Strawberry "Soup"

This is a really simple, refreshing dessert or snack for summer.  I first tried it in a restaurant in a small town in France and later re-created it at home.

1-2 pounds of strawberries, washed and cut into pieces

approx. 375 mL plain yogurt, to taste

1-2 Tbsp sugar, to taste

1.  Mix all ingredients together in blender, Vorwerk, or food processer.  Chill and enjoy.

Lemon Butter Fish

3-4 filets of white fish

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup butter

3 cloves of garlic, minced

the juice of one lemon

fresh parsley, to taste

basil, to taste

salt & pepper, to taste

1.  Heat olive oil in microwave until hot.  Add butter to oil and stir until melted completely.

2.  Add garlic to lemon juice and let sit 2-3 minutes.  Add to oil mixture.  Add parsley, basil, and salt & pepper.

3.  Place fish in an oven-proof dish, and pour oil mixture over fish.  Place in a pre-heated 180°C oven and bake until fish is cooked through.

Chocolate Banana Cake

We were invited to a birthday party, so I was asked to make a cake as a dessert.  I found this recipe on the internet, and it turned out really well.  It was a big hit at the party.

2 cups granulated white sugar

1 3/4 cup flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs

1 cup mashed bananas (about 2-3 bananas)

1 cup warm water

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup canola oil

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

200 grams (8 ounces) chocolate, cut into small pieces

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1 Tbsp unsalted butter

2 Tbsp icing sugar (optional)

1.  Preheat oven to 350°F and grease and flour a 9x13 pan

2.  Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.

3.  Whisk together eggs, mashed bananas, water, milk, oil, and vanilla extract.

4.  Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir or whisk until combined.  Pour into pan and bake 35-40 minutes.

5.  Place chopped chocolate in a stainless steel (or heatproof) bowl.  Set aside.

6.  Heat the cream and butter in medium saucepan just until boiling and immediately pour over chocolate.  Stir until smooth.  Allow to cool slightly, then add the icing sugar and beat until light and fluffy.  Spread it on the cooled cake, and enjoy!

Peanut Butter Cookies

My family in France capital H hates peanut butter. Turns out a lot of French people feel that way. They've been teasing me quite a lot about my enduring love for peanut butter, so the other day, I decided to make them some cookies.

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

1. Mix shortening, peanut butter, sugars, and egg thoroughly. Blend dry ingredients and blend into shortening mixture. Chill dough.

2. Roll dough to 1 1/4 inch balls and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Flatten balls criss-cross style with a fork dipped in flour. Bake 10-12 minutes in a preheated 350°F oven.

Shrimp Stirfry

I made this tonight.  It was super spicy, although I got compliments on it.

2 packages frozen shrimp, shelled and de-veined

2 Tbsp oyster sauce

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp brown sugar

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp ginger, minced

3 dried chili peppers, chopped

1 lime, juice only

4-5 carrots, peeled and cut into rounds

1 onion, sliced

1.  Combine oyster sauce, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, chili peppers, and lime juice.  Mix with shrimp and let marinate about a half an hour.

2.  In a frying pan or wok, fry onions and carrots until tender crisp.  Add shrimp and marinade and cook until heated through.  Serve with rice.

Poivrons Farçis

I learned how to make this when I moved to France. The ingredients are really simple, although putting everything together is a little time-consuming. This recipe makes a delicious sauce that is great with some bread or rice to soak it up. For how relatively simple this recipe is, it's very delicious-- a little girl who normally doesn't like vegetables at all said that she thought it was "very good".

500-700 g ground beef
2-3 stalks of parsley, chopped
2-4 bulbs of garlic, minced
1 onion, finely chopped
6 tomatoes, cut into cubes
4 Tbsp tomato sauce
salt & pepper, to taste
olive oil
6 bell peppers (any colour-- I use red)

1. Mix ground beef, parsley, garlic, onion, 3 chopped tomatoes, tomato sauce, and salt & pepper together well.

2. Wash the red peppers. Cut out the tops and pull out the seeds and membranes from inside. Stuff the meat mixture into the peppers.

3. Put some olive oil and 3 cubed tomatoes in the bottom of a glass baking dish, and place stuffed peppers on top.

4. Place in a pre-heated 400°F oven for about an hour. Be sure to turn the peppers half-way through cooking.