Flatbread Pizza

This Flatbread pizza recipe is a quick and easy meal to make especially when your day seem to be very hectic to spend a lot of time in the kitchen.You can choose from variety of breads, sauces, and toppings.You can also make your flatbread pizza from naan bread,pita bread or plain any other choice of flatbread.Wheat,white, or gluten-free type.Sauces are versatile as well,marinara,pesto,alredo, or plain olive oil garlic spread.

Ingredients for vegetable pizza as pictured above:

whole wheat naan bread

mozzarella cheese shredded

bell peppers diced

sun dried tomatoes

fresh tomatoes diced

green onions chopped

feta cheese or parmesan cheese

Spread:

1/3 cup olive oil

3-4 garlic cloves crushed

salt and black pepper

dried oregano,basil,and/or parsley (optional)

Direction:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine spread ingredients in a small bowl. Spoon or brush it on the flat bread.

Sprinkle mozzarella cheese following with the rest of the toppings.

Bake until cheese is melted and bubbly.

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Lamb Osso Bucco

Lamb is highly rated in our family.We LOVE lamb!!! (shanks and chops the most) It’s very rich and yet so delicate and mild.

Lamb Osso Bucco is a comforting delicious Italian lamb dish that is aromatic and full of flavor.The meat is seared and then braised in a flavorful sauce until tender and nearly falling of the bone.

Osso Bucco is Italian for bone with a hole and refers to the marrow in the center of the cross cut shank. The reason for cutting is to expose the richness of the bone marrow.So you can prepare the shank as is or have a butcher cut the shank crosswise for vital nutrients.

Ingredients:

6 lamb shanks (or crosscut shanks-osso bucco style)

1 onion sliced

3-4 carrots cut in chunks

4-5 celery and/or fennel cut in chunks

7 garlic cloves

14.5 ozs. diced tomatoes or 2-3 fresh tomatoes

8 ozs. tomato paste

2 cup red wine

1 cup beef or chicken broth/stock

1 tablespoon dried oregano

4 rosemary sprigs

6 thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

salt

black pepper

oil

Directions:

Heat a dutch oven or frying pan with oil.

Season lamb with salt and pepper.

Sear on all sides until well browned.

Sear in batches.Add more oil if needed.

Remove each batch and set aside.

Add onions,carrots,celery/fennel to the pot.Add more oil if needed.

Stir and Sauté for approx. 10 minutes.

Add tomato paste,oregano, and 2 crushed garlic cloves 5 whole garlic cloves.

Continue to saute stirring for another 3 minutes.

Add red wine,stir and cook for another minute or two.

Add tomatoes,stock/broth,bay leaf,salt and pepper.

Transfer shanks back to dutch oven or a large baking dish.(pour sauce over shanks if using baking dish)

Arrange sprigs of rosemary and thyme in between the shanks.

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cover with foil and braise the shanks for 2 hours.

Turn the sides and continue to braise for another 1 hour.

Remove foil and braise uncovered for 20-30 minutes.

When done the meat should be tender and nearly falling off the bone.

Serve over mashed potatoes,risotto,rice, or pasta with your choice of vegetables.Pour sauce over the shank as much as desired.

-I served with mashed potatoes,steamed broccolini and organic veggie mix from Trader Joe’s(corn,green beans,peas and carrots).

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Shurpa-Шурпа на костре

shurpa

Shurpa is the most popular Uzbek soup that take special place in national culinary of Uzbek cuisine.Although there is many different recipes of shurpa, but the base ingredients are the same consisting of meat,potatoes and vegetables with various spices and aromatic herbs.Shurpa is a hearty soup that can be cooked on stove or on the fire.Cooking it on the fire is my families favorite,it adds a smoky flavor to the soup which makes it taste hundred times better.My mom and dad are pros on that.Dad is always in charge of controlling the fire and mixing the ingredients, and mom cooks the soup.It’s cooked in a large cast iron pot (kazan).Cooking it in regular pot will make a difference in taste and wont taste the same.This recipe serves a fairly big crowd, around 15-20 people and usually they’ll ask for seconds but you can cut all ingredients by half if you don’t need that much.This recipe came from my mom who always get requests to cook it for parties,special occasions and of course the family.The images are for shurpa on the fire, but the steps are the same to cook it on the stove.Just cut the ingredients by half.

Prepare the firepit.Place the pot on top.Heat it really well.Add oil.When the oil is hot, throw in the meat and mix.

Continue to mix….

until the meat is well browned.

Add onions.Mix.Add carrots and continue to mix.

Throw in bell pepper and continuing to mix.

Add tomato sauce,salt,black pepper,paprika,cumin and red pepper flakes(optional) and continue to mix and cook for 3-5 min.

Add garlic,bay leaves,and water.Bring to a boil then reduce heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes.

Throw in potatoes….

And add more water if needed to cover potatoes all the way.

Simmer for 25-30 minutes or until potatoes are done.

Throw in all the fresh herbs and mix.

Serve in a bowl with crusty bread or Uzbek lepeshka(flat bread).

For leftover shurpa,transfer to regular pot and refrigerate when cooled.

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Lagman - Beef and noodle Soup

Lagman is a beef (lamb) vegetable noodle dish. Its one of the several Uzbeks signature dishes along with plov,manty, samsa and kebobs.There are different varieties of lagman ranging from using different kind of vegetables, meats and noodles.It’s one of my favorite childhood dishes that passed on to my family.

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Tomato and Eggplant salad

Combination of tomatoes and eggplants is very popular in russian and Italian cuisine.They go perfectly together.This salad is delicious and simple to make consisting of few ingredients.

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Korean Noodle Salad "Funchoza"

This is very delicious Korean noodle salad that is well known in Central Asia of Korean origin.There is many varieties of this salad,but I like the vegetarian style.You can add pan-fried strips of chicken,beef,or ground meat if desired.To get nice thin strips of vegetables I use this [amazon asin=http://www.amazon.com/Börner-Thin-Julienne-Vegetable-Slicer/dp/B000RH1TIS&text=thin julienne slicer.]

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Adapted from chekalova-recepty.ru

Asian Noodle Salad

This vegetarian Asian noodle salad is light and healthy with lots of flavors. Peanuts and vegetables give a nice crunch to soft noodles and the dressing is just perfect with out being overpowering.

Dressing:

1/2 cup seasoned rice vinegar
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp.sesame oil
3 cloves garlic minced
2 tsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. sugar
1-2 tbsp. Sriracha sauce *

* optional

Combine all the ingredients. Let sit for atleast 1 hour to let flavors combine.

Salad:

1 handful cilantro leaves ,chopped
1 handful basil leaves, chopped*
4 green onions,diced finely
1/2 red bell pepper,julienned
1/2 yellow bell pepper, julienned
1 cup of shredded carrots
1/2 cup toasted peanuts
1/2 lb. whole wheat spaghetti noodles (cooked)
1 handful of sugar snap peas*
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds*

* optional

Prepare all the vegetables and cook the noodles. Rinse the noodles with cold water and drain.
Add the vegetables and peanuts.
Mix the dressing then add to the salad. Stir and serve.

This recipe was adapted from For the Love of Cooking.

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Slow cooked Beef with vegetables or "Basterma"

This recipe came to me from my mother.Basterma is a dish very known in central Asia.

Add meat to hot oil.season it.

The meat is cooked first until you get nice brown color,then you add the onions and layer your vegetables. You only add 1/2 cup of water but, you will be surprised how much liquid you will get from all the veggies.The meat is tender and veggies are sweet and soft.

Add onions

Ingredients:
2 lbs. beef ( tri-tip is the best) cut into large cubes
1 1/2 onion chopped
3 carrots sliced into oval shapes
4 potatoes cut into 1/4 inch thick rounds
1 red bell pepper cut into rounds
1 green bell pepper cut into rounds
1/4 head of a cabbage sliced 1/2 inch thick
3 tomatoes sliced thick
1/3 cup oil
salt and pepper
1 1/2 tbsp. ground cumin powder

Arrange potatoes

1/2 cup water

Directions:
Heat oil on high heat. Add beef.

and the rest of the vegetables

Season with salt and pepper. Mix and let it cook uncovered until you will see a nice brown color.
Add onions and cook for about 3-4 minutes
Set the heat to low add water and arrange the veggies in layers in this order;
-potatoes,salt & pepper
-cabbage, salt & pepper
-carrots,salt & pepper
-bell peppers
-tomatoes salt & pepper
-cumin powder

sprinkle salt,pepper,cumin and close the lid.

Now cover with lid and turn the heat on high and bring to boil.When it begins to boil bring down to low heat and let cook for 1 1/2 hours.
When it’s all done cooking, gently mix it and serve with chopped cilantro.

Chicken Eggrolls

These crispy homemade chicken eggrolls are better then any chinesse restaurant eggrolls. Everyone loves them in our family and they are gone in a blink at parties.You can substitute beef,pork,or turkey for chicken and omit meat for vegetarians.For best crispy results buy eggroll or lumpia wrappers in Asian market.

Ingredients:

3 boneless chicken thighs grounded

1 onion finely chopped

2 carrots shredded

¼ cabbage shredded

2 bean threads ( soaked in boiling water) cut into one inch wide

25 sheets egg roll wrappers

1 egg whipped with fork

1 egg whipped with fork for the wrapper

soy sauce

¼ cup oil + for frying

Other optional ingredients:

mushrooms

celery

string beans

zuchinni

Directions:

Heat oil on med-high heat. Add chicken.Cook until slightly browned.Add onions and carrots. Cook until tender.add cabbage,soy sauce and bean threads.cook for a minute or two ,stirring the mixture. Add egg and mix it in.

Take one wrapper,place meat mixture on the lower corner. seal top corners with whipped egg and roll them up tucking in the two side corners. Repeat with the rest.

In a medium size frying pan, heat plenty of oil and fry them turning once until golden brown. Make sure to stand by because they tend to burn fast.

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Eggs with Vegetables and Herbs

This breakfast dish can be made with your choice of fresh herbs like cilantro,parsley,sage,oregano,thyme,rosemary,basil or chives. I used basil and sage for a little Italian twist. You can use cilantro and chives with salsa on top for Mexican twist, and how about Greek with parsley,chives and little bit of feta cheese on top? Or just have fun and create your own little twist.

4 yellow young potatoes thinly sliced

¼ red onion finely chopped

¼ red bell pepper

¼ green bell pepper

1/3 eggplant(if thin and long) diced

½ tomato diced

salt & pepper

4 tbsp. Olive oil

4 eggs

fresh herbs finely chopped

Season potatoes with salt and pepper. fry the potatoes on hot skillet with olive oil until its nice and crispy . Using heavy skillet saute onion in olive oil approx.2 min. Add peppers and eggplant cook for another 3 minutes. Add tomatoes. Cook stirring occasionally for 4-5 minutes.season with salt and pepper and add herbs. Fry or poach eggs.

Transfer potatoes on the serving plate, place about 2 tablespoon of vegetables on top of potatoes, and place one egg on top of vegetables. Sprinkle with herbs if you like.

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Fried rice

This is a quick and easy Chinese fried rice with few simple but important rules;

1. The pan should be really HOT.

2.Rice needs to be cold from the fridge. Otherwise the rice will be sticky and mushy.
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