My First Food Post.

I have never been much of a cook, but through the last few years, especially since being married, I have managed and I have learned to cook a few things. Most of the things I have cooked and tried are not necessarily based on recipes. Even if so, I tweak the recipe a little or add an ingredient or two I like or think will be  good for the dish. I am usually a "give it a try" person when it comes to cooking. I throw ingredients together including spices and so a dish is born. Usually I have luck with what comes out, sometimes I don't. The 3 main areas I would consider myself decent at making/cooking would be salads, soups & pasta dishes. And I love to eat all these kinds of dishes I mentioned. When it comes to macaroni or pasta, is when I become more creative too with the sauce(s). I usually buy most sauces I use for my pasta (usually red sauces), but I may mix one sauce with another 1 or 2 sauces I have purchased or better yet, mix them with some spices and other ingredients so a home-made sauce is created. Lately, I have sauteed tomato sauces on a pan with any or all these ingredients: fresh tomatoes, onions, red peppers, green peppers, ground meat, salami, feta cheese, goat cheese, parmigiano cheese, etc. Sometimes I add some cream, milk or a type of Alfredo sauce to the red sauce. I have been meaning to post a recipe or two, for a while now but I am usually really fast with my cooking (including the chopping & preparing part), so 9 times out of 10 I forget to take photos of the dishes I make. I will try to do so, at least once or twice a month, though. Plus, when I will be home with the baby for a year there will be a lot of cooking & creating in the kitchen.

This is my very first Food Post and I took photos of two very healthy things I have been consuming a lot while pregnant: fresh fruits and fresh salads. Pomegranate is an exotic fruit which luckily grows in Albania, so we do not have to pay A TON for it. It is good any time and it has many vitamins, but it is particularly good if you are pregnant. And even better than drinking the juice, I think it is to consume the actual fruit. It is rich in Potassium as well as Vitamins C & B5. It also helps pregnant women to keep their teeth healthy & strong and their dental plaque clean, while pregnant. To learn more healthy nutritious facts about it read here. You will see in the photos other fruits I have consumed a lot while pregnant, such as Aples & Peaches. I try to eat most of the fruits while they are in season, though. For example right now I eat a lot of Winter Aples (there are some types of Aples that come out during the Winter months), Mandarins, Tangerines, Oranges, Pears, Chestnuts and Pomegranate.

Then, this is one of the types of Salads I have consumed most summer and still eat every now and then in Fall and now Winter. The ingredients you can find year-around at your local market or grocery store, though tomatoes & cucumbers are of course better during the summer months. I call this a Mediterranean Salad and below I am sharing the ingredients. It is the easiest recipe. It tastes delicious and it is SUPER HEALTHY!

Ingredients: Romaine Lettuce, Green Lettuce, Green Onions (when in season), Fresh Parsley (leaves), Fresh Lemon (slices), Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Chick Peas, Greek Feta Cheese & Red Peppers.
Put them all together in one bowl, squeeze fresh Lemons to the salad and add Extra Virgin Olive Oil, with some cracked Black Pepper & some Salt. Toss them a little bit so that you have created your own dressing (sort of) and eat! This would be great if you added a Grilled Chicken Breast or Grilled Salmon, to it, also.