Syrian meatballs are made with ground beef (or lamb), rice, carrot, garlic and curry. They are fast and easy to make. The recipe is adopted from Hackfleisch Leckere Rezepte für die ganze Familie.

500 g Minced beef (or lamb) 125 g Cooked carrots, minced 1 clove Garlic, minced 100 g Rice, cooked

1 Egg 1 tsp Curry powder Salt and pepper 7-10 tbsp Sesame seeds Cooking oil

1. In a mixing bowl, add in the minced beef, cooked carrots, minced garlic, cooked rice, egg, curry powder, salt and pepper to taste. Stir until the mixture is well-blended.
2. Roll the beef-rice mixture into 3cm balls, about 35 balls. Coat each ball evenly with sesame seeds. Heat the oil in a large skillet until hot. Lower in the meatballs, several at a time and fry until cooked through and nicely golden. Remove and drain. Serve them warm with sour cream.

May this New Year bring newly found prosperity, love, happiness and delight in your life.

These delicious coconuty cookies are crisp at the edges, and perfectly chewy in the middle. Anyone who likes the aroma and taste of coconut is sure to love these buttery, and easy to make cookies.

• 150 g Butter, at room temperature
• 50 g Sugar
• 90 g Eggs
• 50 g All-purpose flour
• 30 g Potato starch
• 170 g Dried coconut shreds

1. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add in eggs and continue beating until well-mixed.
2. Sift in the flour and potato starch and mix. Add in 160 grams of coconut shreds and mix until just combined. Wrap and chill the mixture for 1-2 hours.
3. Shape the mixture into 27-30 small balls and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Sprinkle the top with the rest of coconut shreds.
4. Bake in a preheated 180C/350F oven for about 22-25 minutes until lightly golden brown.

This cake is inspired by Pei-Lin@Dodol Mochi. Thanks, Pei-Lin!

Yolk Batter	Meringue
90 ml Corn oil 30 g Sweetened condensed milk 150 g Sour cream 130 g German #405 flour 2 g Baking powder 6 Egg yolks, at room temperature 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract 70 g Dried cranberries 1/2 tbsp Cornstarch	6 Egg whites, at room temperature 100 g Caster sugar 1 g Salt 1/3 tsp Lemon juice

1. Preheat the oven to 165C/330F. Coat the dried cranberries with cornstarch in a small bowl. Set aside. Place the corn oil, sweetened condensed milk and sour cream in a mixing bowl. Whisk until the mixture fully blended and emulsified. Sift in the flour and baking powder, mixing roughly. Add in egg yolks and vanilla extract. Gently mix until combined.
2. Beat the egg whites with salt until fluffy, drizzling in the lemon juice, continue to beat until the soft peaks appear. Add in sugar in 3 additions, and beat until meringue glossy and stiff. Gently fold 1/3 of the meringue into the yolk batter and then carefully fold in the remaining whites until well combined. Finally add in the dried cranberries.
3. Pour the cake batter into a 24 cm springform pan. Bake the cake in the lower rack of the hot oven for 65 minutes. Remove and invert it onto a wire rack. Allow it to cool to the room temperature.

This is inspired by Tracie Moo on Bitter Sweet Flavours.
Brussels sprouts, or Brassica oleracea gemmifera, are related to other better-known vegetables in the Brassica genus like broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower. They are part of the cruciferae or mustard family, so known because of a four-part flower in the shape of a cross.
Brussels sprouts are a very good source of many essential vitamins, fiber, and folate. They are especially high in Vitamin C. They, along with their other cruciferous cousins, have been shown to have some very beneficial effects against certain types of cancer, as they contain many different ingredients that are believed to help prevent the disease. Check Foodnetwork for more delicious Brussels sprout recipes.

• 350 g Brussels sprout
• 3 Shallot, finely sliced
• 2 tbsp Duck fat
• 1 Fresh chilli, sliced
• 2 tbsp Honey
• 3 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 4 tbsp Water
• Salt and black pepper

1. Wash the Brussels sprouts well. Trim the stem ends and remove any yellowing leaves. Cut in half from stem to top. Finely sliced the shallot. Mix the honey, mustard and 3 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Set aside.
2. Heat the duck fat in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in sliced shallots until fragrant. Add in Brussels sprouts and sprinkle salt, pepper and a tablespoon of water over, stir, cover, and cook for roughly 5 minutes.
3. Pour in the prepared mustard sauce, stirring to combine. Cook until most of liquid evaporates and sprouts are tender but still bright green, 3-5 minutes. Add in sliced chillies and toss all together. Season with salt and pepper.

Fermented tofu, called "doufu ru" (豆腐乳) in Chinese, is a type of soya products. This looks innocent enough, like cubes of tofu immersed in a broth, but it has a very pungent aroma and strong, cheesy flavor. It comes in two colors. The white version is often served with rice or used to flavor soups and vegetable dishes, while the red often accompanies meats. Look for it in jars or crocks in Asian markets. Store it in the refrigerator after you've opened it, keeping the cubes immersed in liquid or oil to prevent them from drying out and discoloring. foodsubs

	Marinade
250 g Chicken breast 15 g Cornstarch 45 g All-purpose flour Some frying oil	1 tbsp Egg, beaten 1 pc Fermented tofu (sesame oil flavoured) 1 tsp Light soya sauce 1/3 tsp Sugar 1/2 tbsp Jiafan rice wine 1/4 tsp White pepper powder

1. Blend starch and flour together in a bowl to yield a mixture for coating. Stir all the marinade ingredients in a bowl. Rinse and pat the chicken dry. Cut into inch-sized pieces and pour in prepared marinade. Stir and let marinate for 1 hour until chicken dices fully absorb the sauce.
2. Heat up a skillet with oil until hot. Coat the chicken with flour mixture and fry them until golden brown and crispy. Drain and serve with a dish of fermented tofu juice.

300 g Cooked rice 25 g Chopped onion 1 Egg, lightly beaten 50 g Shelled shrimps 50 g Conpoy (dried scallops)

15 g Peas 15 g Carrot dices 30 g Bell pepper dices 10 g Spring onion 1 tsp Curry powder 1/4 tsp Sugar Salt to taste

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil, poach shrimps, conpoy, peas, carrots and bell pepper. Set aside.
2. Heat up a skillet with some oil, add in onion and stir until fragrant. Stir in egg mixture until cooked.
3. Heat the skillet with some oil and, when it is very hot, add the cold cooked rice. Stir-fry until it is thoroughly heated through. Add in other ingredients and seasoning, stir-fry then toss in the spring onions. Stir and dish up.

A delicious chocolate marshmallow brownies with a kick! This recipe is inspired by Kristy@My Little Space. I must warn you, this is a 100% calorie bomb!

Batter	Topping
110 g German #405 flour 2/3 tsp Baking powder 1 g Salt 200 g 70% Bio dark chocolate 120 g Butter 3 Eggs 220 g Sugar 1 tsp Vanilla extract	25 g White chocolate couverture 125 g 60% Lindt dark chocolate 90 g Peanut butter 10 g Butter 1 cup Cornflakes with honey and nuts 42-48 Marshmallow

1. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Grease a 20x30cm baking pan with some butter. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
2. Melt butter and chocolate over a double boiler, stir until smooth and remove from heat. Blend in sugar, eggs and extract. Gradually sift in the flour mixture and combine until incorporated. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the middle rack of oven for about 25 minutes. Remove and cover the top with marshmallow squares. Return it to the oven and bake for another 3 minutes. Remove and cool completely on a wire rack.
3. Meanwhile prepare the topping. Over a double boiler melt white chocolate couverture, dark chocolate, peanut butter and butter. Mix in the cornflakes. Spread the chocolate mixture onto the baked marshmallow. Allow it to set and cut into 12 squares.

Deep fried chunks of tofu braised with black mushrooms and vegetables in a light oyster sauce. It is perfect on a bed of steamed rice.

300 g Bean curds-tofu Some frying oil 20 g Dried black mushrooms 100 ml Water 1 tbsp Garlic, minced 150 g Bell peppers 1 stalk Scallion chunks 1 tsp Jiafan rice wine

1/2 tsp Chicken bouillon 1/2 tbsp Dark soya sauce 1 tbsp Oyster sauce 2/3 tsp Salt 1 tsp Cornstarch 1 tbsp Tap water A few drops of sesame oil

1. Cut the bean curd into rectangular pieces. Soak dried mushrooms in water until they soften. Squeeze off the excess water and shred. Save the soaking water. Shred the bell peppers. Heat up a skillet with oil until hot. Pan-fry the bean curd until golden brown.
2. Remain a bit of oil in the same skillet to stir fry the minced garlic and mushrooms until aromatic. Add in shredded bell peppers and stir-fry briefly, then drizzle in rice wine, chicken bouillon, dark soya and oyster sauces. Pour in soaking liquid and bean curd pieces. Cover and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Stir in cornstarch mixed with a tablespoon of cold water. Increase the heat and cook until sauce has thickened. Add in scallion and the sesame oil, toss through and serve at once with steamed rice.

It simply isn't Christmas in Germany without flat, crunchy and richly spiced Spekulatius. Traditionally Spekulatius are moulded into shapes with a small Christmas design on the surface. Well, those wooden Spekulatius forms are not cheap at all, so I have decided to use X'mas-themed cookie cutters to make these cookies. You can garnish the cookies with colourful sugar icings, or with confectionery coatings made with couverture chocolate, to decorate your X'mas tree, or table center.

500 g All-purpose flour, sifted 4 g Baking powder 2 g Baking ammonia / Hirschhornsalzangiesrecipes 200 g Sugar 1 pack / 8 g Vanilla sugar 2 Eggs

1/2 tsp Almond extract 100 g Almond, ground 1/3 tsp Cardamom, ground 1/3 tsp Cloves, ground 1 tsp Cinnamon, ground

1. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder and ammonia. Make an indent in the middle and add eggs, sugar, spices and extract, and combine all into a thick dough. Cut in the cold butter and together with the ground almonds and knead it well to form a smooth dough. If the dough is still sticky, then wrap and rest it in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Roll out the dough into 3mm thick circle and cut out the cookies with favourite Christmas cookie cutters. Place them onto greased baking sheet and bake until starting to brown, about 10 minutes. When cool, store cookies in an air-tight container. Decorate the cookies with sugar icings as desired.

I am sending this post to participate the event Think Spice Think Poppy hosted by both Radhika Vasanth@Food for 7 Stages of Life and Sunita@Sunitabhuyan.
Poppy seed is used as an ingredient in many foods and to make poppyseed oil. The tiny kidney-shaped seeds are harvested from seed pods of the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum), and have been cultivated by various civilizations for thousands of years. They are used whole or ground, often as a topping or filling in various baked goods. Wikipedia

35 g Finely ground poppy seeds 70 g Finely ground almond 200 g Powdered sugar 80 g Egg whites A pinch of salt 30 g Caster sugar 120 g Poppy fix

1. In a mixing bowl whisk together the finely ground almond, poppy and powdered sugar until completely blended. Line 3 baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In your stand mixer fitted with the whisk, beat the egg whites and pinch of salt until foamy, gradually add the sugar and continue beating until soft peaks appear.
   
3. Fold in the poppy mixture in two additions until your get a slow moving batter. Fill a pastry bag with the batter and pipe small amounts of batter 3 cm in diameter, 2 cm apart. Leave to rest for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 170C/340F and bake for 15 minutes. Remove and cool completely on rack. Spread the poppy fix on one shell and sandwich with another one.