27. Mai 2006

how do i make leftover apricots more interesting?

by making a desert, of course! a desert with virtually no calories :)

01 cut apricots and put in a pan over medium heat
02 add a little water and stir the mixture until the water thickens
03 grate a medium piece of dark chocolate and chop some almonds
04 when the apricots are softened and the added water has turned into sirup pour on a plate and sprinkle with almonds and chocolate

also great with icecream!

16. Mai 2006

andere länder, andere sitten

... that would be the german equivalent of "when in rome, do as the romans do!".

i was always really bad in converting the values and measures from american or british recipes. i usually cook very intuitivly and when i must follow a recipe i tend to make mistakes. in my world it does not make any difference if i use a level spoonfull or a heaped spoonfull. when it comes to foreign recipes these inaccuracies usually turn into a mini-disaster. as i really want my food to actually look as delicious as it tastes, my americanstyle cakes tend to be a mashed up something (still good to eat though!) and my americanstyle muffins don't rise or melt away.

for future reference i want to point out a webpage i have known for years and might be usefull for all the (german speaking) europeans out there: usa kulinarisch. the site is devoted to american cooking and gives an insights in american traditions, regional dishes, holidays and saisonal recipes ... and they have a great section for all those troubles an european girl has with the "cup", the "ounce", the "fluid ounce" and the "pound" ... don't even get me started on fahrenheit! another great section is the part dealing with replacement of american ingredients that are either hard to get or very expensive import articles here in europe.

convert measures, temperatures / replace traditional american ingredients

and now i will roll up my sleeves and dig into your archives for a nice (and healthy) american recipe for a desert ...

14. Mai 2006

why resist mamas delicious food?

since i am trying to loose some extra inches on my ass and tummy it is particularly hard to visit my parents. as i probably mentioned before my whole family *loooves* to gorge on mamas great dishes. she inherited her way of cooking from her mother and passed it on to her daughters, and though this might be a wide generalization i assume exactly our traditional home cooking is responsible for the struggle with my weight.

of course my mother has her own style and she did not actually copy her mothers recipes. but her only commitment to health probably was to substitute lard for butter or margerine. we where not wealthy at all when i was a kid and so the main aim probably was to feed the kids and put something filling on the table.

only recently as my father is struggling with diabetes my folks had to review their diet and this is a constant battle for them as the really tend to hang on to their (mal??-)nutrition. i do not want to be judgmental and blame my fat ass entirely on my heritage, but it was a real struggle for me to let go of unhealthy food. when i first moved out of my parent's and started my own household i was not able to integrate vegetables and fruits in my daily routine. i really had to force myself to grab an apple instead of a bread roll or a glass of water instead of a soft drink. i was just used to satisfy hunger quickly.

when i am with my parents i am usually adapting the conventions in their household in the wink of an eye. but i was not willing to give in this time! i wanted to stick to my rather strict diet and so i had to use a little trick for myself. though my mother did not want to hand over her kitchen to her daughters today (for gods sake mama, it's mothers day!!!) we somehow made a healthy deal: the other day i told my mum that i was crazy for fennel at the moment. my mum told me that she had never eaten fennel before in her entire life! so i suggested that i would prepare the side dish for lunch today. she agreed.



still my brother and my father would insist on their pasta on the side of their schnitzel but my mum and my sister where swept off their feet by my easy half steamed and half roasted fennel&vegetable creation.

i am strangely proud of myself to introduce my mama into the art of steaming vegetables - or letting a fennel touch her schnitzel :)

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7. Mai 2006

bauerntoast

whenever we make toast with regular brown bread we call it bauerntoast. it usually is way better than using sandwich bread and in my opinion even grilled cheese on brown bread is tasting better. i am a big fan of bread to start with and i put almost everything on bread. like schnitzel for example:

putenschnitzen / bauerntoast-style: zutaten putenschnitzen / bauerntoast-style

1 small escallop of turkey (125 gramm)
2 slices of whole-grain bread
salad
1 teaspoon of rama cremfin
salt, pepper, fennel seeds

01 toast the bread until slightly crunchy
02 season escallop with salt and pepper and roast over medium heat
03 mix cremfin (or yoghurt, sour cream, ...) with a few fennel seeds.
04 stack bread, salad and escallop and spread the cream/fennel mixture on top
05 top with remaining slice of bread
putenschnitzen / bauerntoast-style
putenschnitzen / bauerntoast-style putenschnitzen / bauerntoast-styletagged with: + +

3. Mai 2006

healthy diet


i am devastated.

yesterday i had to whip out my fat ass jeans. when i hid them in my closet about two years ago i thought "i am doing so well, i will never have to wear them again".

well, there you go. the fat ass obviousely is back and i am crushed.

to be honest, i haven't stepped on the scales yet. i lost quite some kilos three years ago with weight watchers flexipoints ... i might have to start a diet-blog, folks, because i really want to at least get somewhere near my feel good weight again ...

aaahhh! this day sucks.

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