Cookies in a jar - gift ideas

COUNTRY OATMEAL COOKIE

Put the ingredients in the jar in layers:
60 gr white sugar
60 gr brown sugar
35 gr oats
80 gr flour
3 gr baking powder
1 g salt
70 gr chocolate chips

Attach the instructions for baking:
Preheat oven to 175°C.
In a medium bowl cream together 85 gr softened butter, with 1 egg and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla.
Add the entire content of the jar, and mix by hand until combined. Drop dough by heaping spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet.
Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Lentil & zucchini soup

Ingredients:
2 red capsicums
1 zucchini
1 leek
250 gr lentils
1 l water
mix of spices for soups
salt
pepper
thyme
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tblsp vinegar

Wash the vegetables and cut them in thin slices. Wash the lentils and cook them in the water with the spices for 30 minutes (or 15 in pressure cooker). When the lentils are cooked, add the rest of the vegetables and cook 10 more minutes on low flame. Add salt, pepper, sugar and vinegar before serving and decorate with some thyme.

Parmigiana

Ingredients:
3 eggplants
5 big tomatoes
1/2 onion
1 clove of garlic
250 gr scamorza smoked cheese
salt
oregano
basil
olive oil






Cut the eggplants in thin slices, put some salt on the top and leave them on a plate for an hour, afterwards dry them with a paper tissue. Grill them in a non-stick pan, if you want it very light, don't use oil.
Chop the onion and garlic and fry them in a little bit of olive oil until golden. Add the tomatoes cut in small pieces. Cook for some time, until you have a tomato sauce.

In a casserole put some of the tomato sauce first, then make a layer out of eggplants and cover them with scamorza cheese. Add again some tomato sauce, eggplants and scamorza cheese and cover the top with a little bit of tomato sauce.

Put the casserole in a preheated oven on 180°C for about 25 minutes and serve still hot with some fresh vegetables.

Coconut rice (for ricecooker)

This is a great rice to serve as a side dish with spicy indian food. It will make a great combination of flavours.

Ingredients: 

290 gr basmati rice

240 ml coconut milk

480 ml water

1/2 tsp salt

2-3 tbsp shredded coconut

If you don't have coconut milk, don't worry, it's very easy to do at home. You need 225 gr desiccated coconut and 450 ml boiling water. Put the coconut in a food processor and pour the over the boiling water. Process for 20-30 seconds, then cool. 

Place a cloth over, bring the ends together and twist it to extract the liquid. You can keep the coconut milk in the fridge 1-2 days or it can be frozen until you need it.

To prepare the coconut rice, put all the ingredients in a rice cooker and stir well. Cover and set to cook. Stir once or twice while it's cooking. Serve with some indian curry or with the food you prefer, but I think it's the best way to balance the flavours with very spicy food. 

Fried zucchini flowers

Summer is the perfect season for zucchini at my home and besides the vegetables, also the flowers are edible and very tasty! Here is a very simple recipe for deep fried zucchini flowers. 

 Ingredients:

zucchini flowers (12-15)
150 gr flour
250 ml water
pinch of salt
1 tsp turmeric powder (optional)
1 tsp sweet chili powder (optional)
oil for deep frying





Put the flour and the salt with the spices in a bowl. Slowly add the water and stir until you have a smooth dough. Heat the oil in a pan and when it's hot enough put the flowers, you've put in the mixture before. Fry until ready and let them cool a little bit.
You can serve them with some fresh vegetables and it will make a perfect summer dinner.

Banana & Pistachio Lassi

What about a cool drink for these hot summer days?
My suggestion is to have a cold indian drink called lassi. In India they drink it with the spicy food (it helps to digest it), but you can actually have it whenever you want to. :)

This recipe serves 4 people.

 Ingredients:
300 ml natural low fat yogurt
1 tsp sugar (optional or according to your taste)
300 ml milk
30 ml puréed banana
1 tbsp crushed pistachio nuts, to decorate

The preparation of this drink is very easy. Put the yogurt in a pitcher and whisk it until frothy. Pour in the milk and the fruit and continue to whisk 2 minutes. Serve in long glasses and decorate with some pistachio nuts on the top. 

Pasta omelette (frittata di pasta)

You never know how much pasta should you cook? You're never sure if you're too hungry and you put waay to much pasta in the pan? I have a recipe today that will help you to deal with all your leftover pasta. Because food is a blessing and we should not waste it! 

Ingredients:
leftover pasta (with any kind of sauce, I had some pasta with zucchini and tomato)
2 tblsp parmesan cheese
5 eggs
2 boiled potatoes
1 fresh chili (if you don't like spicy food, leave it)
olive oil
salt
pepper



Mash the boiled potatoes, add the eggs and mix well. Add the leftover pasta, cut the chili and add it with salt and pepper (according to your taste). Mix well (you should have something like the picture above).
Put some olive oil in a non stick pan and wait a few minutes until it becomes warm. Put the mixture in the pan and cook until it's crispy on one side. Then help yourself with the top of the pan to turn it over. Cook on the other side until it's crispy also there and serve still hot.

If you fell you don't have enough pasta to do it, add the vegetables you prefer. It's a great way to reuse the already cooked food and it's tasty as well! :)