Farro/Spelt/Dinkel...whatever you want to call it! A healthy recipe for the New Year.

After a wonderful visit from my family, I am completely full of Bavarian food. 

I've had more than my fair share of Spätzle, Würstl, Schnitzel, Knödeln, Brezen...  too much!  It was good to cook a veggie-rich dinner tonight :-)

Cooking for one person is a little less than rewarding for the most part. It can feel like a waste to pour all of your effort into a fancy meal when you are the only one who will enjoy it.  Therefore, meat has become a luxury and things like pasta have become the norm.  Normal spaghetti noodles, penne and the like, however, can get quite boring and it's not so healthy.  I read a lot of Heidi Swanson's blog, 101 Cookbooks, and have seen Farro pop up a few times.  I finally decided to give it a try.  After many a disappointing trip to the market due to the language barrier (food vocab can be difficult!) I checked for the translation (and to make sure it would be available over here) and set off to purchase "Dinkel."  It looks a little like brown rice but it's the full form of the wheat grain.  It's nutritional value is much higher than that of normal pasta; it's a whole grain so the vitamins have not been stripped away. It's a good source of complex carbs as well as fiber and protein.  It soaks up more liquid than rice and has a nuttier flavor.  It's great mixed with veggies like I did or I have also read to use it for soups or salads.

Farro is pretty easy to prepare. For best results soak it overnight or as longs a possible.  For a still delicious spontaneous Farro-meal, don't worry about the soaking.  It will be a little more crunchy but will cook properly, no problem. 

General Farro prep:

For one cup of Farro use about 2 1/2 cups of salted water, boil the farro and water together and reduce to a simmer.  Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes, until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the farro is soft.  It will be soft, but it has a little bit of a bite, more so than rice or other grains I have tried. 

Zucchini-Eggplant Farro

source: original recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup (185g) of Farro, soaked if possible

1/2 cup (1 dl) milk (optional) with 2 cups (4dl) salted water

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 medium onion, diced

about 1/4 cup slivered almonds (more or less to your preference)

1 zucchini, cut into bite sized pieces

1 eggplant, cut into bite sized pieces

one tomato, diced

about 1/2 of a normal sized block of feta, crumbled

fresh lemon juice

salt and pepper

Cook the farro as described above.  I used a little bit of milk with the water to cook mine, just as an experiment, I really liked it! I think buttermilk would be even better. 

As your farro is simmering, prepare the veggies.

Heat the oil in a medium pan and add the garlic, onion, and almonds. Add a little salt to bring out the flavor of the onions. Sautée about 5-7 minutes, until lightly browned.

Add the zucchini, eggplant and tomato and cook until tender. 

Drain the farro if there is any liquid left.  Add the cooked farro to the sautée pan with the feta and combine.  Finish with a little bit of lemon juice, salt and fresh pepper and enjoy!!

I really liked this dinner!  It's healthy, filling and delish!  It was very easy to prepare and it's something that is very open to variation.  You can swap veggies pretty freely (possibly asparagus??), swap the almonds for another nut, add a little bit of wine, etc. 

I wish you all a splendid New Year. Einen guten Rutsch ins Neujahr!

Guten Appetit! 

Frohe Weihnachten!! God Jul!! Christmas celebration in Munich and Norwegian Christmas Bread Recipe.

Ich wünsche Euch alle frohe Weihnachten!!
I couldn't ask for a better German Christmas experience.  After much delay and drama with the flights, my family arrived in Munich on Friday morning; just in time to enjoy the last leg of the wonderful Munich Christmas Markets.  Everyone is loving it, especially Dad!! They all love the hearty bavarian food and the Christmas specialities like Glühwein and Gebrannte Mandeln.
We had dinner in my tiny apartment last night; they all got to try the famous Käsespätzle and I made a Norwegian Christmas Bread, Julebrød.  It was quite cozy in my room but a success!

I am taking an introductory Norwegian course this semester and love it!! We had a Scandinavian Christmas Celebration with the University a few weeks ago where we saw the Swedish Lucia tradition, sang Norwegian Christmas songs, and had a potluck meal of Scandinavian food.  I made Julebrød and really liked it, so much that I made it again for my family!  It's a very slightly spiced sweet yeast bread, the perfect compliment to a warm glass of Glühwein (or gløgg!).  Julebrød literally translates to "Christmas Bread," and I find it to be absolutely perfect for Christmas!
I found the recipe on Trines Matblogg, a Norwegian food blog.  The recipe was very easy to follow and turned out just as promised.  Her recipe makes 3 julebrød, so I divided it and just made one.  I ended up tweaking the recipe very slightly last night; going with the gløgg/julebrød combination, I decided to soak the raisins in Glühwein instead of water.  I really like it!  It wasn't too overpowering, but instead just the right compliment to the spice of the bread and really taking it to the next level of Christmas baking :-)

Julebrød

Translated and very slightly adapted from Trines Matblogg  

Ingredients:

330-350 g all purpose flour (about 2 2/3 c) 

2 dl Milk (a little less than one cup), warmed to about 30 C/85 F 

15 g fresh yeast (10g dry active yeast/ 5g instant yeast) 

50g sugar (1/4c) 

1 tsp cardamon 

1/4 tsp kosher salt 

about 1 Tbsp Butter, cubed 

about 100 g rasins, soaked in gløgg, Glühwein, sweet red wine, or water (at least 30 minutes, better if overnight) 

egg, for brushing

Combine all ingredients except for butter and raisins in the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix at a low speed for about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth.  If the dough seems too sticky, add a bit of flour.  

Cube the butter and mix into the dough, increasing the speed of the mixer slightly.  Add the raisins and mix to just combine.  The dough should be ready to rise.  

Cover the bowl with a towel and allow it to rise for 1 hour.  The dough should now be easy to work with.  Shape the dough into a circular loaf or if you'd like, a few smaller rolls.  Allow the shaped bread to rest about 20 minutes longer.  Place the dough on a parchment paper lined tray and let them rise a bit longer until they double in size.  Brush with a lightly beaten egg and score the top of the loaf.  

Bake at 200 C/390F on the bottom rack for 25 to 30 minutes (less if you are doing smaller loaves).  

Enjoy with butter, goat cheese (very Norwegian!) and tea, coffee, gløgg or Glühwein!  

Although I love to cook, the space is a little too limited in my room to make Christmas brunch.  The restaurant Ratskeller has been recommended to me over and over again so I thought it would be the perfect place to take the fam for brunch, it was great!! We got there at 10.30 and were served food and drinks until after 2pm!  The food was all very good and presented very nicely.  It was definitely a good choice for a nice Christmas meal! 

Guten Appetit!

Munich at Christmastime and Chili and Cornbread

Winter has finally made it to Munich. The Christmas spirit has taken over the city. Weihnachtsmärkte (Christmas markets) are all over. They are great, I don't want the season to end! Munich itself has quite a few, Marienplatz being the most popular (and definitely my favorite) and a few of us visited Germany's most famous market in Nürnberg. Personally, I prefer the one in Munich, it just feels like home! The Christmas markets have a huge selection of handmade goods like nutcrackers and Rauchermännchen and of course a variety of amazing German street food. Riesenbratwürste served in an entire baguette, Bratwurst- and Leberkäsesemmeln, Rahmbrot (flatbread with a cream sauce and toppings), etc. The warm gebrannte Mandeln (sugar roasted almonds) are definitely our favorite sweet snack. There is nothing quite like being at the Christmas market in the snow with a glass of Glühwein: a sweet, warm, spiced wine. The first time I tried it I wasn't quite sure how I felt about it, but now I'm dreading the end of the Christmas and Glühwein seasons! Glühwein comes in several varieties, the normal red wine, normal with a shot of either amaretto or rum, or white Glühwein. There are also special Weihnachtsbiers, Feuerzangenbowle and Eierpunsch. Of those, I've only tried the Eierpunsch and was honestly not impressed! I was expecting a sort of eggnog like drink but it was some kind of egg liqueur with whipped cream, I'll stick to the Glühwein!  

Riesenbratwürste

Gebrannte Mandeln

German winter days can be pretty tough. It is starting to get very cold and the sun starts to go down before 4pm Aka comfort food weather!! I decided to make a totally American (particularly southern) dinner after a day of shopping in the christmas markets. Turkey and Black Bean Chili with homemade cornbread; it really hit the spot! The chili itself is very healthy; it's made with lean ground turkey instead of beef and vitamin rich black beans. I can't say the same about the cornbread, however. It's made with sour cream and a bit of buttermilk and best served with fresh honey butter. Neither chili nor cornbread is very well known in Germany.  I couldn't find chili powder so I just made it with paprika, cayenne pepper, cumin, salt and pepper.  It seemed to work well!  This was definitely the perfect meal for a cold evening.

  

Turkey and Black Bean Chili 

1Tbsp Olive Oil

2 c finely chopped red pepper

1 c chopped onion

½ c finely chopped carrots

2 lg garlic cloves minced

4 tsp chili powder

2 tsp ground cumin

1 lb ground turkey breast

2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained

3 c canned no salt chicken broth

1 small can of tomato paste (or to taste) 

Heat oil in large saucepan over med heat.

Add pepper, onion, carrots and garlic; sauté until

tender about 12 mins.  Add chili powder and cumin.

Stir to blend.  Increase heat to med high and add turkey.

Break up the meat and sauté until no longer pink. 

Add beans, broth & tomato paste.  Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer until liquid thickens.

Season with salt and pepper.

Top with sour cream and shredded cheese.  

Sour Cream Cornbread 

Marcus Samuelsson

1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour

1 cup (145g) yellow cornmeal 

2 Tablespoon (25 g) sugar 

2 teaspoons baking powder 

dash of cayenne or hot paprika (to your taste, about 1/2tsp) 

1/2 tsp salt 

1 large egg, slightly beaten

1 cup sour cream 

1/3 cup buttermilk 

2 T olive oil 

Preheat the oven to 400 F (about 210 C).  Generously butter a 9x5 loaf pan. 

Combine the dry ingredients in one (larger) bowl, whisk to ensure everything is well mixed.  

In a smaller bowl whisk together the wet ingredients.  

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ones, mixing until just combined.  (Over mixing at this step will make for denser bread).  

Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 25 minutes.  




Guten Appetit! 

Swedish Visiting Cake

Noch eine schöne Kaffee & Kuchen Rezepte!

Swedish Visiting Cake is a recipe I have come across many a time and have had bookmarked for quite a while.  The recipe I used is from Dorie Greenspan (probably my favorite food blogger and cookbook author!) and it is wonderful.
This is definitely one of the simplest cakes you can make; in her anecdote, Dorie says this is a cake you can start when your guests are walking down the driveway and have it ready by the time the coffee is done.  It requires no outlandish kitchen tools (a zester would be a good investment for the apartment!), culinary skills or exotic ingredients.  The flavors of almond, vanilla and lemon come together harmoniously in this cake.  With the topping of slivered almonds and a dusting of powdered sugar, this cake looks (and tastes!) impressive.  Served warm, it's the perfect cake to compliment an afternoon tea or coffee.
This is definitely one for the recipe book.

Swedish Visiting Cake 

Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup (201g) of granulated sugar, plus extra for sprinkling 
• Zest of one lemon 
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 tsp salt (eliminate if using salted butter)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (1 tsp vanillezucker) 
• 1/2 tsp pure almond extract 
• 1 cup (128g) all purpose flour 
• 1 stick butter (125g), melted (maybe even browned?!) and cooled 
• About 1/4 cup slivered almonds

Preheat the oven to 350F or 175C

Butter a seasoned cast-iron skillet (I don't have that luxury in Oranges 821) or use a 9 inch cake pan, pie pan, etc 

Pour the sugar in a medium mixing bowl.  Zest the lemon and blend with the sugar by hand.  Rub the zest into the sugar with your fingertips to bring out the aroma in the lemon.  Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, until well blended.  Add salt and extracts. Use a rubber spatula to mix in the flour and finally fold in the melted butter.  

Spread the batter into the pan and sprinkle with the slivered almonds and a bit of granulated sugar.  

It's probably a good idea to place the pan on a baking sheet (unless you are using a cast iron).  

Bake the cake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.  

Allow to cool about 5 minutes then remove to a serving plate. If you'd like, sift a bit of powdered sugar over the cake.  

I didn't think about it last time, but I think I might try the cake with browned butter next time.  For those of you who aren't familiar with it, browned butter is pretty much God's gift to the kitchen.  It's basically wonderfully enhanced butter that can be used in both sweet and savory dishes.  To make it, allow the butter to cook for a bit after it is melted.  It will begin to foam and you will notice the appearance of tiny chestnut colored specks and a nutty aroma will fill the house.  Vorsicht! (Be careful!) Don't let the butter burn.   

This is definitely a rewarding cake to bake.  It fills your house with a wonderful aroma and it's really perfect along with a cup of coffee or tea. 

Guten Appetit! 

The Best Sahne Schlagers in Munich

German cakes aren't nearly sweet as their American counterparts.  No mountains of buttercream frosting or sugar coatings that make your teeth hurt.  Instead you'll find cakes with a simple streusel topping or a thin layer of ganache.  There are two words for German "cakes;" Kuchen refers to a sort of coffeecake like cake and Torte is a fancier layered cake.
Kaffee und Kuchen (Coffee and Cake) is a big deal in O-Haus 821 (my apartment).  We have tried several kinds of cakes, Swedish Visiting Cake, Banana Cake, Pumpkin Cake, and the most frequented, Heidi's Apfel Kuchen.  Most of these cakes need a little something to bring them to greatness, that's where the Sahne comes in.
Schlag Sahne is whipping cream.  You come to appreciate it on a whole new level when you are working without the glorious KitchenAid.  Ohh the small things in life we take for granted...  I only have the barest of necessities here so we end up schlagging our Sahne by hand.  Needless to say, we've got it down to a science.  We have learned to put the Sahne and bowl in the freezer for a bit and often end up doing the bulk of the schlagging outside on the balcony (it works best if it's cold).

Heidi and I preparing to schlag a crazy amount of Sahne on Thanksgiving day.  

Flourless Chocolate Cake. Gluten-Free or not, this cake is great!

I bake a lot in my tiny apartment.  The little toaster oven I bought was totally worth it.  I have been nothing but impressed with the performance of that thing; I have baked many, many cakes and have no complaints.
This cake was especially good, and unbelievably easy.  This was my first experience making or tasting a flourless chocolate cake and I definitely understand why it has become the "go to" recipe among both bakers and non-bakers alike.  It's literally the fastest thing I have ever baked and definitely a crowd pleaser.
Like I said before, I bake A LOT.  I go through more flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, cocoa, sahne, etc as fast or faster than a full family.   During the process of baking this particular cake, I had to make not one, but two last minute trips to the supermarket!  First time for cocoa powder and then to get bittersweet chocolate that I thought I had in the apartment.  Oops... at least the store is only a 5 minute bike ride away!

This cake takes almost no time at all and only very basic skills to prepare.  Because of the absence of flour, the cake is very dense and rich.  Serve this cake in all its glory, warm and topped with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream.  Totally worth the indulgence.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

source: Gourmet Magazine (November 1997)

Ingredients:

• 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
• 1 stick (125g) unsalted butter
• 3/4 c (150g) sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 c (64g) unsweetened cocoa powder
• (optional, 2 oz espresso or 1 T instant espresso powder)
• (optional) vanilla ice cream or whipped for serving

Preheat oven to 375F (190C).  Butter an 8in round baking pan and line with wax paper, butter the paper as well.  Coat the pan with a bit of cocoa powder or flour.

Start a pot of water on the stove for a double boiler.  Use just a few inches of water and choose a bowl that will easily fit in the opening of the pot without having the bottom of the bowl touch the water.  It's important that only the steam from the boiling water heats the chocolate and butter, the water is too hot.

Chop the chocolate into small pieces and melt with the butter in the double boiler.  You do not need to stir the mixture continuously. Once the texture is consistent, remove from heat and whisk in the sugar.  Beat the eggs slightly and add to the chocolate mixture, mix well.  Sift in the cocoa powder and mix only until just combined.  If you want to use the coffee, add it with the cocoa.  I was short on time so didn't try it this time but coffee will enhance the chocolate flavor of the cake.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake on the center rack for about 25 minutes.  It's always a good idea to rotate the cake halfway through the baking time to ensure it is evenly baked.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes and invert onto a serving plate.
Dust with cocoa powder or powdered sugar and serve with ice cream or whipped cream if you'd like.

Guten Appetit!