Pink Grapefruit Gin and Tonic

Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.

Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.

Yay, it’s Spring! I’ve been waiting for it for such a long time. I say that’s a good enough reason to have a cocktail. Are you with me?

Today’s the day for a very refreshing and just a little fancy pink grapefruit gin and tonic. Secret ingredient – aquafaba. It adds such a delicate foam and also such a flavor. I just recently discovered aquafaba and I’m in love. If you never tried it, please do. It will rock your world. I made meringue a couple of weeks ago and it’s pretty fabulous. I might even prefer it to the egg white meringue. Still deciding, they are both so good!

Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.
Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.
Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.

How to make the beautiful foam?

The trick to getting the beautiful foam from aquafaba is to use a cocktail shaker. A mason jar works as well, although it requires a bit more shaking, but you can get the job done 🙂 Funny story. After the photoshoot, I saved the cocktail so me and my husband would drink it in the evening. The foam was almost gone by the evening so I wanted to shake the whole thing a bit. But totally forgot that the cocktail also includes tonic. Hello, bubbles! And hello, explosion! You can imagine the rest. Luckily I had enough so we could both have a sip or two. And a mess to clean up 😛

Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.
Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.
Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.

Guys, tomorrow I’m turning 31! In the morning I’ll be baking a cake for myself 🙂 Oh who am I kidding, I’ll probably bake more than one. Don’t judge 😀 We’ll have some friend and family over for the weekend so I need to equip myself with some goodies. I’ll probably also bake my plum apple galette. It is a big hit at my house.

Have a great weekend and cheers!

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.
5 from 1 vote
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Pink Grapefruit Gin and Tonic

Course Cocktail, Drinks
Keyword cocktail, gin and tonic, pink grapefruit cocktail
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 4 servings
Author Anja Burgar

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup gin
  • 1/2 cup tonic
  • 1/2 cup grapefruit juice freshly squeezed
  • 1/4 cup + 2 TBSP aquafaba
  • ice

Ginger syrup

  • 1/4 cup water boiled
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • thimbs size ginger peeled and roughly chopped

Instructions

Ginger syrup

  1. Pour boiling water over chopped ginger and cover. Let steep for 10 minutes, then uncover and leave to cool for five minutes.

  2. Once cooled a bit add honey and mix until honey dissolves. Leave to cool completely and refrigerate before making the cocktail.

Pink Grapefruit Gin and Tonic

  1. Pour gin, grapefruit juice, aquafaba and ginger syrup in a cocktail shaker and top with a handful of ice. Close the lid securely. Shake vigorously until you see foam on top.

  2. Pour into four glasses and serve immediately.

Turn a classic gin and tonic into a delicious gin cocktail by adding pink grapefruit and aquafaba for a fabulous delicate foam.

Whiskey-Spiked Mulled Ginger Beer

It’s drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.

It's drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.

Hi guys! It’s been too long since I’ve written here. I’m not gonna bore you with a ton of details. If you want to see what’s been keeping me away from my blog, you can check my personal IG. You’ll see my little elf growing up, keeping me busy and on the move. He’s such a nice little boy an I love how he enjoys helping us in the kitchen or anywhere else for that matter. He loved to pick veggies from the garden in the summer. His favorite veggie for picking: green beans. Current obsession: baking cookies, dancing and playing with puzzles. One particular puzzle ALL DAY LONG. We’ve had to fix it multiple times it’s in such bad condition. 

It's drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.
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This was just a really short version of our life right now. And I’m so excited about the upcoming holidays. We’ve got the tree up, lights are on, decorations are up, we just need a drink to keep us warm. We’re all about spicy. Even the kiddo doesn’t mind a little heat. 

This whiskey spiked mulled beer is not for kids, but be sure to check the recipe notes for a non-alcoholic version that’s safe for kids 🙂 I want my kid to be able to eat and drink with all the rest of the family, so I try and make dishes and drinks that he can enjoy too. We’ve almost entirely banned eggs since he’s allergic and you’ll probably see a lot more egg-free recipes in the future.

Okay, let’s head to the recipe. I’ve tried mulled beer when we stopped in Lithuania on our Eurotrip honeymoon. It blew my mind. Who’d have known cooked beer would be so good. After that, I tried bad ones too and I can tell you choice of beer matters a lot. I’m making mulled ginger beer, but you can use others as well. Just make sure the beer is not too hoppy and bitter because this will reflect in the mulled beer. 

It's drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.
It's drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.

If you need more drinks to keep you warm during the cold winter you may want to try my Mulled Mandarin Juice or homemade Hot Chocolate.

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

It's drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.
5 from 1 vote
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Whiskey-Spiked Mulled Ginger Beer

It’s drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.

Course Cocktail, Drinks
Keyword beer cocktail, easy recipe
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Servings 6 people
Author Anja Burgar

Ingredients

  • 1 L ginger beer
  • juice of 2 oranges
  • peel of one orange
  • 4 cinnamon sticks
  • 6 slices ginger
  • 4 rosemary springs
  • honey to taste
  • whiskey to taste

Instructions

  1. Add ginger beer, orange juice cinnamon sticks, ginger slices and rosemary springs to a pot and bring to a simmer. Let simmer for 5-10 minutes then remove from heat and add honey.

  2. Pour in mugs or heat-proof glasses and add whiskey to taste.

Notes

Non-alcoholic version: omit whiskey and use non-alcoholic ginger beer

It's drinks like these mulled ginger beer with a hint of whiskey that create the Christmas atmosphere.

Sparkling Basil & Blueberry Float

A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink – sparkling basil and blueberry float.

A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float.

How’s summer been treating you so far?

So far, we’ve had increadible hot weather and we finaly managed to get some vacations. We love going to the lakeside. We spent a week at the amazing lake Bohinj. I dare say it’s one of the prettiest places in Slovenia. The lake lies right under the mountains in a national park. It’s amazing to see the slopes of the mountains end at the lake shore and see the most perfect sunset behind the peaks all while swimming in the cold (but no freezing) water.

Our friends with two kids joined us there. The kids had so much fun and us adults had a lot of beer. Omg, this sounds like we were neglecting our kids, but I asure you we weren’t. Beer was necesary to beat off the heat. And the uncountable wasp attacks. Anyway, it was a great vacation, minus wasps!

A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float. A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float.

Coming back home, we stepped right into the blueberry season. Not the wild ones, those are gone for a while. But they would work just as well if not better in this recipe. 

Anyway, the frost completely damaged our blueberry flowers and there are barely any blueberries. My parents-in-law have a lot, though. Luckily their blueberries survived the frost 🙂

I was thinking about making another drink recipe. I haven’t done one in a while and it’s about time to have one for the summer heat. I remember seing a ton of float recipes on Pinterest. I’ve never really tried one, but I was sure vanilla ice cream and blueberries would make an awesome summer float. So I made a simple recipe, that’s both a refreshing drink and an awesome dessert. Who wouldn’t like that?!

A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float. A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float. A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float.

Again my obsession with basil. I swear it’s in all my food these days. There’s just so much of it. And I like how delicious it tastes in sweet recipes. Blueberries and basil – a spot on combination. My new favorite! No really, it’s that great. You need to try the recipe ASAP.

Combine all of that with lime juice and a creamy bourbon vanilla icecream and you get the tasteiest, most delicious blueberry float. I actually saved some from the shoot in the fridge and they were just ass good the next day. Vanilla icecream turned into a creammy fluff and kept the bubbles from sparkling water right in the drink. It was just as yum the next day. Who would have thought 😀

 

A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float.A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float.

I feel like my posts are getting shorter and shorter, but I really need to get some sleep. I’m writing this while baby is two hours in his night sleep, so I only have a few more hours to get some proper rest. He usually wakes up at half past one or around two and after that it’s a gamble. He might sleep well, or he’ll move in his bed (sleeping or not). I can’t really sleep while I hear him moving, so I’m looking forward to him getting his own room in about two or three months. He’s actaully quite a good boy as far as sleeping goes, but I wouldn’t mind a full eight our sleep. Haven’t had one in four months.

We’ll I’ve kept my babbling way too long.

Off to bed now!

Good night folks and happy Friday in a couple of hours!

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

Sparkling Basil & Blueberry Float

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

Blueberry Purée

  • 3 cups blueberries
  • 3/4 cup cane sugar
  • 3/4 cup water
  • juice of one lime
  • 10 big basil leaves

Sparkling Basil & Blueberry Float

  • blueberry purée
  • 400 ml sparkling water
  • juice of two limes
  • 8 scoops bourbon vanilla ice cream
  • frozen blueberries or crushed ice

Instructions

Blueberry Purée

  1. Place all ingredients into a skillet over medium heat and let simmer for 5 minutes.

  2. Purée cooked blueberries and the liquid in a food processor and let cool at room temperature. Refrigerate before serving if preffered.

Sparkling Basil & Blueberry Float

  1. Fill four small glasses with blueberry purée, place frozen blueberries or crushed ice over. Pour over lime juice and sparkling water and top each drink with two scoops of bourbon vanilla ice cream.

A perfectly refreshing and comforting non-alcoholic summer drink - sparkling basil and blueberry float.

Flourless Green Pea Fritters

These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.

These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.

I’m ending this wonderful week with these fluffy green pea fritters. It’s really been a great week. The baby gave us his first real smile. He’s smiled to everyone in the family at one point during the week. I couldn’t imagine how exciting that milestone was before it happened. The most wonderful thing 🙂 Now I’m looking forward for more and more of these cute teethless smiles and the sparks in his eyes.

He’s been letting us sleep during the night enough not to feel tired during the day, although I do take at least one short nap with him during th day. It’s just so cozy lying next to him and feeling him next to me while I’m sleeping 🙂

These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.

Okay, let’s head to the recipe. I’m very excited to share it with you. I’m a huge fan of pancakes, I make them at least once a week for breakfast, but they are usually sweet. I wanted to make a savoury recipe for easy and quick pancakes, that I’ll be able to prepare while taking care of a newborn. And it really is that simple.

The batter is made in a food processor or a blender and the pancakes take only a few minutes to cook. So perfect! There’s a little cottage cheese for extra creamines and flavor and rolled oats to bring it all together. Since so many herbs have started to grow, I’ve also added some from the garden and the forest. I used wild garlic and chives, but you can add whatever you can find in the garden, like mint, basil, thyme, oregano… So many yummy variations 🙂

And I realised that they are also super delicious cold, so they’re perfect for picnics 🙂 Hoping for lots of those these summer. ‘Cuz who doesn’t love picnics, right? We’re going on one today. Yay!!

These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.

I’ve been working on this recipe before the baby, when we’ve had a new roof window installed. I had to test the new light source for photography. I like it so far. A bit different than the straight side light, but just as interesting. What do you think?

These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.

Have a great weekend you guys!

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.
5 from 1 vote
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Flourless Green Pea Fritters

Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Servings 15 fritters

Ingredients

Green Pea Fritters

  • 1 cup peas (if using frozen, thaw and drain before making the fritters)
  • 1/2 cup roled oats
  • 1 cup parmesan cheese grated
  • 1/2 cup cottage cheese
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • a handful seasonal herbs (wild garlic, chives, basil, thyme...), coarsely chopped
  • salt
  • black pepper

Sauce

  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 2 TBSP lemon juice
  • zest of 1/2 lemon

Instructions

Green Pea Fritters

  1. Place all ingredients in a food processor or a blender and mix until the batter is uniform.

  2. Fry spoonfulls of the mixture on preheated frying pan with a little oil for 2 minutes on each side or until golden.

Sauce

  1. Place all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk. 

  2. Serve with warm or cold fritters.

These soft and fluffy flourless green pea fritters with seasonal herbs make the most delicious healthy breakfast.

Roasted Broccoli & Cauliflower Mole Tacos

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.

What have you been up to lately?

I’m all about mexican food these days and I’m enjoying spicy food while I still can. Apparently when you have a baby, you’re stuck with bland and boring unseasoned food for a month or so. I’m dreading that!

If there’s anything I love about cooking is that there’s always a way to make super fast lunch or dinner and still make it incredibly delicious. Most of the time I’m enjoying spending hours and hours in the kitchen. It’s my absolute favorite spot in the house. But sometimes it happens I have to whip up something in five minutes or so, but still want it to be super delicious and healthy if possible. I love how tacos make this possible every time. You can use whatever’s in your fridge and add some nice spices, some yogurt or nut sauce and you’ve got a five minute meal right there.

One of the simplest versions I make is, I just quickly sauté some red peppers, add some fresh avocado and a glug of yogurt in a tortilla and I’m good to go. Other times I have a couple more minutes to spare and I play around with food.

That’s kindda how these mole tacos with broccoli and califlower came to be. I love broccoli, it’s probably one of my favorite green veggies and I could eat it every single day. Cauliflower is great too, so I added it to make it a more fun recipe. In this recipe you can actually use either one of these or both.

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.

Mole Tacos

Moles are actually a variety of sauces and dishes that include these sauces. We’re not making a mole sauce today, though. This recipe is an interpretation of a mole sauce, my style. Some hot chillies, cocoa powder and lots of other spices. It’s basically a rub or a spice mix for the broccoli and cauliflower that we’re gonna roast. And it’s a spice mix that you can make in advance and keep in your pantry.

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.

Quick pickling

Loving the pickles!

They usually take time to make, but there’s a quicker cheaty way to make them. And it takes literally 5 minutes or less. The main ingredients in pickling are vinegar and salt, sometimes water. Besides the veggies of course 🙂

What we’re going to do is cut the veggies real thinnly, which will make them pickle faster. Then add some salt, which will bring out the water from the radishes. And of course add some vinegar to make it sour. And that’s it. So simple!

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.

Making your own tortillas

You can also try making your own tortillas and find the recipe here. But double it if you’re making this whole recipe.

I’m making my own tortillas all the time and I make the dough in the morning. I divide it into balls and cover in plastic foil and leave it on the counter or in the fridge until I’m ready to make them. Sometimes I even make a big batch and keep it in the fridge for a couple of days and have a taco marathon week 🙂

A new awesome flavor combo each day. Yay! Try that, if you haven’t already 🙂

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.

So, have a good day and hopefully get some sun!

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.
5 from 1 vote
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Roasted Broccoli & Cauliflower Mole Tacos

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 16 tacos

Ingredients

Mole Spice Mix:

  • 2 tsp chilli powder
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp sweet paprika
  • 1 tsp pepper
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 2 tsp salt

Mole Tacos:

  • 1 broccoli
  • 1 cauliflower
  • mole spice mix
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Pickled Radishes:

  • 200 g radishes
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 TBSP vinegar

Avocado Sauce:

  • 1 avocado
  • 1/2 cup natural yogurt (180 g)
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • juice of 2 limes
  • a handful cilantro
  • pinch of pepper
  • pinch of salt

Other:

  • 16 small tortillas (find recipe in my Turmeric Falafel Wrap post and make it double)
  • pickled radishes
  • avocado sauce
  • peanuts
  • cilantro
  • chopped chillies

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Mole Spice Mix:

  1. In a bowl mix all ingredients to get a uniform seasoning mix.

Mole Broccoli And Cauliflower:

  1. Chop broccoli and cauliflower into small florets and cut the harder stems into 1 cm sized chunks.

  2. Add them to a big bowl and sprinkle with mole spice mix and olive oil. Toss around to coat them evenly with seasoning.

  3. Move them to a lined baking tray and bake for about 10 minutes or until tender.

Pickled Radishes:

  1. Slice radishes thinly. Add them to a bowl and sprinkle with salt. Massage them vigorously for a minute or two, so they start releasing water. Leave them to rest for another minute, then pour away the excess water. Add vinegar to the radishes and set aside.

Avocado Sauce:

  1. Mix all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Add more water if necessary.

Serving;

  1. Fill the tortillas with broccoli and cauliflower, add pickled radishes, avocado sauce, peanuts, cilantro and chopped chillies.

These quick and easy roasted broccoli and cauliflower mole tacos are such a nice healthy fresh lunch or dinner. With the addition of a 5-minute pickled radish and avocado yogurt sauce they make a perfect meal.

Popped Beans and Steamed Broccoli Salad

Whoever says comfort food can’t be healthy, has obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?

Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?

Hey, hey! We’re having broccoli today. 

Hmmm, the rhyme was unitntentional, I guess I’m feeling poetic 😛

I have a habit of steaming broccoli instead of roasting them. I dunno, I think it’s because of the vivid green color it keeps. Plus, it’s quicker 🙂 I was thinking what would go well in a steamed broccoli salad and then I remembered a Jamie Oliver show from a while ago. Can’t even remember the recipe, but I know he roasted the beans on a pan until they started popping. I tried those before and they were great. So, it sounded like an awesome idea to add them to the broccoli. Turnes out it was the right decision and with some added chopped parsey, pomegranate seeds and spicy nuts this makes a perfect winter salad.

The best thing about this salad is, it can be both a warm or a cold salad. For a warm salad, you dress it while everything is hot, for a cold salad, you rinse the broccoli with cold water after steaming and then decide if you want the beans and nuts to be warm or not. It’s up to you!

Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?
Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?
Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?

I’m seriously obsessed with mustard dressing. Although I’m normally not a fan of mustard as a condiment, it’s so amazing if you use it as seasoning.

This dressing is probably the one I use most on daily basis, because it’s super simple and mustard gives it an extra depth and richness. It works really well with bitter winter salads like radicchio.

Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?

So, some updates on what’s been going on in my life lately. We’re starting to prep more seriously for the baby. Yep, barely starting. I mean we have bought some things, made some and we’re getting lots of second hand stuff from friends, but we still have sooo many chores until I can really say, now we’re ready. We still have 10 weeks, but you never now, when the baby might surprise us. Oh, I have to tell you about the cutest little pants I’ve sewn. They are the cutest, but I’m affraid the fabric is not strechy enough and they’ll probably be to small to fit even a newborn. Luckily, I’m stacked with fabric and I’m making new ones 🙂

Ok, enough baby talk!

Besides all the baby preparations, we’re also starting to prep for the new dance show that we moved from Spring to Autumn, because of… well, baby. Yesterday, I started making my part of the coreography. You can imagine a big belly and a fast dance + some floorwork. It was fun, but also very chalenging!

Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?
Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?

Great, your all updated now, so let’s start cookin’!

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

POPPED BEANS AND STEAMED BROCCOLI SALAD

Course Salad
Keyword bean salad, broccoli salad, healthy, quick
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 4
Author Anja Burgar

Ingredients

STEAMED BROCCOLI SALAD

  • 1 big broccoli
  • 1 cup cooked red beans if you’re using canned, rinse well before cooking
  • 3 TBSP mixed seeds sunflower seeds, sesame, black sesame…
  • 1 tsp crushed chilli flakes
  • 1 tsp ground garlic
  • 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
  • a bunch of parsley chopped

LEMONY MUSTARD DRESSING

  • 5 TBSP olive oil
  • 3 TBSP lemon juice
  • 1 TBSP mustard
  • pinch of salt
  • pinch of pepper

Instructions

Steamed Broccoli Salad

  1. Cut the florets away from stems and cut them into bite size chunks. Cut the thinner stems into 1 cm chunks. Peel the thick main stem and cut it into 1 cm cubes.

  2. Boil a little water (about a finger’s width) in a steaming pan and add the steming basket. Place the stem parts of broccoli into the steaming basket and the florets on top. If there are any leaves from broccoli place them right at the top. Cover with a lid, reduce heat to low and cook for about 5 minutes or until you can easily pierce the broccoli with a fork, but it’s still vibrant green. Be careful, because broccoli can go from vibrant to brownish color quickly.
  3. If you prefer your broccoli to be cold, rinse immediately under cold water to stop it from further cooking. If you’re serving it warm, just remove from steamer and let it drain.
  4. In a bowl mix together garlic and chilly flakes.
  5. Heat a big skillet over medium-high heat and add beand and half of the garlic and chlli mixture. Cook them for about 4-5 minutes, tossing every now and then. Once you see most of the beans open, add the nuts and toss every now and then for a minute. Remove from heat and add the remaining garlic and chilli mixture.

Lemony Mustard Dressing

  1. Beat all ingredients together with a fork.

Steamed Broccoli Salad

  1. In a salad bowl, mix together broccoli, parsley, 2/3 of beans and seed mixture, 2/3 of pomegranate seeds and dressing. Top wih the remaining 1/3 of beeans and seeds and the rest of pomegranate seeds.

Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, had obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Hungry anyone?
Whoever says comfort food can't be healthy, has obviously never tried popped beans and steamed broccoli salad with toasted spicy nuts and lemony mustard dressing. Such a perfect winter salad. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!

Creamy Beet Dip with Herbed Buckwheat Flatbread

Unsurprisingly, the hero of this luscious creamy beet dip is beetroot, but there’s a little something else in that makes it even sweeter and tastier. And above all a very simple buckwheat fladbread with herbs.

Unsurprisingly, the hero of this luscious creamy beet dip is beetroot, but there's a little something else in that makes it even sweeter and tastier. And above all a very simple buckwheat fladbread with herbs.

Happy 1st December 😀

You guys, I made the best beet dip in the world! A bold statement, I know…

It’s a dip we’ve been making for a while now. The idea was actually my husband’s. He ate a beet and corn spread in a sandwich once, so we thought to make our own version. Yes, there’s corn 🙂 and honey. Ok, you’re thinking it’s sweet, but no… It’s spicy, savory and of course sweet as well.

Unsurprisingly, the hero of this luscious creamy beet dip is beetroot, but there's a little something else in that makes it even sweeter and tastier. And above all a very simple buckwheat fladbread with herbs.

I’m like obsessed with beetroot lately. How can I not be, because I have like tons of it. My grandpa grows it every year, but can’t really eat all of it, so we get the rest.

Not complaining!

I’ve been using it in soooo many ways, some recipes are about to come. Can’t wait to share them with you 🙂

Unsurprisingly, the hero of this luscious creamy beet dip is beetroot, but there's a little something else in that makes it even sweeter and tastier. And above all a very simple buckwheat fladbread with herbs.

We all know it’s nice to have something awesome to dip into a creamy dip like this, so I made some herbed flatbreads, but since I LOVE buckwheat, I made them with buckwheat flour mixed with all-purpose flour.

It’s actually an awesome recipe for summer too, when there are many many fresh herbs in the garden. Now, we only have rosemary, oregano and thyme, but basil would also be nice. You can pick whatever you like or have at hand. I love recipes like these!

Unsurprisingly, the hero of this luscious creamy beet dip is beetroot, but there's a little something else in that makes it even sweeter and tastier. And above all a very simple buckwheat fladbread with herbs.

Let’s just dip into it!


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CREAMY BEET DIP WITH HERBED BUCKWHEAT FLATBREAD

Course Appetizer, Breakfast
Keyword dip, flatbread, yeasted bread
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 3

Ingredients

CREAMY BEET DIP

  • 150 g cooked beets cut into chunks
  • 115 g cooked corn or tinned corn
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp honey
  • black pepper
  • cayenne pepper
  • salt

HERBED BUCKWHEAT FLATBREAD

  • 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup buckwheat flour
  • 1 cup natural yoghurt
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 cup chopped herbes rosemary, oregano, thyme, basil or any other
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • pinch of pepper

Instructions

Creamy Beet Dip

  1. Place all ingredients in a food processor and mix untill smooth. Add more seasoning if necessary.

Herbed Buckwheat Flatbread

  1. Mix all ingredients by hand or in a food processor until it comes together. The dough should be soft, but not sticky. Add more flour if necessary.

  2. Divide the dough into 6 balls and roll them out to about 2-3 mm thick.

  3. Heat a grill pan until it is very hot. No need for oiling it. Grill each rolled fladbread for about 1-2 minute on each side. You should see g bubbles form. If one big bubble over the entire flatbread forms, press it down to release air.

  4. Serve hot or cold.

Unsurprisingly, the hero of this luscious creamy beet dip is beetroot, but there's a little something else in that makes it even sweeter and tastier. And above all a very simple buckwheat fladbread with herbs.

Sober Festive Sangria

I love non-alcoholic festive sangria, especially when it tastes like winter with all its beautiful mixed fruits and Christmas spices. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do and you can prepare it ahead of time.

I love a non-alcoholic festive sangria, especially when it tastes like winter with all its beautiful mixed fruits and christmas spices. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do and you can prepare it ahead of time.

Anyone up for a festive drink?

I know, I know, it’s not Christmas yet, but we’re slowly getting in the mood. I’m already making plans for Christmas baking and seeing some lovely Christmas market. Oh, I love those! I’m not a fan of crowded places, but Christmas markets are an exception. They don’t really make sense if you’re there all alone. The great thing about them is the smell. The smell of spices and sugar accompanied by Christmas lights and friends. 

I love a non-alcoholic festive sangria, especially when it tastes like winter with all its beautiful mixed fruits and christmas spices. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do and you can prepare it ahead of time.

I don’t know if you guys remember, but I’ve been angry about Christmas stuff being in the stores and on the streets way too early in one of the last years post. I’m over it this year… can’t really wait for December to come with all its perks. 

So super excited about the almost festive time I made this very simple festive sangria with pear juice. If you prefer apple juice, that’s fine, use it. Or make it half-half. It’s not really a stick-to-it-100% type of recipe, you can totally make it your own. I’m using pear juice because I love it and I don’t drink it that often. It’s kindda hard to get in the stores, so juicing fresh pears is often the only way to go. I cheated this time 😉

Alcohol lovers, there’s none in the recipe, but if you’re up for a boozy version, you can try adding wine or some fruit liqueur.

I love a non-alcoholic festive sangria, especially when it tastes like winter with all its beautiful mixed fruits and christmas spices. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do and you can prepare it ahead of time.

Now, obviously there are winter spices in here! OBVIOUSLY. You can’t go without 🙂

I added some cinnamon sticks, star anises and cloves for that Christmasy feel and some ginger and peppercorns for a nice spicy kick. I just realised there probably aren’t many thing I don’t put peppercorn in, some baked goods and some cocktails, otherwise it’s there. All the time. It’s getting worse with the pregnancy, I simply can’t eat anything witout it. And apparently, I can’t drink it either. Remember the Mulled Mandarin Juice. You can find those there, too 🙂

You might think I’m crazy, but they actually make a big difference, so please please don’t leave them out. Or at least don’t tell me 😛

I love a non-alcoholic festive sangria, especially when it tastes like winter with all its beautiful mixed fruits and christmas spices. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do and you can prepare it ahead of time.
I love a non-alcoholic festive sangria, especially when it tastes like winter with all its beautiful mixed fruits and christmas spices. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do and you can prepare it ahead of time.

The fun thing about this recipe is, you make it a day ahead and when you’re ready to party, take it out of the fridge, add some sparkling water and you’re on 😀

I love simple and quick recipes!


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SOBER FESTIVE SANGRIA

Course Cocktail
Keyword cocktail, mocktail
Prep Time 15 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 3 cups pear juice
  • 2 cups sparkling water
  • 2 pears
  • 2 apples
  • 2 oranges
  • 1 pomegranate
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • 3 star anises
  • 6 slices of ginger
  • 1 tsp peppercorns
  • 5 cloves

Instructions

  1. Slice pears, apples, and oranges into 3mm slices or chunks as big as you like.
  2. Remove seeds from the pomegranate.
  3. Place all fruit, cinnamon sticks, star anises, ginger, peppercorns, and cloves in a big bowl or a jar and pour over pear juice.
  4. Keep in the fridge for at least 5 hours or overnight.
  5. Before serving to add cold sparkling water.

I love a non-alcoholic festive sangria, especially when it tastes like winter with all its beautiful mixed fruits and christmas spices. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do and you can prepare it ahead of time.

No-Churn Melon Sorbet with Basil

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

Super creamy and rich melon sorbet spiced with just a hint of basil.

I can’t believe something so good can come out of freezing a simple fruit like melon. Yup, that’s right, I just described the entire recipe.

But, really it is that simple.

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

I was never a big fruit person. I mean, I loved the taste, but somehow I wasn’t very fond of biting into them.

Still am a little picky when it comes to that. Much less, but still…

Blending fruit into awesome new foods was a great alternative. One of the first memories of blended fruit dessert is a strawberry and cream blended drink. Which was super delicious and creamy. You should totally try that sometimes, if you haven’t already 🙂

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

Freezing a blended fruit is the next stage of deliciousness 🙂

And most of all, you don’t really need all that much. Mostly just fruit, some water, if the fruit doesn’t have high water content, maybe some sweetener and that’s it.

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

Why I love this melon sorbet?

Because it’s made only with melon and basil. Melon is made mostly of water and you don’t need to add extra. If the melon is ripe enough it is so sweet, that it doesn’t require any extra sweetening.

And since I’m greatly obsessed with herbs, I just had to add some. Basil is the right way to go. Works so well and adds more summery flavors! 🙂

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

Oh, how cool does it look when you serve it in a melon shell. Awesome for a garden party 🙂 You can freeze it in a shell directly if you are serving it immediately or transfer in to the shell right before showing it to your guests.

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

I’m getting hungry! Are you?

NO-CHURN MELON SORBET WITH BASIL

Course Dessert
Keyword ice cream
Prep Time 10 minutes
Freezing time 6 hours
Total Time 6 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 ripe melon of any kind, spooned out into chunks, frozen for 1-2 hours
  • 20-30 fresh basil leaves

Instructions

  1. Place the frozen melon chunks and fresh basil into a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Keep beating until you get a smooth and creamy consistency.
  2. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm, for about 3-4 hours.

Notes

If you have an ice cream maker, prepare the mixture without pre-freezing the melon. Cool it in the fridge for an hour and make it as per instructions.

No icecream machine, no problem! This super easy two ingredient melon sorbet needs no icecream machine, but is creamy and delicious anyway.

No-Bake Blueberry Cheesecake

What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake!

What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake with a cookie crust. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!

First let me brag a little. My broken leg is getting much better. I’ve been cycling, swimming, dancing… It feels very liberating to be able to move normally. 

And to be able to hold stuff in my hands. What?

Yeah, when you’re using crutches it’s hard to even bring your meal to the table, go figure. Don’t get me wrong, I had my highly developed methods to do this, but I’m glad to be rid of them. 🙂 🙂

What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake with a cookie crust. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!

Now to the no-bake blueberry cheesecake…

Let’s admit it. Noone want’s to bake a cake in the crazy summer heat. But we still want cake, right?

A light fluffy refreshing cheesecake that melts in your mouth.

All you need is your favorite cookies. If you like chocolate chip, go for it! You could even use Graham crackers (don’t forget to add a little sugar or honey if you use those). I’m using butter cookies, yum!

What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake with a cookie crust. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!

I’m ashamed to admit, but the first time I’ve tried cream cheese frosting was three years ago in Norway, when I had their famous carrot cake. It was enough to become obsessed with it. This cream cheese filling is made similarly to that frosting.

Only it contains a secret ingredient. One that I shouldn’t really be eating, because my body doesn’t process it well. But once in a while it’s fine to sin. It’s not sin if it’s good, is it?

Yoghurt 🙂

I added it, because it gives the cheesecake a little freshness and sourness to the filling.

Oh yeah and did I mention the filling is freaking creamy and not overly sweet. The sweetnes actually depends more on the cookies and the fruit you use. 

What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake with a cookie crust. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!

As for the fruit, you could use any kind that you like. We are blueberry freaks over here, so we can’t resist them and their little blue faces.

Or the cheesecake filling for that matter. Or the no-baking part. 

Ah, all of it 😀

What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake with a cookie crust. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

Go on, treat yourself!

NO-BAKE BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE

Course Dessert
Keyword no-bake pie
Total Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

CRUST

  • 200 g cookies any kind you like
  • 30 g butter or more, depends on the type of cookies (2 TBSP)

FILLING

  • 50 g butter (3 1/2 TBSP )
  • 100 g cream cheese
  • 3 TBSP honey
  • 50 g Greek-style yogurt regular yogurt is also fine
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla seeds
  • zest of 1/4 lemon

TOPPING

  • 100 g / 1 cup fresh blueberries

Instructions

Crust

  1. Use a food processor to grind up the cookies or crush them in a zip bag with a rolling pin.
  2. Melt the butter for the crust and mix it with cookie crumbs. The mixture should be sandy but feel a little grease when you pinch it. Add more melted butter if necessary.
  3. Press the mixture onto the bottom of the 18-20 cm (7-8 inch) pie or cake pan and let it cool in the fridge. If you are using a cake pan, you can carefully remove the sides of the pan before cooling the crust.

Filling

  1. With an electric whisk beat butter to create a light and fluffy texture.

  2. Add cream cheese and honey and whisk until well combined.
  3. Add yogurt, vanilla seeds, and lemon zest and whisk a little more.

Assembly

  1. Fill the crust with the filling and top with fresh blueberries.

  2. Store in the fridge. Serve at room temperature.

Notes

You can easily replace blueberries with any other fruit.

Want another no-bake dessert? Here it is:

Spring Strawberry Layer Cake in a Glass

What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake with a cookie crust. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!
What better way to enjoy summer but with this melt in your mouth no-bake blueberry cheesecake with a cookie crust. Click to find the whole recipe or pin and save for later!

Red Currant, Orange & Mint Mojitos

Perfectly refreshnig comfort summer drinks red currant, orange and mint mojitos!

Use Your Noodles - Red Currant, Orange & Mint Mojitos

Let’s have a drink!

I’m having one for sure. Hopefully, tomorrow my splint is coming off and that’s a big reason for celebration. It’s about time, I’m not really fond of walking on three legs 😛

So join me for a glass of delicious summer cocktail. One sip and you won’t be able to stop. 

Perfectly refreshnig comfort summer drinks - red currant, orange and mint mojitos!

We love hanging out on our balcony listening to the birds in the cherry tree, playing board games, eating scrumptious chocolate brownies and drinking refreshing fruity drinks. One of our favorite summer drinks is mojito. In any form. We usually drink a traditional lime and mint mojitos, but sometimes we make some changes. Like adding other seasonal fruit.

There’s a big bush of red currants behind the house, full of perfectly sweet and sour tiny fruits 🙂 So I replaced lime with red currant and got a super delicious and refreshing mojito. I added some freshly squeezed orange for some sweetness and the citrusy taste. The combo of red currant and orange is not something I’ve tried before, but I must admit they make a wonderful pair.

Mental note to self – make cookies!

Use Your Noodles - Red Currant, Orange & Mint Mojitos

What I like about this cocktail recipe is the colour. If you’ve seen my other recipes, you’ve probably guessed that I like my food colourful 🙂 and seasonal 🙂

Use Your Noodles - Red Currant, Orange & Mint Mojitos

To make these lip-smacking red currant, orange and mint mojitos all you need is some fresh fruit, a bottle of rum, sparkling water and mint. And of course lots of ice!

The recipe calls for fresh red currants, that you blend into a puree, which means you keep all of the goodies from the fruit. If you don’t mind about the little seeds, you don’t need to strain the puree.

Now, let’s get the party started!

Use Your Noodles - Red Currant, Orange & Mint Mojitos

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

I’d love to hear what your favorite summer drink is. Write it in the comments below 🙂

RED CURRANT, ORANGE & MINT MOJITO

Course Cocktail, Drinks, mocktail
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

MOJITOS

  • 2 cups red currants stems removed
  • 2 cups orange juice freshly squeezed
  • 1/2 – 3/4 cups white rum
  • 3 cups sparkling water
  • 2 tsp unrefined cane sugar Optional
  • handful of mint
  • abundance of crushed ice

GARNISH

  • 1/4 cup red currants
  • 4 mint springs

Instructions

  1. In a blender, blend red currants to get a pureé.
  2. Use a muddler to crush mint to release the mint oils. Add 2 TBSP orange juice and unrefined cane sugar and muddle a little more.
  3. Divide red currant pureé into 4 glasses, add ice, mint mixture, remaining orange juice, white rum, and sparkling water.
  4. Decorate and serve immediately.

Notes

Mocktail version: Replace rum with orange juice.

Also try these tasty summer drinks:

Grapefruit-Lime Cocktail With Rosemary And Ginger

Roasted Peach And Strawberry Fizz

Use Your Noodles - Red Currant, Orange & Mint Mojitos

Sardine Pâté + Wild Garlic Sandwiches

An excelent way to use leftover fish or you can make it from scratch – beautiful sardine pâté. It takes literally no time and it tastes very fancy!

Use Your Noodles - Sardine Pate and Wild Garlic Sandwiches

Hi, there! It’s been a while and it felt even longer. I’ve been a busy busy bee. Among other daily work I’ve had the privilage to spend some time in my favorite place of ’em all – the forest.

Mmmm, the fresh smell of moss and spring flowers, and the birds singing in the trees. I could be there all day! Luckily the weather has been nice and warm so we went hiking to a nearby mountain. We love going there this time of the year, because the slopes are completely covered of wild garlic. We get all crazy and eat tons of wild garlic right there, freshly picked.

Use Your Noodles - Sardine Pate and Wild Garlic Sandwiches

Today I’m sharing with you a recipe, that you are gonna love, because it will show you a wonderful way to use leftover fish.

I hate throwing food away, I’m sad when – very rarely – my food goes bad. This is the recipe I created for when I’m left with cold fish from lunch. Cold fish to me is … meh. Not very appetizing. I mix it up with spices and tomatoes and virgin olive oil and it turns into posh food 🙂 How about that!

Use Your Noodles - Sardine Pate and Wild Garlic Sandwiches

For this recipe you can go two ways. Use leftovers or cook fresh fish. Both of those ways are super quick. 

I’ve even prepared a little idea for how to use sardine pâté. Sardines go really well with eggs and like all fish – with garlic. Since it is spring and I’ve been telling you about my wild garlic obsessions, I’m adding that too 🙂

Use Your Noodles - Sardine Pate and Wild Garlic Sandwiches

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Enjoy these sunny days, folks!

SARDINE PÂTÉ

Course Appetizer
Keyword dip, fish spread, spread
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes

Ingredients

  • 250 g leftover sardines deboned
  • 1/2 cup virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup tomato purée
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 4 tsp dijon mustard
  • 10 g / 2 dried tomatoes
  • 1 TBSP dried or fresh oregano
  • 1 tsp sweet pepper powder
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 stp cayenne pepper
  • 2 tsp lemon juice
  • salt to taste

Instructions

  1. Add 1/4 cup virgin olive oil, garlic, tomato purée, dijon mustard, dried tomatoes, oregano, sweet pepper powder, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and lemon juice into a food processor and blend well. Add the rest of the oil if necessary to get a smooth paste. Salt to taste.
  2. Keep in the fridge, but take out half an hour before serving.

Notes

If you are using fresh sardines, dry them first. Fry them in a pan with a little oil 2 minutes on one side, 1 minute on the other. Transfer to a cold plate and wait for five minutes to cool down a little, debone and use like leftover sardines.

SARDINE PÂTÉ AND WILD GARLIC SANDWICHES

Course Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack
Prep Time 3 minutes
Cook Time 2 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 6 people

Ingredients

  • 4-5 eggs
  • 1 TBSP oil
  • sardine pâte room temperature
  • 2 baguettes
  • 10 wild garlic leaves chopped
  • chilly flakes to taste
  • pinch of salt
  • pinch of pepper

Instructions

  1. Crack the eggs in a jug, add a pinch of salt and pepper, and beat them together with a fork.
  2. Heat a pan over medium heat, add oil and eggs, and stir slowly with a wooden spatula until the eggs are soft and almost a little undercooked. Remove from heat. The eggs will continue cooking in the hot pan while you prepare the sandwich.
  3. Cut the baguette into 1 cm thick slices and spread the pâté over.
  4. Divide the scrambled eggs between the slices and top with chopped wild garlic leaves and chilly flakes.
Use Your Noodles - Sardine Pate and Wild Garlic Sandwiches

Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea

The cold weather can sometimes get to us. But not with this immune-boosting turmeric tea with elderlower and some other amazing healthy ingredients.

Use Your Noodles - Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea

We got a little snowy surprise yesterday, so I ran out to shoot my immune-boosting elderflower turmeric tea. I was soaking wet in a matter of minutes, but luckily I had this (already cold) tea right at my hand. 🙂

Let me tell you what’s in this tea. Only good stuff, I promise. 

Use Your Noodles - Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea
Use Your Noodles - Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea

There’s elderflower, one of my favourite kinds of tea. I pick it myself in spring and keep it airtight for whole year. It’s amazing for your immune system and for detoxifying your body. Another great ingredient – thyme. We usually use it in cooking, but it taste amazing in teas. Just be careful not to add too much or your tea might taste like soup. You can excange it for wild thyme, in that case you should double the amount, because it is milder. Thyme is one of the easiest herbs to grow at home, so I suggest you head to a gardening store this spring and get a thyme plant.

Use Your Noodles - Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea

This tea gets its colour mostly from turmeric. I used to hate the taste of turmeric, it kind of felt strange and too strong. But as I introduced it little by little it grew on me. Now, I love it! In cooking and in tea making. So turmeric tea in any form is amazing and super beneficial. And if you add some pepper to it, your body can absorb the good stuff much better. Ok, we got to honey. We all know honey is so much better than white sugar, because it contains lots of vitamins and minerals. But, buying just any honey at the supermarket is wasteful. It has probably been heated over 40 °C to remain liquid, but that also means it has lost a lot of its functions. Try to find a local producer that doesn’t heat honey. My favourite is linden honey.

Use Your Noodles - Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea

Like all other ingredients in this tea ginger is mindblowingly good for immune system and so much more covering from cancer to weight loss. And here’s our last ingredient – lemon. If you were like me, lemon was the first thing your parents gave when you were ill. And it was for a good reason.

There you have it, my immune-boosting elderflower turmeric tea. Helpful if you are ill, but also a good way to keep your health in check!

Head on to the recipe and let me know what kind of tea do you like to drink to boost your immunity system in the comment section.


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IMMUNE-BOOSTING ELDERFLOWER TURMERIC TEA

Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Servings 2 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 cups boiling water
  • 2 cups room temperature water
  • 2 heap tsp dried elderflower
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
  • 1 tsp honey
  • 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1/4 tsp ground ginger
  • pinch of black pepper
  • 1 TBSP lemon juice

Instructions

  1. Put dried elderflower and thyme in a tea infuser and steep it in boiling water for 5 minutes. Keep it covered.
  2. Remove the infuser and add room temperature water, honey, turmeric, ginger, black pepper, and lemon juice. Stir well and pour into cups.
Use Your Noodles - Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea

PRINT THIS IMMUNE-BOOSTING ELDERFLOWER TURMERIC TEA RECIPE AND MAKE YOUR PERSONALIZED USE YOUR NOODLES COOKBOOK

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Use Your Noodles - Immune-Boosting Elderflower Turmeric Tea

Hot Chocolate

This is a perfect gift for Christmas! Homemade hot chocolate powder in a beautiful jar and a personal tag. Don’t you just love homemade gifts?

Use Your Noodles - Hot Chocolate

Let’s get warm with some homemade hot chocolate! It’s so cold outside, even I have the heaters turned on. And I’m that person who sits in a cold room in only a T-shirt, while others are trembling in their sweaters. My husband is turning the heaters on all the time and I go after him turning them off. Well, not today. My hands are freezing and I’m having trouble typing. I need a hot chocolate!

Plus, it’s time to make gifts, and I love homemade gifts. Have you ever felt nervous, because you just didn’t know what to give people for Christmas? Well I have and a few years ago me and my husband made it a tradition to give our loved ones homemade gifts. No more fuss about buying  gifts at the last moment.

Hot Chocolate
Hot Chocolate

Last year I made homemade hot chocolate mix to give away as presents. I was experimenting with quite a few recipes. And dealing with all types of powders resulted in a dust cloud in my kitchen. I could hardly breathe and my lungs were burning for hours, but turns out it was worth it. I love it so much.

I’m not a huge fan of store bought hot chocolate mixes, because they are too sweet and too expensive. This recipe calls for way less sugar, then there is in the bought ones. But if you like it sweet, go for it. Add a little more sugar.

Use Your Noodles - Hot Chocolate

Tag #useyournoodles so I can see your beautiful UYN creations. Also, stay in touch on Facebook and Instagram or subscribe to get the recipes directly to your mailbox ♥

HOT CHOCOLATE

Course Drinks
Keyword hot chocolate powder
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 8

Ingredients

POWDER MIX

  • 1 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 cup + 2 TBSP powdered milk
  • 1 1/2 cup potato or corn starch
  • 1 cup icing sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla seeds
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper optional

COOKED HOT CHOCOLATE (FOR 1 PERSON)

  • 1 cup
  • 1/2 cup hot chocolate mix if you like it very dense add 1-2 TBSP of the mix

Instructions

HOT CHOCOLATE MIX

  1. Sift cocoa powder, powdered milk, corn starch, and icing sugar through a sieve into a big bowl and add vanilla, salt, and cayenne pepper.
  2. Combine it thoroughly with a whisk or move it to a blender and mix until it is well combined. That’s it!

COOKING

  1. Pour the milk into a small pot, add the hot chocolate mix and put it on medium heat.
  2. Stir well with a whisk. You need to stir at all times, or it will burn, especially at the end.
  3. Hot chocolate should be ready to serve in about 10 minutes.

Notes

If you are making a large batch, I suggest you use something to cover your nose and mouth. The dust can really get in your lungs. And you don’t want that
Stirring the hot chocolate while cooking is absolutely necessary. It might start sticking to the edges a little. Just don’t scrape that part off or your hot chocolate will get a burned flavor.
Try adding your favorite spices into the mix. Cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg are perfect for this season.

Use Your Noodles - Hot Chocolate

Rainbow Cabbage Soup

The amazing colours come from squeezing lemon juice into the delicious red cabbage soup.

Use Your Noodles - Rainbow cababge soupI’m waiting for snow to fall again. Until that happens I have to settle with cold and sunshine, which I like almost as much as snow. In good weather like this we all deserve a healthy and colourful meal like I’m about to show you – a rainbow cabbage soup.

Rainbow cababge soup
Rainbow cababge soup

I’m so happy to be sharing this recipe with you. Red cabbage is in season right now, so there’s lots everywhere. It’s loaded with vitamins and minerals. And according to Science Daily it promotes heart and brain health and protects us from cancer. So yay for us cabbage lovers and the ones who will become cabbage lovers after tasting this soup. I feel like red cabbage is so underrated. Here in Slovenia we eat it mostly braised a side dish or in salads. But it is magnificent in a soup as well. The rainbow cabbage soup is quick and simple and sooo delicious. Squeezing in few drops of lemon juice gives it wonderful vibrant rainbow colour. When I first tried squeezing lemon on this soup I was pleasantly surprised by this amazing reaction. I realised that it is not just super tasty but also fun. And that’s the point of cooking. To have lot’s of fun!


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RAINBOW CABBAGE SOUP

Course Soup
Total Time 15 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 medium-size cabbage 400g
  • 1 big onion
  • 4 cups hot water
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 TBSP lard
  • 1 tsp fresh citrus thyme leaves
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 4 lemon wedges

Instructions

  1. Chop the onion into small pieces. Melt lard in a medium-size pot and add the chopped onion. Fry the onion until it gets golden and translucent.
  2. Meanwhile cut the cabbage in half and then into thin slices. Add them in the pot. Add the hot water and thyme.
  3. Cook for about 10 minutes until the cabbage is soft.
  4. Remove from the stove. Put everything in a blender, add milk, salt, and pepper and mix well. Taste for seasoning before serving.
  5. Squeeze a few drops of lemon juice onto the soup for the wonderful color.

Also try this easy 5 minute soup:

Spicy Pea Soup

Use Your Noodles - Rainbow cababge soup