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January 4, 2021

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About Me

I am Cristina - a Lisbon based Romanian writer in love with Victorian novels, comfort food and foreign lands.

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Puttanesca, but make it baked, and with rice. I wi

Puttanesca, but make it baked, and with rice. I wish I could take credit for such a brilliant idea, but it was @ottolenghi who first did this with an orzo puttanesca. I just took his recipe, tweaked it a little bit - replacing some ingredients and changing the measures of the others. What came out is a dish I repeat over and over again, either for Sunday’s meal planning or for dinner parties. Here goes the recipe:

Ingredients (serves four) 250g basmati rice 350g of tuna 80g black olives (or Kalamata for the original recipe) a finely chopped onion six crushed garlic cloves two tbsp capers a large tomato sliced a tbsp tomato paste 400g of tinned tomatoes 50g parmesan 60 ml olive oil half a tsp chilli flakes half of a preserved lemon, thinly sliced

Instructions
1. Add three tablespoons of olive oil to a large iron cast skillet or pot and fry the finely chopped onion for 8 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and chilli flakes and fry for one more minute. 2. Add the capers, half of the preserved lemon thinly sliced, 50g of the olives, the tuna, the tomato paste, the tinned tomatoes, the rice, 450ml of water, a tsp of salt and one of pepper. Bring to a simmer, then cover with a lid or aluminium foil and bake at 200 degrees for 20 minutes. 3. Remove from the oven, add the sliced tomato plus the parmesan on top and bake for another 15 minutes. 4. Let it sit for 10 minutes while you top it with the remaining olives and preserved lemon. If you have some fresh basil leaves, add those on top along with the remaining olive oil.

#choiceofmagic #PuttanescaLovers #FoodieLife #ItalianFood #FoodGasm
#RecipeOfTheDay #FoodPhotography
#HomeCooking #FoodInspiration #FoodieGram #DeliciousDishes
#nextbestfoodie #TasteOfItaly
#FoodPassion #FoodLove #YummyInMyTummy #FoodForTheSoul
#InstaFoodie #FoodBlogger #ItalianCuisine #Foodstagram
#Gourmet #FoodHeaven #FoodIsArt #FoodieLife #FlavorfulEats #FoodGoals
#HomeCookedMeal #FoodiesOfInstagram #Ottolenghi

This post is not just about yesterday’s dumpling

This post is not just about yesterday’s dumpling dinner party. It is about rituals versus routines. About cooking something special, or using that nice tablecloth that you use only for guests, this time for yourself, about lighting a candle for the table next to your dinner, or having brunch in bed on Sundays. It’s about the enhancements that turn a routine like having dinner into an actual ritual. Whether it’s with friends, your significant other, your family, or just by yourself. Don’t underestimate the value these rituals can have. Now go, get yourself that special dessert, and make tonight’s dinner special. 🧁 🥟 ✨

#choiceofmagic #DumplingDinnerParty #FriendsAndFood #RitualsAndTraditions #GatherAndCelebrate #FoodieFriends #DumplingLove #DinnerPartyVibes #FoodWithFriends #SharingIsCaring #CulinaryTraditions #FoodieGathering #CherishTheMoments #CommunityFeast #FoodAndFriendship #DumplingDelights #EatingTogether #PartyWithPurpose #SavorTheFlavors #RitualsOfTogetherness #FeastWithFriends #MakingMemories #TraditionsThatBind #JoyOfCooking #DumplingPartyFun #FellowshipAndFood #EmbracingRituals #TastyTraditions #FriendshipFeast #DumplingMagic

Extra, extra, read all about it! I am back in this

Extra, extra, read all about it! I am back in this feed this Monday with some big news: the @choiceofmagic Instagram account is gonna focus on its original niche - FOOD. Wholesome, home cooked or enjoyed out in restaurants around Lisbon and abroad. But because I do love travelling, and know many of you do too - I´ve created a space for you to go and enjoy TRAVEL content too - and that place is the @choiceoftravel Instagram account. The blog will continue combining both topics, with a pinch of books, but I felt Instagram was really penalising me for being too broad in this account so I hope this solution will work better. In the meantime, enjoy this last travel themed video of me walking the halls of the Vatican in February this year, and see you on @choiceoftravel.

#choiceoftravel #choiceofmagic #travelgram #wanderlust #explore #travelblog #travelblogger #instatravel #travelholic #traveltips #travelgoals #passportready #travelinspiration #travelguide #travelingram #igtravel #wanderlusting #getaway #exploretheworld #portugaltravel #portugueseblogger #roma #rome #italy #vatican #visititaly #foodblog #foodblogger

Behind me, the Giardini Segreti di Villa Borghese

Behind me, the Giardini Segreti di Villa Borghese in Rome. In front of me, my dear friend Steffi, whose birthday we celebrated in Rome this February. She’s now probably the only person who has had “Happy birthday” sang to her in the Sixtine Chapel, by the guards.

This post is just to say that my Roman trip was magical, completely lacked planning, and as such resulted in zero content for the blog aside from this post and a short reel that’s coming up soon. 🏛️

#rome #roma #roman #romanholiday #villaborghese #giardinisegreti #italy #italia #bellaitalia #visititaly #wanderlust #travel #instatravel #travelgram #romanian #streetstyle #travelblog #travelblogger #colour #magictravels #choiceofmagictravels #ootd #portuguese #romanian #architecture

…and boy, do I carry a lot of magic with me. Sto

…and boy, do I carry a lot of magic with me. Story time: I want to believe that my love for books was genetically passed on to me from my great grandfather, Gheorghe. After he contracted malaria sometimes in the 1940s, my great grandfather had to leave his job of administrating the royal estates in Braila, Romania. He got a job as the librarian of Bucharest´s University Library, spending his years amongst books in postbelic Bucharest. Next came his daughter, my grandmother, Lucica, who absolutely loved books too. By the time I was five, she had read “Beauty and the Beast” to me so many times that I knew it by heart and as such learned to associate the words she was saying to what I saw on paper, teaching myself how to read before even starting school. My mom, Carmen, continued the legacy and due to what I suspect is a book buying addiction, needs to regularly purge our library, only to fill it back up in the space of months. Then come I, buying books wherever I go, only to then have A. build new shelves all around our tiny apartment, because I have a pathological need to be surrounded by them, just as my great grandfather, grandmother and mother did.

What is your story with books?

#bookstoread #whattoreadnext #bookrec #personallibrary #bookfriends #bookdesires #bookphotography #bookaesthetic #bibliophile #booklover #bookpeople #bookish #BeautifulBooks #booksaremagic #bookworm #fortheloveofbooks #booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #fiction #bookquotes #goodreads #quotes #storytime #loveofbooks

A new blog post following January´s trip to Barce

A new blog post following January´s trip to Barcelona is up on the blog. Check out the #foodIlovedinBarcelona for some of my favourite restaurant recommendations. From breakfast and brunch spots, to iconic lunch and dinner restaurants, to fabulous tapas bars and cocktail and dancing joints, it’s all up there. And with a new Barcelona trip planned for June (because I cannot keep away from that fantastic city), expect the list of recommendations to grow soon.
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#barcelona #foodIloveinBarcelona #Barcelonafoodie #spanishfood #tapas #tapasinBarcelona #Barcelonarestaurants #spain #espana #visitspain #wanderlust #travel #instatravel #travelgram #romanian #streetstyle #travelblog #travelblogger #colour #sunny #exotic #tropical #magictravels #choiceofmagictravels #visitbarcelona

Moments from two weeks ago, when we stayed at @qui

Moments from two weeks ago, when we stayed at @quintadacomporta and recharged during a weekend of fantastic food, rides to the beach, reading in front of a fireplace, watching Tin Tin, getting the best massage I’ve ever gotten, and swimming our worries away. If you haven’t been to Comporta yet, make sure it’s top of list because they don’t call it “Europe´s Bali” for nothing.

#comporta #visitcomporta #quintadacomporta #portugal #visitportugal #troia #beach #troiabeach #beautifuldestinations #smallluxuryhotels #comportarestaurants #visitalentejo #wanderlust #travel #instatravel #travelgram #romanian #streetstyle #travelblog #travelblogger #colour #sunny #exotic #tropical #magictravels #choiceofmagictravels #ootd #portuguese #romanian

Throwback to last year, marvelling at the Mediterr

Throwback to last year, marvelling at the Mediterranean meeting the Taurus mountains in beautiful Turkey, which is going through such tragedy right now. I hope you can find it in your heart to join me in donating as much as you can to help the Turkish and Syrian people overcome such challenging times. I chose to donate to @oxfaminternational who is providing protection, water and sanitation, shelter and food support to the nearly 2 million people affected by the earthquake. I added a fundraiser button to @oxfamintermon (it’s the only Oxfam verified fundraiser I could find here), in case you want to help too. 🌍 🚑
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#turkey #antalya #mediterranean #taurusmountains #taurus #sosturkey #helpturkey #syria #helpsyria #fundraiserforturkey #wanderlust #travel #instatravel #travelgram #travelblog #magictravels #visitturkey #choiceofmagictravels

This is not a Valentine´s Day post. Well not exac

This is not a Valentine´s Day post. Well not exactly. It is not because I don´t care much for Valentine´s Day (if anything, I prefer its Romanian equivalent of Dragobete). And yet it is, because by now you surely know how much I love books. And I kind of half intentionally chose today to launch "the book diaries". Which is a monthly recap of the books I read in the previous month, something I used to call up until last year "the monthly book club". But since I actually want to relaunch the old book club conversations too, I thought I´d rebrand my monthly reviews. So there you have it - The Book Diary of January 2023 is now online and I´d really love it if you checked it out and got inspired by the books I read last month. Or if you just dropped me a comment telling me what you´ve read and loved in 2023 so far.
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#bookstoread #whattoreadnext #bookrec #personallibrary #bookfriends #bookdesires #bookphotography #bookaesthetic #bibliophile #booklover #bookpeople #bookish #BeautifulBooks #booksaremagic #bookworm #fortheloveofbooks #booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #fiction #nonfiction #robertgalbraith #jkrowling #fivelovelanguages #dune #frankherbert #simonedebeauvoir #naomialderman #thepower

🍰 With Valentine´s Day a week away, why not ru

🍰 With Valentine´s Day a week away, why not run to the store and buy the few ingredients necessary for my sister´s delicious cheesecake with pecan nuts and caramel topping? Whether you´re baking it for or with someone you love, or just making it for yourself, I am sure you´ll love it as much as I loved seeing her do it for me! 💕💕💕
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*note: you can also find a Romanian version of this recipe on @povestiaromate ´s page, in the Deserturi highlight. It´s originally theirs and is only featuring here as part of the #guestchefseries.
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Ingredients
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For the base:
180g shredded digestive cookies
75g brown sugar
90g butter
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For the cream:
800g cream cheese
200g sugar
150g cooking cream
one and a half tsp vanilla extract
4 eggs
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For the sauce:
100g pecan nuts
100g brown sugar
half a tsp cinnamon
60g cream
80g butter
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(Instructions following in the comments)
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#homemade #foodporn #foodie #instafood #foodgram #nextbestfoodie #foodblogger #foodblog #foodphotography #foodstylingandphotography #foodstyling #choiceofmagic #cheesecake #caramel #caramelcheesecake #cake #cakerecipe #valentinesday #romanticdinner #dessert #sobremesa #festivedessert

I can buy myself flowers, but I’d much rather ju

I can buy myself flowers, but I’d much rather just fly myself to Barcelona and go for a stroll amongst the lavender at Park Güell. And even though I went there looking for Gaudi´s beautiful mosaics, I was so so impressed by the landscaping of the park. From the lavender to the palm trees, and the way they embedded with Gaudi´s masterminded architecture, Park Güell was one of my favourite parts of Barcelona.

Have you been? What did you think of it?

#barcelona #parcguell #parcgüell #gaudi #spain #espana #visitspain #wanderlust #travel #instatravel #travelgram #romanian #streetstyle #travelblog #travelblogger #colour #sunny #exotic #tropical #magictravels #choiceofmagictravels #ootd #portuguese #romanian #visitbarcelona #antonigaudi #architecture

Don´t be fooled by my big smile, I was actually j

Don´t be fooled by my big smile, I was actually just clenching my teeth at the many pigeons in Parc Güell, because birds absolutely terrify me. The top of the Sagrada Familia in the background, Gaudi´s beautiful tile mosaics, the blue sky, and being with my family in such a beautiful place really made up for it, though. 🐦

Now tell me - what´s your next destination? ✈️ 🚂 🚙

#barcelona #parcguell #parcgüell #gaudi #spain #espana #visitspain #wanderlust #travel #instatravel #travelgram #romanian #streetstyle #travelblog #travelblogger #colour #sunny #exotic #tropical #magictravels #choiceofmagictravels #ootd #portuguese #romanian #visitbarcelona #antonigaudi #architecture

Check Out My Latest Posts

Baked Basmati Rice Puttanesca

May 29, 2023

Food I Loved in Barcelona

February 21, 2023

Book Diary of January 2023

February 14, 2023

What I am currently reading

join my magical bookclub

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