Stuffed peppers

I aquired a 'thing' for peppers lately. I love them! Oven roasted or sauteed over low heat with some onions.

Today I made stuffed peppers. The recipe below serves 1 person, but of course you can make as many as you wish; just double the recipe.
These peppers are very convenient to serve when hosting a dinner. They look impressive, are easy to prepare and you don't have to worry about them while they're in the oven. (in the mean time you can whip up some side dishes, or if you're well-prepared, chat with your guests)

I'm keeping today's post short. I'm about to head to bed, after all, sleep is important.

Stuffed peppers (serves 1)

Ingredients:
- 1 large, red bell pepper
- 150g ground beef
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 1/2 tsp curry powder
- 1/4 tsp beef seasoning
- 1 handful fresh spinach leaves
- 1 egg

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Rinse pepper, cut off the top and remove the seeds. Put the pepper in a shallow oven dish and bake for 15 minutes.
3. In the mean time, chop up the top of the pepper, except for the stem.
4. Heat a skillet over high heat and brown the ground beef. Add the chopped onion, pieces of pepper and spices and sautee until the veggies are softening.
5. Add raisins and stir in the spinach until it's starting to wilt. Remove the pan from the heat to cool.
6. After approx. 10 minutes, stir the egg into the beef mixture.
7. Remove the pepper from the oven and stuff it with the beef and egg mixture. Put it back into the oven and bake for approx. 50 minutes until soft and done.
8. Serve hot and enjoy!

Cinnamon Carrot Slaw

Hopefully no one is getting tired of my salad recipes yet, because I've got yet another one!
I can't help it, but I just love using coconut cream as a base for dressings..


I'm so glad it's almost weekend again.. My last weekend in the Netherlands before heading to the USA! Because of some festivities in my city, 80% of the hospital will be closed tomorrow afternoon, so I only need to work 4 hours tomorrow. That's not so bad.
I finally finished planning my holiday, and am now busy making a 'what to pack' list, which is almost finished as well. Although I think some stuff will pop up in my head over the next few days.
I practiced some double unders again yesterday, with a different rope this time. I did almost 30! The rope you use definitely makes a huge difference. I now have 2 days of rest, because this weekend is going to be very intense, workout-wise.
Saturday: CrossFit WOD at CrossFit Twente
Sunday: SealFit WOD at Breda Strength & Conditioning
Especially that second WOD is going to be really, really (really) hard.. We'll see what happens!


Cinnamon Carrot Slaw (serves 2)
- 3 medium winter carrots, shredded
- 3/4 cup coconut cream
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts


1. In a small bowl, combine coconut cream, lemon juice, cinnamon and cilantro and mix well.
2. In another bowl, combine shredded carrots, raisins and walnuts.
3. Stir in the dressing until well-combined. Serve and enjoy!

Braised purple cabbage

I'm back! Just took a short break from blogging after my Whole30. At first it was strange I didn't 'have' to take pictures of my food every time anymore, but I've already gotten used to it again. Plus, now I don't need to make my food look so 'decent' with each and every meal. Sometimes you just want to throw together a bunch of food, as long as it tastes good.


Foodwise, I haven't changed anything so far. Except for those raisins and walnuts I had yesterday morning, I have been eating pretty much in the same way as I did over the last month.
But, it's time for a new recipe now! Braised purple cabbage. It takes up some oven time, but preparation is quick and easy.

Braised purple cabbage (serves 4)
- 1 head purple cabbage
- 1 onion, coarsely chopped
- 2 medium winter carrots, chopped
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted over very low heat
- 1/3 cup apple juice (or water)
- 1 tbsp cinnamon


1. Heat oven to 165 degrees Celsius.
2. Rinse the cabbage and cut it into 8 wedges, don't remove the core, it will help keeping the wedges together.
3. Put the cabbage wedges into a large baking dish and divide the onion and carrots over them.
4. Add the coconut oil and apple juice to the baking dish and dust everything with cinnamon.
5. Cover the dish with aluminium foil, tightly wrapping it around the edges, and bake for 1 hour.
6. Remove the dish from the oven, carefully remove the foil and turn the wedges over. Add some more apple juice if the dish is starting to dry out.
7. Cover with foil again and bake for another hour.
8. Remove the foil, turn the heat up to 200 degrees Celsius and bake for another 20 minutes until the vegetables are starting to brown.
9. Divide the wedges over 4 plates and serve with protein of your choice. Enjoy!

Simple beet salad

This is one of those recipes that's just so easy to make.. You could hardly call it a recipe (since it only has 2 steps), but I liked it so much that I wanted to share it with you.
I guess most people who like beets sometimes have too much of them (leftovers..) and wonder how they can serve them in a different way than usual. I turned my leftovers into a simple, yet tasty salad.
You can make a meal out of it by adding in a few chopped boiled eggs, some shredded chicken, or some salmon or mackerel. All works really well! If you do still want it to be a salad, it might be wise to double the dressing ingredients so you'll keep the creamy texture.
And if you don't have any chives, spring onions, cilantro, parsley or even some mint will do the trick just fine. Well, I hope this inspires some people to get creative with those leftover beets!


Beet salad (serves 2)
- 2 cups finely chopped, cooked/roasted beets
- 1/3 cup coconut cream
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tbsp chives, chopped
- black pepper


1. Combine coconut cream, lemon juice, chives and black pepper in a bowl and stir everything together.
2. Stir the coconut dressing into the chopped beets and serve. Enjoy!

Coconut Baba Ghanoush

Here it is, as promised, a new recipe.
I had never eaten eggplant puree before in my life. I never really was a fan of this vegetable, until I tasted grilled slices of it on a burger. That's when I realised it actually tastes really good!
What else could I do with eggplant? When mindlessly surfing to watch some foodporn, I ran into Baba Ghanoush. I always like food with foreign names, so I looked it up online; pureed eggplant with tahini, garlic, lemon and parsley. Sounds good.


I didn't have any tahini or parsley, so I figured I'd try it with coconut and cilantro instead. I also left out the garlic, as I didn't feel like adding it. Feel free to add a few cloves to the recipe below though.
I think the coconut adds a lot of sweetness to this dish, and it's packed with taste. I love it!
So, for everyone who's never had Baba Ghanoush before; just give it a try and I'm sure you'll like it.


Note: if you leave this in the fridge overnight, it's even better the next day!!


Coconut Baba Ghanoush (serves 2)
- 1 medium eggplant
- 2-3 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tbsp creamed coconut / coconut butter (not coconut oil!)
- 3 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped


1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Wash the eggplant and cut it in half lengthwise. Put it in the oven with the cut side up on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, and bake for approx. 45 minutes until soft and slightly blackened. Let cool for a while.
3. When the eggplant is cool enough to handle, peel off the skin and chop up the flesh.
4. In your food processor, combine the eggplant flesh, lemon juice and creamed coconut and process until smooth.
5. Stir in the cilantro, serve and enjoy!

Spicy cauliflower fried rice

I finally used some of the cauliflower I had in my fridge. Since it was such a huge one, I riced half of it, and am going to use the other half for roasting.
I had already made a cauliflower fried rice recipe a little while back, but decided I might as well make a spicy variation and add some spinach. I know, you can't actually see that much of the rice in the picture because of the toppings (egg and sardines) I added, but trust me, it was good nonetheless. Well, enjoy!


Spicy cauliflower fried rice (serves 2)
- 1 small head of cauliflower, cut into smaller florets
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 very hot chili pepper, chopped
- 1 1/2 cup frozen spinach
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp chili flakes
- black pepper
- zest of 1 lemon
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 tbsp coconut oil


1. Process the cauliflower florets in your food processor to a rice-like consistency.
2. Heat coconut oil in a wok or skillet and fry the onion and pepper until soft.
3. Add frozen spinach and fry over medium heat until you are able to mix it with the onions.
4. Stir in the cauliflower rice, coriander, ginger, chili flakes and black pepper and fry for approx. 2 minutes.
5. Stir in the lemon zest and juice, and divide over 2 plates.
6. Add protein toppings of your choice and serve with some fresh cilantro on top. Enjoy!


Topping suggestions:
- shredded chicken
- scrambled egg
- beef stew
- pulled pork
- can of sardines
- shredded salmon
The options are endless!

Paleo lasagna

I made this lasagna for dinner tonight. It was surprisingly easy to make, and pretty quick too; I was able to pop it into the oven in just 30 minutes. And another 30 minutes later I had a piece of lasagna on my plate and was enjoying it.
Instead of pasta, I used omelets to add some extra protein and firmness, and I used a lot of Italian herbs.
Paleo comfort food!


Paleo lasagna (serves 4)
- 4 eggs
- 2 tsp dried Italian herbs
- 2 onions, chopped
- 450g ground beef
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 small can (140g) tomato puree
- 2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tbsp fresh oregano leaves
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- black pepper
- 1 zucchini
- 2 tsp + 1 tbsp coconut oil


1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius.
2. Whisk 2 of the eggs in a bowl, together with 1 tsp dried Italian herbs.
3. Heat 1 tsp coconut oil in a frying pan, pour the egg-mixture in and make a thin omelet, transfer to a plate.
4. Repeat with the other 2 eggs.
5. Heat 1 tbsp coconut oil in a wok or skillet and fry the onions until soft.
6. Add ground beef and spices, and fry until browned. Then stir in the diced tomatoes and tomato puree and bring to a simmer.
7. Simmer for approx. 10 minutes until thickened.
8. In the mean time, wash your zucchini and slice it lengthwise into several thin slices.
9. Put one omelet on the bottom of an oven dish, top with half of the zucchini slices, then scoop on half of the beef mixture. Repeat with the remaining omelet, zucchini and beef.
10. Bake for approx. 25-30 minutes until zucchini is soft, cut into 4 pieces and enjoy!

Cauliflower fried rice

Finally, another recipe! This is what I made for breakfast this morning. Of course it's not exactly breakfast food, but I woke up pretty early and figured I might as well make myself a good meal. I served it with some beef stew and 1/2 avocado, kept me going all morning!
You could also add some chicken or salmon pieces to the cauliflower to turn it into a meal on its own. Be creative!


Cauliflower fried rice (serves 2)
- 1 medium head cauliflower
- 2 eggs
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 1 sprig lemongrass, very finely chopped
- 2 tsp freshly grated ginger root (or 1 tsp dried)
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 tbsp coconut oil


1. Take 1 tsp of the coconut oil and heat it in a frying pan. In the mean time, whisk your eggs in a bowl.
2. Pour the egg mixture into the pan and make a thin omelet. Transfer to a plate.
3. Cut your cauliflower into smaller florets and grind them in a food processor until a rice-like consistency.
4. Heat the remaining coconut oil in a wok or skillet and fry the onion until soft. Add pepper, lemongrass and ginger and fry for a few minutes before adding the cauliflower rice.
5. Stir-fry for just 30 seconds, then add the turmeric, coriander and cumin and fry for another 1 to 2 minutes over medium-low heat.
6. In the mean time, cut your omelet into thin strips.
7. Stir the lemon juice, cilantro and omelet into the cauliflower rice, remove from heat and serve hot. Enjoy!

Creamy spinach

Yay, weekend!! It's been a long and busy week..
I've been doing quite some studying, some sports, but kept my meals really simple because I wanted to eat clean this week, making sure I didn't get any cravings. This afternoon (which usually happens on Fridays) I did get some cravings but didn't give in to them. I've also been a little tired these days, perhaps because I haven't been able to get enough sleep (due to waking up too early) and I might have a small virus bothering me. Therefore I've been taking some extra vitamin C and probiotics.
And to prevent further cravings tonight I scooped the cream off the top of a can of coconut milk and mixed it with some cocoa and desiccated coconut (I didn't use anything to sweeten it, I found the coconut added enough sweetness already). Very yummy, contains a lot of fat, and not that many carbs.
I usually eat more carbs over the weekend and less during the week, which always leaves me craving for carbs on Fridays. I really hate carb withdrawal symptoms.. Especially the restless feeling it gives me. But this time I've been consuming some more fat and protein than usual and it seems to be a little easier now. That's why I'm not going to give in this weekend, and I already know I'll feel much better on Monday.


I've also decided to start my Whole 30 soon. I've seen many people do it online and I think it'll be a really good thing for me to do before going to the USA in August. I wonder how I'll feel afterwards!
I'm probably going to start next week, right after my birthday. I can't think of a better way to start my life as a 24-year-old.


Yesterday I made this spinach dish, which tasted really good. I even took the leftovers with me to work, together with some diced pumpkin and beef, and a slice of fritatta. Still tasted good when cooled.
Just in case you can't get your hands on any creamed coconut; you could also use coconut milk for this dish, however, it will take a long time of simmering before your spinach mixture has thickened. The best substitute for creamed coconut is to buy a can of good quality coconut milk, put it in the fridge overnight and scoop the thick cream off the top of the milk. Use the cream in this dish, it'll make a huge difference.

Celeriac fritters

Once again, a recipe for fritters! I just love fritters so I couldn't help myself. These were part of my breakfast this morning.
I'd never really grated a celeriac, except for using a peeler to make thick noodles, but my Magimix did the job wonderfully. And this was a whole new way of using celeriac, because I normally just add it to stews or curries and I occasionally turn it into fries. In all of these methods, the celeriac usually takes a longer time to cook than any other vegetable I add, which isn't exactly a problem, but I consider it to be inconvenient.
Anyhow, enough nagging about celeriacs; it's a delicious veggie, and you should try these fritters!

Eggplant and sausage mash

My flights have been booked! I really can't wait to go and booking my flights just made my trip to the USA come even closer. Of course I was kind of late in realising it would be convenient to have a debit card (for hotel reservations, car rental, etc) so I filled out an application form and I guess I will have to wait a little while longer before I can book a car and hotels. Although for some of those you don't need a creditcard or you can pay right away, I'll find out soon enough.

My dad's colleague lent me 2 really good travel books about the USA; Guide to Scenic Highways and Byways, and Guide to the State Parks of the United States, both by National Geographic. They already caused me to change the route I'd planned a little.
I've also started looking for places to eat, places to work out (CrossFit gyms!) and I'm 100% sure I'm going to enjoy myself over there. Plus, there are some great hiking and sightseeing opportunities along the road, especially in the National Parks and State Parks.

For dinner was this eggplant and sausage mash. Yum!

Curry burgers with cucumber salad

I just love hamburgers..
So that's why I made myself some curry burgers yesterday, along with a tasty cucumber salad. These burgers were a lot flatter when I had just shaped them, but they ended up looking slightly like meatballs. Ah well, they tasted good and that's what matters.

Ever since watching Fast Five yesterday I keep listening to this song:
Don Omar - Danza Kuduro
Who doesn't feel like Summer after listening to this song?? Mental note to self: put this song on a cd or USB-stick to listen during my roadtrip in the USA in August. I mean.. Hot, sunny weather, car windows open, sunglasses on, and this song as loud as still sounds ok. What else can you wish for in a beautiful country like that?

Stewed celeriac and curried ground beef

Made an easy but comforting dinner tonight. I still had some chicken stock in my fridge and thought it would be nice to stew my celeriac in. It made all the difference! It simply tasted much better like this, the flavour was more intense somehow.
I served it with some fried ground beef with yellow curry paste, the one I bought last Saturday. It's delicious!
Anyway, I'm going to keep my post short today. Enjoy the recipes!

Oven roasted cauliflower and Chicken spinach meatballs

Another sunny day today! Even though it's only April, it already feels like Summer.
This morning I went to the supermarket early to get my groceries for the Easter weekend. The supermarket opens at 8 a.m. and I got there around 8.10. I couldn't believe how busy it already was! As if all those people had been standing in line waiting for the store to open.. I don't think I want to know how busy it gets in there later today.
Luckily everything was well-stocked and I got myself a nice whole chicken to roast tomorrow, a pumpkin and even some veal steaks (calf's meat). I've never eaten veal steak before, but I figured I'd give it a try later this week.

I also went for another workout this morning, went quite well. Although there's a kettlebell circuit in it which tends to kill me :P
My trainer asked me if I happened to be able to poach eggs. Well, um, no.. But I'm into any type of challenge so I'm going to give it a try in the next couple of days!
For lunch I made myself some chicken meatballs and oven roasted cauliflower. Very good. I'd had the cauliflower at Whole Foods in New York and wanted to create my own version. Worked out pretty well! I still have some leftover and I think I'm going to make a salad out of it tomorrow or the day after. Or combine it with roasted broccoli.. I'm not sure yet.

Carrot salad with coconut sesame chicken

Had a brand new workout schedule today. Fun!
I mostly trained my arms and core, so my legs got spared a little. That was a good thing, because last thursday's squats with 40kg (instead of 35) were slightly too hard on my knees. Not that they hurt, but the muscles around them are still a bit sore and I don't want to force anything. (I mean, I need my knees and I especially don't want to see them getting injured)
Last thursday's training was fun though! A circuit built up out of 7 exercises, I started doing 15 reps of each exercise, then 14, then 13 etc, all the way down to 1. Nice :)
Finally made me able to get rid of some stress that had built up in my head.

Yesterday I made a long list of stuff I need to pack into either my suitcase or my hand luggage next week, and bought the last few items I didn't already have. I also got myself some US Dollars so I'll be able to do quite the amount shopping during the first few days.

This morning I made a different version of last night's sesame chicken by adding dessicated coconut and cinnamon. Combined with a simple salad made out of thinly grated carrot it made a tasty breakfast.

Sesame chicken and roasted broccolini

I've discovered a new veggie I love: broccolini!
I'd had it before, but just stir-fried it, and it didn't taste too different from regular broccoli. Roasting it in my oven made quite a difference though and I liked it a lot.
I served it with some chicken pieces, coated with sesame seeds, quite nice. The picture was taken just before finishing every last bit of my dinner, at which moment I figured a picture from the food up close would be nice too, instead of a picture of my whole plate right after cooking.

Cauliflower mash with sausages

Yay, weekend again! Only 2 days this time (normally I have 3, I know, I'm lucky), because I switched some days to be able to go to New York without having to take a lot of days off.
I don't have much planned for this weekend, besides going to get some US Dollars and buying stuff to pack in my suitcase (mini-shampoo, mini-shower gel, stuff like that..). I try to take as little with me as possible, so I can bring a whole lot of stuff back, without having to leave stuff behind because I did too much shopping. (yes that happened to me once or twice)

Tonight's dinner was this cauliflower mash. My colleagues asked me what I was going to have for dinner and when I said 'cauliflower puree with sausages' they looked at me as if I was insane. It tasted really good though!
The sausages I used were made of lamb and beef, I'd never had those before but they were very good! I'm going to stock my freezer and fridge all the way up again tomorrow. Although I do need to make sure I don't buy too many veggies, because my fridge needs to be almost empty before I leave next week.

Garam masala burgers and creamy pak choi

Today's lunch turned out really well! I didn't even mean to turn it into a recipe, but I liked it a lot so I figured I might as well post it.
I often make burgers out of steak tartar, because I like the taste and structure better than when I'd use ground beef.

This morning I went to the market again and it's a good think I've been working out a lot as I loaded my bag with loads of veggies. It all looked so tasty. And then I saw a nice butternut and a huge cauliflower, and, and.. Before I knew it I could hardly carry the stuff anymore.
People who see me walking around with that huge amount of veggies, carefully piled up into 2 baskets and still trying to add some more without everything falling on the ground, still give me funny looks as if I'm going to feed a huge family.
Unless someone asks explicitly, I'll never tell it only takes me a week to eat all of that, by myself.

The herbs I seeded last week have already started growing! The thyme, basil and mint have sprouted already, and the coriander shows signs of sprouting too. So I only need to wait for the parsley and chives to come up too. I hope they'll survive when I'm in NYC though.. Would be a shame if they didn't, but I guess they will.

Curry meatballs and caraway roasted celeriac

Today was as beautiful as they said it would be! Warm and sunny! So of course I couldn't resist going outside for a while, and I didn't even need a coat, just a t-shirt, and some sunglasses of course.
For dinner I made myself these meatballs in a creamy curry sauce. They were quite spicy because of the curry powder I used and because I added a red hot chili pepper (no, not one from the band..) so if you don't like spicy food; use a mild curry powder and don't add the pepper..
I served them with celeriac, roasted with carway seeds. I diced them to make them look like those potato cubes I used to love, but of course they were nothing like it. Still really good though, you just can't compare them! I'd never cooked with caraway seeds before, but I liked them, they added a nice aromatic taste to the celeriac. I don't really know how else I can use them yet, but I'll probably think of something soon.

Salmon with kohlrabi leaves and parsnip

Today I used a rather unusual vegetable to cook with: kohlrabi leaves!
They had beautiful kohlrabis at the market, with all the leaves still in tact. Normally, I'd just pull those off and throw them away, but I figured those might actually be edible.. After some googling I found out you can use them as you would use any other leafy green vegetable, so I used them in a stir-fry with salmon and parsnip. Tastes really good!
I'm not quite sure what you could compare the taste of the kohlrabi leaves with as they don't have a specific taste. They just make a good addition to pretty much any dish.
I served mine with zucchini fritters, although judging from the picture (and the amount of fritters) you could also say I served my fritters with the salmon stir-fry. Made a tasty meal either way!