Lemon stuffed with risotto, pine nut cream, caramelized onion and chutney
This was the showstopper at the Christmas dinner in our restaurant. Eye and tongue pleasing with different layers of taste and textures. At home, you can of course also make just the filled lemon…
Risotto with caraway seeds, fried sauerkraut and mustard (ice cream)
I really wanted to find sauerkraut a nice place in Christmas dinner. But in a way that everyone would like it. If you know what I mean. I came up with this risotto with caraway seeds – of course that matches well with sauerkraut anyway. And I fried the sauerkraut. It’s a great find. All the goodness of sauerkraut remains, and the worst of the acidity is gone. To make it even more festive and special, I asked our Bart from ice cream parlor Hygge if he wanted to make mustard ice cream. With mustard seeds. And it did. A mini scoop of ice cream on top was the surprise of the day. And delicious. Of course, you can also add mustard to the risotto.
Leek from the oven that melts on your tongue with leek cream and dukkah
With a lot of patience, leeks can become the highlight of the evening. The same is true with this dish. You let it simmer for a long time in the oven in oil. It becomes as tender as you’ve never tasted leeks before. And then with a delicious almost sweet leek cream. And crispy dukkah on top. Man, it couldn’t get better. And you never make enough.
Pasta with braised radicchio and pine nuts
Radicchio is not so common while it is such a delicious vegetable. Raw but certainly also smothered like in this pasta. Nicely ‘lit up’ with lemon zest and balsamic vinegar. And made ‘earthy’ again with the pine nuts. A feast. A nice quick lunch dish or just nice for the evening meal… All is fine.
Mushroom risotto with cavolo nero and hazelnuts
This is where all the great earthy flavors come together. Mushrooms, palm cabbage, hazelnuts. With the counterpart of the fresh lemon and white wine. We often bring a meal to an elderly sweet man, Jos. He said this risotto is my favorite. Well, all is said with this one.
Exciting and unctuous orzo with kale, tomato and more…
Somehow orzo always gives such a comfort food feeling. And especially if you can make a one-pan dish like this that has everything in it. The sensation of comfort food. An alternation of savory with a little sweet because of the cinnamon stick. Boost of health through the kale. And a bit of spiciness through the harissa. I said it already… it has everything in it.
Pasta with chard and cream sauce
Chard does not appear on our table on a daily base. But, if one gets a lot of chard in the house, one becomes creative. This turned out to be a very creative culinary recipe. Soft, creamy, tasteful.
Pumpkin risotto
Risotto and I are very close friends. Unconditional love. For life. It never disappoints me. My kitchen always has everything in stock you need to make a risotto. Sometimes I don’t know which one to prepare, but then the risotto ‘finds me’. With good suggestions. Like the other day with pumpkin. Love at first sight again. What’s new.
Arancini da Ischia
When I think of Sunday afternoon. When I think of Italy. And I combine those two, then I think of arancini da Ischia. Recently we also had delicious arancini at our Italian friend’s Gian in Antwerp. And he gave me his recipe. And I put some à la myself in the recipe, and this is what came out. It’s really good. A very independent type of side dish with rice.
Beetrisotto
Whether you like beets or not, this looks incredibly good, right? And it is. Red wine, red onions, beets… And some garlic and dill. So incredibly delicious. So fresh. So earthy. And so tasteful.