Seitan with Blood Orange and Almonds

So today I went to something called #NegozioLeggero, where you can find lots of bio products without packaging and along with lots of other stuff I bought some Saitan.Which is a food made from gluten, the main protein of wheat which is a good alternative to soybean-based meat substitutes such as tofu, which I like because has a very chewy texture. Already made Saitain in shops here is very expensive but the Negozio Leggero offers a great alternative, you can buy seitan flour and just add water, saving on packaging and cost...so happy days. Now Saitan is not the most flavorsome food, my uncle describes it as 'shoe sole', indeed the color is quite similar. But if you cook it well is a great substitute and with this recipe you can even trick a meat eater to eat it, like I just did with my dad.  

http://www.negozioleggero.it

Ingredients for 4 

500 g of Saitan (160 g of Seitan Mix with 250ml of water) 

1 Large red onion

2 Blood oranges

1 Lemon

1 Clove of Garlic 

1 Tablespoon of balsamic vinegar

1 Tablespoon of Extra virgin olive oil

1/2 Tablespoon of flour 
10 Almonds 

A pinch of sugar

Salt & Pepper t.t.

Let's get on with this

• If you have to make the Seitan mix 160 g of flour mix with 250 ml of water, let it rest for 15 minutes and the steam it for another 15 minutes 
• Prepare a juice with the lemon and the orange
• In a pan put some oil the onion and the garlic adding the balsamic vinegar and a pinch of sugar and cook until translucent 
• Add the Seitan and the juice let it cook for a few minutes then carefully add the tablespoon of flour and the almonds, mix it well salt to taste and serve adding some zest and fresh parsley 

Stolen Stew

This week-end I did not cook much, was too busy avoiding college work and drinking! The weather was so nice that was kind of calling for it! Anyway this week-end has been full of realizations, once again! I figured out what I don’t want to do and have in the future, and I also understood that the best way to leave a happy life is to go with the flow and stop wonder about everything! Why here, why there, maybe here, maybe there! So after Friday night I ban from my daily dictionary the maybe! I keep the why, but only when is healthy curiosity! Yesterday also I came up with a couple of good lines, I might be the only one to appreciated them, but well I am going to share them one is

He is actively seeking for a relationship, I am looking for many! referred to a guy I met off this internet dating thingy…quite cool by the way, plenty of weirdos but some good stuff too ;) .I  also said to Magda that, when we were interrailing we were on a pastry cruise (eating burek everyday) , now we are on a apple finding cruise! I let you imagine!

Anyway yesterday I  went to the flea market 

(https://www.facebook.com/dublin.fleas?ref=ts) to sell some stuff and came back with basically the same amount of clothes but maybe ( no more maybe, I am indeed very forgetful) next time I will be luckier. While there, I spent all I “earned” in food and had a look around and kind of got inspired by a vegetarian greek stew with plums! I changed it a bit and here it is!

Shopping list

2 leeks

4 medium carrots

5 medium  potatoes

2 cloves of garlic

1 medium onion

4 sticks of celery

20 green olives

20 dried plums

20 small mushrooms

1 vegetable stock cubes

500 ml. of passata

Parsley

Pepper

Salt t.t

Lets get on with this

1. This is very easy, just dice all the vegetable  the way you prefer, I cut the potatoes and the carrots in big chunks and then add the mushroom towards the end, but well we leave in a free word (more or less)
2. Pour some olive oil (1 tablespoon or more) and gently fry the onion and the garlic, then add all the vegetables, the plums and the olive (if you buy the one in oil you can add some of it, I only had the one in brine) and add the passata and the stock cube
3. Let it cook for about 1 hour more or less (if you are very hungry) remember, the more you cook it the better!)
4. Towards the end the mushroom, the parsley salt and pepper to taste (I add a teaspoon of chili powder!

Perfect served with cous cous or if your flat mate doesn't finished it, brown rice or barley work well too!

Frozen Fruit Icepop

Today, while I should have been doing my thesis, I was thinking about making tasty icepop! Once again the attempt to do some college did not work out that well! Kick off time was at 10 that turn out to be 11 and finish time was 12.30 that turn out to be 12, cause we were so hungry!! So today after a nice lunch we had this lovely Fruit Icepop...so nice and btw very light you can have as many as you want to!!

Shopping Lits 
Fruits anyone you want
Lemon or Orange Juice
5 teaspoons Sugar or Algave Nectar, a good alternative to sugar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agave_nectar)

Let's get on with this 
1. Cut the friuts in small pices
2. Mix sugar with the water and the lemon juice
3. Place the fruits in the Icepop maker 
4. Pour over the water sugar and juice mix
5. Freeze 
6  Wait 
7. Taste

Noice eh??

Coconut and Cocoa Icepop

Why life can be as easy as food?! You just need to cook it or make someone do it for you and then eat it and is all done… whereas real life isn’t that easy! In particular if your name if like hobby you like to screw your chances at any given occasion!!! Oh yeah… just listening to no woman no cry ….sure the only thing I have left after tonight is crying how stupid can I be?!??!?! Now having consumed half of a box of cereal and 2 homemade ice cream which I going to give you the recipes…I still haven’t figured out how can I manage all the time to make so that “nothing is going to be alright?!” Well here is the simplest ice cream recipes I took from Chocolate Covered Katie Blog

Shopping List

400 ml of coconut milk

20 gr. of cocoa powder

20 gr. of dark sugar

Let’s get on whit this

1. Mix all the ingredient
2. Freeze the mixture
3. Wait ….long time, too long when the only things you want to do is eat them 

Voilaà...yum yum