i finally made a cover for the outside table.

i keep thinking about the wonderful food we had in lisbon... the day we went to the Gulbenkian, we didnt have to wander very far to find a place to lunch. two places, really. a vegetarian place and an african place. it was a tough choice. a few kind strangers exited the african place and told us it was amazing. and so, we went for it. it was a tiny joint and quite crowded. the daily menu was simple--a meat dish, a fish dish, and a i-cant-remember dish.

i got a spicy tuney fish plus rice and beans dish. the rice and beans were so perfectly spiced and the super spicy fish was fried in dough.

the other day, christian made some leek soup so i decided to make us some baked tuna pockets to go with that.


i used:
1 can tuney fish
handful of fresh parsley
2 large spoons of plain yogurt
a few good shakes of piri piri
pâte à strudel

the dough i used was a bit dry and quite fragile. i put all the ingredients together and divided the tuna mixture up into even lumps and wrapped it in dough. we baked it at 190 for about 20 minutes.

while the dough was quite different than what i had for lunch, it had the right crunch. i was pleased. but mostly, i was excited that the flavor of the fish rang true.

but, for me, a highlight of the week was when the sun came out and we got to eat on the balcony without freezing. the light on the mountains was a gorgeous pink, the trees were happily growing...

and we ate stuffed eggplant with salad and roasted mushrooms. and beer.

first, i cut into the eggplant and sprinkled them with salt. the salt encourages all the water to flee the eggplant, making for a silkier roasted veggie. i let them sit for about a half hour before prepping them with oil and roasting them for about another half an hour at 220 degrees.

once the eggplants cooled, i scooped out their guts.

i combined leeks, chopped sundried tomatoes, and cottage cheese... then added the eggplant guts.

into the oven they went! after about 15 minutes, i added a slice of mozzarella cheese to the top and let them continue baking for about another 15 minutes.

i also roasted mushrooms with garlic and parsley.

deeeee-lish.

the mister also made some bolognaise this weekend (i made some tvp crumbles), and chocolate mousse.


plus he surprised me with some tulips.

but did i mention the chocolate mousse?


chocolate mousse.

lis-bonne! food inspired by the capital of portugal

the mister and i just spent 4 glorious days in portugal--a welcome place to thumb one's nose at the winter (of course, the locals all thought it was cold and were bundled up, and all the museums had space heaters going... made us laugh)--and now that we're home, it's time to do some kitchen exploration.

we stayed at a welcoming guesthouse that provided us with a delightful breakfast every morning--fresh fruit! (FRESH FRUIT!) breakfast cakes! coffee! juice! cheese! eggs! yogurt! so many choices. this morning, waking up in our own bed, i decided i wanted to make us something warm and comforting. i usually make us a healthy bowl of oatmeal, but we we were out of milk. we did have a few apples laying around... and some orange juice... and one pot of yogurt.... and that's how i found myself making us a delightful breakfast bread (the mister insists on calling it cake) to warm our bones.

i gave the raisins a healthy soak in some orange juice. in the trusty kitchenaide, i creamed the butter and sugars, slowly added an egg, and the yogurt. smittenkitchen's apple muffins call for a cup of yogurt. our pots are a little over half a cup. i supplemented the rest of the cup with orange juice from the raisins, and a splash more for kicks. i combined all the dry goods and slowly added them to the batter.


113ish g butter
a little less than 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup sucre complet du canne, divided in 2
1 egg
1 pot of yogurt (i used honey greek)
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
lots of cinnamon and a shake or two of cloves
2 apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
1/4ish cup raisins
orange juice
small handful of pecans

i oiled a bread pan, poured the batter in, and sprinkled a mixture of the rest of the sucre complet, pecans, and a healthy few shakes of cinnamon. all was shoved into an oven warmed to 175, and it baked for about an hour. the smell woke up the mister. he says he'll keep me.

whenever we travel, my eyes are open to a whole new world of yum--our trip to tenerife created a mojo addiction--and this trip also inspired me culinarily.

the mister speaks spanish but neither of us speak portuguese. It's similar enough to spanish that we could figure out things, and the mister's amazing language skillz proved to be most helpful throughout the trip. most of the restaurants had a standard menu, and a selection of plates of the day. our first day there, i ordered the "fish with rice" (arroz de peixe) not knowing what to expect.

what i got was tasty tasty tasty.

it was, as advertised, fish with rice in a rich and spicy tomato sauce with shrimp and fresh parsley.

this is the dish i have recreated for dinner. mostly. i picked up some staple spices at a market during one of our jaunts--pepper combined with bay leaf, and paprika--and combined them with some canned tomato, stock, fresh red pepper, onion, and garlic. and you know what? it was deeelicious.


1 onion
garlic, as you please
1 red pepper
spices--sweet paprika, bay leaf
tomato paste
1 can chopped tomatoes
fish filets of choice
shrimp
2 cups stock of choice (i used fish stock)
1 cup of rice


i started out by sweating the onion.  i added the garlic and then the spices.  i was heavy on the sweet paprika. when the smell was intoxicating, i added a spoonful of tomato paste and the coarsely chopped red peppers. i let it all hang out for a while then added the can of tomatoes. i put on the lid and let it go for about 5 minutes. meanwhile, i defrosted some shrimp we had in the freezer. i added the fish, scooped the tomato over the top, and put the lid back on. after around 7ish minutes, i added the stock, brought it to a boil, and added the rice. lid back on, down to simmer. when the rice was nearly done, i added the shrimp, put back on the lid, and turned off the heat.

success! the mister says maybe i should try it again, you know, to make sure i have it right.

bon app!

more lisbon inspired foods are on the way...