Unexpected oriental dinner
I bought mince meat for Bolognese. Then sometime in the course of the day, I recalled that it must be forever since I last ate Köfftes (Herr Chaos just now informed me that in German the plural would be also Köffte) and ended up before the frying pan.
Meatballs are a remnant from the Turkish that has become almost standard in Bulgarian cuisine. Maybe because they are fairly easy to make.
I used half a kg of mixed mince meat that I placed in a bowl. Added a finely sliced onion, about a third of tea spoon of salt, pepper, savory, sweet red pepper powder, an egg, and because I had no white bread, I added 2-3 spoons of breadcrumbs. Usually, instead of that, a slice of white bread is soaked in water and then added to the mix after the water has been squeezed out of it.
All the ingredients are well mixed by hand and then one takes a hand-full of mix, forms flat patties, rolls lightly in wheat flour, and fries in oil till visibly ready. Visibly ready will be that dark meaty colour you know from grilling.
That’s basically it. You can eat them with potatoes, salad, anything. I stuck them in Arabic bread with a bit of Ajvar and had a simple green salad.
Cocoa with peppermint
Many years ago, me and Goonie discovered the magic of peppermint cocoa through a surprise package of small presents from the US. Needless to say the whole mint in hot chocolate thing sounded dubious at first, but ever since that experience, I have been on the search for a similar product here in Europe (Krüger had it for a year or so but discontinued) and subsequently attempting to emulate it.
My previous attempts involved bagged peppermint tea which is a waste of time really. But, a week ago when Herr Chaos told me about dry mint leaves, I bought a bag and am blissfully happy with the results.
The way I prepare my mint cocoa is by heating milk in the amount sufficient for a cup but not letting it boil. I put a tea filter with two teaspoons of dry peppermint leaves in it and keep it in hot milk for good five minutes or more. I’d keep it on the stove but have it turned off. While waiting, I add one teaspoon of cocoa powder and a teaspoon of brown sugar in a cup, add a few drops of milk or water and stir to a creamy paste. Finally, I strain the bag with a spoon and remove it from the milk, and pour the hot minty milk into my cup while stirring.
It’s a good thing that.
