Saturday 9 November 2013

{Day 70/365} Homemade currant loaf

Yesterday evening I started making the dough for this homemade bread with currants. I love this bread, but I can't have the currant loafs which are sold in stores because they contain milk/lactose. Now I've made my own currant loaf with lactose free milk and vegetable butter and it turned out amazing! Me and the mr. had it for breakfast this morning. Just put a little bit of (vegetable) butter on top and/or cover it with slice of (old) cheese. The saltiness of the cheese combines perfectly with the sweet taste of the currants and the cinnamon. Just delicious. The recipe comes from Allrecipes Nederland. 





















For one (huge) loaf you will need:
- 375 gr (dried) currants
- 50 gr yeast
- 300 mL warm milk
- 150 gr sugar
- 1 kg flour
- 2 eggs
- 200 gr (vegetable) butter (room temperature) 
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt


1. Add warm water to the currants and set aside.
2. Put yeast in a bowl and add the warm milk and sugar. Slowly add the flour and let the dough rise for about 20 minutes. 
3. Drain currants and dry with a towel.
4. Add the 2 eggs, salt, cinnamon and butter to the dough, and knead until it is a nice, supple dough. Add the currants after that and knead again.
5. Put the dough in a greased, round baking tray and let it rise for about 60-90 minutes (I let it rise during the night, which was OK too).
6. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celcius. Cut an X in the dough with a very sharp knife before putting the bread in the oven for 60 minutes. The bread it finished when it's golden brown on top.
7. Let it cool for a while before cutting the bread. 

Friday 8 November 2013

{Day 69/365} A feast

Exams are over, so I prepared a feast for my dad and the mr. I made chicken with garlic and lemon, potatoes with olive oil, salt, pepper and rosemary and a tomato salad with red wine vinegar. The men loved it, and so did I.


Thursday 7 November 2013

{Day 68/365} Roomies who buy flowers

I love coming home to see my roommate (and sister in law) bought flowers, in very happy colors!


Wednesday 6 November 2013

{Day 67/365} Happy mail from Sevilla

Today I received a lovely letter with very cute postal cards in a very pretty envelope from my penpal Sara from Sevilla, Spain. Thank you so much and I will write you back as soon as the exams are over!


Tuesday 5 November 2013

{Day 66/365} Another lovely door

Just another lovely door that caught my attention during a walk through the village on the island.


Monday 4 November 2013

{Day 65/365} Notebook and beach treasures

This is the notebook I bought last year and some beach treasures I found the day before yesterday during the beach ride with the mr.


Sunday 3 November 2013

{Day 64/365} Flow and crocheting

These are my plans for tonight, when I'm done writing research papers: reading Flow magazine and crocheting. Love it.


Saturday 2 November 2013

{Day 63/365} Beach ride

From the 1st of November until the 1st of April we are granted access to the beach with the car, so the mr. and I have been cruising on the beach for about 2,5 hours today. Loved it!




Friday 1 November 2013

{Day 62/365} Sunset in the harbor of Harlingen

Today I'm going back to the island and on my way, I passed the harbor of Harlingen and I really enjoyed this sunset.


Thursday 31 October 2013

{Day 61/365} Editing photos, love the island

Today I have been editing some of my pictures I took the last time I was on the island. I am so happy I'm going back tomorrow!


Wednesday 30 October 2013

{Day 60/365} Lighthouse

I love lighthouses, I don't know why but I find them quite fascinating. This is the lighthouse of Harlingen, The Netherlands. Also, there's this beautiful song called Lighthouse, performed by Matt Corby. I highly recommend listening to that song, and all of his other songs, actually.


Tuesday 29 October 2013

{Day 59/365} New notebook

Most of us like buying new notebooks, and so do I. Today I bought a new notebook to write down all my ideas I have with regard to the times after graduating University. Next summer I will be graduating, hopefully, and to me, the possibilities are endless. I'm even considering to become an entrepreneur. Exiting!


Monday 28 October 2013

{Day 58/365} Stormy weather

Today we had a huge storm, like 11-12 bft. We lost a huge amount of roof tiles, which causes a little bit of leakage, but everything can be fixed. The storm affected the entire country, but on the news they say the so called "Wadden islands" had the toughest part.


Sunday 27 October 2013

{Day 57/365} At sea

Today I'm just glad that I'm going back to the island. Can you tell, from this picture, that a storm is coming?


Friday 25 October 2013

{Day 55/365} Dogsitting

This weekend, the mr. and I are watching our friends' house and dogs (now I desperately want a dog!) The house is in the middle-of-nowhere and since we love the rural, rustic spheres, it's perfect for us. Nothing but joy! After the last lecture of the week I took the train to Harlingen and next Sunday we will go back to the island again.


Thursday 24 October 2013

{Day 54/365} That first cup of tea

Many, many people are feeling nothing but love when thinking of and talking about coffee. But for me,  it's tea. I LOVE tea, and there's nothing like starting the day slowly, with a hot cup of tea. Today will be a long day of studying, so I'm glad I can start my day like this..






Wednesday 23 October 2013

{Day 53/365} Autumn is winning

Autumn is really taking over my city. This bike is close to being buried in leaves.


Tuesday 22 October 2013

{Day 52/365} The brave ones

I went for a walk with my new camera and I shot these brave ones. Autumn is beating summer's ass, isn't it?


Monday 21 October 2013

{Day 51/365} Cheating on autumn

I have been cheating on autumn today.. as I was shopping for new spring flower bulbs.


Sunday 20 October 2013

{Day 50/365} Autumn treasures

Hooray! I am already at day 50 of my Project365! It's Sunday today and I am locked up inside for study related reasons, but I really wanted to go out and play with my camera, so I did. I walked around the block for a while and I enjoyed everything autumn. 



Saturday 19 October 2013

{Day 49/365} Zucchini Frittata for lunch

For lunch today I had a spicy zucchini frittata, and because I think you have to try some time, I'm sharing the extremely easy, adjusted recipe with you. 





















For 4 servings you will need: 
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1 jalapeño, thinly sliced (didn't use this one, so I used chili flakes)
- 1 zucchini, thinly sliced
- 125 grams fresh corn kernels
- salt
- 8 large eggs

1. Heat oil over medium heat and cook onion (and jalapeño), stirring until tender, about 5 minutes. Add zucchini and corn and cook until tender, about 7 minutes more. Season with salt. 
2. In a bowl, whisk eggs with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pour into skillet with vegetables. Cook until eggs are done.

Friday 18 October 2013

{Day 48/365} Reflections of autumn

Today I finished things at university quite early so I had some time left to go to the market in the city center, and therefore I needed to go another route than I usually take. This one actually leads close to my old home, and I passed this scenery which I saw when I looked over my shoulder during cycling. Kinda dangerous, sometimes, but it got me this shot! 


Thursday 17 October 2013

{Day 47/376} Pecan and date brownie tarts

Today I have a recipe to share. If I see this picture, I wouldn't think of raw or vegan food, but it is. And it is way too delicious to not share the recipe (which comes from The Rawtarian) with you, so here it is: 





















For four tarts you will need: 

- 100 grams of pecan nuts
- 150 grams of pitted fresh dates
- 4 tablespoons of shredded coconut
- 5 tablespoons of cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons of honey
- 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt

1. Place pecan nuts alone in your food processor and process until the pecans become small and crumbly.
2. Add dates to the shredded pecans and process again until the mixture sticks together and the dates are well processed.
3. Add the remaining ingredients to the mixture and process again until the mixture turns a lovely dark chocolatey brown. Stop processing before it gets too buttery (there should still be air between the small bits so that you will be able to press them down into your brownie pan).
4. Dump the mixture into a brownie dish or small cake pan (or tins similar to the ones I used) and press down firmly using your clean hands. 
5. Refrigerate the raw brownies for a couple of hours. You do not have to refrigerate it, but it is much easier to slice when chilled. 
6. Store the brownies in the refrigerator if it lasts that long! 

Wednesday 16 October 2013

{Day 46/365} Future home inspiration book

Today has been a very stressful day seen the fact that I have several research papers to write, and I have to present one of them (on International Labour Law) tomorrow. Last week we hadn't written a word yet, and now we are almost done, so my partner and I have been working very hard. So, tonight it's time for an hour of rest and that's why I searched my "future home inspiration book" and my interior design and decoration magazines and started making some new collages again. In my pj's! I have to say.. like this I was able to let go of the stress for a moment. 


Tuesday 15 October 2013

{Day 45/365} Dried flowers

As you might remember, on my birthday, one of my friends gave me this lovely bouquet made by her mum. I love the flowers so much that I want to preserve them and that's why I hung them out to dry. Now let's hope that they won't be ruined by the autumn weather..!



Monday 14 October 2013

{Day 44/365} Beautiful doors for future homes

Today I was walking through the city centre and this beautiful entrance caught my eye. I think it's absolutely perfectstunningbeautifulamazing, so I'd love to have this door or something similar in my future home.


Sunday 13 October 2013

{Day 43/365} The arrival of autumn

As you might know, I am a student and during week days I have to go to the university campus, which is in the north of the city, while I live all the way in the south. It's a bike ride of about 6 kilometers, so I see quite a lot when I'm on my way. Every day I pass this park called 'Noorderplantsoen' and from day to day I see how it turns more and more into a autumn scenery. These are the first four pictures I took, and there are many more to come. 


Saturday 12 October 2013

{Day 42/365} Treasuring rain free moments

Today it has been raining a LOT, so we (my cousin whom I look after today) and I stayed inside most of the time. I helped her with her homework and afterwards (as some kind of a reward) we baked cookies. We had to get outside to get the ingredients, and that's when I shot this beautiful flower. 


Friday 11 October 2013

{Day 41/365} Motivating myself to crochet

I have to admit that I am kind of stressed out because of all the work that has to be done for University. There are a lot of research papers that need attention, and a lot of books that need to be studied seriously before I can pass the exams. BUT, I also need to relax a little bit and that's why I am encouraging myself to crochet more often, by buying these two lovely colors of yarn.


Thursday 10 October 2013

{Day 40/365} Autumn close to home

Every time I walk from my home to the supermarket I pass this lovely place. It looks even prettier nowadays with the autumn colored trees.


Wednesday 9 October 2013

{Day 39/365} Writing a letter

Today I'll be writing a letter for the lovely Sara from Sevilla. We got in contact through Instagram (gotta love it) and she was wondering why I speak Spanish, so I've written her something about that :)


Tuesday 8 October 2013

{Day 38/365} Friends and flowers

So, more flowers! I couldn't resist posting this lovely bouquet, which I got from a dear friend. I couldn't take my off of them while studying today.


Monday 7 October 2013

{Day 37/365} Flowers from mum

Tonight I had a spare minute to play around with my new camera, and I took a picture of these flowers from my mum's garden. She gave me the piece on my birthday. 


Sunday 6 October 2013

{Day 36/365} Sunday

Today has been a very lazy Sunday, and I love to bring back memories on days like this. So here's one: the Mr. and I sometimes take care of two dogs and during those days we stay at their owners' house. This house is located just outside of a small town called Harlingen, which is just perfect for us, seen the fact that we like to be near a city but love the country side too. We love to walk the dogs early in the morning, because of the chance to spot an amazing sunrise:


Saturday 5 October 2013

{Day 35/365} Insane birthday gift

As you may know, yesterday was my 26th birthday and my loved ones gave me the BEST gift ever. I won't go writing too much about it, as the picture will say it all:



Friday 4 October 2013

{Day 34/365} Birthday girl

Today is my 26th birthday! And it has been a lovely day. I spent the entire morning baking a lemon/apricot cake and I loved it. Just like yesterday, I kept thinking.. If I could just bake and cook all day, every day. That would be awesome. Here's my cake, and if you guys would like to have the recipe, I'll write it down sometime soon.


Thursday 3 October 2013

{Day 33/365} Tomato soup with basil

Tomorrow my family is coming over to celebrate my 26th birthday, and some of them will stay/come for dinner. It'll be a busy day tomorrow, so I wanted to make some things in advance, for example this tomato soup with red bell peppers. The recipe is from a blog called Will Cook for Friends





















For 6 servings you will need: 


- 3-4 TBSP olive oil
- 1,3 kg fresh tomatoes (I used about 8 vine-ripened tomatoes, but you could use heirloom, plum, or any other kind of tomato you like)
- 1 red bell pepper
- 3-4 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 4 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
- 2 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup water, as needed
- salt and pepper to taste
- Pinch of sugar, optional (to round out the flavor if your tomatoes aren't sweet enough)

Method
1. Preheat oven to 400f.
2. Halve or quarter your tomatoes and lay the on a rimmed baking sheet, cut-side up. Halve or quarter the bell pepper, remove the seeds, and lay it on the baking sheet as well. Drizzle the tomatoes and pepper liberally with olive oil, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt.
3. Place the tray in the oven and roast for 45-60 minutes, or until the tomatoes smell sweet and the edges have begun to shrivel up, rotating the pan halfway through.
4. In a large pot over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic for 4-5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of basil and all of the roasted tomatoes, bell pepper, and the juices that have collected in the baking sheet. Stir to combine, then blend smooth with an immersion blender (or, carefully transfer the mixture to a regular blender and place a dish towel over the top to avoid splattering. Pulse a few times, then blend until smooth and return to the pot).
5. Add 1 more tablespoon of basil, 1 tablespoon of the oregano, and the balsamic vinegar. Stir to combine. Add water as needed to thin the soup to desired consistency.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Feel free to add a pinch of sugar, to taste, if the tomatoes aren't sweet enough on their own. Stir in the remaining basil and oregano, and remove from heat. Serve immediately with a drizzle of olive oil, or store in the fridge overnight to let the flavors mingle. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to a week, or frozen indefinitely.



Wednesday 2 October 2013

{Day 32/365} Street art

I really like good street art, and I really liked this piece in one of Groningen's city centre streets. 


Tuesday 1 October 2013

{Day 31/365} Falling leaves

Today is the first day of October (which means I completed the first month of my project! Hooray!) and to me, that means the real (as if Sept. 21st isn't real) start of autumn. I'm looking forward to see the trees change colors and finding their leaves on the ground. That has started already, see it for yourself: 


Monday 30 September 2013

{Day 30/365} Magazines and tea

Today has been a very busy day, so to relax I will do nothing else but drinking tea and reading magazines. 


Sunday 29 September 2013

{Day 29/365} Pears

I might have mentioned before that my mum has a great garden with several trees in it. Earlier, I robbed her form the majority of the apples from those trees, and now it was about time that I went outside with my gorgeous colander (which once belonged to my grandma) to pick some pears. Here's the result: 


Saturday 28 September 2013

{Day 28/365} Garlic Parmesan Pull-Apart Bread

Today, me and the mr. went to the local market to get some vegetables for the weekend. I got a lot of tomatoes (we're talking kilos) for tomato soup (recipe will be up in the next two weeks), which I wanted to make because I needed something to go with the garlic parmesan pull-apart bread. Ha. Here's the recipe (from the lovely blog Pastry Affair):












For one loaf you will need:
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 330 mL barely warm water
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 420 gr all purpose (or bread) flour
- 60 gr butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 25 gr freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or more!)


1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the yeast and water. Let sit 5 minutes until yeast is foamy.
2. Mix in the olive oil, salt, and flour. If you have a stand mixer, attach the dough hook and knead the dough for 5-6 minutes, or until elastic. If you are doing this by hand, knead the dough on a lightly floured surface until dough is elastic, 7-10 minutes. 
3. Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until dough is doubled in size.
4. In a small bowl, combine melted butter, parsley flakes, and minced garlic. Set aside. 
5. Punch down the dough. Tear off small pieces of dough (roughly the size of the bowl of a medium spoon), coat in the butter mixture, and place in the bottom of a bundt pan. Repeat this process until you have one layer of dough balls. 
6. Sprinkle on 1/3 of the Parmesan cheese. Continue layering the dough balls and cheese until you have 3 layers. 
7. Cover the pan with a clean towel and allow to sit until dough has doubled in size, 20-30 minutes. 
8. Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celcius.
9. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until bread is golden brown. Serve hot with a side of marinara or tomato sauce.

Friday 27 September 2013

{Day 27/365} Foggy mornings

This morning I had to catch an early bus to go to work and from my kitchen I could see a great (foggy) sunrise. The sunrise from the bus (highway) was even more beautiful, with the fog clearly visible around this little lake:



Thursday 26 September 2013

{Day 26/365} A new -vintage- love

On an online flea market I have found this gorgeous enamel tea pot. I love it. Definitely the delight of the day!


Wednesday 25 September 2013

{Day 25/365} Pumpkins

Today, after my exam, I was on my way to see my sister in law, and I stumbled across a lovely biological farmers market. It was a teeny tiny market (run by internationals, to my surprise), but they had lots of vegetables which would make a perfect dinner. Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity to buy anything, but next time I see them I will definitely buy one of these amazing pumpkins, to make - at least! - one of the amazing pumpkin recipes I found online. For example this recipe for an amazing version of pumpkin bread. But I was also thinking about pumpkin soup, for example this recipe


Tuesday 24 September 2013

{Day 24/365} Salted Caramel Bundt Cake

Today is - unfortunately, again - all about studying, since I have the midterm exam tomorrow. During my midday break, I have made a salted caramel bunt cake, the recipe of which I found at a wonderful food blog called Baking in Pyjamas. I had some caramel syrup left from last week's apple galette (see last Wednesday's post for the recipe), so the timing couldn't have been better. 























For one bundt you will need: 

- 145 grams unsalted butter at room temperature
- 240 grams self raising flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- pinch of (maldon) salt
- 240 grams caster sugar
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 180 mL salted caramel syrup (recipe)
- 250 mL milk

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celcius. Grease the bundt tin and set to one side.
2. In a medium bowl mix together the flour, baking powder and the salt. Set aside.
3. In a seperate bowl, mix the butter and sugar and mix until it is a smooth, fluffy, creamy mixture.
4. Crack the eggs one at a time into the same bowl as the butter/sugar mixture and mix them until well incorporated. Do the same with the vanilla extract.
5. With the mixer in low-speed, steadily pour in the salted caramel syrup and mix until thoroughly incorporated.
6. With the mixer in medium speed, add 1/3 of the flour mixture mixing until just incorporated, then add 1/2 the milk mixing until just incorporated and continue to do this until everything has been thoroughly incorporated. 
7. Scrape the batter into the tin and smooth the top. Bake for about 45-60 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Leave the cake in the tin for 20 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Laura from Baking in Pyjamas indicated that she used the recipe from Cake Simple by Christie Matheson.

Monday 23 September 2013

{Day 23/365} Drawing

Next Wednesday I have a midterm exam, so I have to study a LOT. But during the study breaks I try to do something relaxing, and today I tried to draw. To be honest, I really can't draw. But I want to learn how to, so for a while I stared at a digital copy of an amazing tutorial guide for beginners. You can find some nice pages form (and a link to) the book on my special drawing board on Pinterest


Sunday 22 September 2013

{Day 22/365} A walk on the beach

While I was writing about the first signs of autumn, yesterday.. Today it felt like spring or summer again. The weather today has been perfect for a walk on the beach with the mr. and so we did. During the walk I have been playing with reflections and the beach was just too perfect to skip the photography part.