Creamy Avocado Linguine with Strawberries

I really enjoy dishes that surprise me. The kind that you look at and start imagining the flavours in your head, but then it tastes completely different taking your palette by surprise. This dish was created using the few ingredients available at home, and if in the beginning it felt strange, once we tasted it we started loving it. 

Don't be fooled by the sweet look, try it before you judge it. I wish you a surprising experience too!

Ingredients (serves 2):

300g of Linguine
10 strawberries
1 large avocado
1 bitter orange, juiced
1 handfull of fresh basil
2 garlic cloves
1/4 cup of olive oil
Fresh grated parmesan
Salt

Cook the pasta in salted water until it is al dente. 

Chop the strawberries in quarters. 

In a food processor, combine fresh basil, garlic, orange juice, olive oil and salt. Blend for a few seconds. Add the avocado flesh and blend again until smooth and creamy. Correct seasoning if needed. 

In a large bowl toss the pasta, with the avocado mixture and the strawberries. 

Serve with grated parmesan and extra strawberries.

Notes:

If you don't have bitter orange substitute it by lemon or lime.

Grilled Salmon: the simple way

Simple food can look great and taste even better.

This is a simple recipe, but what a great way to get a delicious dinner after a long day at work, without spending what's left of your energy in the kitchen.

Have fun and have a nice rest!

Ingredients (serves 1):

180g of salmon
1 large potato
70ml of milk
20g of butter
50g of peas
1/2 lime juice
5 tablespoons of olive oil
A pinch of salt
A pinch of pepper
A small bunch of parsley

For the sauce, mix the lime juice, the olive oil and the parsley, chopped. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and adjust the olive oil if needed, until the flavours are well balanced. Set aside.

Cook the potato in salted water until is cooked through. Afterwards, add the butter and mash everything, adding the milk slowly (at room temperature or lukewarm). Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pass the mash through a thin sieve to obtain a creamy texture without lumps.

Grill the salmon, seasoning it with salt just before.

Boil the peas until cooked. 

Plate all the elements, spreading the sauce on top, and serve. 

Baked bolognese

Liking a dish is also about memories. If you taste a dish and it brings you back to your childhood it is most likely a great dish. However, it is not easy to cook something and make others go on that trip with you. The chef decided to give it a try, and this dish intends to bring you to my hometown, back to the playful times of school and lunches at my aunt's house. It worked with the Swede...

Ingredients:

500g of beef mince
300g of penne
2 medium onions
3 large tomatoes
3 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon of tomato paste
1/2 cup of water
100g of parmesan + some more to sprinkle on top
1 teaspoon of paprika
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
Olive oil
Salt
Black pepper

Start by preparing the tomato sauce. Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan, add the garlic and one finely diced onion. Cook until tender (~2 min.) and add the chopped tomatoes, the tomato paste and the water. Bring to a boil and afterwards turn down the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until it's reduced.  Add the paprika and the cayenne pepper. Season with salt and black pepper. Set aside.

Cook the penne in salted water for about 6 minutes. It should still be firm by the end. Drain it, sprinkle some olive oil on top and set aside. 

Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and add the other onion. Throw in the meat and cook until done, stirring occasionally. Add the tomato sauce and cook for another 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning and turn off the heat. 

Combine the meat with the penne and add the parmesan cheese. Transfer to a baking tray or terrine and sprinkle some more parmesan on top. Put in the oven at about 180 ºC, for about 20 minutes or until the parmesan becomes golden and crispy. Cool down a few minutes before serving.

Notes:
In the tomato sauce, chop the tomatoes as fine or as roughly as you like. Roughly chopped means you will get a texture with small bits in the end.
You can add dried tomato pieces on each individual plate when serving.

*Inspired by and dedicated to Dila

Strawberry delight

We all know the problem of desserts... they are too delicious and make our clothes shrink! But who said a dessert can't be delicious and light? Here is one idea for a hot summer night, when we feel like having a cold refreshing dessert: strawberry delight with brazilian nuts praline and biscuit. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

200 ml of greek yogurt
10 strawberries
40g of sugar
1 cup of water
1 tablespoon of lemon juice

Biscuit:
1 large egg white
40g of vanilla sugar
1/8 teaspoon of salt
45g of flower
15g of unsalted butter

Praline:
1 cup of caster sugar
1/4 cup of water
100g of brazilian nuts

Start by freezing the yogurt for a couple of hours.

Chop the strawberries and transfer to a sauce pan containing the sugar, the water and the lemon juice. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to simmer for about 20 minutes or until it is reduced. Cool down for 5 minutes and transfer 2 tablespoons of this sauce into a serving glass. Refrigerate.

For the biscuit, preheat the oven at 180 ºC. Stir together the egg white and the vanilla sugar. Add the salt and the butter, melted. Incorporate the flower adding it slowly. Stir until smooth. 

Line a baking tray with non-stick paper sheet. Using a baking spatula spread spoonfuls of the mixture on top (use moldes for well defined shapes). Bake for about 10 minutes or until the biscuits are golden. Cool down and set aside.

For the praline, line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper, and spread the brazilian nuts, roughly chopped, on top. In a small sauce pan, add the sugar and water. Stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil and let it boil for a few minutes without stirring. When the mixture is changing colour turn off the heat and set aside for 2 minutes, or until bubbles stop forming. 

Spread over the nuts, cool down and break in smaller pieces just using the hands.

Add the cold yogurt to the serving glass where the strawberry sauce has been set. Stir in some of the strawberry sauce as well. On top, sprinkle some pieces of the praline. Decorate with the biscuit and a fresh strawberry. Serve immediately.

Notes:
Replace the vanilla sugar by caster sugar and a vanilla bean.
Use other nuts of your taste in the praline.
If you prefer, reduce the praline to small bits using a food processor. The same for the strawberry sauce. Personally, we like to find big chunks...