present

i am currently baking a prototype for a couple of christmas presents. i am giving away do-it-yourself-food this year :)

fake it till you make it

i've had a very rough time lately as you might be able to guess.



so today i am faking apfelstrudel because they now sell filo dough at my local grocery store for all my strudel needs. i suppose i'll keep a packet of this pastry in my fridge from now on ...

the 2nd day of my time consuming christmas baking

lets start the second day of this overnight adventure, shall we?


now, while the dough must be chilled thoroughly i left mine out on the deck overnight - silly me - and sure, it was frozen. -3°c out on the deck does not equal "chilling", it equals "freezing", stupid! it's not intended to end up like that and i had to thaw the lump of dough for a couple of hours inside before i proceeded with the recipe. what an unnecessary step, right? plus, it added a couple of more hours in this loooong baking adventure to begin with ... i suggest you handle that one differently. i don't think there was any harm done to the dough, but according to the recipe you need to only chill it overnight. i will definitely use the fridge next time too.

i rolled out a few smaller portions to about 3 mm thickness. i cut with christmas cookie cutters and placed them on a cookie sheet before baking the cookies at 175° c for about 10 minutes. i finally put them on a rack to cool. you have to work quickly when you roll out and cut the dough because it is very crumbly and handling it can become somewhat nerve-recking!

the last step of assembling the cookies is easy but somewhat time consuming (aaaaw, again?): spead black current jelly on a flat and round cookie and put a zig-zag one on top. coat the cookie-stack with melted chocolate and decorate with half an almond.

as you can see, i used different shapes too. i was assembling only equal shapes though you're supposed to put a smaller cookie on top of a big one ...

mh, nevermind. they still taste perfect this way! i might do a little more "mix and match" as far as the shapes are concerned the next time. no, wait, next time? there is no way in hell i am going to make such sumptuously cookies again!

yes, i took pictures. so here is my fotolove/hate-story:






too much of a hassle, let me tell you!
don't try them at home!

time consuming christmas baking

in my venture to make traditional christmas cookies with healthier ingredients i took on österreichische brabanzerl today. neither do i have a clue what brabanzerl actually are, nor have i ever heard the word brabanzerl itself. it might be something from tirol or vorarlberg or even switzerland ... some similar christmas baking originated here in the bohemian forest, but we use ground hazelnuts instead of the almonds, we don't add chocolate either and we don't have to store the dough overnight (huh, it looks like our recipe is totally different after all!) ... we simply call those cookies biscuits that are stuck together. sounds equally silly - i don't even know if they have a real name. they probably do, but we've never called them anything else than zusammengepickte kekse. i am really curious if the original recipe will taste any good with spelt flour and brown sugar ...


150 g spelt flour (original ingredient: wheat flour)
50 g ground almonds
50 g brown sugar (original ingredient: white caster sugar)
50 g melted dark chocolate
150 g soft margarine (i suppose you could substitute margarine for butter)



mix all ingredients together and store overnight in the refrigerator. out on my deck it's minus 3°c so i'll store the dough outside overnight.


now stay tuned! while my cookie dough rests outside in the cold i am in here with a nice cup of tea waiting for another update tomorrow with baking, glazing and decorating ... oh, and eating!

crooked hazelnut macaroons drowned in chocolate

beat one egg white with a pinch of salt until stiff. gradually add 30 g of sugar, keep beating constantly. fold in 30 g ground and roasted hazelnuts. spoon on wafers on a baking sheet and bake in preheated oven at 180 °c for about 20 minutes. place on a rack and let the macaroons cool.


i am steering clear of many processed foods these days. the (radical) changes in my diet with a focus on MS-related nutrition had a pretty positive effect on my body. i feel stronger and more active and i lost quite a few inches around my waist - i had to buy an entire new wardrobe this winter because not a single pair of pants from this spring fits anymore. not keeping groceries like white sugar in my pantry these days (if any, i use brown sugar instead) is quite a handicap when it comes to christmas baking. i still have to figure out how to make all those gorgeous and sugary xmas-kekse without going completely overboard on the healthy ingredients.

lots and lots of sugar, chocolate and grease are mandatory in xmas-keksen, i could never abandon that! as you can see, my new nourisment is not completely radical! using only spelt, whole wheat or/and honey would probably be a mistake - as a child i could detect "healthy" christmas candy blindfolded - and i would never eat it! healthy baking still tastes good, but i didn't quite get the knack of that yet. so i better stick to what i know and love!



but this first attempt in christmas baking was almost a disaster, mostly traditional ingredients and all ... my macaroons where pretty asymmetric and much too brown when i pulled them out of the oven so i decided to cover them in chocolate - entirely - instead of just the bottoms. tastes yummie and covers up my botched work - what more do i need? turns out, only a good cup of tea! thank god i bought a tea-advent calendar again this year, how kitschy am i?!

yes, very.

hello sweetie!

boy oh boy, i feel like the energizer bunny today!

i did tons of laundry (ooooohh, i am so looking forward to "clean sheets night" !!!). i cleaned my fridge and defrosted the ice compartment and currently i am in the middle of re-organizing the shelves in my living room. i will also totally tidy up the bedroom today!

i think i deserve a little reward in the middle of all this spring cleaning mania ... so i sit down for a minute and browse through those amazing cheesecakes from HHDD#10 because some of those recipes (actually, *all* of them) caught my attention and are on my "to do" list ...

but you see, i bought this fabulous cake tin the other day and while a cake from this silicone thingy would look really cute ... stupid me! did not realize at all that i'd have to fill this mould upside down, which is kind of a handicap if you prepare a cheesecake ... how on earth should i prepare a cracker crust that way?

so what now? i really like the soft / crumbly combination of most cheesecakes, but i have not found an "upside-down"-version of the cracker crust yet ... so should i just ditch the crust? i think i should! because i need something cute today - and my pretty mould will give me a cute little cake anyway!

all the pictures are really stunning! they all make my mouth water ... instead of flipping a coin i guess i should just go check if i have the ingredients for one of these gorgeous cakes in my fridge!

... i swear, i shrieked when i saw this one over at "the garlic press" - and i am oh so happy that i actually have what it takes to reproduce it (ingredients, that is!).

so here's my twist on the recipe! as always, i took the original recipe as an inspiration rather than something i must religiously obey. especially because the capacity of my mould is only 3 cups, so i need to do some scaling as well as higher mathematics ... you know by now that all these ounces, gramms, cups and what not always have me confused ... (though i have some nifty online tools by now!)


(would you stop taking pictures?!? lick that bowl already, you fool!!)

chocolate truffle cheesecake
inspired by this one by sarah at "the garlic press"

200 g 4,5% cottage cheese
200 g cream cheese (philadelphia)
100 g sugar
50 g unsweetened cocoa powder
25 g starch
2 large eggs
30 g chocolate, melted
pinch of salt
1/2 tbsp instant coffee dissolved in 1 tbsp of hot water


(these ingredients yield exactly 3 cups)

1. preheat oven to 200 °c
2. puree cottage cheese in a food processor until very smooth
3. add cream cheese and blend
4. pour into a bowl and whisk in sugar, cocoa and starch
5. add the eggs, the coffee, the pinch of salt and the melted chocolate
   
   
   
6. pour in a little silicone baking mould
   
   
   
7. bake the cheesecake until the edges are set (about 45 minutes)
   
8. let cool and garnish with chocolate drizzle ...

actually, i have no idea how to get this cheesecake out of the mould! so far it looks really stuck ... i thought you don't have to grease a silicone pan! i might have to scrape it out with a spoon! but hey ... if i really have to destroy a lovely little cake because i can't get it out of the mould i can finally host that "kitchen disasters" - foodblog event i am dreaming about ...


update: look how pretty!! it slipped out of the mould just like that!


... and it is soooo good!

ps: thanks for the tip, zorra!!

pampering myself

now this one was really close! i barely made the deadline for hay, hay ... i decided to give our heirloom birthday cake a twist and throw in something other than pineapple for a change ... i asked my mama, and though we've had this b-day cake several times every year since i was a little kid she had actually never used any other fruit than pineapple for this cheesecake before.

i on the other hand took the bold step of changing a recipe that has travelled from australia to austria 30-ish years ago and has not been changed since.

i decided to submit a cherry cheesecake to hhdd#10:

250 g graham crackers (just take plain butterkeks, it's the best!)
125 g melted butter
250 ml cream
250 g curd cheese
1 small can of pickled cherries, drained (about 300 g)
3 tbsp of vanilla sugar (you can even skip this!)
10 g gelatine

1. crumble the crackers in a food processor and pour the crumbs in a cake tin
2. melt butter and mix with the cracker crumbs. press firmly in the tin until the cracker crust is very solid. chill until topping is ready
3. in a bowl, combine cream and curd cheese until smooth, add sugar if you like (though it is not really necessary)
4. fold in the drained cherries. add some of the liquid for a nice pink colour if you like
   
5. let gelatine soak in a little water for a few minutes. drain exess water and let gelatine dissolve completely over low heat
6. combine gelatine with the cream and cherry mixture and quickly pour topping onto the cracker crust
7. cover the cake and chill for at least 2 hours

that oughta cheer me up, dammit --- actually, it does a little, because it is just delicious!







[roundup]

no abstinence, no soup

not that i consider that daily dose of soup as "abstinence", but since there is no fasting on sundays during lent i thought that i should also pause my soup quest on sundays. i am totally craving some sweet biscuits instead. maybe with tea? yes, i'll make myself a decent pot of earl grey tea that go with the ...

anzac biscuits (i used this recipe, here is another one)

1 cup of oatmeal
1 cup of coconut shreds
1 cup of flour
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup butter (120 g)
1 tbsp syrup (the original recipe requires golden syrup, i used agave syrup)
1 tbsp baking powder
3 tbsp water

1. mix together oatmeal, coconut shreds, flour and sugar
2. melt butter and syrup in a saucepan
   
3. mix baking powder with the water and add to the butter and syrup
4. remove the saucepan from the stove and pour the mixture over the dry ingredients
5. make flat cookies and put them on baking paper. didn't exactly know how shape them evenly so i pressed them into a cookie cutter
   
   
   
6. bake at 150° - 160° for about 20 minutes
   
7. let cool on a rack
8. store in an airtight container (or in your belly)

makes exactly 69 (small) cookies ... they all may miraculously disappear in my mouth over the next few days ...

i first though anzac was a turkish word - it sounds really turkish to me anyway - but i quickly disovered that in fact this is australias national biscuit! how cool is that - i am such a huge fan of anything remotely connected to australia or new zealand!

the anzac biscuit seems to be perfect to satisfy my itch for something sweet. i don't have any fancy ingredients in stock at the moment, so i had to go with a pretty basic recipe. they taste lovely and will be the quick fix for my cravings on lazy sundays from now on!

yes, and i finally got myself some nice little imperial tools (thank you, ikea). converting measurements back and forth all the time is just not worth the fuss ... though i prefer metric over imperial - i just can not visualize imperial units! while i never had troubles with the old kids joke "what is heavier? a kilo of bricks or a kilo of feathers?" - a kilo is a kilo is a kilo, you stupid kids! stop thinking about volumes! (and yes, i was a bit of a geeky wise ass as a kid) ... but somehow i can not visualise "cups" in front of my mind's eye - weird, huh?

a love story

must ... make ... mini chocolate cakes ...

90 g chocolate
90 g butter
3 eggs
3 tbsp of caster sugar
4 tbsp of flour

1. preheat oven to 220 °c
   
2. melt chocolate and butter over hot water
   
3. thoroughly whisk eggs and sugar and add the melted chocolate/butter-mix
   
4. whisk in 3 teaspoons of flour
   
5. spoon into cups
   
6. bake for 20 minutes

if you dare you can bake them for 10 minutes only and get a soft centered version. the best way to eat them soft is with whipped cream or ice cream ... yummmmm-mmmiee!

as i watched ainsley's gourmet express the other day i remembered that they once made those soft centered chocolate pudding things ... i could not find the recipe online and i did not remember all the correct mesurements for the ingredients, so i made up a recipe on my own. i had such a craving for chocolate pudding, i just couldn't wait!

after some more research (and with chocolate smeared around my mouth) i found a similar pudding on the bbc homepage. this recipe is by ben o'donoghue, a tv chef i've come to really like - i don't know much about him, but i know his sensational recipes on the bbc2 show "the best" with paul merrett, silvana franco & ben o'donoghue.

i love that show so much, i could marry it ... or eat it!

and while i am really glad that i can get a decent cooking channel via satellite here, i really really really could move to london again just for all those mouthwatering bbc cooking shows. i might even do that - i can spend a semester abroad (all expenses paid) before i finish my masters degree, so i might as well go back to london ... stupid austria, i'd even have to pay twice as much for the books of my favorite cookery shows here. that's really unfair.

so you see, i just have to spend some more time in london!
a girl can dream, right?
*wipes the chocolate off her face*

winter, finally

allright, so we finally have some snow over here! it makes me want to go to a christkindelmarkt and eat some schokofrüchte (chocolate covered bananas and oranges) ... hey wait, as far as the second craving is concerned, i can easily fulfil that desire!

lime coconut fudge

or: how to make your own homemade bounty bar!

i found the recipe over at is that my buréka? and i thought it was a bit weird at first that you would actually use a potato in a confection sweet. but it just sounded just too good not to try. i have no idea how these little babies should taste, but with my bountybar fantasy in mind i figured i just try to make bite sized minibars.

30 g mashed potato
150 g icing sugar
60 g unsweetened dried coconut shreds
1 tbsp lime zest
150 g milk chocolate

i'm suggesting you turn to burekaboy for the original recipe (because i think i went a little coo-coo on the recipe) and i'll present my little photo lovestory over here:

store the coconut/lime/chocolate-bits in an airtight container in the fridge.
... or better yet: store them in your belly!


and i have to admit: they taste exactly like my favorite chocolate bar!

maybe austrian potatos are different, but i had to use more sugar and much less dried coconut shreds. i also was very surprised that the potato turned all liquid once i added the sugar (apparently because of the potato's starch). they also did not have any peppermint extract at my local supermarket, so i added twice as much lemon zest (if i could marry lemon zest, i probably would! yumm-mmmiiieeee!!). maybe i screwed up the recipe after all, i am always shilly-shally about converting between metric and imperial system. i hate that and its really stupid since i actually am a total tech girl ... but burekaboy suggested a useful tool for all my future cooking conversions!

i absolutely love those little mini bars taken from the delicious peppermint & lime coconut fudge. that recipe is definitely a keeper! i might gain a few kilos if i keep making this candy and all my teeth will fall out eventually - but believe me, it's totally worth it!

and with this last post of 2006 i want to thank you all for stopping by from time to time!

it has been a great year for me and i have made a couple of great friends with my little foodblog! i hope you had a good year too and 2007 is getting even better!

i wish you and your loved ones a happy and healthy 2007!