Golden baked, flaky soft puff pastry hand pies, stuffed with ham and cheese. TL;DR I love combining ham and cheese in my recipes. Naturally, I had to come up with hand pies stuffed with ham and cheese. You will need a puff pastry roll to make these. They turn out extra flaky and the buttery layers complement the ham and cheese beautifully. Ingredient Notes Here … [Read more...]
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Guava Fruit: Types + Uses
The guava fruit is a beautiful tropical fruit. It has many delicious and useful uses. Here you will find everything you need to know to start enjoying guavas all the more. 📕 What is a Guava? Guava is a tropical fruit in every sense of the word. It grows in the tropics around the equator, smells like the tropics, and is the fruitiest of all the fruits out there! … [Read more...]
Prickly Pear Juice (Cactus Fruit)
Prickly pear juice is made from cactus fruits. It's refreshing and so easily made, you don't need a blender or juicer! What is a Prickly Pear? Prickly pears are the colorful fruits of the nopales “paddle” cactus. They are native to the American continent where they grow in an arid, dry desert climate. The fruits are also known as tuna fruit or simply cactus fruit, … [Read more...]
Chicory Root Tea
Chicory Root Tea is a nifty way to ditch your bad dietary habits. In this post, we explore how to use it and the differences between raw and roasted chicory root. What is Chicory Root? Chicory is a hardy bushy plant that grows beautiful blue flowers. It's a wild plant in Europe and you can see it there on the roadside. The plant has been known for its healing … [Read more...]
How to make Powdered Sugar
You can make powdered sugar at home in a jiffy! Here you will learn everything you need to know about powdered sugar and how to make it from scratch anytime! 📕 What is powdered sugar? Powdered Sugar is a super fine version of sugar and it is mostly used in baking. It is the perfect way to sweeten your cakes, cookies, and fudges because it mixes well in … [Read more...]
Baked Ricotta Cheese Dip with Jam
Entertain your guests with this baked ricotta cheese dip. The dip is enriched with herbs and spices, topped with jam, and baked hot. I have been trying my hands on different hot cheese dips prepped with a jam topping. This baked ricotta dip was inspired by the baked brie with fig jam appetizer. 📕 What is ricotta? Ricotta is a grainy soft by-product of … [Read more...]
Mushroom Gravy for Chicken or Steak
A simple mushroom gravy recipe to serve with your chicken or steak dinner. 🥣 Ingredients This is an overview of the ingredients that you need to help you get organized. All the adjustable US and metric measurements are located further below in the recipe card. 🔪 How to make it? Did you know that preparing a mushroom gravy from scratch is super … [Read more...]
French Green Lentils with Sausage (Puy Lentils)
A French recipe for green lentils cooked with sausages. This is a family one-pot recipe. It's one of my favorite winter-time dinner meals. My mum would prepare it every once in a while for us. 📕 What are French Green Puy Lentils? The french green lentils are an important ingredient in the french homemade local cuisine. They are better known as Lentille … [Read more...]
How to prepare Absinthe
Preparing absinthe the right way is part of the ritual and it makes for a great way to entertain your party guests. 📕 What is Absinthe? Absinthe is a distilled, highly alcoholic beverage. It's also known as The Green Fairy or La Fee Verte. It can be described as anise-flavored, licorice-flavored, or minty. This is because true absinthe is prepared by … [Read more...]
What are Tropical Fruits
![Tropical Fruits you didn't know existed! [List and pictures]](https://www.masalaherb.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Tropical-Fruits-you-didnt-know-existed-gog-150x150.jpg)
Tropical fruits are fruits that grow in a tropical area. The climate for these fruits to thrive and grow is humid hot and it never freezes. 🗺️ Tropical Places Tropical or so-called exotic fruits come from places close to the equator, the tropical climate belt. The weather there is mostly warm or hot the whole year round with a humidity level higher … [Read more...]
Vegan Caviar Appetizer Bites
The vegan caviar bites are a great plant-based option at a party or for a holiday gathering. 📕 What are these Appetizer Bites? I came up with these little vegan bites because I wanted to use seaweed pearls the way I would use caviar for a party. I thought of my smoked salmon bites and decided to add mango too, for flavor and aesthetic value. You can make … [Read more...]
Skull Mushroom Pizza Bites (Halloween Special)
Skull mushroom pizza bites are a great Halloween party food for children and adults alike! These were inspired by a post from Castellon's Kitchen, a true Halloween-themed food blog. (Their main page is ghoulatheart.com now) Somebody had posted the skull mushrooms in a mushroom foraging group on facebook and I thought they would be cute and delicious on a simple pizza … [Read more...]
Pan-Fried Lemon Thyme King Oyster Mushroom
Pan-fried king oyster mushroom cooked in one pan with thyme and lemon flavors. Similar recipes to try, include our sautéed oyster mushrooms and these pan fried lions mane mushrooms. 📕 What are King Oyster Mushrooms? King oyster mushrooms are also known as king trumpet mushrooms, royal trumpet, and some other regional names. They are part of the oyster … [Read more...]
Seaweed Pearls aka Vegan Seaweed Caviar
Everything you need to know about seaweed pearls aka vegan seaweed caviar. 📕 What is it? Vegan caviar is a type of vegan gourmet food that mimics the look and feel of fish roe. It's a sustainable plant-based alternative to black caviar, that's why this food ingredient is also known as seaweed caviar, kelp caviar or vegan caviar. It is usually made from … [Read more...]
Skillet Hamburger Steak with Bell Pepper Sauce
Homemade juicy hamburger steak prepared in a skillet and served with a creamy colorful bell pepper sauce. This is a one-pan low-carb friendly dish. What is this dish? This dish was inspired and resembles a Salisbury steak. The beef patty is the same but the sauce consists of sweet bell pepper and cream. It's a great dinner meal idea, which I specifically created … [Read more...]
How to make Black Food Coloring
Your guide on how to make black food coloring at home within minutes! 🏴 Types of Food Colorings In a nutshell, food-grade colors can be made from natural or processed ingredients. These dyes are safe for consumption, hence why food grade. Natural Food Shades Common natural food grade colorings are black charcoal and squid ink. Black charcoal is great … [Read more...]
Salmon Furikake Seasoning
Flavor-packed Salmon Furikake Seasoning to use as a topping over rice meals. This is a Japanese recipe. 📕 What is it? Furikake are multi-purpose Japanese seasoning blends, used to season mainly rice and noodle dishes among others. They are categorized as dry or wet furikake. They are sold as a condiment in small packets in Japan and many variations exist. … [Read more...]
Homemade Lobster Shell Stock
Lobster stock can be prepared at home from scratch, and it's, in fact, a good zero waste practice if you are boiling a lobster anyway. This is a basic, plainly flavored seafood stock. What is lobster stock? Lobster stock is prepared from lobster shells. The shells are infused in the boiling water over a slow simmering flame. Once you have boiled a lobster, you get … [Read more...]
How to dehydrate Mushrooms
Dehydrating mushrooms can be useful and it's super easy! I share tips and instructions on how to dry mushrooms at home. I'm using shiitake mushrooms as an example. The flavors of a shiitake mushroom turn out more intense after the mushroom has been dried. It developed more umami. Also drying mushrooms is more commonly done in the East, hence why I picked … [Read more...]
Papaya Fruit: Varieties and Uses
Papaya is such a misunderstood fruit! Yet, it has so many delicious and useful uses. Here you will find everything you need to know to start enjoying papayas all the more. What is Papaya? Papaya or Pawpaw is a sweet, pulpy, and nutritious fruit that widely grows in tropical climates. The first thing you’ll notice about a Papaya is its vibrant color, like … [Read more...]
Home Canned Plums
Canned plums are a great way to preserve your fruits for the coming months. Turns out, it's easy to do this at home! 📕 What are canned plums? Canned plums are made to last and are preserved in light sugar syrup. Commercially canned fruits are the norm these days but preparing home-canned plums is still the norm in some places. During harvest season you … [Read more...]
Dehydrated Peach
Dehydrated peach is a great healthy and nourishing snack. You can make them at home too. The task is almost effortless! 📕 What are dehydrated peaches? Dehydrated peaches are slices or strips of peaches that were left to dry over a period of time. The idea is to preserve the fruits by taking out the water content. The juices in the fruits accelerate the … [Read more...]
Watermelon Infused Water
Watermelon infused water is a summer hit in my home! It's refreshing and replenished my tired body in the heat. You will feel better with every sip! TL;DR Watermelon water is regular tap water infused with fresh watermelon chunks. If you are looking for a blender watermelon beverage, that's a watermelon juice. The watermelon flavors mix into the water and enrich … [Read more...]
Homemade Japanese Pickled Ginger for Sushi
Quick Japanese sliced pickled ginger to serve with your favorite homemade sushi! Making a jar of homemade ginger pickle (aka gari) has never been easier than that. This recipe is part of our Japanese food series. Momoko, our Japanese food expert, is sharing your recipe for homemade pickled ginger sushi. TL;DR Japanese pickled ginger are preserved ginger slices. … [Read more...]
Dehydrated Apricots in the Dehydrator
This is a DIY guide on how to dehydrate apricots at home from scratch. TL;DR Dehydrated apricots are fresh-cut apricots that are left to dry slowly until they lose all their water. That way, the dried apricots can be stored for months without them turning bad! This is an age-old technique that was used to trade with dried fruits and nuts coming over the Silk Road … [Read more...]
How to Make Mayonnaise in 5 Minutes
Homemade easy classic mayonnaise prepared within 5 minutes from scratch with pantry ingredients! TL;DR This is a homemade mayo recipe that you can prepare from scratch within 5 minutes at home. You will need an immersion blender and a tall jar to do that. It's a quick and easy basic mayonnaise recipe that you can use instead of the store-bought condiment. So, it's a … [Read more...]
French Tomato Coulis + How to can it
Homemade tomato coulis seasoned with fresh herbs. This is a French recipe for a thin tomato sauce. The recipe comes with canning instructions. What's a Tomato Coulis? A tomato coulis is a thin tomato sauce used in French cooking as a sauce base for other dishes. It's basically a tomato sauce, but it's super runny, and it's almost always seasoned with herbs, fresh … [Read more...]
4 Ingredients Crispy Baked Chicken Wings without Oil
Super-duper extra crispy baked chicken wings prepared with just 4 ingredients only and without oil. We can't get enough of crispy baked chicken wings at home, but we hate eating oily wings. Especially Paul is super picky, as he avoids super oily foods. There is a trick that we learned back in school to achieve crispy meats without having to use oil. I show you how it's … [Read more...]
Fresh Watermelon Juice
Refreshing watermelon juice prepared in a jiffy with real watermelon chunks. I don't know about you, but I need some cool clear juice this hot summer! So, you have been enjoying store-bought watermelon juice or other melon juice? Then this homemade healthier juice is all yours! You will need a food processor to make this, no juicer required! As a watermelon fan, … [Read more...]
Oven Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings
Super crispy oven baked buffalo chicken wings. Prepared with a homemade buffalo sauce or use a store bought buffalo sauce. 📕 What are buffalo chicken wings? Buffalo wings are crispy chicken wings coated with a spicy, buttery red hot buffalo sauce. A buffalo sauce consists of a hot sauce and butter and it was invented in Buffalo New York (US). 🍗 … [Read more...]
Spicy Pickled Garlic (Tiktok Copycat)
The spicy pickled garlic was a TikTok viral. I tried it out, and we also got hooked on it! I share everything we learned and you need to know to make this quick spicy and healthy snack. This was inspired by the original from @lalaleluu over at tiktok. TikTok recipe fans will also like these TikTok Candied Grapes (Jolly Rancher Candy Grapes). Ingredient … [Read more...]
Chicken Yakisoba Noodles
Stir fried Chicken Yakisoba noodles with a quick homemade yakisoba sauce. This Japanese dish makes a perfect weeknight dinner meal for two! This chicken yakisoba is another classic Japanese stir fry noodle recipe from our Asian food series with Momoko, our Japanese food expert. We recorded it together back in February in Goa, India. 🍜 What are Yakisoba … [Read more...]
Canned Pinto Beans and Rice with Sausage
Pinto Beans and rice prepared with canned beans and stewed over the stove top with sausages. This is a quick and easy dinner meal. It's comforting and effortless to put together after a long day at work. Ingredients You will need a few pantry ingredients to make this from scratch with canned beans, AND you can enhance it further with a seasoning of your choice. … [Read more...]
Mango Dragon Fruit Smoothie
This vibrant Mango Dragon Fruit Smoothie is a tropical delight that is equally delicious as it is visually stunning. It's perfect as a refreshing start to your day or a midday pick-me-up with a blend of sweet mango and exotic dragon fruit. This smoothie is for you if you love our pure fruit smoothies with mangoes, such as the tropical smoothie or the mango pineapple … [Read more...]
Spicy Salmon Roll Sushi with Avocado
We show you how to prepare a homemade spicy salmon roll sushi. This is a spicy inside-out sushi roll with raw salmon fish. I have added instructions for using cured salmon. This recipe is part of my food expert series. I developed this recipe together with my friend Momoko, a Japanese food expert and a Japanese expat. What's a salmon roll? A salmon roll is a … [Read more...]
How to blanch Tomatoes to peel
Here is how you can easily blanch your tomatoes to peel them. Blanching helps you peel your tomatoes effortlessly within minutes, and you don't need any special equipment to do this at home. What is blanching? Blanching is a short cooking method that is used for vegetables, fruits, nuts, and even meats to achieve a certain purpose. In the case of tomatoes, … [Read more...]
Butter Garlic Onion Sauteed Mushrooms
Sauteed mushrooms in butter with garlic and onions. A simple vegetarian side dish prepared in one pan. 🍅 Ingredients You can also flavor this mushroom side dish with more seasonings. Add oregano, lemon juice, Italian seaosning, herbes de provence or thyme. Another idea is to add a few drops of worcestershire sauce, or soy sauce or tabasco sauce or … [Read more...]
20 min Healing Broth Soup
A delicious clear broth soup with healing spices and herbs to boost your well-being. This recipe is quick and easy, ready within 20 minutes, effortless to prepare as it's also oil free (no sautéing). What is this healing broth soup? This clear broth is the result of me getting sick on my travels and trying to get better in a jiffy AND the input from Paul, who grew … [Read more...]
How to cook warm water Lobster
I show you how to cook a warm water lobster with common kitchen equipment. It's super easy and leaves an impression with your guests. The guide includes how to cut open a cooked lobster. 🦐 What is warm water lobster? Warm water lobsters are also called spiny lobsters, rock lobsters, or langustas. They are the lobsters that come without claws. The … [Read more...]
Austrian Food Guide
This is a guide about Austrian food and drink specialties. It covers everything you need to know if you are a gourmand traveling Austria or if you want to simply learn more about our food culture. The food guide is from the perspective of a West Austrian, so I may have mentioned more specialties from there because, well that's my expertise. But I have also … [Read more...]