Granola a la Kona

Granola a la Kona

My vacation to Hawaii a couple of years ago, inspired me to make this granola. My husband had a granola with coconut, almonds and oats, served over yogurt in a papaya fruit, and it became one of his favourite breakfasts. So when we got home from vacation, I had to recreate the granola. I make the granola in a wok on the stove, but you can easily make it in the oven. 

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1½ tablespoon honey
• ½ cup coconut flakes
• 1½ cup quick oats
• ½ cup slivered almonds
• 1 sprinkle cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon vanilla paste

Directions:

Heat the oil in the wok, and add the honey. Let the honey foam for a moment, and then add the rest of the ingredients. Keep stirring and cook until the granola turns golden brown. Pour the granola into a large pan or baking sheet and spread the granola out in an even layer, and let it cool. The granola crisp up while cooling. The more you stir during the cooling period, the more separated the granola gets.

If you want to cook the granola in the oven:

Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃).

Combine oats, almonds, coconut and cinnamon in a  large bowl, and set aside. 

Melt the oil and honey in a small saucepan, remove from heat, and  add the vanilla paste. Pour over the oat mixture and mix until the oats are thoroughly coated. Spread the mixture in a thin, even layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake the granola for 15 minutes, then stir and continue baking until the granola is very light golden brown, about 5 to 10 minutes more. 

Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. The granola crisp up while cooling. The more you stir during the cooling period, the more separated the granola gets.

Store the granola in a large, airtight container. It will keep for up to one month.

Serve the granola on yogurt with fresh fruit, or in a papaya. 

Enjoy.

Brussels Sprouts Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette

Brussels Sprouts Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette

I'm trying to cut down on the starchy sides at dinner time. I wanted to try another way to eat brussels sprouts. I  been cooking with brussels sprouts in my brussels sprouts purée, and the crispy salad on top, made me think of making a salad.

Ingredients:

• 10-12 medium brussels sprouts, thinly sliced

• 1 shallot, thinly sliced

• 1 handful hazelnuts, toasted with honey

• 1-2 blood oranges

Dijon vinaigrette:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 teaspoon dijon mustard

• blood orange juice (I squeezed the core after filleting it

• salt & pepper

Directions:

Dressing: Shake the ingredients in a mason jar, season with salt and pepper.

In a large bowl toss brussels sprouts and shallot together with the dressing until everything is well-coated. Plate the salad and top with blood orange fillets and hazelnuts.

Jalapeño poppers my way

Jalapeño poppers my way

Jalapeño poppers are so yummy, they are spicy, creamy and salty, all in one. It's the perfect snack for Super Bowl or just for a spicy side for your weekday dinner. If you don't like spicy food, you can make poppers with small sweet peppers like the ones I use in my oven-roasted potatoes.

My version calls for bacon, natures best spice.

Makes 8 poppers

Ingredients:

• 4 jalapeños 
• 3 tablespoons cream cheese
• 4 small mozzarella balls
• 2 scallions 
• 4-8 slices of bacon (you only need one slice on each - but I went a little overboard) 

Directions:

preheat the oven to 375℉.

Mix the cream cheese with the chopped scallions.

Cut jalapenos in half, length-wise. Remove the seeds with a spoon. If you like spicy foods, leave some of the white membrane which is where the spiciness comes from.

Fill each jalapeno half with cream cheese, top of with some mozzarella and wrap jalapeno with bacon (½ slice). Secure the bacon by sticking a wooden toothpick through the jalapeño.

Bake poppers on a rack with a pan underneath for 25-30 minutes. If, after the 25 minutes, the bacon doesn’t look brown enough, just turn on the broiler for a couple of minutes to finish it off. Serve immediately.

Guacamole

Guacamole - The perfect snack.

I have a love for avocados, and guacamole especially. The green velvety dips is to die for.

I have tried many different recipes, but this one from Curtis Stone is the best I've tried yet. I will keep looking for perfection, but this is really really close.

Ingredients

• 3 firm but ripe hass avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, and cut into ½ inch pieces
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• ½ jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• salt

Directions

In a large bowl, gently fold the avocados, cilantro, lime juice, jalapenos, garlic, and cumin together. Season to taste with salt.

Øllebrød - Danish rye bread porridge

Øllebrød med meget flødeskum -  Danish rye bread porridge with a big scoop whipped cream.

I made øllebrød, another traditional danish dish. But when  I wanted to write this post I didn’t know how to translate "øllebrød" - So I tried Goggle Translate, which suggested "beer soup". But it didn’t sound right, especially when I don't use any beer in the recipe. So I ended up with the Danish rye bread porridge because its a porridge made from rye bread, right?

My mom loved øllebrød, she could eat it for every meal, while my dad hated it. So she had it mostly as breakfast, and as her daughter I learned to love it too.

In Denmark you give children øllebrød for breakfast when they are starting to eat solid foods. It's very filling and will keep you full for at long time, kinda like oatmeal. Øllebrød is sweet and that's why I add some lemon zest to it. But beware you can only eat a little portion, because it's so filling.

Serves 4 

Ingredients:

• 400 g seedless rye bread
• 900 g water (to get desired thickness)
• 120 g brown sugar
• 1 lemon, zest of 

Directions:

The bread can be leftover stale bread. Cut the bread into cubes, and put them into a pot. Add water just to cover. With stale bread you would let it sit overnight. With fresh bread you can start to cook it right away.

Boil the bread and water with the brown sugar, and stir occasionally. To get rid of the lumps you can either use an immersion blender or strain the porridge through a sift. 

Add more water to get the right consistency. Take the porridge of the heat and add the lemon zest.

Serve the hot Øllebrød with cold milk or whipped cream.