TZATZIKI

Serves two

200ml Greek yoghurt
Clove of garlic
Tablespoon of grated cucumber, squeezed dry
Pinch of sugar
Salt
Pepper
(Fresh herbs)


Chop the garlic, grate the cucumber and squeeze it dry. Mix everything together. Don't even try using low-fat yoghurt!

FALAFEL

The blog was getting too meaty so here's my favourite vegetarian recipe. Serves two.


200g (or 250ml) soaked and boiled chickpeas
Small egg
3 tablespoons ground almonds (or fine breadcrumbs)
2 cloves garlic, or more
Half small onion
Plenty of herbs
Salt
Pepper

For the coating and frying:
Ground almonds (or breadcrumbs)
200ml oil, or more


Soak 100ml of dried chickpeas overnight. After boiling you'll have a total of 250ml of beans. Roughly mash them.






Chop the onion and garlic and add to the beans with the egg, ground almonds and spices.




Mix until the falafel is firm. It may be necessary to add more almond.




Form balls and coat them with some more ground almonds.




Fry the falafel in a large amount of oil until evenly brown. You can also deep-fry them but I think that's a waste of oil. Semi-deep-frying is enough for me. Don't use extra virgin olive oil because it burns very easily.




Serve with salad and tzatziki. This is also great with pitta bread, tzatziki and some fresh vegetables, maybe tomato and cucumber.

MEATBALLS AND AUBERGINES

Serves two.


1 large aubergine
1 stalk celery
1 tin chopped tomatoes
Half small onion
2 cloves garlic
Herbs
Salt
Pinch of sugar
Black pepper
6-10 meatballs
Mature cheddar




Fry the onion and garlic in a large amount of oil or butter. Add the aubergine and celery. When the vegetables are slightly brown and soft, add the chopped tomatoes and spices.




Place the mixture in an oven dish and add the meatballs and cheese.

I used cooked, frozen meatballs straight from the freezer but you can also use raw ones. Raw meatballs will emit some brown liquid so you'll get a slightly prettier meal if you use cooked ones. There's no difference in taste.




Bake in about 200°C until done. This will maybe take 30 minutes with raw meatballs.



-------------------------------

Happy aubergine.

BLACK CHOCOLATE

100ml coconut oil
150ml cocoa powder
1 heaped tablespoon golden syrup or honey
dried fruit, nuts or fresh strawberries


Melt the coconut oil and measure 100ml. Mix in the cocoa powder and the syrup after that. Make sure the ingredients form a smooth paste.




Prepare a mould for the chocolate by lining it with cling film. Sprinkle some fruit or nuts on the bottom and pour the chocolate in the mould.






Place the chocolate in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes and it's done! Remember that you shouldn't use the freezer for fresh berries or fruit. They may start to freeze and turn slimy when they defrost.




This chocolate should be kept in the fridge. It starts to soften after a few minutes in room temperature.

BRONTË BRATWURST

Exam food, hence the name.


Sorry about the vertical line in the picture. I'm new here and don't quite know how this thing works. These pictures are supposed to be 'large' but I'd prefer them even bigger...


You'll need:

3 bratwursts
2 tomatoes
1 carrot
1/4 swede
2 handfuls broccoli florets

Sauce:
1/2 block creamed coconut (100g)
2ooml hot water
1 heaped tablespoon tomato puré
salt
herbs


Cut the sausages and vegetables and place them in an ovenproof dish. The tomatoes can be cut into quarters but make sure the other veggies are smaller.


If you're using frozen broccoli, defrost and drain it.



Prepare the sauce by dissolving the coconut block into hot water. This will be a lot easier if you crumble it first. The instructions on the pack tell you to sieve the mixture now to keep it thin but don't do it: you need it to be thick for this dish. Add tomato puré and spices.




Pour the sauce on the vegetables and sausages and mix it in. You can also add cheese if you like. Bake in 200°C for about 30 minutes.




There's cheese on the left here. It makes it a little juicier.