A Chilli con Carne

this is it ... I'm finally back ;)
  Hehe, I know I said that probably a million times now, but in all honesty, I never really thought this blog-birthday-present-thing would turn out as much work as it has.
I still really do enjoy cooking, but there is a distinct difference between cooking dinner lazily, and actually taking pictures in the progress. And I still haven't figured out how to deal with the little lighting in my kitchen... and I know that most pictures actually seriously lack quality...

But here it goes again:


Chilli con Carne, or something similar to one.

My Summer.

As promised, I’m going to let you know everything there is to know about my summer.
This is an unusual post for me, I know. But I’m staying at home right now and am not cooking that much. My mom is a better cook. And she doesn’t really like to divert control in the  kitchen :)
And I found out that some family members living in Texas found this Blog totally by chance… How awesome is that?

So this does not include a recipe, though I might talk a little about food ;)


This summer was absolutely great.

I mean it.

Summer is almost over...

… ah well, let’s face it.
Summer is definitively over. We are just experiencing the last beautiful sunny days, that become rarer and shorter and -honestly- colder way too fast.

I love summer and the complete change in peoples attitude you can notice during those warm, long days of hanging out at the lake with friends, barbecuing and just enjoying the lazy vacation days.

But there is definitively something to be said about fall as well. The colours are beautiful. I love the seasonal fruits and vegetables. Do I even have to talk about curling up on the couch with a good book, a hot cup of tea or hot chocolate and a cozy blanket?

What about the rain, you ask. Well, I grew up in a region with a lot of rain, so I don’t mind that at all. Sometimes it actually sends a ‘homey’ feeling in my direction. I know this sounds wierd, but that is just the way it is.

But I’m getting off topic here. I wanted to tell you about another reason to get excited this fall.

Penne with Asparagus

Hey, little brother...

... I'm sorry that I neglected this little blog -again- for some time. I was busy with studying, lab-time, a trip to France (I'll write about that) and finals are coming up.

And now that I'm back, the first thing I post is a recipe with asparagus. You must be a little disappointed, but I guarantee this pasta dish doesn't taste that much 'asparagus-like'.

This recipe is actually what happens when I am to busy to go to the grocery store a planned ;)
I bought the asparagus a couple of days ago and almost forgot about it. So before it got to waste I decided to try the typical 'student-like' way of inventing a new dish (read pasta-sauce).

I found some bacon, cherry tomatoes (I  don't really now, if that is what they are called in English, but I'm talking about the little, almost sweet tasting tomatoes) and the asparagus - of course - in our refrigerator.

Adding those things together might sound a little strange, but my thought-process went as follows: asparagus tastes good with bacon, and bacon and tomatoes are the main ingredients in my favourite pasta-sauce..

Easy, right?

So here it goes...

Tortiglioni Peperonata.

I don’t know if you noticed or not but lately I’ve been inspired various recipes by Jamie Oliver. If you stick  to his recipes they always turn out really good (though – probably thanks to the lack of the necessary tools in my kitchen – I can’t seem to get the 15-minute- and a few 30-minute- meals done in time). And honestly I don’t really have the need to cook that fast, but by trying my knife skills have improved and I became a little more organized in the kitchen.

Yes, feel free to picture me in the kitchen hacking manically away on some onions, herbs and all kinds of vegetables.... Nice, uh?

The picture is not entirely true, because I actually try to use the proper methods to develope my skills. Hop over to Jamie Olivers site and have a look at the 'skills' videos. But just so you know it is really easy to get caught up in his videos and youtube-channel. I just really like what he comes up with and of course his accent J

So on to the recipe:

(please excuse the bad picture but I took the picture with my phone and there was no natural light)