Inspiration: Do it yourself Chocolate Advent Calender

I made this for my boyfriend with 24 different, selfmade chocolatebars.

White chocolate, dark chocolate and milk chocolate. Topped with all the treats he 

likes and that are christmassy: Oreos, gingerbread men, peanut m&m's, cranberries, 

cinnamon, roasted marshmellows, dried fruits, pretzels, and so many more! 

I am sure everyone will love it. 

Easy to do, even if it takes some time, but makes a lot of fun! 

I packed them all seperately and put them in a decorated shoe box. 

Merry Christmas & love

Cooking: Red Beet Risotto with Roasted Vegetables

My simple, tasty and veggie winter recipe:

For 4 Persons:

- 80g Abrorio Risotto per Person

- 200ml white wine

- 100ml redbeet juice

-30g Parmiggiano Riggiano

- 8 mushrooms

- 1 carrot

- 1 red beet (middle size)

- 2 onions

- fresh thyme

- rosemary

- one pinch of lemon zest

- olive oil

- 400 vegetable or chicken stock

-2 Tblsp white balsamic vinegar

Salt & Pepper

1. Cut the red beet, mushrooms, carrot and one onion in mouthsize pieces. 

Then season with vinegar, salt, pepper, thyme and rosemary, drizzle with 

olive oil and roast at 200°C in the oven for about 45-60 minutes.

2. After 20-30 minutes cut the other onion very small and fry it for 1 minute 

with the rice and a pinch of salt in 3 tablespoons of olive oil.

3. Add 100ml of the white wine, then continue adding 50-100ml of the stock 

and the white wine every time the liquid gets absorbed by the rice. 

Don't forget to stir, otherwise the rice likes to stick to the base.

4. Add the red beet juice to the rice and stir. Now it gets a beautiful 

rose color and a slightly sweet taste. Test the rice, it should be cooked 

and sticky, but not to mellow in the middle of the corn. 

5. Grate most of the parmiggiano in the rice and stir, then serve with 

the roasted vegetables on top and finish by adding the rest of the grated cheese.

Bon Appetit!

Location: The Kiez Eats Blog names the best pâtisseries in Berlin!

A Post always desired and finally existing:

http://kiezeats.kitchensurfing.com/post/66080407619/die-besten-patisserien-in-berlin

Cooking: My best pumpkin soup

After I participated last Friday a mexican cooking class, I was so 

inspired that I tried a new way to make a pumpkin soup - a must do in october!

Usually I made it with coconut cream, ginger and carrots. 

Good but very common...Now this is my new favorite, and I think that 

I am going to make it again in two or three weeks.

You will need for 6:

1 small hokkaido pumpkin

2 cans of sweet corn

1 small onion

2 garlic cloves

pinch of cipotle powder

1 avocado

100g/3,5 oz feta cheese (made of sheep milk)

500ml / 13,5 fl oz chicken brooth

200ml water

4 little tomatos

Bake the whole pumpkin for 50min in the oven (200°C /392°F)

then let it cool down while you cut the corn from the cobs. 

Chop the onion and the garlic in small pieces. 

Take about one tablespoon from the onions and fry them in a bit of hot 

oil until they are almost black - I really mean almost black! It will give a 

fantastic smoky flavour to the soup...now take the fried onions beside 

and bring the chicken brooth to boil. Add three quarter of the corn and 

the fresh onions and garlic and let them simmer for 10 minutes 

while you  add a bit water every 5 minutes. 

Take the pumpkin, core it and cut it into fingerthick pieces. 

Quarter the tomatos and add them with the pumpkin pieces to the corn.  Then 

let the soup cook another 10 minutes, until you blend it (I suggest a hand held blender). 

If the soup is to thick, add some hot water. Serve the soup with bits of avocado, feta 

cheese crumbs  and a bit of the remaining  uncooked corn.

Bon appetit! 

Location: La Maison du Chocolat in Potsdam

It was the last warm day of fall, so we made a trip to Potsdam, 

a little, old city near Berlin, the capital of Brandenburg. 

Sights to visit: castle and park "Sans Soucis", Brandernburger Straße, the dutch neigborhood. 

To drink a delicious, creamy hot chocolate take a seat in the beautiful Maison du Chocolat. 

But if you got a little bit more hungry - don't hesitate to order one of the wonderful 

salads or snacks. Everything is fresh, regional and seasonal. The menu is changing regularly, 

so it's always exciting to go there. Buy some cake or pralines for you dear ones at home and 

finish your meal with the signature dessert: the chocolate quartett 

( I love the chocolate creme brûlée )

Bloodpudding on sauerkraut bread and beet salad

Chocolate quartett: ice cream, mousse, mini cake and creme brûlée

http://www.schokoladenhaus-potsdam.de/

Best of New York - Part 2

Hi there! 

Let's have a quick start with the second part of my favorites in New York. 

Look, be inspired and check out, if you can!

1. First To Do: A Hot Dog on the street! This was the first of a lot. 

Served fresh and hot with sauerkraut, onions, ketchup and mustard, it's a great lunch 

snack for 2-3$ (Attention: Tourist locations like Times Square charge 5$!)

2. Hot Pot Stickers from  a food truck near Staten Island Ferry station downtown.

Here: Korean style pulled pork.  Attention: Delicious, but veeery hot! (5 pieces 3,50$)

3. Three-cheese fries and Burger at "Burger Burger"

Just awesome! Crowded at lunchtime between 1 and 2 pm.. 

one of the best burgers I've ever tried! 

http://www.burgerburgerny.com/burger_burger_ny/Burger_Burger_ny.html

4. Red Velvet Dessert Cup from Whole Foods:

Layers of red velvet cake pieces and cream cheese, 

topped with fresh strawberries. Heaven!

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/

5. Oyster Barney in New York at Grand Central Station.

Sorry I have no food pic! I had a great, spicy gazpacho with shredded lobster and 

fired oysters wit peachbutter. Delicious, nice service, even when crowded and 

beautiful atmosphere - imagine a french fish restaurant in Marseilles 

http://www.oysterbarny.com/

6. One and only: Magnolia Bakery - went there 3 times in 10 days!

You see their famous cupcakes: chocolate vanilla and lemon. We tried a red velvet 

Mini-Cheesecake and the Smores Cake too - fantastic, sweet, just yummy! 

Plus, the shops look so cute! I bought the pale blue eco tote bag as a souvenier.. 

I'll be back!

http://www.magnoliabakery.com/

7. Japanese mochi boutique on Madison Avenue - please, just go there!

Wonderful minimalsitic and chic store for traditional mochis and other japanese sweets. 

We tried two different little rice cakes - mine was filled with red bean paste, wrapped in 

a salty (!) cherry tree leaf and topped with a cherry blossom. 

Delicate, exceptional and sweet - the new maccarons?

http://www.kitchoan.com/

8. Joe's Shanghai - best dumplings (TRY!!!) & best chinese food!

Try the Szechuan Style Ribs, chicken and shrimps in plum sauce and the wonton & cabbage brooth. 

Chic in Midtown, authentic in Chinatown - both are great! 

http://www.joeshanghairestaurants.com/kill_dumpling_eng.html

9. Pork chop at Moma Café on the 2nd floor. 

Great food for a museum restaurant!

http://www.moma.org/visit/plan/eating#cafe2

10. Dreesen's Donuts in Easthampton NY

The very best. Period.

(I heard R. De Niro likes them glazed...)

http://www.dreesens.com/

Bon appetit!

Best of New York - Part 1

Hi! I'm back, finally. 

I have been in beautiful New York for the first time. 

Twelwe awesome days exploring the big apple - and it's culinary treasures. 

There were so many treasures I want to share with you,

 that I decided to give you an outline of my absolute favorites. 

This is a list of the best locations and things I suggest to check out when you are in NY. 

Let's start - this is part one - the second is following soon!

1. Awesome, fresh Lobster Roll at Red Hook Lobster booth

every Saturday 'til 3pm at Smorgasburg Food Market in Williamsburg

http://www.smorgasburg.com/

 

 2. Brisket Sandwich from Mighty Quinns Barbeque
(also on Saturdays at Smorgasburg Market)
Brisket is smoked, marinated and slowly baked beef...delicious!

http://www.mightyquinnsbbq.com/index.html

3. Mexican Popsicles - here: Cucumber & Lime - sooooo refreshing!
La Newyorkina Mexican Ice & Sweets
http://lanewyorkina.com/Home.html

4. Marie Belle - the BEST creamy, italian hot chocolate & patisserie

Also teas, chocolates and a cute parisian atmosphere - Go there!

https://www.mariebelle.com/ 

5. BUY one regional farmer tomato from an organic store!

Very expensive but THE BEST. I ate italian, south french, romanian, greek 

and spanish tomatos. I swear, this one was better!

6. Bubba Gump's

shrimps, shrimps and shrimps - my favorite: fried Coconut Shrimps

http://www.bubbagump.com/

Cheers!

Cooking: Fast Spaghetti with Salsiccia and Tomato-Lemon Sauce

One of my new favorite after working meals, because it's easy and fast to do and really tasty. 

You will need for 2 persons:

200g spaghetti or linguine

2 italian salsiccia sausages (with fennel seeds)

1 unwaxed lemon

2 tablespoons of capers

1 can of chopped tomatos

2 fresh tomatos

1 garlic clove

some parmigiano reggiano

olive oil

salt & pepper

1.) Preheat the pan while you drag out the filling out of the sausage casing and from little balls.

2.) Fry the chopped garlic in oliveoil for 30 seconds, then add the sausage balls and the capers.

3.) After 3 Minutes add the canned and fresh tomatos and start to cook the pasta in 

boiling & salted water for 8-9 minutes. No oliveoil in the pastawater! 

No real italian does that, and the oil film prevents the pasta to soak up the sauce.

4.) Rasp lemonzest and add to sauce together with two tablespoons of lemon juice. 

If you happen to have some lemon chutney or pickles, add a teaspoon.

5. Season with salt and freshly grounded pepper and continue cooking the sauce until the pasta is ready.

6. Mix together, add some grated parmigiano. 

7. Enjoy! (with red or rose whine)

Inspiration: Chocolate Granita

A short post from my vacations in Sicily (Italy) for you, as I was so excited 

when I tried my first chocolate granita in a small Gelateria in Taormina 

(just 15m straight from Porta Messina to Corso Umberto). I LOVE chocolate in 

all its ways, like every normal human being - but I tend to prefer something 

fresher or fruity on the hot summer days. Now I found the perfect chocoholic treat 

for plus 30-degree-days. Granita is some kind of sorbet, so ice made out of water, 

sugar and natural flavor. This granita was made with super intense dark chocolate. 

It is of course less creamy than any ice cream, instead it's the light version. 

Refreshing like ice-cold lemonade but chocolatey like heaven. TRY IT if you can!!!

Location: Tim Raue

A great birthday present - thank you all again!

As promised I will report you now about the 4-course lunch at Tim Raue in Berlin Kreuzberg. 

Entering the clean and welcoming interior, 

we were ushered to a table by a very friendly waitress. 

The lunch began with a variety of appetizers: 

reddish with asian mustard, steamed pork-belly with szechuan pepper, 

asparagus-melon salad and curry seasoned cashews - all of them great and mouthwatering!

You could choose four different courses from a menu, 

means you combine main dishes, entrees and desserts how you like it best. 

I started with ikarimi salmon (Cold fish slaughtering system) on vanilla-grafruit sauce. Try this fantastic quality fish! 

Then continued with extraordinary fried dim-sam, filled with sobrasada (spanish sausage) 

on fresh pear and topped with some acacia honey. 

It was one of my favorites: crispy, hearty, combining so many flavors to a culinary experience.

The third course were tender zander cheekies with melon and peas.

Followed by lobster with tamarind and tomatoes. Soft and absolutely delicious!

My companion had: 

Steamed dim-sam with duck filling

Pigling with szechuan pepper and tangerine sauce

Beef steak with watermelon and  pomegranate

As I choose no desert, I was very happy to finish the lunch with a sweet amuse-gueule: 

a little ice lolly with strawberry sorbet covered with white chocolate and matcha green 

tea powder and and woodland strawberrys.

Resume: A wonderful lunch near historic Checkpoint Charlie with great food, 

great service in a relaxing asian-inspired atmosphere.

For more information: 

http://www.tim-raue.com/index.php?task=restaurant&section=aktuelles&lang=en

Coming soon: 4-course lunch at Tim Raue

2-Star Guide Michelin restaurant in Berlin...

Cooking: Halloumi with spiced Spinach & Apricots

Once in a while, not very often, I don't have appetite for meat at all, 

especially when it is warm outside and we don't do a BBQ. 

So I found a pack of chili-seasoned halloumi cheese and some frozen leaf-spinach. 

I started to roast some onions and garlic in olive oil, added some fresh 

chili peppers, eights of fresh apricots and the spinach.  After cooking it for 10 minutes 

I seasoned it with salt & pepper, a dash of fresh lemon juice I left it aside. 

Then I fried the cheese in a pan, and topped it over the spinach - easy peasy! 

What you need for 2 persons:

200-300g Halloumi Cheese (if it is pure, season it yourself with 

chilies, bell pepper powder and some olive oil)

350g frozen leaf spinach

8 fresh apricots

1/2 chili pepper

3 garlic cloves

1 medium onion

olive oil, salt&pepper, 1 dash of lemon juice

Cooking: chocolate maccarons with lemon zest and olive oil

Ok, first of all I must admit that I used a baking mix - but only because 

- I never made maccarons before

- It was 11pm 

- And it was a souvenir from France

So I made these for my Mom as a little birthday surprise.

I just wondered what I could add to make them more special and because it is summertime

 I tried extra virgin olive oil and organic lemon zest, that I put into the dough and into the cream.

Conclusion: Olive Oil remains subtle and intesifies the dark chocolate 

while the lemon zest gives a mediterranean perfumed flavor. 

Next time I will use a forcing bag to get them rounder and make the dough and cream all by myself! 

I promise...

Inspiration: Art with Food at La milkfactory Paris

If you are or going to be in Paris up to 18th May you should visit this exposition!

Talented food artists made wonderful landscapes out of diary products and 

little human figures. Observe mini-cows grazing under a yoghurt-reservoir and be 

part of the butter-village flea market or visit the funfair made of cheese. 

I love to see what beautiful and fun things can be made out of food, 

concerning this thought, I recently made a little project designing fine jewelry out of 

colorful fruits and vegetables. I will share this with you soon ;)

If you don't have the possibility to visit the exposition, 

grab a piece of good cheese and a glass of wine and be inspired:  

http://www.lamilkfactory.com/galerie/expos-en-cours/

Location: Bake House in Prague

First of all, sorry that I have been away for such a long time. 

I was occupied 24/7 with a freelance job that comes now and finally to it's end. 

Now I have a lot to catch up with you. New locations, recipes and a whole 

bunch of inspiring ideas dealing with food.

For today, i'd like to present you the Bake Shop in Prague. 

An ideal place for relaxing on a  sight-seeing trip or for a very long and cosy afternoon 

with a friend, indulging in wonderful bakery and patisserie. They offer a great 

range of breads, cakes, tartes, cupcakes and hearty pastry. Freshly made  and presented 

in a retro environment, flooded with daylight. 

http://www.bakeshop.cz/en/contact.html

Inspiration: Fat and Furious Burger

A funny and inspiring Blog: they present fantastic burger ideas in a wonderful way. 

Watch and try the recipes with your friends! My favorites are 

"The fart and the furious burger", "The End Burger" and "Neil Armstrong Burger"

http://fatandfuriousburger.com/

Location: VAU

Entrée: wild hog in puffy pastry & chestnut cappucchino

Dessert: soufflé & sorbet of sour cream with blue elder coulis

Finally and thank to the lovely agency members of BBDO Berlin (advertising) 

where I made a 6-month intern, I was able to eat in a One-Michelin Star Restaurant. 

VAU in Berlin (Gendarmenmarkt) by Kolja Kleeberg. I took my boyfriend to share 

this event for lunch on our two-and-a-half year jubilee and it 

was - who would doubt it - fantastic!

Now for the most important facts:

Amuse gueule: 

Piglings cheek with canola mayonnaise

Entrée: (as in picture)

wild hog in puffy pastry & chestnut cappucchino (for me)

Medium deer filet on parsley-pearl barley (for him)

Main course: 

Crispy char (heavenly) with apple and parsnip (for me)

Duck breast (so soft!) with sweet potato mesh and wild mushrooms

Dessert: (as in picture & for both):

Soufflé & sorbet of sour cream with blue elder coulis

Some of you may think that this is a quite traditional and ordinary menue for 

a Michelin-Star restaurant,but I have to remark that it was only 

the lunchtime à la carte, that is usually not that exceptional. 

We could have had afford a dinner too, but only with one course 

- so we decided that diversity is more interesting for us than flamboyance. 

Conclusion: The interior could have been not so 90's, but it's nice and welcoming.

Service was vey good and not sniffy, food was perfekt.

http://www.vau-berlin.de/

Inspiration: Rachel Khoo

Warm Potato-Apple Salad from "Little Paris Kitchen" by Rachel Khoo

By accident I found a new book in the cooking section of a big book store in Berlin: 

Rachel Khoo's "Little Paris Kitchen" and instantly fell in love with it. A young woman who 

studied Design, (like me), loving food and cooking, who passed the honored education 

of Paris' Cordon Bleu Institute in Patisserie, driven by her passion for good food and 

fantastic taste. I admit that she kind of became a role model for me: my biggest wish is to 

study Food Design in Nantes / Brussels or Rome for a long time.... 

She shows us the traditional french cuisine with her own twists and some new and easy ways 

to enjoy it. And she shows me, that a person, that is acting according to his passion and his 

instincts can achieve a lot. I do not want to become the same, not even to cook particularly, 

but I want to work with excelent food in a creative way, by inventing, composing and designing 

new products, concepts and combinations for tasteful high-quality meals. 

Now it seems that I talked so much about this book, that I got it twice as a christmas present 

from family and friends... 

Take a look for yourself and be inspired:

http://www.rachelkhoo.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hun_yj5u4S0