Vihreä smoothie resepti

 Smoothiet on ehkä yksi helpoimmista tavoista lisätä vihannesten ja hedelmien kulutusta. Ihmisen pitäisi syödä hedelmiä sekä vihanneksia vähintään puoli kiloa päivässä. Se saattaa tuntua isolta määrältä, mutta kun pikkuhiljaa lisää hedelmien ja vihannesten määrää ruokavalioonsa, terveellisestä ruokavaliosta on pian vaikea luopua :) Hedelmien syöminen ei tuota yleensä vaikeuksia ihmisille, mutta vihannesten syöminen tuntuu olevan vaikeampaa.

Itse noudatan sääntöä jonka mukaan syön joka aterialla ainakin yhden hedelmän tai vaihtoehtoisesti annoksen vihanneksia. Smootheihin yritän aina lisätä vihanneksia, mm. porkkanaa, avocadoa tai pinaattia. Avocado on myös oiva levite leivälle, ja sopii erinomaisesti etenkin kalkkunaleikkeen kaveriksi.

Tässäpä terveellinen resepti joka sisältää sekä hedelmiä, paljon kuitua ja vähän vihannestakin. Ohjeesta tulee yksi iso lasillinen.

0,5dl appelsiinimehua
0,5dl maitoa ( itse käytän soijamaitoa smootheissa)
kourallinen tuoreita pinaatinlehtiä
1 kuorittu kiivi
1 rkl kuorimattomia seesaminsiemeniä
3 jääpalaa

1. Pese pinaatinlehdet
2. heitä kaikki ainesosat blenderiin. Seesaminsiemenet kannattaa laittaa viimeiseksi.
3. Sekoita kunnes seos on tasaista.
4. Nauti!

- Anne

Etanapiiraat sieni-aurajuustotäytteellä

Etanat? "Hyi olkoon". Näin ainakin ajattelee suurin osa ihmisistä. Minulta on joskus kysytty miltä etanat maistuvat. Makua on vaikea tarkalleen määrittää. Se on sekoitus kanaa ja jotain muuta. Rakenteeltahan kypsä etana muistuttaa rapua tai kauan kypsytettyä lihaa. Itse olen syönyt etanoita lapsesta asti ja pidän niistä kovasti.

Tässä ohje jonka alunperin otin jostain vanhasta lehdestä, mutta olen ajan saatossa muuttanut sen omanlaisekseni.

Resepti  9 piiraaseen

250g (3 levyä) voitaikinaa
1 rkl voita
1 purkki etanoita(n.200g)
kourallinen herkkusieniä
1 iso valkosipulinkynsi
50g Aurajuustoa
oreganoa
pippuria

1 kananmuna
seesaminsiemeniä

1.  Sulata voitaikinalevyt huoneenlämmössä. Tässä kestää noin tunti.
2. Sulattamisen jälkeen laita uuni lämpenemään 225 asteeseen.
3.  Avaa etanapurkki, valuta etanat ja huuhtaiset nopeasti kylmässä vedessä. Painele etanat kuivaksi talouspaperilla.
4.  Pilko etanat sekä herkkusienet pieneksi.
5.  Pilko valkosipuli.
6. Kuumenna paistinpannu ja laita voi sinne.
7. Paista sienet ja etanat. Parin minuutin jälkeen lisää valkosipuli, aurajuusto,oregano sekä pippuri.Sekoita kunnes massa on sekaisin ja aurajuusto hiukan sulanut. Laita pannu sivuun jäähtymään.
8. Kauli jokainen voitaikinalevy hiukan ohuemmaksi. Tämän jälkeen leikka jokainen levy 3 osaan, eli tämän jälkeen sinulla on 9 pientä levyä.
9. Lisää jokaiselle levylle 1 ruokalusikallinen täytettä allaolevan kuvan mukaisesti

11. Taita voitaikina kaksinkerroin ja painele reunat kiinni. Sormien kastaminen veteen auttaa pitämään reunat tiukemmin kiinni.

12. Voitele piiraat munalla. Tämän jälkeen kaada hiukan seesaminsiemeniä jokaisen piiraan päälle.

13. Laita valmiit piiraat  uunipellille ja uuniin noin 10 minuutiksi (225c. Piiraat ovat valmiit kun ne ovat saaneet kullanruskean värin. 

- Anne

Chewy Oatmeal raisin cookies

I've never been a real fan of cookies, but Double stuf Oreos and oatmeal raisin cookies are just delicious. I've never made "American" style cookies before, but I looked at some recipes online and changed them a bit. The cookies ended up being just what I wanted; with a hint of cinnamon and a bit chewy and soft in the middle. The best part when making these was the incredible smell that filled the whole apartment!The cookies are quite sweet, so just one cookie can definitely take away any craving for something sweet :)

Recipe for About 15 large Cookies

4,5 dl wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1,5 teaspoons salt

1,5 dl oatmeals

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

2 dl raisins

50g butter

3 eggs

2,5dl brown sugar(I used cane sugar) 

2,5dl white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla sugar

You'll also need: 

2 bowls

A coffee mug

A baking tray 

Baking paper

1.  Preheat the oven to 175 celsius

2. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, oatmeals and raisins in a bowl.

3. Melt the butter in the microwave for about 10 seconds in the coffee mug so that it get softer. 

Put the butter, eggs, and sugars in another bowl. After this, Using a hand mixer mix the ingredients until mixture turns into a cream. It should be lighter in colour and have bubbles in it. 

4. Mix the remaining ingredients into the cream. Now the cookie dough is ready.

5. Now it's time to make meatball sized "balls" out of the dough. This is easier if hands are a bit wet.

6. Don't put the cookie balls too close to eachother. Otherwise they will stick together in the oven. Put About 10 cookies per tray.

7. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes in 175 celsius. They need to have a golden brown colour.

8. Let the cookies cool for about an hour. They will taste better.

A perfect treat for a chilly sunday :)

Spinach Mushroom Sandwich

This is a super quick lunch solution.The sandwich is vegetarian, the taste is great and it has many vitamins! If you want to make it vegan, just use soy  or coconut cream instead of regular cream.

Spinach Mushroom Sandwich Recipe 
(for 1)

A big handful of Spinach leaves
About 4 small mushrooms ( e.g Shiitake)
2-3 tablespoons cream
1 garlic clove
Olive oil
Pepper and Salt
A slice of rustic bread

1.Wash the spinach and mushrooms. Cut into smaller pieces.
2. Crush and cut the garlic clove.
3. Heat a frying pan. Add olive oil and garlic when heated.
4. Add the spinach and mushrooms. Fry for a few minutes until spinach has "shrinken"
5. Add the cream, salt and pepper and stir. Let the mixture cook for about 1 minute.
6. Put the mixture on the slice of bread, and you're finished!

Coffee with my Boyfriend's Parents

My boyfriend's parents stopped by for coffee a few days ago to catch up after out America trip. We had a nice visit and  we looked through some of our pictures from NYC. Here is a photo of the table. I made a simple Greek Pasta Salad and I had brought some pastries home from the cafe where I work. I served them on this three tiered serving dish from Ikea, i think it cost about 14euros. These types of serving dishes are great for a little "wow" factor and also save a lot of space at the table.

I also put together a simple cheese plate with brie, blue cheese and gouda. They were served with water crackers and sliced french bread. I added some red grapes to fill up the plate. I though we could use the left over blue cheese to make a chicken recipe for dinner (I will post that recipe soon) and the gouda and french bread we could use for sandwiches and any left over brie is a yummy snack. Cheese plates can get pricey but since we only got three super market cheeses and planned to use them for future meals I thought it was really affordable. And of course since we're in Finland we served coffee as well. Needless to say everyone was stuffed by the end of the visit. Below is the recipe for the Greek Pasta Salad.

Greek Pasta Salad

1 bag of al dente cooked spiral pasta

2-4 tablespoons olive oil (add more oil if the pasta salad seems sticky)

1 1/2 dl cubed Feta (I normally just buy a package of Feta in oil with herbs that are normally used for salads. Use the entire package in the pasta. If you do this then you don't have to add any extra oil or herbs other than salt and pepper)

1 small jar of black olives

Half a red bell pepper finely chopped

1 dl chopped pepperoni

1 dl chopped cherry tomatoes

Sprinkle of oregano

Sprinkle of basil

Salt and pepper to taste

1.) Cook the pasta as instructed until al dente. Drain and rinse. Pour into a large bowl.

2.) Add olive oil and feta. If you're using a feta in oil salad package add the entire package.Mix well.

3.) Add olives, red bell pepper, chopped pepperoni, chopper cherry tomatoes, oregano, basil, salt and pepper and mix well. Add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve chilled. Enjoy!

- Tina

Tina is back in America!

I’m in America! That’s right, I’m back in my hometown in Connecticut. There is something nice about coming back to this to quaint suburban sea side town. It’s strange how much things have changed in the two years that its been since I’ve been back here. I’ve been here for about a week and already managed to do so many things. I’ve spent some time with my best friend from High School, visited some new places and done a little shopping. 

I went to Hartford for a day and did a little sightseeing and also visited the Mark Twain museum. I LOVE Mark Twain quotes and it was interesting to be traipsing through his house. The tour guide also provided us with lots of interesting and quirky facts about Twain’s life and family.  For instance in his private billiard’s room where he entertained guests and wrote some of his most famous works, he would spend hours practicing and playing billiards by himself. Twain was a self proclaimed lazy person so he trained the family’s kittens to sit in the pockets of the pool table and roll the balls back to him with their paws rather than walk around to collect them. Each room of the house had its own theme, unfortunately we weren’t allowed to the take picture inside the house but here it is from the outside. 

On Sunday I had a family day. We took the Port Jeff ferry to Long Island. We took our car and drove to the North Fork of Long Island. The scenery was pretty nice in some parts, there are lots of quaint little beach towns with shops and restaurants. Below are some pictures of the ferry ride and the towns. 

Here is a photo of my lunch. I had a crab cake sanwhich, so delicious and fresh. I wish I had a photo of the restaurant. It was on a dock by the water. You know the seafood must be fresh when you can hear waves crashing and boats driving by while you eat! 

I thought this side table made of branches was pretty neat idea!

 

Wasabinen lohi-perunasalaatti

Rakastan sushia ja wasabi onkin yksi lempimausteistani. Käytän sitä salaatinkastikkeessakin.
Tässä perunasalaatissa on yhdistetty perinteinen perunasalaatti sashimi tyyliseen loheen. Eli jos pidät sushista, tulet pitämään tästäkin luultavasti :)

Ainekset

- Noin 10 pientä perunaa

- 150g tuoretta (raakaa)lohta

- 100-150g kermaviiliä

- 2 rkl kevytmajoneesia

- 1-3 teelusikallista wasabia oman maun mukaan. Laita ensin ihan vähän, lisää tarvittaessa.

-6 retiisiä

- vesikrassia

- ruohosipulia

- soijakastiketta

- pippuria ja suolaa

Iso kulho salaatille

Pieni kulho lohelle

1. Pese perunat kunnolla. Niitä ei tarvitse välttämättä kuoria. Keitä perunat kypsiksi vedessä jossa on hiukan suolaa. Tämän jälkeen laita ne kylmään veteen viilentymään.

2.Leikkaa lohi ohuiksi suikaleiksi. Laita leikatut palat marinoitumaan soijan kanssa.

3. Pilko perunat kuutioiksi, silppua ruohosipuli ja siivuta retiisit. Laita pilkotut ainekset isoon kulhoon. Lisää kermaviili, mahoneesi, wasabi, pippuria ja suolaa. Sekoita hyvin. Tämän jälkeen laita salaatti jääkaappiin marinoitumaan ainakin 30 minuutiksi. Tällöin kaikki maut tulevat paremmin esiin. 

4. Kun tarjoat salaatit, laita lohet kauniisti salaatin päällimmäiseksi. 

It's summer in Finland!

It's finally summer here in Finland! I'm visiting my parents in Porvoo. Yesterday I was in Helsinki, I went to see a great Belgian DJ named Netsky. I was perhaps a bit too tired to dance, but the music was alright and I got to hang out with one of my best friends.

Today I was at the beach with my childhood's best friend. It was a really sunny weather so we didn't have to freeze :) The beach is a bit different because you actually have to go there by rowing boat :) My friend was nice enough to do the rowing.

I have to admit, there's just something special about Finland in the summertime. All the green, the beautiful flowers, the sun that doesn't really set... I  came home last night at 3 in the morning and the sun was coming up. It was absolutely beautiful, a pink sky over the fields...( Yes, my parents kind of do live in the countryside, hah, but hey, Finland is mostly forest and lakes) Too bad I didn't have my camera with me.

One of the downsides of Finland in the summertime is the mosquitos. They are everywhere in huge swarms! Even yesterday when I was waiting for the bus I got bitten at least three times. Oh well, I'll just have to deal witht the mosquitos.

Some random summer pictures

Smoked salmon with wasabi-sourcream-dill dressing=heaven

Blueberry and rasberry cream cheese pie

I've been baking like crazy recently and I want to share a super easy and absolutely delicious recipe with you.

Finland has absolutely the best blueberries in the world. As a matter of fact the berries we call blueberries are called Bilberries or European Blueberries in other countries. No matter what, they are the best. The so called normal blueberries have a much milder taste and they are also more watery. Whether you are using Bilberries or just the "normal" blueberries, this recipe is worth trying, I can assure you!

Recipe:

You will need a pie dish (24-26cm wide) and the following ingredients:

For The Crust

125g butter

4dl flour

1 dl sugar

2 tablespoons potato flour

2 teaspoons vanilla sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon cardamom

1 dl plain yoghurt 

1 egg

For the The Filling

200 g frozen blueberries

1 handful of frozen rasberries

2  tablespoons potato flour

200g Philadelphia cream cheese

1 egg

2 tbs vanilla sugar

1 dl sugar

Cook in 200 celsius for 25-30minutes

First of all heat the oven. After this melt the butter in a heatproof bowl in the microwave. I use a big coffee mug. It takes about 1 minute for the butter to melt, and it doesn't have to be fully melted, as long as it's soft. Let it cool while you mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl.

Mix the melted butter with the dry ingredients and finally add the youghurt and egg. Mix until texture is smooth. Next spread the batter into the pie dish:

Add the frozen berries on the batter and sprinkle the 2 tablespoons of potato flour on the berries.

Now it's time to prepare the cream cheese topping. I find it easiest to first mix the egg and the cream cheese in the bowl and then add the rest of the ingredients.Make sure there are no clumps.

Just pour the mixture on the berries evenly.

Now the pie is ready to go to the oven! Cook it for 25-30minutes in 200 celsius. The result should look something like in the next picture, but if it gets more of a golden colour, it's totally fine! 

Turku & Naantali trip

Anne & Tina almost matching ;)

I spent 5 days in my hometown Turku and also Naantali. It was lovely to see my friends, but the whole trip's purpose was to find an apartment for me and my boyfriend. And we did! We've both been living with our parents after the exchange period in Toronto. It has felt weird after living so many years by ourselves...  

We actually found the apartment by accident; We were on our way to our 3rd or 4th apartment viewing when we walked by an ad about a perfect apartment. The problem was that no pets would be allowed in the apartment, but we decided to ask about it anyways. And good that we did! Now we have the perfect apartment for us in the centre of Turku :) And the most important thing is that as we both have quite a lot of clothes and shoes there is an actual walk in closet as well as a lot of space for all our stuff. It's funny how much space a "music freak" and an occasional do-it-youself/painter/craftsperson need. Next weekend will be the moving day, and we still have a lot of things to do... I didn't think that returning home would be this hectic!

Here's some pictures that I took during the 5 day trip;

At the riverboat Donna

The best board game ever :)

Afrikan tähti and a really strong Irish Coffee at Bar4

Naantali

Katinhäntä= Cat's tail

Celebrating the fact that we got the apartment

Wanted to try something else than the regular beer. This was good,especially when it was a warm summer night on the patio

A lovely day for travelling

I started my day with this delicious strawberry-mint-ginger-soymilk smoothie and a jog. I'm still feeling a bit jet lagged, it's a weird feeling... I woke up already at 8 o'clock, I guess my body hasn't yet gotten used to Finnish time and the amount of sunlight. It's amazing how bright it is here even during the night! The whole day I've been feeling so energetic. Maybe it's because I know that in a few hours I'll see my Turku  friends, finally :) It's been almost 5 months that I last saw them.

Yesterday I went to a flee-market and here's some stuff I found:

hippie-dress :)

At the moment I'm sitting on the train from Helsinki to Turku. I'm too excited so the time is going by very, VERY slow! It's a lovely weather tonight so I will be going to some nice restaurant and afterwards to the river boats.

Day 4 in Miami Beach

Yesterday was Cinco de mayo, a Mexican holiday. There was so much people in town and it ended up being quite crazy! First we had dinner and after a few drinks. The "few drinks" ended up being HUGE, 1,2 litres per drink. I took a strawberry daiqiri and the second round was free so beer was my second choice. I couldn't finish either one! When we were waiting for the bus to go to the hotel, things started going wrong; apparently the bus was 1,5hours late, and there were a lot of very aggresive people at the bus stop. It was nice that I got to sit down because my heels were killing me. I didn't know at that point that I was actually sitting next to some older man who had been acting crazy and pointing people with a knife... The cops came to the bus stop and started searching the guy's stuff in order to find a weapon. Thank God he hadn't gone crazy while I was sitting next to him! In the end we took a taxi because people were staring to get angry at each other and because of all the fuss.

Today It was the hottest day today so far, and I actually got a bit of a sunburn. We decided to go shopping in the evening, but in the end I didn't feel like shopping. We just walked a while in town, bought some food and came to the hotel.

People celebrating

Searching for a weapon

Healthy breakfast

Mr. Pink

Ourfit of the day

Trying darker make-up than usually