Caramelized Onions and Garlic Cheese Omelette

Who doesn't know how to make an omelette...the answer would be no one, as everyone knows how to make them, but the most important is the the contents (fillings) same as a person, as is what is inside a person that counts (their personality) same goes for the omelette, the fillings are it's personality, so make them good.

However simple it may be, this one is one of the best tasting omelettes I've made, and as such I wanted to share this with my followers. As to the potato wedges, there several recipes previously posted on how to make these, look in my previous postings or search for the keyword "wedges" in the labels.

Receita em Portugues AQUI


Recipe Ingredients: (1 person)

• 2 big eggs (mixed in a bowl)
  
• 3 garlic cloves (minced)
  
• 1/2 onion (thinly sliced)
  
• 3 soup spoons full of cubed cheese (I used cheddar and cut it into very small cubes)
  
• a little olive oil
  
• salt and black pepper to taste.
  

Place a non stick frying pan on the stove with a little olive oil, temper it with sea salt and black pepper, once hot add the onion and garlic, always stirring let them go golden brown virtually caramelizing them, (both the garlic and the onion will get a specific sweetish taste, which is beautiful) at this stage remove them from the fire, and pour them inside the mixed eggs , and stir these well.

Put the frying pan back on the stove with a little of olive oil, and once hot pour in the mixture of eggs and onions, at the start stir it as if you were going to make scrambled eggs, but as soon as it starts to dry stop mixing, as to achieve a perfect omelette it must be (a little) moist inside. Leaving 2 centimetres from the edge on the pan, lay a line of cheese cubes across the middle of the omelette, and then with a teflon spatula fold one third of the omelette back into it's center and do the same from the oposite side, let it cook for 1-2 minutes and once that is achieved flip it over letting it cook for another 1-2 minutes, after this it is ready to serve and eat, when you cut the amelette in the middle should be moist and the cheese should ooze out yumyum!!


You can serve it with what to want, I made potato wedges, you can use salad, rice and/or any other combinations that you may like. Bon appetit.
These eggs that I used were given by a friend who has hens and liked my blog so the eggs are free range and organic (super fresh), my friend's name is Manuel. Today some friends also gave me a wonderful fish which I will cook soon, but for now I have more surprises for you coming soon. xx

Pecan, Honey and Greek Yoghurt Tart

This Tart was adapted from "Tarte Delicia de Iogurte" from Luisa Alexandra blog recipe which she also adapted from other blog, and so on. But believed to have the original recipe from a blog called Gulosices but is in Portuguese.

Receita em Português AQUI

Recipe Ingredients:

• 250grs Sugar
• 2 eggs
• 500grs Greek Yoghurt (you can use normal plain yoghurt, for a softer texture)
• 50grs Margarine
  
• 1 tea spoon of vanilla essence
• 100grs of flour
• 50grs pecan nuts (ground)
• 12 pecan halves
• 2 soup spoons of honey (and a little extra honey for glaze)

This tart was originally made with 350 grs of sugar no nuts or honey and plain yoghurt, also was made in individual small tart containers rather than a large one, result was a more moist and light tart. I went for a more dense and zingy tart to contrast with the fresh cream and the honey glazed pecans.

The preparation is simple. Beat the sugar and the eggs until the sugar granules disappear (around 2 minutes with a machine or 4 by hand), then add the melted margarine, vanilla essence and flour (little by little to not form lumps), mix these until homogeneous (around 30 seconds machine or 1 min by hand).

Finally add the yoghurt the ground pecans and the 2 soup spoons of honey (plain), just mix these well. then put the dough in a large baking tart dish (previously greased with margarine and floured) and bake for about 35 minutes at 180c, until golden brown on top, before I put it in I placed on a frying pan a soup spoon of sugar about 2 soup spoons of water and a soup spoon of honey, turned the gas on and let it start bubbling, at that stage I added the pecan halves, and let these cook until it started to caramelize (but not caramel just syrupy) placed 8 pecans on top of the tart drizzled some of the syrup on top in a circle around the pecans. The rest I used to put on the whipped cream also making a little more surup the same ways with a few chopped pecans, see picture.

The texture is that of a baked cheesecake crossed with a cake, is quite unusual and zingy from the greek yoghurt, however is delicious, and the pecan and honey come through as real stars. This cake/flan is in the class of "Queijada" which is a portuguese tipe of cake that is neither a cake or a flan but something in between. :D

Tuna Steak and Caramelized Balsamic Onions with Potato Salad and Honey pan Fried Parsnips

Receita em Português AQUI

Looks intricate but I assure you that is not, actually depending how cheap you can get your tuna this can be a very cheap meal, I got mine on a promotion so the meal was quite economical and easy to make.

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 4 people)

• 4 medium (fresh) Tuna steaks
• 300grs new potatoes (depending on size, washed halved and cooked)
• 250grs Greek yoghurt tub
  
• a little bunch of chives (chopped)
• 2 onions
• 2 parsnips (cut in half, then in half lengthways and finally thinly sliced)
  
• 2 garlic cloves (minced)
  
• 4 soup spoons of balsamic vinegar
• 1 tea spoon of butter
  
• 1 tea spoons of honey
• 1/2 tea spoon of brown sugar
  
• some olive oil
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 1/2 tea spoon sweet paprika
• 1 soup spoon of sesame seeds
  

Well!!! Get the new boiled potatoes and place them in a bowl, in there you put the yoghurt a little salt and pepper a little olive oil (like a couple of spoons) a few drops of lemon juice and of course the chives. Give this a gentle stir so it evolves all the potatoes and is ready to serve.

The parsnips peal them and cut them in half, then halve the halves lengthways then cut thin slices. Now put a frying pan on the stove med temp, put a little olive oil in it, and once hot put all of the parsnip in + the sesame seeds and a tea spoon of butter + a little seasoning "salt and pepper" , stir the parsnips occasionally ensuring they get brown on both sides, at that stage ad 2 soup spoons of balsamic vinegar and the honey let it cook till is nearly burnt and there is ready to serve too.

While that is doing you can do the tuna. In a pan place a little olive oil and once hot add the onions, while these ones brown, smear the garlic on the tuna+ a little salt and pepper, back to the onions keep stirring them over and over until golden at this stage move them to one side inside the pan and add the tuna steak (if need be add a little more olive oil) add also a few drops of water and push the onions back over the tuna, and cover the pan with a lid, after about 3 minutes remove lid and add the sugar, paprika and the balsamic vinegar a few more drops of water, lid back on cook another 2-3 minutes sand the tuna will be cooked. The tuna will cook very quickly and should not overcook or will become too dry and chewy, tuna if very fresh can be eaten like a steak (rare, medium rare and done...but never well done)

Pan Fried Pork Sausage in a bed of Spring Onion Bulgar dusted with Paprika

Really easy to make yet nutritious and fast to accomplish.

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 3-4 people)

• 300grs bulgar wheat
• 2 garlic cloves (1 finely diced, the other crushed)
  
• 2 carrots (julienned)
  
• 6 spring onions (thinly sliced)
• 1 soup spoon of tomato concentrate
  
• 1 bay leaf
  
• some olive oil
• a little butter
• Salt, pepper and (sweet) paprika to taste

Cook the Bulgar (I used fine one this time) as you would cook rice it will be done in 7-8 minutes, and once cooked drain it in a small holes strainer, and set it aside. Meanwhile get a frying pan with a glug of olive oil and a little butter (heaped tea spoon will do) and as soon as is hot add the garlic the bay leaf and the sausages, following this method seal turn, seal turn keep doing that until is sealed all the way around, then you do the same for browning, browned turn and so on.

And while that is doing, on another frying pan put a glug of olive oil and the minced garlic soon as it get hot add a little seasoning and the carrots and spring onions, cook until the spring onions start to go a little darker, at this stage add some paprika and a soup spoon of tomato concentrate and 1/2 cup of water, bring to the boil reduce the heat to minimum and let it simmer for about 10 minutes, then join the sauce to the drained bulgar and let it rest about 3 minutes with a lid on....serve and eat. this was my yesterday's diner. Have fun