Chicken Tagine

Hi there!
While learning how to cook, I like to experiment with different cuisines every now and then. It started with Italian food: I love a good pasta or lasagne! This Christmas I received a tagine as gift and I could not have been happier! I have been experimenting a bit, and decided to share my last creation with you.

Cooking with a tagine is actually really easy. You need some meat, vegetables combined with many herbs, and some liquid like bouillon. The shape of the tagine ensures all the flavours are combined and kept within the bowl. As a result, you have stew-like substance that is extremely tasty, and contains very juicy meat!

Perfect cold winter day Mushroom Soup

Hey guys!
Last weekend has been so busy: we had the activities in Amsterdam (read about them here and here) and on Saturday it was time to work on our apartment. I've been living here for almost a year now, but some things still could use some attention and now that the boyfriend is living here too it's time to do something about it. My parents came over (and brought the puppy, yay!) and the first part of our day was spent in Ikea. Because of the rain it was extreeeemely busy, but we managed to get everything we needed. We finally have a couch that is big enough for both of us to lay down on, and I absolutely love it! Also, the pictures/paintings are finally on the wall, and I have new shelves in my kitchen. I'm very happy!

On Sunday we wanted a lazy day together. Even though there were a couple of days that felt like Spring had arrived, winter is back in the Netherlands. Luckily it's not that bad: no snow or ice, just cold winds and dreary days. So last Sunday I figured I'd make something nice to warm us up: mushroom soup! Gijs (the boyfriend) was feeling sick and had to start his placement the next day, so I hoped to make him feel better, too.

Dinner for one: tilapia fillet, fresh salad and hasselback sweet potato for 3

Hey there,
I'm all alone this evening so I decided to start writing about my dinner already. For the past few weeks I've never been alone in my apartment: I'm living together with my boyfriend now! So I can't really get used to being by myself again. I played "El Camino", a great album by the Black Keys, quite loud (sorry neighbours!) but it's still a bit quiet at the dinner table, haha!

So what did I eat. A bit of a leftover meal, to be honest: hasselback sweet potato, rocket lettuce salad and tilapia fillet. I'm so full.. Seriously, that sweet potato could've fed two more people! Also, the sweet potato was a bit overcooked and burned on the edges. I will write down what I did below, but please make sure it's adjusted to your oven so you won't make the same mistake I did! I'll add a picture at the bottom of this post. First, the recipe...

Perfectly balanced dinner: roasted pumpkin with minced meat, bulgur and a delicious rocket salad

Good morning food lovers!

Today I've got a great recipe to share with you, which turned out to be even better than expected. It was a perfect combination of flavours and we absolutely loved it! I found a recipe online which I used for inspiration, but my friend Noor joined us last moment so we decided to add some minced meat as well. Also, I've got some fresh rosemary which I decided to add to the pumpkin as a nice touch. These kind of "experiments" are what makes me love cooking in the first place: who knows what great dishes result from a little inspiration! Feel free to make your own adjustments and let me know in the comments below, would love to hear from you.

The roasted pumpkin is smooth and sweet, which tastes great with the fresh vegetables and the salty minced meat. Since it was the first time cooking this (I never roasted pumpkin before!) it was a bit of a gamble but I would really recommend trying it, I'm definitely cooking this again! Bulgur is an ingredient I like to use as it can be combined with nearly any dish.