Strawberry Cream Dessert

Even though here I can buy strawberries almost any time of year, they are especially tasteful at summer. So yes, it is a strawberry time!

So if you looking for a nice recipe for strawberries – here it is: sweet whipped cream with puree of fresh sweet tasty strawberries and a bit of jelly. Easy to prepare, and even easier to eat :)

Of course, whipped cream is a bit heavy for the figure especially if it is mixed with sugar, but it is also totally delicious - so I allow myself to enjoy it every once in a while. But if you are trying to follow low calories / low fat diet this recipe is probably not for you.

Soup Puree with Broccoli and Chicken

This bright green colored soup-purée (or cream soup) made of chicken, broccoli and some other vegies is probably the quickest to prepare soup I know.

It is also nutritious: loaded with healthy vegetables and white chicken meat, which are boiled, pureed and blended together for tasty creamy texture.

All that makes this soup very good choice not only for kids, but also for people who prefer soft food.

Boiled Buckwheat

I think buckwheat grain is one of the most nutritious and healthy foods one can ever eat: it is very rich on iron, zink, other minerals and vitamins which makes it perfect food for kids and women during pregnancy.

It is also low on carbohydrates comparing to other grains (and for those which it does have body needs long time to digest);for me that makes boiled buckwheat (straight or with a bit of milk) perfect food for days when I want to eat a bit less and exercise a bit more: it makes you feel full longer without eating too much.

Boiled buckwheat is a perfect side for any kind of beef dishes: I personally prefer to serve it with beef stroganoff or minced beef cutlets; however it can be served as a stand alone dish. Boiled buckwheat grain with milk is very popular breakfast food for children and adults in countries of East Europe.

Deruny (Potato Pancakes)

Potato pancakes, prepared from fresh chopped or grated potatoes, onions, eggs and flour, are commonly associated with various cuisines of Europe. In Ukraine they are called “deruny”, in Russia and Belarus “draniki”; similar recipes can be found in Polish, German, Austrian, Czech cuisines.

Potato pancakes are usually a main no meat dish for lunch or breakfast; it tastes good topped with sour cream or mushroom sauce.

Even though potato pancakes are good enough as a separate dish, they can be also served as a side dish for vegetable or meat main dish course.

Cream of Mushroom Sauce

I think that is one of the easiest cream sauces to do, but it is also a bit heavy due to usage of whipping cream as a main ingredient.

Personally I think the taste this sauce completely worth working out those extra calories later on. But it is for you to decide: try substitute cream with smaller amount of half & half to make it a bit lighter if you wish.

Cream of Mushroom Sauce is perfect addition for potato-based dishes: potato dumplings, potato pancakes or simply boiled potato; it will also benefit grilled or fried chicken meat or roasted beef; as well as it can be served as a pasta sauce.

Madeleines

It is easy to fell in love with those little butter cakes the first time you try them: it is exactly what happened to me :), I had to find the recipe. And then I've got hooked: every time I have extra 30 mins and a mood for baking – I am preparing madeleines.

Apart of eggs, butter, flour and a few other ingredients you will also need madeleine baking pan (madeleine molds) to prepare those french sponge cakes. Internet says they exist in two sizes: bigger and smaller.

I've spend quite some time before I finally found bigger ones in Williams-Sonoma, I was also lucky they appeared to be nonstick ones. By the way if you cook in small size molds – reduce cooking time to about 6 mins.

With ingredients described in this recipe will get you about 24 madeleines, enough for 2 baking forms with molds of bigger size. If you want more just double or triple the amounts.

Eggplant Paste Appetizer

Here is an eggplant paste recipe how my grandma used to do it: all full of vegetable goodness, and I love its taste (still a bit hard to get it taste exactly the way how grandma's is but I am working on it).

Baked eggplant paste makes a perfect side dish for meat or vegetable entrees, as well as it can be a great appetizer - just pour a bit on a whole wheat cracker, or spread it over a piece of bread and get a healthy snack.

Prepared eggplant paste can be stored in a fridge for several days and it tastes good cooled.

Zucchini Pancakes

I prepared pancakes from zucchini, but they are also good prepared of any other kind of summer squash or even mix of them.

Soft and tender vegetable pancakes, they are easy and very fast to do. Perfect dish for breakfast or lunch, or for any other “hunger feeding” quick food break.

Odds are your kids will love them (even though they consist of pure vegetables)!

Ground Chicken Cutlets

Cutlets prepared of soft ground chicken meat are delicious main course dish. I have a meat grinder, so I like to grind the meat for cutlets myself. However you can also buy a ground chicken meat and just mix minced or grated onion into it instead.

Ground Chicken Cutlets taste good with steamed or sauteed vegetables, fresh vegetable salads (e.g. carrots and garlic salad or cabbage slaw) and, of course, potatoes (fried or mashed), feel free to pick up a side of your choice.

Moussakas

In Greek cuisine, moussakas (moussaka, musakka) is a layered casserole made of vegetables (eggplant as a main ingredient) and minced meat.

It takes a bit of time and require some coordination in order to make it. But even if you spend a lot of time preparing moussakas, it totally worth it! It is great dish, and it tastes good served as hot as well as cold.

Tzatziki is good addition for Moussakas Casserole.

Lazy Varenyky (Fresh Cheese Lazy Dumplings)

Lazy Varenyky (lazy vareniki, fresh cheese lazy dumplings) is a dish of Ukrainian cuisine. To prepare it you will need fresh white cheese (tvorog, quark) which can be hard to find in a local shop, so try Ukrainian / Russian / Polish shops for more luck.

The word “lazy” in the name reflects the fact how fast and easy this dish is to prepare. It takes less then 20 mins from putting simple ingredients together till Fresh Cheese Lazy Dumplings are ready to be served, and that includes boiling.

Lazy Varenyky dish is good choice for children breakfast: they include fresh cheese - a good source of the calcium for growing body. And of course they are tasty, your kids will love them!

Fresh Cheese Pancakes

Fresh Cheese Pancakes are good choice for the family breakfast or snack. Fresh cheese is a source of the calcium, therefore this is very good food for kids whose growing body needs a lot of calcium.

Cheese pancakes are very fast and very easy to do. The only hassle with this recipe can be to find good quark-kind fresh cheese. So try Russian, Ukrainian or Polish shop if you can't locate it local supermarket.

Crêpes (Thin Pancakes)

But in any case you will need to prepare crêpes first and that requires agility and some kind of training. Read how I prepare them in the step-by-step guide.

Boiled Rice

Boiled rice is a perfect side dish for any kind main dish, especially for spicy food.

Boil rice till it is half-ready and then steam it with a butter. Rice grains become soft and crumbly, but not overcooked.

Potato Cakes in Tomato-Mushroom Sauce

Potato, mushrooms and onions are almost all you need to make potato cakes in tomato-mushroom sauce.

Original vegetables only (no-meat) main dish recipe which doesn't require a side dish.

Potato Puree (Mashed Potatoes)

Potato puree, or you may also call it mashed potatoes, is a perfect side dish for any meat or fish or poultry entree.

It is perfect choice before fried potatoes especially for those whose digestive system needs a bit of support.