Andrei & Janice's recipes...

Main Courses - Stovetop!

Chili-Sloppy Joes
Cold Noodles with Sesame Sauce
Tamagoyaki
Stuffed Peppers

Daddy's Goulasch
Chicken Teriyaki
Pork & Broccoli with Ginger & Hoisin Sauce
Daddy's Bean Mush

Bechamel-Cheese sauce
Guacamole
My Mayonnaise
Tomato Sauce

Bulgogi Meat Marinade
'Gypsy Rose' Sauce
Pesto
Obatzda

Butter-Shallot Sauce
Honey-Mustard Sauce
Sophie's Favorite Chicken Wing Sauce

Main Courses - In the Oven!

Chicken Pilaf
Chicken Paprika
Fish & Sauerkraut


Roasted Turkey Thigh (Römertopf)
Lamb Stew
Meat & Veggie Loaf

Roasted Chicken & Veggies
Janice’s brother’s Crab Imperial
Baked Ziti

Chicken Broth a la Egg Drop
Heat up some water and add chicken bouillon (or soup powder) to make a chicken broth.  Add in a bit of chopped scallion and a dash of soy sauce.  In a separate bowl, beat slightly an egg or two.  While stirring the broth (fairly vigorously), slowly pour in the egg.  Keep stirring for 1-2 minutes or until the egg is all cooked.  Quick-cooking noodles or Flädle strips can also be added.

Gingered Carrot Soup
Clean and chop 1 cup leeks and 4-5 medium carrots.  Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a large saucepan.  Sauté the leeks until wilted.  Add in the carrots and 2 1/2 tsp. minced fresh ginger.  Sauté several minutes.  Add 1/2 tsp. each salt and pepper and 1 1/2 cups chicken stock (from instant).  Bring to a boil then cover and simmer for 15 minutes.  Let cool a bit then puree directly in the pot with a Zauberstab.  (If you want it very fine, then you should strain it through a sieve.  I don't bother with that!)  Chill thoroughly (if you want to eat it cold), then blend in 2-3 cups of half & half (or cream/Schlagsahne...  you could also toss in some sour cream).
Note:  I've also sauteed some Hokkaido pumpkin chunks in butter and then added this to the soup after it had simmered and before the pureeing part. 

Sauces & Dips

Bechamel-Cheese sauce: make a bechamel by melting 1 Tbsp butter and then adding 1 Tbsp flour to make a paste, then stir in (with a whisk preferably) enough milk (or cream) to make a thick sauce.  Add grated parmesan cheese, crushed pine nuts, basil and garlic.

Bulgogi meat marinade (for Korean BBQ meat): combine 3 Tbsp chopped garlic, 3 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 Tbsp sugar, 1 Tbsp honey, 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed juice from an Asian pear, 1 Tbsp mirin (or rice wine), 1 Tbsp sesame oil, 1-3 finely chopped scallions, 1/2 tsp pepper

Butter sauce (for Fish & Sauerkraut recipe) - finely cut 3 shallots (DON'T use more!!). Cook in 1/4 liter white wine (Riesling) until the liquid is almost gone.  Slowly beat in 200 gr. cold butter.  Keep sauce warm (but don't boil it).

Guacamole: mashed ripe avocado, 1/2 finely chopped onion, finely chopped tomato, salt, black pepper, a few drops of Tabasco sauce, several splashes of lime juice.

'Gypsy Rose' sauce: make a bechamel (see Bechamel-Cheese sauce above) and add in chopped sauteed bacon, chopped leeks (which have been cooked in butter to soften them), horseradish, sour cream, soy sauce and lemon juice.  This is particularly nice with linguini and shrimp.

Honey Mustard sauce: combine 1 Tbsp dijon mustard, 1 Tbsp yellow mustard, 1 Tbsp honey, 2 Tbsp plain mayonnaise and 1 tsp lemon juice.  This was a total winner for getting the two little ones to eat broccoli!  YAY!

My Mayonnaise: with an immersion blender (Zauberstab), mix together in a tall, narrow container 1 egg, salt, black pepper, a teaspoon of yellow or Dijon mustard, 1-2 crushed garlic cloves, several splashes of lemon juice and enough sunflower oil to bind it all together.

Pesto: combine 2 bunches chopped basil, approx. 100 gr. ground Parmesan cheese, a handful of crushed pine nuts, 2-3 crushed garlic cloves, some salt to taste and olive oil to bind it all nicely together.

Sophie's favorite chicken wing sauce:  1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup sesame oil, 1/4 cup rice vinegar, 2/3 cup hoisin sauce, 1/4 cup horseradish, 1/4 cup dijon mustard, 1 Tbsp (tablespoon) crushed garlic, 1/4 cup ketchup.  Mix well and spread over chicken wings, then bake.

Tomato sauce (the simple version): mix together tomato paste, salt, pepper, olive oil, thyme, oregano, basil and then enough water for a thick consistency.






Side Dishes

Hasselback Potatoes
Sauteed Hokkaido Pumpkin

Risotto with Red Beans (and Red Wine)
Basic Veggies

My Mashed Potatoes
Daddy's Cucumber Salad

Hasselback Potatoes
Take a large baking potato and make a lot of slices in the top (down to about 1 cm from the bottom, so that it doesn't break apart).  In each slice, put some minced garlic.  Sprinkle a little olive oil in a glass baking dish, lay the potato cut-side up in the dish and sprinkle with some olive oil, black pepper and fairly hefty quantities of salt.  Bake at 200°C for about an hour when the top should be nicely crispy!  (Thanks to Hungry Huy for this recipe!)

Risotto with Red Beans (and Red Wine)
In a large saucepan, heat 1 Tbsp butter and 2 tsp olive oil over low heat.  Add 1 large finely chopped onion and cook, stirring frequently, for 15-20 mins or until the onion is tender and golden.  Meanwhile in a medium saucepan make 3 1/2 cups of beef broth using beef bouillon powder.  Add 1 1/4 cups risotto (Arborio rice) to the onion, stirring to coat and cook for about 2 mins.  Add 1/2 cup dry red wine and cook, stirring, until the wine has evaporated.
Stir in 1/2 cup of the beef broth to the rice and cook, stirring, until all the broth has been absorbed.  Repeat adding 1/2 cup broth and stirring until the rice is creamy and just tender, but not mushy, about 35 mins in all.  Stir in the beans, 1 cup shredded Fontina cheese, salt and pepper to taste.

My Mashed Potatoes
Clean, peel, dice and boil potatoes (mehlig!) for about 20 minutes, until no longer hard.  Drain in a colander, rinsing briefly with hot water and then put into a mixing bowl.  Immediately add lots of butter.  Using a potato masher, mash the potatoes so that they are crumbly and the butter melts in.  Add heavy cream (Schlagsahne) and mix it in with the potato masher, adding more cream if necessary to get a good consistency, thick and creamy but not runny!

Sauteed Hokkaido Pumpkin
Cut a Hokkaido pumpkin in half, remove the seeds and the stem and then cut into 1-inch chunks.  In a frying pan, melt some butter and add the pumpkin, cooking approx, 20 mins at medium-low heat until soft and nicely browned on the outside.

Basic Veggies
For side dishes, we most generally eat salads (or Riesling sauerkraut) or simple veggies, quickly cooked in boiling water (blanched). 
String beans: wash and trim off ends and blanch for 5 mins, then rinse off in cold water.
Brussel sprouts: wash and trim off end and boil or steam for 10-15 mins until soft, but not mushy (i.e. can poke them easily with a fork)
Cauliflower: wash and trim off bottom, cut or break into chunks, boil or steam for 10-15 mins until soft but not mushy
White asparagus/Spargel: wash and trim off bottom, peel away the thick skin on the bottom 2/3, boil for 15-20 mins until soft
Broccoli: wash and trim off bottom, peel away the thick skin along the bottom half of the stalks, break or cut into chunks, blanch for maximum 5 mins until they are a nice bright green.  The little kids like broccoli with a honey mustard dip!
Zucchini: wash and trim off the ends, cut into thin slices and saute in olive oil until soft, but not mushy, and slightly browned
Bok Choy: wash and trim off the ends.  Saute some chopped garlic in olive oil until aromatic then add the bok choy with about 1/2 cup water so that it steams a bit, for about 5 mins.  Remove from heat and mix in some oyster sauce or fish sauce.

Daddy's Cucumber Salad
Clean and thinly slice a cucumber into a large bowl.  Salt well.  Clean and thinly slice an onion and add to the cucumber.  Add ground black pepper, dill, olive oil and vinegar.  Toss well to coat.

Main Courses - In the Oven!

CHICKEN PILAF
Fill the lid of your Römertopf with water to soak it while preparing the rest here.  Sprinkle some olive oil in the Römertopf, measure out and add rice, twice the quantity of water, chopped leeks (or onions) and chicken thighs.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and summer savory. Drain water out of the lid and place on top.  Bake for one hour at 200°C/400°F.

Roasted Turkey Thigh
Sprinkle some olive oil in the bottom of the Römertopf, then place in the turkey thigh (or two, if they fit).  Douse liberally with soy sauce and water.  Drain water from the lid, cover and bake at 200°C/400°F for at least 1.5 hours, more if you have more meat.  (This works well also with a piece of frozen meat: just set the temperature a bit lower to 150° and cook for 3-4 hours.)  If cooked long enough, the meat will just fall off the bone.

Roasted Chicken and Veggies
Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F.  Coat a baking sheet with olive oil, then spread out on it chicken thighs and drumsticks, small whole potatoes (either white or red), quartered onions (or chunks of leeks), chunks of carrots and a bunch of peeled garlic cloves.  Toss these all around to coat with olive oil, then sprinkle with salt, pepper and summer savory.  Bake for 1 hour.

Chicken Paprika
Sprinkle some olive oil in the bottom of the Römertopf, then add chopped leeks, 3-4 chopped peppers and chicken leg pieces.  Make a good quantity of slightly thick sauce using chicken broth, tomato paste and a good amount of sweet paprika (the seasoning).  Pour the sauce over the ingredients, nearly covering them.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and more sweet paprika.  Bake for one hour at 200°C/400°F.

Lamb Stew (with couscous)
Sprinkle some olive oil in the bottom of the Römertopf.  Add lamb chunks, carrot chunks, leek chunks (or quartered onions), zucchini chunks, multiple peeled garlic cloves.  Make enough of a sauce of chicken broth and tomato paste to nearly cover the ingredients in the pot.  Bake for one hour at 200°C/400°F.  Serve with couscous.

Janice’s brother’s Crab Imperial
Sauté 6 Tbsp butter with red pepper, onion, 2 cans (13 oz.) crabmeat, garlic powder and balck pepper.  Add 3+ Tbsp chopped bacon, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, Italian seasoning and 1/2 cup milk or sour cream.  This should be moist.  Put into a glass baking dish.  Top with grated Parmesan cheese and bake at 175°C/350°F until bubbly.  (Note: since we don't get crabmeat here in Germany, I rarely make this.  But on the times when I DO make it, I usually triple the quantity of bacon, add ample quantities of pepper and onion, and use the very sinful crème frâiche instead of sour cream.)

Fish and Sauerkraut (a la Elsass)
Make the Butter sauce: finely cut 3 shallots (DON'T use more!!). Cook in 1/4 liter white wine (Riesling) until the liquid is almost gone.  (This takes a while, so start well in advance of mealtime!)  Slowly beat in 200 gr. cold butter.  Keep sauce warm (but don't boil it).
Lay fish (salmon, cod, sole, halibut - either alone or in a combo) on a lightly oiled baking tray.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper and lemon juice.  Bake at 200°C/400°F for about 10 minutes.
Cook sauerkraut separately.  (Riesling sauerkraut is the best - mild but with a pleasant taste.) 
Serve with boiled potatoes (or wild rice) and green beans (or asparagus).

Meat and Veggie Loaf
This meal takes a fair amount of prep time and then over one hour baking time, so prepare well in advance of mealtime!  With all of the veggies in it, however, it makes a nice meal unto itself!  (I almost double the quantities for the veggies listed below.)
Heat some oil in a large skillet.  Add 1 cup chopped leeks on medium-high heat and cook for about 7 minutes.  Then add 1 cup chopped carrot, 1 cup chopped zucchini and 1-2 tsp. minced garlic.  Cook for several minutes until all of the veggies are softened.  Remove from heat and set aside to cool a little.
In a small bowl, crumble 1 slice of toast and soak in 2 Tbsp milk for 10 minutes.
Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.  Lightly oil a glass baking dish.
In a large bowl, combine 500 gr. ground meat, 1 large egg, 1 tsp. each salt and pepper, 1/2 tsp. thyme, 1/4 tsp. ground sage, cooled veggies and soaked bread crumbs.  Shape into a loaf on baking dish and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Baked Pasta/Ziti
I like this a lot, but my kids care almost nothing for it.
Cook the pasta as designated on the package. 
Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F.  Mix the cooked pasta with ricotta cheese, chopped mozzarella, 1 slightly beaten egg, salt, pepper and 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce.
Spread 1/2 cup tomato sauce in a baking pan, put pasta mixture on top, top with another 1 - 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce and sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese.  Bake for 30 minutes.

Main Courses - Stovetop!

Chili-Sloppy Joes
In a large frying pan, brown 500 gr. ground meat (we use a combo of beef and pork).  Add 1 chopped onion (or leek) and sauté a bit.  Then add 1-2 chopped peppers, 2 minced garlic cloves, 1/3 c ketchup, tomato paste, water, worcestershire sauce, kidney beans, chili powder, salt and pepper.

Daddy's Goulasch (Szegedinger)
Onions, sauerkraut and chunks of pork are in the ration 1:1:2.
Fry 300 gr. sliced onions.  Add 600 gr. (somewhat fatty) pork chunks and 2 Tbsp sweet paprika (the spice) and fry lightly.  Add 2 cups water, cover and simmer for 45 mins.  Separately warm up 300 gr. sauerkraut along with 2 cups water and some caraway seeds.  Cook (medium heat) 45 mins.  Combine the two pots and let sit for 15 mins.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  This tastes MUCH better if it has been heated up and allowed to cool down several times!

Cold Noodles with Sesame Sauce
In a small bowl, combine 3 Tbsp sesame oil, 3 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 Tbsp rice vinegar and 1 Tbsp sugar.  Set aside.  In a separate bowl, combine well 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 1 Tbsp rice vinegar, 1 1/2 tsp sugar, 3 Tbsp sesame paste/tahini (or peanut butter), 3 Tbsp dry sherry, 1 1/2 Tbsp oriental hot oil, 2 Tbsp hoisin sauce and 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh ginger.  Cook cappelini (thin) noodles, drain and rinse under cool running water.  Toss noodles first in the oil-soy sauce mixture and then the sesame paste sauce.

Chicken Teriyaki
Sauce: combine 2 Tbsp mirin, 2 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 tsp sugar.  (Double this for larger group!)
Cut the chicken into bite-sized strips and sauté (in the sauce?) in batches until completely cooked.  Cut the scallions (or onions as she also likes) into bite-sized chunks and sauté quickly.  (Don't let the green parts wilt too much.)  Add chicken to scallions and serve with rice.

Tamagoyaki (Japanese omelette, from Liam!)
Combine 4 eggs, 2 Tbsp sugar, 1 pinch salt and a splash of soy sauce.  Make omelette.  This can be made very thinly and then cut into strips to be added to sushi rolls or rice.

Pork & Broccoli with Ginger & Hoisin Sauce
Mix together 4 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 Tbsp sherry, 2 Tbsp cornstarch and then marinate strips of pork in this.
Wash and trim broccoli, then blanch it for 5 minutes; drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
Make a sauce of 2 tsp minced garlic, 2 tsp minced ginger, 1/4 cup chicken stock, 2-3 Tbsp hoisin sauce (I doubled this probably!) and a pinch of red pepper flakes.
Sauté the meat on a high heat until it is cooked, add the broccoli and the sauce and cook for a few minutes.  Servce with rice or noodles.

Daddy's Bean Mush
Making sure you always have enough water in the pot, boil the bejeebers out of a chunk of Eisbein/ham hocks (approx. 4-5 hours).  Remove the meat from the pot (saving the liquid), let cool and then remove the meat from the bones.  (If cooked long enough, most of the meat should just fall off the bone.)  Set aside the meat.
Add to the remaining liquid any combo of beans, including lentils, chopped tomatoes, a bit of tomato paste, chopped onion (2 onions per large can of beans), cubed chunks of garlic, some chicken soup powder and worcestershire sauce.  (You probably will have enough salt from the chicken bouillon, but check the taste and adjust to your liking.)  Boil this until it thickens, stirring regularly so that it doesn't burn onto the bottom of the pot.  Lower the heat to a simmer, add in the reserved meat and simmer longer, stirring regularly.

Stuffed Peppers
Cut off the tops of 4 large peppers, remove the insides and rinse with hot water, then set aside.  Sprinkle olive oil into a frying pan and lightly sauté 1-2 small chopped onions.  Add 1/3 cup rice and fry until it is transparent.  Add 3/4 cup water and simmer until the water has been absorbed.  The rice should be half-cooked.  In a large bowl, combine 400 gr. ground meat (I use Hackfleisch gemischt), some chopped fresh parsley (I never add this as Daddy doesn't like parsley), salt, pepper and the fried rice-onion mixture.  Fill evenly into the pepper.  Stand peppers in a deep pot. Mix enough chicken broth (water with instant chicken soup powder) with tomato paste and a dash of lemon juice to make a thick sauce that will nearly cover the peppers.  Pour over the peppers, cover the pot and cook over a very low heat until the meat and peppers are cooked, approx. 1-2 hours.  Serve with sour cream.

Fried Chicken (a la Daddy)
In a frying pan, sprinkle some olive oil and heat it on medium heat (4) to spread around.  Rinse off the chicken thighs, then lay them in the pan and sprinkle on salt, pepper and summer savory (= Bohnenkraut, or as we call it 'Chicken Spice!').  Cook approx. 15-20 minutes until a nice golden brown, turn over, sprinkle some salt and savory on this side and cook another 15-20 minutes until done.  This should be nice and crispy on the outside and tender and moist on the inside.

Fried Chicken Hearts
Melt some butter at medium heat in a frying pan.  Rinse off the chicken hearts and toss them in the pan.  Fry until done, stirring often to get all sides nicely cooked.  Sprinkle on some salt and summer savory.