thyme, parsley, chives, oregano...

one of the most amazing but also very simple pleasures I find, is when I'm able to use what is grown in the garden for our dinner... it both satisfies my preference for organic and local food, and at the same time I'm able to have great conversation about what we are eating and where it comes from with my 3-year old. today he was playing with his football while the herbs were cut, but was well aware what was going on and that they were to be used for our dinner. he is both curious and excited about herbs, and even though he only names chives and basil correctly, he willingly tastes and explores others.
today we had filet of tusk fish with a bit of olive oil, freshly ground pepper and dried salted ham on top, baked potato wedges, long-baked tomatoes with fresh herbs on top and finally a sour-creme dressing with a bit of garlic and lots of fresh herbs (parsley, thyme, chives and oregano).
a little time saving tip for the potato wedges is to wash/peel and cut the potatoes, mix them with olive oil and then store them in a covered bowl in the fridge, this way they can be prepared the night before or in the morning... all you need then is to add salt and/or preferred spice/herbs before they go in the owen.

tuna salad on bread

a simple little something for our Sunday lunch... as the content of the fridge wasn't super inspiring I landed on making a tuna salad, served on bread and with fresh tomatoes on top. I don't know why, but it seems to always take me by surprise that we also need to grocery shop for lunch... good thing that we almost always have canned tuna!
the tuna salad was made from canned tuna, creme fraiche, red onion, dill, lemon juice, salt and freshly ground pepper. tuna, creme fraiche and onion are mixed in a small bowl and seasoned to taste with dill, lemon, salt and pepper.

fish in a wok

fish in a wok

one of our all time favorites is fish in a wok... it is a very good opportunity to use up any left over vegetables from the fridge, it takes almost no time to prepare and depending what you use, you can dress it up or down as you please (and last but not least, it can be prepared in advance).

in this version I used a bit of salmon, pollack, black tiger scrimps, yellow and red bell pepper, red onion, spring onion, sugar snaps, squash and broccoli. everything is cut into appropriate bites, mixed in a large bowl with oil (usually I use either a mild olive oil or canola oil), lemongrass and lemon-pepper to your taste. at this stage it can be left in the fridge for some hours, or from morning to evening. a few minutes before serving everything is fried in a very hot wok using a bit of oil, salt is added to your taste (alternatively you can add a bit of fish sauce or soy). I like to serve this with a bit of whole grain noodles.

variations that I can recommend is to try out scallops or lumpfish, adding a bit of mustard seeds, or maybe go with white fish, scallops, spinach, squash, tomatoes and a pinch of chili to replace the lemongrass and lemon-pepper.