Thai style Mussels / Mexilhão à Tailandesa.

Who likes mussels?

I know a bunch of people that doesn't like mussels but I certainly love them!

This recipe, another successful one from Melissa Clark "Dinner: Changing the Game" cookbook, is another winner, specially for those who love Thai flavours.

This is also my last contribution (out of date) for this month's Rainydaybites online Cook Book Club and I couldn't have chosen a better recipe to end May and the Melissa Clark cook off. Although, I must say, there's still lots of recipes marked down to be tried and tested so, you'll see more of this gorgeous book recipes around here soon.

Vegan Chocolate Granola / Granola vegan de Chocolate.

If you're following this blog for some time now, you know that I'm not vegan, vegetarian, Paleo or whatever.

I'm just someone that loves food in general!

I eat everything (well, not quite...) and I love to try all sorts of flavours and cuisines. I believe that in food just as in life, balance is the key for everything and therefore, in my house there's no place for fanaticism, fundamentalism's and other sort of (isms).

I cook and eat with my family and friends whatever we fancy to eat on the day. If it's meat we'll eat meat, if it's vegetarian will be and if it's vegan or other sort of tendency, it will be but, it's always what we want, when we want.

Saying that, I love vegan food more than I ever thought I would love it and although (as you know), I have lots of all sorts of books, when I'm craving vegan food, I always go to that same place where I know that I'll find fabulous, mouthwatering and delicious vegan recipes.

Weather for breakfast, meals or even vegan cakes and sweets, Kimberly's, The Little Plantation Blog is the place I always rely in order to cook and eat fabulous vegan food.

Not to talk about Kimberly, the blog owner herself. Such a thoughtful and kind person. Full of knowledge and a very talented food and prop stylist and photographer...

Just visit the blog and tell me if you don't want to cook everything Kimberly publishes there? Plus! Kimberly's blog posts are always a joy to read. Short or long, whatever the theme, for me, reading them, it's always a delightful and relaxing moment!

Honestly? If there is one person in this world that could make me go completely vegan, that person would be Kimberly and her blog!

I've already tried lots of Kimberly's recipes here at home and although my daughter and I, we are the keenest ones for vegan food, my husband and teenager son never ever complained about any of the recipes I cooked from The Little Plantation blog.

Actually, all of them were very much appreciated and devoured by everybody including the two fussy boys.

This granola is one of those successful recipes I tried from Kimberly's blog and I'm not writing here the English version of it because it's all written down and very well explained here.

I have to say that after taking the granola out of the oven, I couldn't stop munching it from the tray or even after being cooled, directly from the jar.

My kids (both), are having it for breakfast and snack all the time and soon, I'll have to make another batch.

Yes! That's how delicious it is!!

Sweet potato, sumac and pomegranate soup with roasted peanuts, coriander and lime / Sopa de batata doce, sumagre e romã, com coentros e lima.

I'm making and eating so many delicious soups lately, that I'm really thrilled to share with you, all the fantastic recipes I'm trying!

This soup is from a gorgeous new book called "Skinny Soups". The author is Kathryn Bruton and the book itself, is a real delight. Not to talk about all the fabulous soup recipes that I already marked down to try and that I'll share with you of course.

This one was the first recipe tested and approved and it's a perfect meal for a perfect meatless Monday!

ingredients (Serves 4):

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 red chilli, deseeded and roughly chopped

1 tsp sumac

1/2 tbsp coconut oil

400g sweet potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped into 2cm cubes

3 or 4 vine tomatoes (approx. 300g), roughly chopped

850ml chicken or vegetable stock

1 1/2 tbsp pomegranate molasses

to garnish:

small bunch of fresh coriander leaves

30g roasted salted peanuts, roughly chopped

seeds from 1/2 pomegranate

a few pinches of sumac

1 lime, cut into 4 wedges

method:

Cook the onion, garlic, chilli and sumac in the coconut oil and 1 tbsp of water for 5 minutes or until the onion is soft.

Add the sweet potatoes, tomatoes and stock and bring to the boil.

Put the lid on and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes are soft.

Leave to cool a little and then stir in the pomegranate molasses.

Blend until silky smooth and season to taste.

Garnish the soup with coriander leaves, pomegranate seeds, chopped peanuts and a pinch of sumac and serve with the lime wedges.

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Tenho feito tantas sopas magníficas que, sinceramente, poder partilhá-las convosco é um verdadeiro prazer!!

Esta é mais uma!! A primeira de um livro lindo, só de sopas, chamado "Skinny Soups".

A autora é a Kathryn Bruton e o livro - para os amantes de sopa como eu - é um verdadeiro deleite.

Escusado será dizer que o livro está quase, todo ele, repleto de "post its", mas para já, deixo-vos com esta sopa divina e que é perfeita para uma "Segunda-feira sem carne"!

ingredientes (para 4 pessoas):

1 cebola média, picada grosseiramente

2 dentes de alho, picados grosseiramente

1 malagueta vermelha, sem sementes e picada grosseiramente

1 colher chá de sumagre

1/2 colher sopa de óleo de coco

400g batata doce, descascada e cortada em cubos de ± 2cm.

3 ou 4 tomates (aprox. 300g), picados grosseiramente

850ml caldo de galinha ou de legumes

1 1/2 colheres sopa de melaço de romã

para decorar:

um ramo pequeno de folhas de coentros

30g amendoins salgados e torrados, picados grosseiramente

sementes de 1/2 romã

umas pitadas de sumagre

1 lima, cortada em quartos

preparação:

Num tacho, colocar a cebola, o alho, a malagueta, o sumagre, o óleo de coco e 1 colher de sopa de água.

Cozinhar por 5 minutos, ou até a cebola estar macia.

Adicionar a batata doce, os tomates e o caldo e deixar levantar fervura.

Tapar o tacho, baixar o lume e cozinhar por cerca de 20 minutos, ou até a batata estar macia.

Retirar do lume e deixar arrefecer um bocadinho, antes de adicionar o melaço de romã.

Com a varinha mágica ou no liquidificador, reduzir a sopa a um puré macio e rectificar os temperos.

Servir a sopa decorada com folhas de coentros, os amendoins picados, as sementes de romã e uma pitada de sumagre.

Colocar os quartos de lima na mesa, para que cada um se sirva à vontade, espremendo o sumo na sopa.

Recipe / Receita:

Pea, mint and coconut soup / Sopa de ervilhas, menta e leite de coco.

From one of my favourite blogs of all times, a fabulously delicious soup and a great and very yummy combination of flavours.

I served it as a starter at a dinner party and it was a huge success!

You can find here the english version of the recipe.

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Uma sopa absolutamente fabulosa, receita de um dos meus blogues favoritos de sempre, e que, em termos de combinação de sabores, é algo de transcendental.

Eu servi-a como entrada num jantar de amigos e foi um verdadeiro sucesso!

A receita em inglês está aqui, mas deixo-vo-la traduzida.

ingredientes (para 4 pessoas):

1 colher sopa de óleo de coco, ou azeite virgem

1 cebola, picada

2 dentes de alho, picados

500g ervilhas frescas descascadas (cerca 1,5 quilos com casca) ou ervilhas congeladas, descongeladas (que foi o que eu utilizei).

1 colher chá de sal

folhas de 10 hastes de menta

350ml caldo de legumes ou água

350ml leite de coco (completo)

azeite virgem, para regar

micro ervas, para decorar (eu decorei com folhas de menta)

preparação:

Numa panela sobre lume médio, aquecer o óleo ou azeite.

Adicionar a cebola e os alhos picados e cozinhar por cerca de 3 a 5 minutos, ou até estes estarem macios.

Adicionar o caldo, ou água, as ervilhas, a menta e o leite de coco.

Quando levantar fervura, desligar o lume.

Com a varinha mágica ou no liquidificador, reduzir a sopa a um puré macio.

Temperar de sal a gosto e se achar necessário, juntar mais água ou caldo de legumes, por forma a adquirir a consistência desejada.

Servir a sopa em tigelas, regada com um fio de azeite e decorada com micro ervas, uma pitada de sal e pimenta.

Recipe / Receita: Green Kitchen Stories.

Molasses and ginger granola / Granola com melaço e gengibre.

Another fabulous recipe from Helena's blog, a very wholesome granola.

Packed full with goodness this granola is a fantastic every morning family breakfast.

ingredients:

75g wheat germ

50g wheat bran (I used oat bran)

300g rolled oats

75g quinoa flakes

40g pistachio nuts

40g Baru nuts (I used cashew nuts)

20g almonds

40g walnuts (I used pecan nuts)

50g linseeds

50g sesame seeds

50g black sesame seeds

70g light olive oil (I used coconut oil)

80g molasses

2 coffee spoons ground ginger

2 dessert spoons ground cinnamon

2 dessert spoons vanilla extract

method:

Preheat the oven to 160ºC.

Line a baking tray with baking paper and set aside.

Roughly chop the nuts and put them into a bowl.

Add in the wheat and bran germ, oats, quinoa flakes and all the seeds and mix everything together.

In a small saucepan over a low heat, combine the oil, molasses, cinnamon, ginger and vanilla extract stirring all the time until dissolved.
Pour this mixture over the dry ingredients mixture and mix well until everything is well coated.
Spread the mixture evenly on the lined baking tray and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Allow the mixture to cool completely in the tray and then store in an airtight jar or container.

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Mais uma fantástica receita do blogue da Helena, esta granola, recheada de produtos fabulosos, é o pequeno almoço perfeito para toda a família.
Substitui alguns produtos, sendo eles, o farelo de aveia em vez de farelo de trigo, usei castanha caju em vez de castanha de baru, nozes pecã em vez de nozes e óleo de côco, em vez do azeite.

Recipe / Receita: Sabores de Canela.