Marzipanstollen
Sunday, November 24, 2024You should bake this moist Christmas stollen just in time for Advent (Sun, Dec 1, 2024 – Tue, Dec 24, 2024) to sweeten the festive season for you and your family. Marzipan, raisins, roasted almonds and candied orange peel make it a delicious and festive treat. If you are not a fan of raisins, you can either leave them out or you can replace them with other dried fruit such as cranberries, chopped dates, apricots or sour cherries. To soak the raisins you can also use water or apple juice instead of rum, so the children and pregnant women will also be able to enjoy it. Both candied orange peel and bitter almond extract are classics in a traditional stollen, but they are not so popular with some people. You can omit both and your marzipanstollen will still be great. Enjoy it with a glass of mulled wine or a cup of coffee.
Himmelsboten Heavenly Messengers
Thursday, November 21, 2024These Himmelsboten are not only popular with the little ones. My husband is also completely addicted to these cookies. I used a simple and very basic 3-ingredient shortcrust pastry, but you can add some orange peels or vanilla extract. Cut it out and then decorate with sugar icing and chocolate lentils or almonds if you want a healthier alternative. They are a delicious creation for the Christmas season. There are only two other things to note. The prongs of the stars should be at least three centimetres long so that you can wrap the Smartie or almond well. And you need a star or snowflake cookie cutter with five prongs so that the celestial messengers look like a humab figure.
Heinerle
Tuesday, November 12, 2024‘Heinerle’ aka Heinerla, Heinerli, Schokoladina or Schokoladinchen, are melt-in-the-mouth and very chocolaty praline-like Christmas biscuits from Franken (in the north of the Bavaria Germany) that require no baking at all. However, the chilled layers of chocolate wafers are not exactly easy to cut, so it is a good idea to have a little patience and a little strength. A mixture is made from coconut fat, icing sugar, chocolate and eggs, then spread layer by layer on rectangular wafers. The origin of Heinerle probably lies in the use of baking wafers left over from making Lebkuchen, but nobody knows exactly where the ‘Heinerli’ come from. Nor when they were created.
Seedy Pretzel Wedges
Friday, October 25, 2024Making those seedy pretzel wedges at home is easy peasy with this straightforward recipe. Made from yeast dough, brushed with a baking soda bath, then sprinkled with a mixture of seeds, this pretzels bread is as good as those from the bakery. They are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and go well with soups, salads or as a snack! Instead of a springform ring, you can of course also use an ovenproof cake ring and adjust it to the right size. They are best when eaten warm, but will keep fresh in an airtight container at room-temperature for 1-2 days.
Pork Knuckle with Beer Sauce
Saturday, October 05, 2024This pork knuckle is crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside. The beer sauce gives the dish a special savoury note, which is perfectly rounded off by the bitterness of the beer and the distinctive piney fragrance of the rosemary. This dish goes perfectly with hearty side dishes such as sauerkraut or red cabbage (if you have no problem digesting cruciferous vegetables), roasted potatoes, sourdough bread dumplings and is ideal for Oktoberfest, other festive occasions or a rustic Sunday lunch. . I used carrot, onion and fencel for the sauce, but you can use celery or leek too.
Mustard Yeast Gugelhopf
Tuesday, September 03, 2024A classic gugelhopf, aka kugelhopf, is a yeasted bread, orignated from Austria and southern Germany, similar to a French brioche, which is fantastic for breakfast or afternoon tea served with extra butter. You can make the kugelhopf plain, with dried fruits, chocolate, spices or savoury with mustard or/and bacon. If you can't find fresh yeast, use 1 package / 7 grams of active dried yeast. Enjoy it warm with extra mustard sauce or herb crème fraîche.
Meatloaf Gugelhupf
Thursday, July 25, 2024This bacon-covered meatloaf with feta cheese is made with a blend of pork and beef and cooked in an unusual kugelhupf pan. It is so flavourful and juicy and great as a warm starter or as a main course with salads, or vegetables. The bacon adds savory saltiness, smokiness and crunch on top and help retain the moisture. Keto or not, this upgraded meatloaf will be a huge hit with everyone who enjoys comfort food. If desired, boil the accumulated juice with 120 ml cream to make a gravy if desired.
Pan-fried White Asparagus with Green Tahini Sauce
Thursday, May 09, 2024The usual preparation of white asparagus is usually simmered in water or steamed and served with hollandaise sauce or/and butter. Here we are going to try pan-frying them until beautifully charred and tender but still al dente. It tastes fabulous with a herby tahini sauce.
Unlike their green and purple counterparts, white asparagus are pale from end to tip because they are grown underground. White asparagus must always be peeled, thin or thick, or else they will be bitter and stringy.
Asparagus with Black Forest Ham and Bolzano Sauce
Tuesday, April 23, 2024Spring is a prime time of renewal and detoxification. Asparagus supports this spring cleanse unlike any other vegetable! Seize the asparagus season and enjoy this delicious vegetable as much as you can.
Bolzano sauce is a traditional sauce from the Bolzano area in German-influenced Alto-Adige and goes perfectly with cooked asparagus. It is similar to Hollandaise sauce, but is firmer and richer in consistency. The sauce has a long tradition in Bolzano and was prepared by South Tyrolean farmers over two hundred years ago. It's made with a combination of hard-boiled eggs, olive oil, white vinegar, mustard, chives, and beef broth. Once cooked, the eggs are simply chopped and mashed with the other ingredients.
White Asparagus with Summer Truffle
Monday, April 01, 2024In Germany, the king of vegetable is WHITE asparagus. It's like a national treasure and you will find it on menus nationwide from April April to June.
Tender, sweet, and loaded with earthy flavour, these blanched white asparagus with browned butter and summer truffle make for a great spring party appetizer. The skin of white asparagus can taste very bitter and fibrous, so make sure to peel it off completely before blanching. White asparagus are delicate and brittle, so lay each spear flat on a work surface to peel. This way ensures they won't snap during peeling.
Effortless Overnight Rye Loaf
Monday, November 27, 2023It's not typical to bake a good rye bread without using sourdough starter, and it can be quite challenging as the gluten in rye does not develop into strong and stretchy dough the way wheat gluten does, so the dough is more fragile, sticker, and the crumb is usually tighter and denser due to its low gluten content. And it also takes ages to rise, sometimes it could take up to 3-4 days before the bread is done. But it's undoubtly more delicious, flavourful and nutritious. This is why I am so excited to share this effortless overnight 100% rye bread recipe with you. We will use exclusively two grams of fresh yeast and an overnight rest of the dough to make the bread even more digestible and aromatic. Due to the long fermentation, sugar molecules that are difficult to digest and cause bloating and discomfort are broken down. Besides that, fiber and starch swell better, which also ensures better digestibility. If desired, you can also add 1 tablespoon of caraway or anise seeds to help with the digestion and for an even earthier flavour.
Unlike wheat breads which are best eaten shortly after cooling or right out of the oven, both the texture and flavour of rye bread improves after a rest of 12-24 hours. Once the bread has cooled completely, place it in a paper bag or wrap it loosely in foil and slice it the next day. If you can't wait, then allow it to rest at least 3 hours before slicing.
100% Rye Bread (Roggen Brot)
Monday, October 30, 2023Compared to typical wheat bread, rye bread is considered more nutritious, lower in gluten, more in soluble fiber and have less of an impact on blood sugar. This recipe uses coarsely ground rye meal and light rye flour to create a deliciously crispy, healthy and rustic bread with chewy texture and depth of flavour.