QUINOAsalade with Nuts and a Pomegranate Cocktail.

QUINOAsalade with Nuts.
(For 4 pers., Preparation: + - 30 min.)


You need:
- 150 gr. quinoa (red or white)
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1 pomegranate, open it, remove the seeds and place in a bowl
- 4 tbsp. spring onion, chopped
- 4 tbsp. chives, chopped
- Some walnuts, coarsely chopped
- 4 tbsp. olive oil
- Salt & pepper
- A cooking pot with lid
- colander
- Bowl (s)

Preparation:
Put the quinoa in the pot with twice as much water and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and put the lid on the pot. Let gently cook for 12 to 15 min. Drain the quinoa, leave to dry for a moment, then stir in the olive oil and the lemon juice. Leave to cool. Add the pomegranate seeds, chopped nuts, chives and spring onion to the quinoa and mix. Season with salt & pepper. Divide the lettuce among bowls and serve immediately.









Pomegranate Cocktail.
(For 4 glasses, Preparation: + - 5 min.)


You need:
- 400 ml. pomegranate juice
- 120 ml. vodka
- 60 ml. Cointreau
- ice cubes
- A cocktail shaker
- 4 glasses, chilled in the fridge

Preparation:
Put all ingredients in a shaker. Fill just below the rim with ice and shake well. Pour into the well chilled glasses. Cheers !!!!





Eat them,

The Veggie Lady
Check out my other blog!

Another recipe for the BBQ, a sauce and a tasty cocktail.

SWEET POTATO and EGGPLANT burger.
(For 4 pers., preparation: + - 40 min., and 30 min. in fridge)


You need:
- 1 eggplant, washed, dried and cut into 1 cm cubes.
- 4 spring onions, washed, dried and finely chopped
- 1 bunch parsley, washed, shaken dry and finely chopped
- 4 sprigs fresh mint, washed, shaken dry and finely chopped
- 8 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
- 100 gr. feta, crumbled
- 2 tbsp. shelled, unsalted pistachios, chopped
- 2 tbsp. panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
- 1 tsp. dill (dried)
- 3 tbsp. olive oil
- Salt & pepper
- A cooking pot
- A pan
- a plate
- The grill (or fry in the pan)
- a potato masher



Preparation:
Put the sweet potatoes in the pot with lightly salted water and cook them for + - 20 min. Drain and dry on the (deposed) fire. Mash with the potato masher. Heat 2 tbsp. olive oil in the pan and fry the eggplant cubes untill cooked and golden brown. Put all the ingredients (except the rest of the olive oil) in with the mashed sweet potato and mix well. Season with salt & pepper and form 8 burgers by hand. Put them for at least 30 min. in the refrigerator. Before you are going to bake them on the BBQ, you brush them lsightly with olive oil and then bake them untill they are golden brown. Serve, if you want, with a nice salad. I'll give you soon some salad ideas next time.






Moroccan AVOCADO-CORIANDER sauce.
(For + - 4 pers, preparation: + - 20 minutes)


You need:
- 1 ripe avocado, cut in half, pit removed and flesh scooped out
- 1 large bunch cilantro, washed, shaken dry and finely chopped
- juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 cm. ginger, grated
- 2 tbsp. natural yoghurt
- 1/2 tsp. ras el hanout
- 1/2 tsp. turmeric
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- Salt & pepper
- Bowl (s)
- A fork



Preparation:
Mash the flesh of the avocado to a puree with a fork. Mix with the ras el hanout, turmeric, ginger, lemon juice, yogurt and olive oil. Season with salt & pepper and mix in the chopped coriander.






Fruity beer cocktail.
(For 4 pers., preparation: + - 2 min.)


You need:
- 25 cl. cherry beer
- 25 cl. gueuze beer
- 25 cl. raspberry beer
- 25 cl. peaches beer
- 4 cl. white port
- ice cubes
- One jug
- 4 tall glasses



Preparation:
Pour the white port in the jug, then add the gueuze, kriek and other beers, and mix. Put some ice cubes in the tall glasses and distribute the cocktail, equaly, over the 4 glasses. Cheers !!!




Till next time my Sweetypies.




Eat them,

The Veggie Lady
Check out my other blog!

Mexican taco the veggie way and the first cocktail called 'Californication'.

Mexican taco the veggie way.
(For 3 to 4 pers.)


You need:
- 500 gr. veggie mince
- 1 onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 clove of garlic, peeled and chopped
- 3 tomatoes, peeled and seeded
- Mexican herbs (Tex Mex)
- 1 Spanish red pepper, washed, dried, pitted and chopped
- Coriander leaves (a bunch), washed, dry, hold some for garnisch and shred the rest
- A dash of tabasco
- A pinch of ginger (fresh or dried)
- A good sniff pili-pili
- olive oil
- 8 taco shells or eat it with quinoa, like we did.
- A large pan
- A sieve (iff you are gonna eat it with quinoa, to rinse it in.)
- a big cooking pot (also in case iff you wanna eat it with the quino)

Preparation:
If you want to eat it with quinoa, prepare it then on forhand (see package or previous blog recipes) and put aside, until the rest is ready. Heat the olive oil in the pan. Stir fry the veggie mince, onion, garlic and chili, while stirring well. Throw in the chopped up and other herbs. Keep stirring. Add the tomatoes atl the end, and warm them then up with the rest. If you go to eat it with the tacos then put the taco shells in the oven to warm them up to. Gonna eat it the quinoa, then throw the meat with the vegetables and herbs in with the already prepared quinoa and stirr them all together till it's all warm. Que los sabores !!!






The cocktail: 
'Californication'.
(For 1 glass.)


You need:
- 5 cl. 209 N. Gin
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 piece of orange peel
- A few kumquats, sliced
- A bottle of tonic (preferably of the brand 'Fentimans')
- A tall glass
- A handful of ice cubes














Preparation:
Fill your tall glass with ice cubes and pour the gin over. Add the cinnamon stick, orange zest and kumquats to it. Now pour in the tonic.
INFO:
'N.209' gin is an American spicy gin with many citrus notes. And the tonic of the brand 'Fentimans' is the essence of a good tonic, tasty bitter but with a little sugar.





Eat them,

The Veggie Lady
Check out my other blog!

Salad of young vegetables and GARLIC.

Salad of young vegetables and GARLIC.
(For 4 pers., preparation: + - 50 min., rest period: + - 30 min.)



You need:
- 4 young carrots, washed and peeled
- 2 small fennel bulbs, peeled and cut into wedges
- 3 small tomatoes, washed, dried and cut into wedges
- 1 piece horseradish (black radisch), washed, dried and cut into thin slices
- 8 radishes, washed, dried and cut into thin slices
- 2 young onions, peeled and finely chopped
- 150 gr. cauliflower florets, rinsed well and dried
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and very finely chopped
- 4 tbsp. olive oil
- salt
- a colander
- bowl(s)
- a pot with a steam basket and lid

Preparation:
Put water in the pot in which the steamer basket fits, bring the water to a boil. Place the carrots, cauliflower and fennel in the steamer basket. Place the steamer with veggies in the pot above the boiling water. Put the lid on and let steam for + - 20 min. Mix the garlic in the bowl with the olive oil and the salt. Add the vegetables. Stir well. Now add the steamed vegetables and again stir well. Allow to cool, place in refrigerator for + - 30 min. Ready.
TIP:
Steamed are the baby vegetables (leave them whole) at their best but also stewed are they tasty. Serve separately with a knob of butter or a little olive oil, salt & pepper and fresh herbs. If you want to process them in a salad, combine them best with a marinade of lemon juice, mint, chives or with a vinaigrette with garlic and parsley. You can pour over the vinaigrette while the baby veggie are still warm so they are more tender. So yummy !!!

Eat them,

The Veggie Lady
Check out my other blog!

Mocktails and so.

My Sweetypies,

Who does not like a drink ? Yep, even the veggie eaters. By the way, do you already know a mocktail ? The name 'mocktail' is a combo of the English words 'mock' (that means 'fake') and 'cocktail', so a 'fake cocktail' without alcohol. Often is a mocktail a mixture of several non-alcoholic juices, drinks, syrups and fruits (or somethimes even vegetables). And believe me, it's not only for kids !  ;-)
So this post you will get some mocktails and two healthy juices. These are just some possibilities, so try and as I often said, experiment ! But above all ..... enjoy yourself!!





Mocktail of KIWI, Galia melon and Granny Smith apple.
(For 4 pers.)


You need:
- 6 kiwis, peeled and cut into large pieces
- 1 kiwi, washed and thinly sliced ​​(garnish)
- 1 Galia melon, peeled, seeded and cut into large pieces
- 4 Granny Smith apples, washed and cut into large pieces
-  juice of 1 lemon, chilled
- A juicer
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer
- A straw
- Some decoration (optional)














Preparation:
Put the fruit (beside the one kiwi you hold for the garnish) and lemon juice in the juicer. Mix fine. Pour the mixture then into the well chilled glass and garnish with a slice of kiwi, a straw and if you want, some decoration.






Mocktail of WATERMELON, STRAWBERRY and Charentais MELON.
(For 4 glasses.)


You need:
- 1 cup fresh strawberries, washed (keep 4 separate, with crown on) and crowns removed.
- Half watermelon, peeled and cut into large pieces
- 1 Charentais melon, peeled and cut into large pieces
- 1 bottle of lemonade (lemon), chilled
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer
- The juicer
- straws
- Some decoration (optional)














Preparation:
Put the fruit (keep the 4 strawberries for garnish aside !) in the juicer and mix finely. Fill the glass for two thirds with this juice, then pour in the lemonade. Garnish with the whole strawberry, a straw and some decorations.






CRANBERRY mocktail with APPLE.
(For 4 glasses.)


You need:
- 1 Granny Smith apple, washed, halved and cut into thin slices
- 1 Pink Lady apple (sweet), washed, halved and cut into thin slices
- 24 mint leaves, washed
- 32 cl. cranberry juice, chilled
- 24 cl. apple juice, chilled
- 4 tall glasses, chilled in the freezer
- ice cubes
- Straws (optional)

Preparation:
Put some ice cubes in the well chilled tall glasses. Divide the cranberry juice and appelssap over the longdrink glass. Add some apple slices and mint leaves to.






Funny Pineapple Mocktail.
(For 4 glasses.)


You need:
- 16 cl. Funny Bitter, chilled
- 8 cl. pineapple juice, chilled
- 4 maraskino cherries, chilled
- 4 flute glasses, chilled in the freezer

Preparation:
Pour the Bitter in the flute glasses, add the cherry and fill with the pineapple.






Citrus Mocktail.
(For 4 glasses.)


You need:
- 56 cl. light sparkling mineral water, chilled
- 8 cl. citrus syrup
- 1/2 lime, washed, halved and thinly sliced
- Juice of 1/2 lime, chilled
- Some mint leaves (optional)
- 4 tall glasses, chilled in the freezer
- straws



Preparation:
Put some ice cubes in the well-chilled glasses. Add the lime juice, citrus syrup and mineral water to it. Serve with slices of the lime, a mint leaf and a straw.






The chill mocktail.
(For 4 glasses.)


You need:
- 1 small watermelon, peeled, seeded and cut into pieces
- 120 ml. coconut water, cooled
- Juice of 1 lime, chilled
- Some red berries, washed and dried, for garnish
- What mint
- A juicer or food processor
- 4 tall glasses, chilled in the freezer
- Ice (cubes or crushed)

Preparation:
Put the watermelon, coconut water and lime juice in the juicer or food processor and blend fine. Distribute over the glass and garnish with some mint and berries.






Malibu delight.
(For 4 glasses.)


You need:
- 100 ml. pineapple juice, chilled
- 100 ml. coconut milk, chilled
- 100 ml. yoghurt, chilled
- 1 banana, peeled
- 1/2 lime, washed and thinly sliced ​​(garnish)
- 1 sachet of vanilla sugar
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer
- A juicer
- Ice (cubes or crushed)
- straws

Preparation:
Put all the ingredients except the lime slices and ice, in the juicer and mix finely. Put some ice cubes (or crushed ice) in the well-chilled glass and garnish with a few slices of lime and a straw.






Mocktail MELON sour.
(For 4 glasses.)

You need:
- 1 yellow melon, peeled, seeded and cut into pieces
- 1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into pieces
- 120 ml. coconut water, cooled
- 12 mint leaves, washed and dried
- Some honey (optional)
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer
- A juicer
- Ice (cubes or crushed)

Preparation:
Put all the ingredients, except the mint leaves and ice, in the juicer and mix finely. Pour it in the well chilled glasses, throw in some ice and garnish with some mint.
A TIP:
You can always add spices (cinnamon, lemongrass ...) or herbs (parsley, cilantro ...). Also vegetables you can use, such as cucumber (see recipe above), that goes with every kind of fruit and adds an extra fresh touch.






VIOLET-ICE TEA mocktail.
(For 4 glasses)


You need:
- 16 cl. violets syrup, chilled
- 80 cl. ice tea, chilled
- ice cubes
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer



Preparation:
Pour the syrup into the glasses, add ice cubes and pour over ice tea.






Non alcoholic Shirley Temple.
(For 4 glasses.)


You need:
- 1 bottle of pomegranate- & cranberry-juice, chilled
- 8 ml. grenadine syrup, chilled
- 40 cl. apple juice, chilled
- ice cubes
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer



Preparation:
Pour the grenadine syrup in the glasses an add the ice cubes. Pour in the apple juice and pomegranate- & cranberry-juice.






Two versions of the non-alcoholic Mojito.
(For 4 glasses)

For the first one,
You need:
- 8 sprigs fresh mint, washed, dry, leaves taken off
- 16 cl. mojito-mint-syrup, chilled
- 8 cl. non-alcoholic rum syrup, chilled
- 8 cl. lime juice, chilled
- 1 lime, washed and cut into wedges
- 100 cl. sparkling water, chilled
- ice cubes
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer



Preparation:
Divide some mint leaves (not all, keep some aside as garnish) and lime wedges into the glasses and crush the leaves and lime wedges. Add the mojito-mint-syrup and rum syrup. Throw some ice cubes in the glasses and fill further with sparkling water.






And for the second one:
You need:
- 160 ml. mojito syrup, chilled
- 80 ml. non-alcoholic rum syrup, chilled
- Some lime juice (optinal)
- sparkling water, chilled
- 1 lime, washed, dried and cut into quarters
- a lime, washed and cut into thin slices (garnish)
- 4 glasses, chilled in the freezer
- ice cubes
- Some fresh mintleaves, washed, dried














Preparation:
Divide the lime quarters over the glass along with a few mint leaves (keep some aside as garnish) and crush them. Pour the syrup over it and add ice cubes to. Now fill with soda water. Garnish with a mint leaf and a slice of lime.






And now, the juices:
The good morning juice.


You need:
- 1 apple, washed, dried, cored and sliced
- 1 lemon, peeled
- 2 celery stalks, washed, dried and cut into pieces
- Piece of cucumber, washed, dried and cut into pieces
- 1 cm. fresh ginger, peeled
- A handful of fresh mint leaves, washed and dried
- A (slow) juicer



Preparation:
Put everything in the slowjuicer, mix it very good because pieces of ginger in your juice, that tastes not good. You do'nt have a slowjuicer, you can also use a blender, but add 200 ml. water or liquid. This also applies to the second juice.






The super detox juice.


You need:
- 1/2 cucumber, washed, dried and cut in pieces
- 4 stalks celery, washed, dried and cut into pieces
- 2 hands spinach, washed and dried
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled (may also be ginger)
- 1 lemon, peeled
- The slowjuicer or blender

Preparation:
Put everything in the slowjuicer and mix finely. Instead of spinach, you can also take kale, chard or watercress. But remember, my Sweetypies, pieces of ginger or garlic in your juice = not yummy !!!



One of the next times I will serve you some delicious cocktail (yes, with alcohol), I promise. But, my dear treasures, please remember, be careful on the road so never drink and drive !!

Eat them,

The Veggie Lady
Check out my other blog!

Italian BUNS stuffed with grilled vegetables, CHICKPEAS and FETA. And something, a little special: BANANAsplit with BUCKWHEAT.

My Sweetypies,
Saturday we had a wedding party where we had to go to and Sunday I so totally crashed because of my fibro and cvs. Please, forgive me. To make it up a little, I give you two recipes.





Italian BUNS stuffed with grilled vegetables, CHICKPEAS and FETA.
(For 4 pers., preparation: + - 34 min.)


You need:
- 1/2 red pepper/paprika, washed, dried, seeds removed and cut into pieces
- 1/2 green pepper/paprika, washed, dried, seeds removed and cut into pieces
- 1/2 yellow pepper/paprika, washed, dried, seeds removed and cut into pieces
- 1/2 orange pepper/paprika, washed, dried, seeds removed and cut into pieces
- 4 Italian buns
- 1 tbsp. sundried tomatoes, cut into strips
- 300 gr. chickpeas (canned), drained
- 1 heart of romaine lettuce, washed, dried and cut into strips
- 75 gr. feta, crumbled
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
- Salt & pepper
- Bowl (s)
- An oven plate
- A serving plate

Preparation: 
Preheat the oven to 220 ° C. Put the peppers (paprika), olive oil and salt & pepper in a bowl and mix well. Throw everything on the baking sheet and roast them for + - 18 min. Put aside but keep warm. Cut the tops of the buns and hollow them out. (If you have time, cut the bread crumb into cubes and fry, in the pan until golden brown, so you've got croutons to serve with the buns or even in the buns.) Now mix the grilled vegetables with the drained chickpeas, the sun-dried tomato strips, the balsomic vinegar, the lettuce strips and the feta crumbs. Fill the hollowed out buns with the mixture and put the caps back on. PRONTO !!!






BANANAsplit with BUCKWHEAT.
(BEWARE : To make this dish you have to prepare a few things several days in advance !!!!!!!)


You need:
- 250 gr. buckwheat groats (grits)
- 125 gr. soy yogurt
- 1 small banana
- 1 tbsp. goji berries
- 1 tsp. spirulina flakes
- 1 tsp. dried blueberries
- 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
- 1 tsp. acacia honey
- 1 tbsp. oil
- 1 sprig of mint
- 5 dl. cold water
- A sieve
- Baking sheet lined with parchment paper
- Bowl (s)

Preparation: 
Put the 5 dl. cold water in a bowl and soak the buckwheat groats in it for + - 5 min. Drain and let them drain and germinate for 2 days, at room temperature, in a sieve. Rinse them every morning under running cold water. After those 2 days, you preheat the oven to the lowest setting. Rinse again the sprouted buckwheat groats under cold running water, shake well and repeat with this two more times. Divide the grits, in a thin layer, on the baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the oven for + - 4 h., until the grits are dry and crisp. Open the ovendoor a bit. Put the yogurt in a bowl, put the banana on the yogurt and sprinkle the buckwheat, the goji berries, blueberries, spirulina flakes and turmeric over it. Sprinkle the oil and honey over it and place the sprig of mint on top.
Dried buckwheat is tenable for a few days, but only if you packed them hermetically sealed !!




Eat them,

The Veggie Lady
Check out my other blog!

Fresh Citrus - QUINOAsalade with dressing.

Fresh Citrus - QUINOAsalade with dressing.
(For 2 pers., preparation: + - 1/2 h.)


You need:
- 3 cups of water
- 1.5 cups quinoa, rinsed well
- 2 tomatoes, washed, dried and cut into cubes
- 2 carrots, grated
- 1/2 cucumber, chopped
- 2 tbsp. chopped parsley
- 1 grapefruit, peeled and cut into thin slices
- A small saucepan
- A large bowl
For the dressing:
- 60 ml. freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. grated orange peel
- Salt & pepper
- A bowl

Preparation:
Bring the water to a boil in the saucepan, add the quinoa and let simmer until the quinoa has absorbed all the water (+ - 15 min.) Remove the quinoa from the heat and pour the quinoa in the large bowl, let cool. Add the tomatoes, carrots, cucumber and parsley and mix everything under the quinoa. In another bowl, mix the dressing ingredients together. Pour this over the salad and garnish with the slices of grapefruit.
You do not have quinoa? You can also make this with rice or couscous. Or you can always add more vegetables of your choice.




TIP:
Would you like to know if there is more vitamin C in a kiwi or an orange is ? And what should you eat if you need more magnesium ? Well, my dear Sweetypies in the online Dutch Nutrient Databank (nevo-online) you will find answers to such questions, about healthy eating. You can search by food group, but also selected foods sort. Go to:
www.nevo-online.nl

Eat them,

The Veggie Lady
Check out my other blog!