Where one day you crave comfort food, the next day you want to eat as healthy as possible. Our 3 HLN chefs meet these needs every week by putting together a nice mix of healthy, classic and comfort. The highlight of this week? Definitely the burger stew to start the weekend with. Even if that leek soup isn’t one to sneeze at.
Monday: Platter pie with chicory au gratin, ham and cheddar cheese by Sandra Bekkari
Sandra: “Chicory is a healthy and versatile seasonal vegetable. Transformed into this tasty pie au gratin, it becomes the autumn comfort food par excellence, which is also on the table in the blink of an eye.
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5 minutes
Price: 5€
Ingredients for 2 people
• 1 small yellow onion
• 3 heads of chicory
• 125 g of ricotta
• 75 g of cream cheese
• 1 handful of flat leaf parsley
• 2 wholemeal wraps
• 50 g of ham
• 2 handfuls of cheddar
That’s how you do it
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Finely chop the yellow onion and fry it in olive oil. Remove the hard core of the chicory and cut it into small pieces. Add the chicory to the onion and stew for about 5 minutes. Season with black pepper and a pinch of salt.
Finely chop the parsley and mix it with the ricotta and cream cheese. Season with black pepper and a pinch of salt and mix well.
Spread the tortillas with the mixture. Cut the ham into cubes and grate the cheddar. Mix in the ham cubes and chicory. Finish with the cheddar.
Bake the cake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes until the cheese is well browned. Turn on the grill for the last 5 minutes.
Finish with extra parsley.
TIP: Serve with a salad or bowl of soup of your choice.
Tuesday: Piet Huysentruyt’s Leek Soup with Ribs
Piet: “A typical Flemish classic: stoemp! Sometimes with spinach, sometimes with puree, and sometimes on its own, but for this version, I’m going for leeks. Serve with prime rib and you’ll have a topper on the menu. Is it dinner time already?”
Recipe by Piet Huysentruyt
For 4 people
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Price: €1.90
ingredients
• 12 floury potatoes (bintjes)
• 4 price angels
• Nutmeg
• 2 rows of ribs
• a few sprigs of parsley
• pepper and salt
• sugar
• 1 dl of soy sauce
• curry spices
• Butter
That’s how you do it
Preheat the oven to 180°C and bring a pot of water for the potatoes to the boil.
Peel the potatoes. Wash them and cut them into pieces. Wash the leeks and chop them finely.
Boil the potatoes together with the leek until cooked through, drain them and leave them to dry for a while on the heat. Mash with a potato masher and add a little nutmeg together with a knob of butter to taste.
Meanwhile, season the ribs with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with a pinch of sugar, a little curry and the soy sauce. Slide the ribs into the preheated oven for 30 minutes.
Serve the short ribs with the leek soup, garnish with some extra parsley and drizzle with a little gravy.
TIP: Make sure that the ribs fit well in the meat and do not have too much fat.
Wednesday: carrot soup with lentils and mandarin by Sandra Bekkari
Sandra: “Few things are more reminiscent of autumn than a piping hot bowl of soup. The mandarin gives this carrot soup a surprising twist and thanks to the lentils you won’t be hungry for a few hours. Ideal as a meal before a brisk walk!”
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Price: €4 for 1 pot of soup
Ingredients for 1 pot of soup
• 2 red onions
• 1 clove of garlic
• 4 carrots
• 3 stalks of celery
• 1 teaspoon of harissapa
• 250 g of red lentils
• 2 liters of vegetable broth
• 1 tl of kurkuma
• juice of 3 mandarins
• fresh parsley or coriander
That’s how you do it
Finely chop the onions and garlic and fry them in olive oil. Cut the carrots into small pieces. Also clean the celery and chop it finely. Stew the carrots, celery and harissa paste with the onion and garlic.
Add the lentils, vegetable stock, turmeric and a little black pepper and cook for 15-20 minutes.
Stir the soup and finish with the tangerine juice and fresh parsley or coriander.
TIP: You can replace the lentils in this soup with chickpeas, white or black beans or cannellini beans. Definitely tasty!
Thursday: cod with Brussels sprouts and Tarragon by Piet Huysentruyt
Piet: “A delicious dish for a weekday. I myself am not fond of brussel sprouts that have been cooked too long and are overcooked. Thanks to this technique, you get nice crunchy Brussels sprouts that convince everyone, even non-enthusiasts».
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Price: €2.75
ingredients
• 20 Brussels sprouts
• 2 tablespoons bacon cubes
• 400 g of cod fillet
• 1 clove of minced garlic
• butter (to stew the Brussels sprouts)
• 120 g of butter
• 1 dl of water
• juice of half a lemon
• 2 tablespoons of chopped tarragon
• chervil
• steamed potatoes, quantity of your choice
That’s how you do it
Wash the Brussels sprouts and chop them very finely.
Let them stew in the butter for about 3 minutes, together with the diced bacon and the finely chopped garlic. Make sure the Brussels sprouts stay nice, green, and crunchy.
Deglaze with the water, add the lemon juice and work with 120 g of butter to obtain a thick sauce.
Steam the 4 pieces of cod for about 5-7 minutes, depending on the thickness of the pieces.
Add the tarragon to the brussel sprouts last and arrange the brussel sprouts on a plate. Arrange the cod on top and cover generously with the sauce. Garnish with some chervil and serve with boiled potatoes.
TIP: The type of fish for this recipe can be substituted for something else depending on the season.
Friday: Jelle Beeckman’s Stewed Burger
Jelle: “Why choose a dish, when you can also combine two classics? This beef stew burger brings together the best of both worlds. You have been warned: there will be a banquet.’
Preparation time: 1.5 hours
Price: €3.21
Ingredients for 2 or 3 burgers
• 2 soft rolls
• 1 knob of butter
• 300 grams of pork cheeks
• 2 bottles of dark beer
• 1 tablespoon of Liège syrup
• 1 small spray of water
• pepper and salt
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon of cornmeal dissolved in 3 tablespoons of water
• watercress 1 plate
• 1 drove ui
• 50 ml of vinegar (white wine or tarragon,…-)
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• 50ml of water
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• 3 tablespoons of mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons of mustard
• pepper and salt
• 1 handful of crispy chips (or regular salty chips)
That’s how you do it
1. Finely chop the red onion. Mix the water, salt, vinegar and sugar in a large coffee cup and microwave for 1.5 minutes at 750 W. Add the onion and leave to marinate. Put the coffee bag in the refrigerator, the onion should be cold.
2. Season the pork cheeks with salt and pepper. Color them in a knob of butter. Add the Liège syrup and caramelize it for 1 minute over low heat. Add the beer, along with the soy sauce and a dash of water, until the meat is completely submerged.
3. Let the meat simmer under a lid for 60-90 minutes until tender. Remove the lid from the pot and allow the sauce to reduce to a thicker sauce that goes well with the meat. Taste and season as needed. Complete with the cornstarch dissolved in water and remove from the heat.
4. Mix the mayonnaise and mustard.
5. Cut the sandwiches and fry them briefly in a pan. Rub the sandwich with the sauce. Mash the pork cheeks a little and then cover the buns. Top with the crispy fries, pickled onion and garnish with watercress.
TIP: Serve with a cold beer for the best taste experience. Tasty!
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