The Move

Posts too few, pictures too ugly. And, frankly, a name I never really warmed up to. My blog needed a new spring in its step, so it has moved house. Come visit at shoeboxcooking.wordpress.com for regular posts, better pictures and a better name. Hope to see you there!

Sauerkraut with a twist (sauerkraut "pizza" with onions and two cheeses)

When life hands you sauerkraut, you make pizza.

No?

I did. My bag’o’vegetables brought a container of organic sauerkraut, and I didn’t want a hot dog to go with it. (Unusual, certainly, but there you have it.) Since my dislike of them has not abated yet, potatoes were out as an accompaniment, and cooking soup seemed like too much work. But luckily, there is always pizza.

Following the lead from this recipe, I fried an onion in olive oil and added a nice pinch of caraway seeds. When the onions had softened, I added a few handfuls of the sauerkraut and warmed the mixture thoroughly. Then I let it cool to lukewarm before stirring in about half a cup of grated cheese (30+ mature Gouda, for those interested).

I did not have a pizza crust on hand, but the droopy left-over flour tortillas in my drawer were crying out for oven heat and quick consumption. Perfect. Onto the tortillas the cheesy, oniony sauerkraut mixture went. Because I am of the more-is-more school when it comes to cheese, I topped it with a dusting of parmesan before sliding the “pizza” into a hot oven for about ten minutes.

What came out was tangy, slightly chewy, slightly crispy and somehow quite luscious. Like a pizza, but without the risk of tomato stains for my white shirt. Not bad, eh, for sauerkraut on a crust.

Warmth in My Belly (eggplant and mozzarella)

My house smells of red wine, garlic, tomatoes and cheese. It is a comforting smell, that helps fight the chills brought on by the sound of howling wind and rain lashing against the windows. When deciding what to cook, I was leaving through Sarah Raven’s Garden Cookbook and came across a recipe for eggplant with mozzarella. Grilled eggplant, lots of cheese and tomato sauce. Sounded perfect for a blustery day. And it was- hearty, creamy and bursting with warming flavors. Wanna give it a go?

Start by slicing two eggplants and two balls of buffalo mozzarella, and grating a pile of Parmesan.

Brush the eggplant slices with oil and grill them. Combine a can of tomatoes with a glug of oil, two cloves of garlic and a few shakes of dried thyme into a sauce. If you happen to have red wine standing around, add some as well. Simmer the sauce until it starts to thicken.

Put a layer of grilled eggplant slices in an oven-proof dish, and scatter with a handful of parmesan.

Add a third of the tomato sauce, and top with half the slices of mozzarella.

Repeat the process until you have used all the ingredients, and make sure to end with a layer of tomato sauce and grated Parmesan.

Cook for about 20 minutes. Eggplant with mozzarella!

Little People and Sweet Things

During my run tonight, a surprising number of kids was milling about in the dark. There were groups of them, and they weren’t quietly rushing home either. There was giggling, there were games of tag. And then my musings about how kids’ bed times must be changing were interrupted by the little tykes singing. Singing, with paper lanterns dangling from their arms.

And it dawned on me: it is St Maarten today. A day for kids to carry flammable paper lights and demand candy from strangers in the night. As an adult you are supposed to be prepared for being of those strangers and have plenty of sugary treats on hand. I, of course, have no regular dealings with little people, was oblivious to St Maarten up until that point and was woefully unprepared for pushing sweets. So I did the mature thing and snuck past the kids on tiptoe, willing them not to notice me.

It worked, I sprinted up the four flights of stairs to my house and had just closed my front door with a relieved sigh when the bell rang. I wasn’t expecting anyone, and unannounced visits rarely happen to me. I gingerly picked up the intercom receiver and heard tiny voices screeching about cows with tails and girls in skirts. Crap! Oh, how I wished I had some of the goodies up there to share.

But, alas, that gorgeous collection of sweet things was made weeks before by Manon and me to celebrate her 30th birthday. It was good indeed, and there were plenty of left-overs, but they were nothing but a memory now. Which is where my shoe box apartment showed its useful side- being on the top floor, there is no way for small ones to peep inside and mock me for not opening the door. So I quietly put the receiver down, closed the curtains more tightly and thanked Amsterdam’s crazy house prices for making sure I could not buy anything closer to the ground floor.

Honestly, I don’t know how excited the kids would have been about the stuff in the picture. I would definitely grin a very happy grin if offered any of those treats and might have let out a little squeal of delight when I saw them all together. But kids? I am guessing there just aren’t enough snazzy wrappers or brighter-than-life colorings to keep m happy. If, however, you are over the age of ten and are looking for a sweet spot in your day, I urge you to make something you see here. It was all seriously good.

From the simply chic apple tart to the surprising orange brownies and from the luscious cheese cake to the snappy ginger cookies, you can’t really go wrong. If you will allow me a small suggestion, though, I think you should start with the scones. They are easy-easy and surprisingly wonderful. Tender and crumbly, with a faintly sweet crumb, they are a great vehicle for lots of cream and raspberry jam.

All recipes are on this website (in Dutch only).

Ginger snaps

Cranberry cheesecake

Scones

Nutty orange brownies

Apple tart

White chocolate muffins with raspberries

One Last Summer Night

So there’s the rain. And the no-daylight-when-I-leave the house. There’s definitely wind, and the falling leaves are set to follow soon. Yup: easing into fall has become dealing with fall before I blinked twice.

Well, I suppose a person blinks more than twice in three weeks, so I must have. But if I did, I was too busy moving in my man, putting in overtime at work and planning a trip to Istanbul to notice. Which isn’t too bad, if you think about it, because it means I can post the picture above with impunity. In my world, tomatoes are deep red because summer is still around. I can pair them with buffalo mozzarella, basil and olive oil and take them outside to call them dinner. Which I don’t, because I would freeze. But I could, believe you me.

More later this week, and with an actual recipe. Just let me catch up on my sleep first.