Meatballs with fried peppers

Here is what I made and it turned out to be delish!
easy and tasty!

So,
For 5 meatballs
200 gr ground beef
1 egg
1 table spoon bread crumbs
1 t spoon garlic powder
1/4 t spoon salt
1/4 t spoon black pepper
Mix everything together, shape balls and fry in a frying pan 3 minutes on each side on a medium heat.

For pepper dish:
2 bell peppers, sliced
1 onion, sliced
4 mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tea spoon crushed chili pepper
 1 t spoon ground black pepper
In a large skillet add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, add all the ingredients and cover. Cook on a medium heat for 15 minutes.
Stir every 3 minutes.
Done! :-)

Russian meat soup - Solyanka

As you all know Russians love their soups and Solyanka is one of their favorites!
All I can say is ...You have got to try this soup!

1 lb stewing beef, sliced thin
2 small sausages , sliced thin
1/2 lb ham, sliced thin
2 carrots, cubed small
1 onion, sliced small
3-4 big mushrooms, cut thin
1 pickled cucumber (I used dill pickles)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can stewed tomatoes
1/2-1 cup water
5 mushrooms, sliced (or to taste)
1 tablespoon flour
11 pitted black olives, chopped
1 tablespoon capers
salt & pepper
1 tablespoon sour cream, for topping
1 lemon slice, for garnish

Preheat a pan with oil or butter.
Cut onion in thin semi rings and stir until transparent, but not browned.
Cut pickled cucumbers in strips and add to onions.
Add tomato paste and stir until mixed - 2-3 minutes.
Add meat cut in strips (you can actually use any variety of meat you prefer, but above is what I chose to use).
Put everything in a large pot
Add can of stewed tomatoes and water to just the top of mixture.
Cover the pot and cook on medium heat for 2 hours
About 1 hour before serving add olives, mushrooms and capers.
Add flour to thicken.
Serve with a spoonful of sour cream and lemon slice for garnish.

Cod fish recipe

Yummy summer recipe.

1 lb (454 g) cod fillets, thawed
3 tbsp (45 mL) all purpose flour, (approx)
2 tbsp (25 mL) olive oil
1 cup (250 mL) crumbled blue cheese
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 tomato, (chopped)
1/2 tsp (2 mL) dried oregano
1 pinch hot pepper flakes
2 tbsp (25 mL) minced fresh parsley
Salt and pepper
Preparation:

Cut cod into serving-size portions. Pat dry. Dredge lightly in flour. In large skillet, heat half of the oil over medium-high heat; brown cod lightly on both sides and arrange in 8-inch (2 L) square baking dish. Sprinkle with blue cheese.


 Pour remaining oil into skillet; cook onion, garlic and red pepper, stirring, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add tomato, oregano, pepper flakes, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer about 10 minutes.

Add parsley, and season with salt and pepper to taste; spoon over fish. Bake uncovered in 375°F (190°C) oven for about 15 minutes.

Russian Crab salad

Hi! Here is some more russian food...
We usually eat it with a slice of bread as a simple salad, you guys can use it instead of potato salad as a side dish for BBQ.

Ingredients:
1 pack crab meat, chopped
10 big shrimps, chopped
2 hard boiled eggs, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped and marinaded (read below)
1 cup of cooked rice
1 small can corn
1 table spoon fresh dill
4 table spoons mayo
1 table spoon Dijon mustard
salt, pepper to taste

Prep -
Marinading onion is very easy. Chop it first, put it in a small bowl, add 1/2 cup of boiling water, leave it for 1 minute, drain. Add 2 tablespoons of white vinegar, 1/4 t spoon salt, 1/4 t spoon sugar and let it sit for 2 minutes, don't drain.

So, just mix all the ingredients together in a big bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour. Then stir well and serve! :-)

Sausage goodness

LOL I just didn't know how to name this dish :-)
SO, here it is! My creation... :-)

2 or 3 Hot Italian sausages, cut in slices
2 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 big mushrooms, chopped
1 big carrot, chopped
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup rice
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 t spoon crushed red pepper
1 t spoon salt
1 t spoon black pepper

Cook the rice.
Preheat a big skillet, add 2 tbl spoons olive oil, place your sausages on it, fry on each side until golden brown, add onion, reduce the heat and start adding vegetables in this order - celery, carrots, mushrooms, bell pepper, garlic and finish with salt, red and black pepper. Cover it and sautee for 5-6 minutes, add the tomato paste, stir well. Then cook it covered for another 20-25 minutes.
Done!!!! Yummm!!!!

Goulash

As I know Goulash is pretty popular in many countries, so this is my version of a beautiful goulash with rigatoni pasta (you can actually use any type of pasta or rice).

Ingredients:
300 gr ground beef
1 cup of frozen vegetables (corn, peas, carrots)
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup tomato paste
1 t spoon garlic powder
1/2 t spoon salt
 1 t spoon black pepper
1 t spoon cayenne pepper
1 t spoon crushed red pepper

Just mix all the ingredients, except for tomato paste in a big skillet at medium heat, cover it and let it simmer for 15 minutes. Add the tomato paste, stir very well, cover and let it simmer for another 15 minutes over  low heat. Done!  :-) Is that simple or what?

Beef pitas with yogurt sauce (my husband's creation)

Easy, takes 30 minutes max and so delicious!! As a side dish you can use a salad (caesar, spinach, greek or garden salads)

For the sauce:
1 cup fat free plain yogurt
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1/4 cup minced fresh dill
1/2 t spoon minced garlic
1/8 t spoon salt
For Pitas
1 t spoon dried oregano
1 t spoon minced fresh rosemary
1/2 t spoon salt
1/4 t spoon pepper
1 pound sirloin steak, cut into thin strips
 1 large sweet onion. sliced
4 t spoons olive oil, divided
4 pitas, warmed

For sauce, combine all the ingredients in a bowl, cover and refrigerate until serving.
For meat  -in a large bag combine meat, rosemary, oregano, salt, pepper, seal the bag and shake it until all the ingredients are married together.
In a large non-stick skillet, sauté onion in 2 t spoons olive oil until golden brown, add your meat mixture until no longer pink. Serve beef and onion on pitas with yogurt sauce.