luk, 'Rhoga Josh',slanutak, paradajz i pire. Poklopite i kuhajte 5-10 minuta. Ubacite ostale sastojke, promijesajte i ponovo prokuhajte. Servirajte sa rizom ili sa Dahl.

'Tzigerosarma' (Faggots of Balkan)

'Tzigerosarma' is very similar to English Faggot recipe

I made this speciality dish first time during my visit to Bosnia last month. I'm not a big fan of offal, but I wanted at least to give it a try. We had spit (lamb) roast for Easter, and I wanted to use offal and try this Turkish/Greek recipe
(although other surrounding countries make it in a similar way). It's best to use organs of a young animal. I knew basic ingredients, followed my instinct for the rest of them and ended being delighted by taste.

Ingredients:
Internal organs of a lamb
(I used hart, lungs and liver)
1-2 linings of internal fat (Caul fat)
4 bay leaves
2 garlic cloves
1 onion
10 black pepper corns
1 T 'Vegeta', or similar
1,5 cups rice (cooked in 1,5 cups water)
1 large bunch parsley leaves, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 T 'Vegeta', extra
1 T paprika
1 t freshly ground black pepper
salt to taste
Method:
Cook all organs (except fat linings) with bay leaves, Vegeta, peppercorns, onion and garlic in 2 L of water. Cook rice separately (should be half cooked / still very firm).
Preheat oven to 200*C. Take all organs out of cooking water (reserve it), and mince. Mix really well with rice and all other ingredients. Cut internal fat linings (caul fat) into pieces 15 x 15 cm large. Put 4-5 tablespoons of mixture onto it, and fold shaping a parcel ('sarma'). Place parcels into a deep oven dish. Pour 3-4 cups of reserved water over it and bake for 20 minutes or until fat melted and golden brown.
Note- You can wrap prepared filing into a whole fat lining; that way you get 1 large 'sarma', which is cut into portions later.



Dzigerosarma (Širden/ Sarme od Jagnjecih Iznutrica)

Tokom moga boravka u Bosni ukazala mi se prilika da probam napraviti ovaj specijalitet, jer smo za Uskrs imali jagnje na raznju, pa su preostali organi mladog jagnjeta. Unutrasnjicu bas i ne volim, ali sam morala isprobati ovo jelo, koje potice iz Turske/Grcke; Slicno se pravi sirom Balkana. Znala sam osnovu recepta; slijedila sam svoj instinkt, dodala puuuno persunovog lisca i bijelog luka,i odusevila se ukusom na kraju.

Sastojci:
Unutrasnji organi jagnjeta
(ja sam koristila srce, jetru i pluca)
1-2 'maramice' unutrasnje masnoce
4 lista lovora
2 cena bijelog luka
1 crveni luk
10 zrna crnog bibera
1 K Vegete
1,5 solja rize (skuhane u 1,5 solju vode)
1 veca veza persunovog lisca, sjeckana
3-4 cena bijelog luka, protisnuta
1 K Vegete
1 K crvene paprike
1 k svjeze mljevenog crnog bibera
so prema ukusu
Nacin:
Skuhajte unutrasnje organe (samo ne maramicu) u 2 l vode sa lovorom, biberom, oba luka i Vegetom. Skuhajte rizu posebno; treba biti upola skuhana i ostati jos cvrsta.
Ukljucite rernu na 200*C.
Izvadite organe iz vode (sacuvajte je) i sameljite. Pomijesajte sa rizom i ostalim sastojcima. Dobro promijesajte. Izrezite maramicu na 15 x 15 cm. Na svaki dio stavite po 4-5 punih kasika punjenja i zamotajte kao sarmu. Slazite u dublju vatrostalnu posudu/tepsiju. Zalijte sa 3-4 solje vode u kojoj ste kuhali organe. Pecite 20 minuta, ili dok se mast ne otopi i ne postane zlatno-zuta.
Napomena- Cijelu masu mozete zamotati u jednu neizrezanu maramicu, tako da dobijete 1veliku 'sarmu' koju kasnije rezete na porcije.

Bosnian Pita with Nettle Leaves ..or, Spring in My Birth Town

For years and years I was dreaming about visiting to my birth town in spring. I wanted to see all my backyard (fruit)trees in full bloom. A lot of beautiful memories from this garden I carry with me; climbing trees pretending to be all sorts of super heroes from that time, running barefoot through deep snow every night in winter time to 'wash our feet' as my father would suggest, having street children for fruit harvest in autumn...
And there I was, with my open hart, breathing in every little scent that could recall beautiful memories. I was sad that I couldn't find some of my favorites. A lot of them were damaged during the war. But, little trees that I left 19 years ago, weren't babies any more, are still there offering beautiful blooms in spring, shades in Summer, fruit in autumn and most memorable 'crystal' scenes in winter, when rain and low temperatures coat them in ice and put on an unforgettable art display.
Spring is also time when certain 'natures' food is available. After long winter, our body is craving some highly nutritious food, like Stinging Nettle, for example.

Stinging nettle (Urtica Dioica)has a flavour similar to spinach when cooked and is rich in vitamins A, C, iron, potassium, manganese, and calcium. Soaking nettles in water or cooking will remove the stinging chemicals from the plant, which allows them to be handled and eaten without incidence of stinging.
Extracts can be used to treat arthritis, anemia, hay fever, kidney problems, dandruff, prostate problems, and pain.
Recipe:
Harvest Nettle (young tips only) using thick gloves. Boil water in pot, put nettle inside and cook for a couple of minutes. Drain and cut finely (like spinach). Oil and salt according to your taste; Ricotta or Fetta can be added and mixed.
Follow my recipe for 'Bosnian Pita'. Enjoy!




Pita od Žare/Koprive ili Proljece u mom rodnom gradu

Godinama sam mastala o tome da posjetim moje rodno mjesto u proljece. Zeljela sam da vidim moje dvoriste, moje vocke sa rascvjetalim krosnjama.
Mnogo lijepih memorija iz moje baste nosim sa sobom; Penjanje po drvecu, zamisljajuci razne scene iz tadasnjih filmova (Sandokan!),zimsko trcanje bosonog svako vece kroz snijeg 'da operemo noge' kako bi moj tata rekao, sazivanje djece iz komsiluka kada je vrijeme berbi...
I stigla sam... sa sirom otvorenim srcem, udisuci svaki najmanji miris koji je mogao probuditi uspomene. Na zalost, par mojih najdrazih stabala nisam pronasla. Stradali su u ratu; ali, mlada stabla koja sam ostavila prije 19 godina vise nisu bili 'bebe'. Porasli su da svojim' cvjetovima krase dvoriste u proljece, pruze hlad ljeti, a zimi, kada kisa i hladnoca udruze svoje moci i daju svoju umjetnicku postavku, zablistaju u svom punom 'kristalnom' sjaju.
Proljece je vrijeme kada je odredjena 'prirodna' hrana pristupacna. Poslije duge zime, tijelima je potrebno dosta vitamina i minerala koji se mogu naci u prirodi; npr - izdanci zare / koprive.

Zara / kopriva (Urtica Dioica)Ima ukus slican spinatu. Bogata je vitaminima A i C, te zeljezom, kalcijumom, fosforom i manganom. Kuhanjem listova otklanjate hemikalije koje izazivaju osjecaj opeklina na kozi (tkivu).
Koristi se u lijecenju artritisa, anemije problema sa prostatom i bubrezima, otklanja perut, ublazava bol...
Recept:
Uberite mlade vrhove zare, koristeci deblje gumene rukavice. Prokljucajte vodu u serpi, ubacite zaru i kuhajte par minuta. Ocijedite i isjeckajte kao sto biste spinat. Dodajte ulje i soli po ukusu; obicni sir ili feta mogu biti pomijesani po zelji.
Slijedite moj recept 'Bosansku pitu'Uzivajte u zdravoj i ukusnoj hrani!

Greek Salad + Awards

Ingredients:
Salad-
4 egg tomatoes, cut into wedges
2 Lebanese cucumbers, halved lengthways, sliced
1 red capsicum, halved, deseeded, thinly sliced
1 red onion, quartered, each quarter cut into thin wedges
250g kalamata olives
300g Greek feta, cubed
Dressing-
3 tbs extra virgin olive oil
2 tbs lemon juice
pinch of salt
Method:
Mix all salad ingredients well. Shake dressing ingredients in a jar, pour over salad. Serve on a bed of salad leaves (optional) and /or with crusty bread.

Grčka Salata

Potrebno:
Salata-
4 paradajza, izrezana na reznjeve ili vece kocke
2 krastavca, prepolovljena i izrezana
1 crvena paprika, izrezana tanko ili na kocke
1 ljubicasti luk, rezan sitno na reznjeve
250 gr crnih maslina
300 gr Grcke fete, rezane na kocke
Preliv-
3 K djevicanskog maslinovog ulja
2 K soka limuna
prstohvat soli
Nacin:
Pomijesajte sve sastojke za salatu. Sastojke za preliv muckajte u zatvorenoj tegli, pa ovime prelijte salatu. Servirajte preko listova zelene salate (po volji) i/ili sa nekim rusticnim hljebom / kruhom.


AWARDS / NAGRADE


HVALA dragoj pjesnikinji sa bloga "Poezija s mora"

treba preuzeti nagradu i odgovoriti na ova pitanja:
1. Što te inspirira za naslov posta?
Moji recepti iz svih krajeva svijeta.

2. Opiši se u četiri riječi:
Nisam ja tako jednostavna!

3. Najdraži citat:
Nikog nije briga ako si mizeran, stoga ti je bolje da budes sretan!

4. Nominiraj nekoliko blogova
-Mirjana
-Dzoli
-Zondra

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THANK YOU Duxa "cosinhadaduxa"

Answer the questions / odgovori na pitanja
-Why did you start bloging? / zasto ste otpoceli blogiranje? I wanted all my recepies in one spot
-How did you choose your blog's name? / kako ste odabrali ime za blog? My name + my kitchen + my creations
-Koje su teme vaseg bloga? / What's the topic of your blog? FOOD!!!

Winners / Dobitnici
-Nale
-Jelena
-Ankica
-Poezija s mora
-Marijana
-Tanja

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HVALA Nale "coolinarija"
-Tamara
-Tihana
-Nina
-Branka

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HVALA Marijana "Marijanina knjiga recepata"
HVALA Tanja "Tanja's cooking corner"

Say 10 things about yourself / da kažem nešto o sebi, u 10 stavki (vec bilo, pa vas necu 'daviti')

Forward award to other blogers / proslijedite drugim blogerima!
-Duxa
-Melrose
-Jubistacha