Gingernut Cookies

Today has been, once more, really cold and I wanted nothing more as soon as I got home than whipping up some cookie dough and filling the house with that flavour only cookies get when baking. I am a big fan of ginger as a spice in general. I love to use it for cooking, but it is great for baking as well. Apparently, the people at donna hay magazine like it as well, because they did a whole spread on baked goods spiced with ginger in the June/July 2012 issue of their magazine. I want to introduce you to her recipe for gingernut cookies. 

Here's the recipe:

150g (5.3 oz) unsalted butter, softened

225g (1 1/4 cups) brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

185g (1 1/4 cups) all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 teaspoon of ground ginger

demerara sugar, for rolling

1) Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Beat the butter, the brown sugar and vanilla extract with a hand-held mixer or kitchen machine for 8-10 minutes until it is light and fluffy. 

2) Add the egg and beat for another 2-3 minutes, so the egg is completely combined with the other ingredients.

3) Add the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground ginger and beat until a smooth dough forms. 

4) Roll tablespoonfuls of the dough into balls, the roll in the Demerara sugar. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper and place the cookies on it, leaving space in between. 

5) Bake for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden. Cool on a wire rack. 

Yield: 24 cookies

Active preparation time: about 15 minutes

Total preparation time: about 45 minutes

© Copyright: donna hay magazine, june/july 2012

Here's how my cookies turned out:

I had to google Demerara sugar to find out it is sugar made of crystallized raw sugar cane juice. I know I am able to find it at a delicatessen in the city, but as I didn't have any at home, I substituted coarse brown sugar for it. Using this coarse sugar adds a slight crunch that I like and it crystalizes while baking. But if you don't like biting on sugar crystals, omit the rolling in sugar. The thing I love most is the taste of the ginger in combination with the caramelized sugar. A little sweet and yet spicy. And the perfect excuse to curl up on the sofa with a cup of coffee or tea and a warm gingernut cookie straight from the oven. 

Have fun trying and enjoy!

Basic Lentil Soup

Soo, I finally managed to get some cooking in. That is not to say I didn't cook for the past few weeks, but most of it was designed to be quick and easy and was eaten before I could take a picture. So now, hopefully, I will get back to a more frequent routine in writing and cooking. Today's recipe is meat-free (as it is Monday, of course) and vegan. Switzerland has got a first taste of cold weather with chilly wind blowing and me freezing on the way to University, so I figured there's no better way to brave the cold than with a hot bowl of delicious soup. I was searching for new ideas and new soup recipes to try that differ form the basic vegetable-purée soup and I came across this recipe for a lentil soup, featured on goop. Here's the link: http://www.goop.com/journal/make/254/spilling-the-beans 
The recipe is the last one, on the very bottom of the issue.

A few notes to my version: I used beluga lentils as well as green puy lentils. Both are rather small and cook fast. They also won't break down while cooking but hold their shape really well, which I prefer. 

Serves: 4
Active preparation time: about 10 minutes
Total preparation time: 35 minutes 

Here's how my soup looks:

First of all, I love the simple fact that I had every ingredient at home and could start cooking right away. I always keep lentils at hand, as they make a perfect side or a satisfying meal on their own and are incredibly versatile. Secondly, I find this soup to be a great compromise. On the one hand it is a little creamy because you've pureed a little of it and on the other hand you've still got small bits of carrots, tomatoes and lentils in it. I finished my soup with a drizzle of aged balsamic vinegar. The soup itself offers sweetness from the tomatoes and carrots, earthy, almost nutty flavors from the lentils, a little saltiness from the vegetable broth and just the right amount of acidity, if you add the vinegar. I hope you like it!

Have fun trying and enjoy!  

Banana Bran Muffins

Hi guys!

I know, I am a tiny bit late for meat free monday, but I hope you don't mind a meat free, start of the week pick-me-up recipe. Today's muffins are healthy, they're not your average fatty and sweet muffin, but they're light and filled with nutrients so you can even grab one on the go for breakfast. No bad conscience necessary! The recipe is from Donna Hay's "Fresh and Light", her most recent book as of today. It includes tons of new ideas for light breakfasts, lunches, dinners while making sure you are getting great nutrients at the same time. And it tastes great, too. These muffins aren't as sweet as your regular muffin from the coffee shop around the corner, but they offer great taste and will fill you up until lunch.

Here's the recipe:
300g (10.5 oz; 2 cups) whole-wheat flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
100g (3.5 oz; 2/3 cup) raw unrefined dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 egg
300ml (10 fl.oz; 1 + 1/4 cup) buttermilk
80ml (2.5 fl.oz; 1/3 cup) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 bananas
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
65g (2.3 oz) bran (wheat or oat)

1) Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F). In a bowl combine the flour with baking powder, sugar, cinnamon powder and bran. 

2) In a seperate bowl, combine the buttermilk, vegetable oil, egg, honey, vanilla extract. Mash the bananas with a fork and mix as well.

3) Carefully fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined. Don't overmix otherwise you'll end up with dry muffins. 

4) Line a muffin tin with paper cases or grease it with a little butter and split the dough evenly among the cases. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. 
© Copyright: Donna Hay, "Fresh and Light", p. 12.

Yield: 12
Active preparation time: about 15 minutes
Total preparation time: 45 minutes

Here's how mine look:

I used wheat bran as I have trouble digesting oat sometimes. If you want gluten free muffins, try substituting buckwheat flour and omit the bran. What I love most about these muffins is their taste. Don't expect them to be nothing but sweet, they'll give you a hint of sweetness and fruit from the banana, not more. At the same time, the whole-wheat flour and bran counterbalance that sweetness and make sure you stay full longer and get important nutrients.

Have fun trying and start your week healthy!

Black Bean, Corn + Avocado Bowl

Hi guys!

So, meat free monday is back with a little vegan treat for you. A few weeks ago, goop.com featured a back-to-school-issue with lots of great lunch bowl ideas, including this bowl with corn, avocado and black beans. The base of all the bowls is a mix of brown rice and quinoa, not your usual go-to grains perhaps, but these are worth a try and I was surprised myself how  tasty and satisfying the result was. Here's the link to the recipe: http://www.goop.com/journal/make/240/back-to-school-mag

Again, few simple steps away from your lunch:

1) Cook the brown rice and quinoa. Directions on how to cook them are included on the site by clicking on the words. 

2) Preheat a pan with olive oil over medium heat. Add the black beans, avocado and corn (if you don't get corn cobs, substitute canned corn kernels). Squeeze the lime juice on top and mix to combine while warming through.

3) Add the quinoa and brown rice and mix through the beans and vegetables. Season with salt and pepper and garnish, if you want to.

Serves: 2
Active preparation time: 5 minutes, if you use canned beans and corn and have pre-cooked the quinoa and brown rice. Otherwise about 10 minutes.
Total preparation time: again, 5 minutes if everything is prepared. About 50 minutes if not. 

Here's how it looks:

I really love the combination of black beans, corn, avocado and rice. It's like a good mexican getaway. The olive oil and lime juice help bring out the other flavours. I also am quite smitten with the textures. A little crunch from the corn kernels, creaminess from the avocado and the perfect mix between both from the black beans. As an added bonus, the grains will help you stay full for hours. I hope you have as much fun eating it as I did. 

Have fun trying and enjoy!

Pasta with prawns and lemon-vodka-sauce

Hi guys!

Sorry for not posting on meat free monday, but I couldn't find time to try a new vegetarian recipe and prepared mushroom risotto for me instead. Yesterday, though, I did get back to a recipe that has become something like a runner-up to his all-time-favourite spaghetti carbonara for my boyfriend and he asked me to make it for dinner. The recipe comes from Donna Hay's "simple dinners" and it is actually simple and fast as it is prepared in the time it takes to cook your pasta. 

So here's the recipe:

400g (14 oz) spaghetti (or any type of pasta you like)
20g (1 tablespoon) unsalted butter
4 cloves of garlic
20 raw, peeled prawns
250ml (1 cup; 8 fl.oz.) cream
2 tablespoons vodka
2 tablespoons lemon juice
20g (0.7 oz) parsley
salt and black pepper for seasoning

1) Heat a large pot of water over high heat until the water is boiling. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. 

2) Cut the garlic in thin slices and chop the parsley. Heat the butter in a large pan over high heat. Add the garlic and prawns and cook for about 2 minutes, until the prawns are cooked, which is when they've changed their colour from grey to orange-red. Take the prawns out of the pan.

3) Add the cream, vodka and lemon juice to the pan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and let the sauce cook for 5 minutes.

4) Drain the pasta and add it to the pan along with the prawns and the parsley. Mix well and season to taste with a little salt and pepper.

Serves: 3-4
Active preparation time: about 10 minutes
Total preparation time: 20 minutes
© Copyright: Donna Hay, "simple dinners", p. 40.

Here's how it looks:

I have a soft spot for the creamy sauce that is so smooth and almost velvety while surprising you with the taste of vodka (no more alcohol since you have cooked the sauce) and the freshness of lemon. I personally added a fair bit of pepper and very little salt for seasoning. And as you've prepared the sauce in the same pan you've cooked your prawns it, a little bit of their taste has found its way into the sauce. I think this is a perfect example for an easy, speedy dinner that lacks nothing, not flavour, not looks, not surprises and it surely won't leave you with a lack of compliments.

Have fun trying! 

Swedish Kanelbullar (Cinnamon Buns)

Hi guys!

I am sorry it's been so long again since my last post. Things have been a little busy and I finally took a little time off to go on a week-long vacation to Oslo and Stockholm, where I enjoyed probably too many Kanelbullar and decided to give them a try as soon as I would be back home. Said and done that is, as of today. I got back on thursday and headed straight to creating these small pieces of cinnamon heaven today. The recipe I decided to try comes from a Swedish author, Leila Lindholm, who features it on her website - unfortunately only on the swedish page and not on the english version which is why I translated it as best as I could and tested it. For those of you who can speak or rather read swedish, here's the link to the website: http://www.leila.se/leilas-kanelbullar/recept/bakverk/index1,23.htm?id=3426

So here's the (translated) recipe with adapted measurements:

For the dough:
1 tablespoon cardamom seeds (I could only find ground cardamom and substituted a dessert spoon or two teaspoons)
2 dl (6.7 fl.oz; 3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon) milk
1dl (3.4 fl.oz; 1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon) cream
50g (1.75 oz) fresh yeast
150g (2/3 cup; 5.3 oz) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
100g (3.5 oz; 4/5 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 egg
720g (25.4 oz; 4 + 3/4 cups) flour

For the filling:
200g (7 oz; 1 + 3/5 stick) unsalted butter, softened
100g (3.5 oz; 1/2 cup) sugar (brown or white)
1-2 tablespoons cinnamon
seeds from 1 vanilla pod
1 egg for brushing
decorating sugar for sprinkling

1) Pound the cardamom seeds in a mortar until very fine. Place in a pot with the milk and cream and heat until lukewarm. Add the yeast and stir until the yeast has completely dissolved.

2) In a bowl, combine the butter, sugar, salt and egg and pour in the milk-yeast-mixture.

3) Gradually add the flour and knead until the dough comes together. Turn onto a lightly flour-dusted surface and knead with your hands for a few minutes, then put the dough back into the bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and set aside to rise for 60 minutes or until doubled in size.

4) Whisk the butter for the filling together with the sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. You can use more or less cinnamon depending on how much you like it. 

5) Roll the dough out to a large rectangle or about 1 cm thickness, using a little flour to keep it from sticking to the surface or your rolling pin. 

6) Evenly distribute the spiced butter on the dough, you don't need to leave a frame. Now fold one third of the dough from the long side to the middle and fold the remaining third on top. Using your rolling pin, carefully roll the folded dough until it is 2cm thick, while keeping the shape of a long rectangle. 

7) Cut the rectangle from the short side into 3-4cm wide slices. Now take a slice and put it in front of you. 

Cut the slice in half, starting about 2 cm from the top. The slice now resembles a pair or trousers. Take each of the "legs" and twist it three or four times, then cross the right over the left leg and tuck the ends underneath, so they'll end up on the top you've saved. 

 The twisted "legs"

Legs crossed over each other, ends are not tucked yet

8) Place your dough knots onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. You could also place the knots in paper muffin cases to make sure the filling stays in the knot while baking. Set aside to rise for 45 minutes.

9) Preheat the oven to 200°C (392°F). Brush the risen knots with the whisked egg and sprinkle with decorating sugar, if desired.

10) Bake for 10 minutes in the middle of the oven. 

Yield: about 14 knots, depending on how wide you slice the dough

Active preparation time: about 45 minutes

Total preparation time: about 3 hours

Here's the finished product:

I can't say much else than "I'm in love", head over heels and once and for all. The distinctive cardamom note makes these cinnamon buns special and it makes them typically swedish. Sweden was also where I saw cinnamon buns in knots rather than the classic roll for the first time and I think these look absolutely beautiful and make for an impressive gift. I sprinkled half of my Kanelbullar with decorating sugar and left others plain, in case anybody doesn't like to bite on sugar. You could also mix and little brown sugar with pounded cardamom seeds and sprinkle the buns with it. 

I hope you are having a beautiful weekend and good luck with trying!

Traditional German Poppy Seed Cake

Hi guys!

I am sorry it's already been a while again since my last post. Things have been rather busy and I haven't had as much time for cooking as I would have loved to. Anyways, my dad's birthday was last Saturday so I decided to treat him to his absolutely favorite cake which is a poppy seed cake - a typical northern Germany recipe. I use my grandmothers for it for as long as I can remember - and she can't remember where she got hers from, but it was probably passed on to her from her mother. Well, here you go:

For the dough:
40g (about 2 tablespoons; 1.4 oz) white sugar
250g (8.8 oz; 1 + 2/3 cup) all-purpose flour
50g (a little less than 1/2 stick; 1.7 oz) unsalted butter, softened
125ml (1/2 cup; 4 fl.oz) milk (whole or skim works fine, I haven't tried non-fat)
pinch of salt
30g (1 oz) yeast
zest of 1/4 lemon

For the filling:
500ml (2 cups; 16 fl.oz; 1 American pint) milk (again, whole or skim doesn't matter)
250g ground poppy seeds 
pinch of salt
40g (1/3 stick; 1.4 oz) unsalted butter
40g (about 2 tablespoons; 1.4 oz) white sugar
50g (1.76 oz) raisins
50g (1.76 oz) almonds, peeled and chopped

For the topping: 
75g (about 2/3 stick; 2.6 oz) unsalted butter, in small cubes
75g (2.6 oz; 1/3 cup) white sugar
1 sachet vanilla sugar
100g (3.5 oz; 2/3 cup) all-purpose flour

1) For the dough, combine the flour with sugar, salt, lemon zest and softened butter in a bowl. Heat the milk until it is warm (not hot!) and stir in the yeast until it has dissolved. Add the yeast mixture to the bowl. Using your hands or a machine with kneading hooks, knead until a dough has formed. Turn the dough onto a lightly flour-dusted surface and knead with your hands for about 3 minutes. The dough should feel a tiny bit humid, but not wet and it shouldn't stick to your fingers. Put the dough back in the bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour. 

2) While the dough is rising, prepare the filling. If you can't directly buy ground poppy seed, you can easily buy whole seeds and ground them either in a food processor or with a hand-held blender. They will start turning into a slightly wet and oily paste while braking down which is just what you want. 

3) Heat the milk for the filling in a pot. Once it's almost boiling, add the ground poppy seeds, turn the heat to medium-low and let cook for 3 minutes, stirring all the time. Add the sugar, butter, salt, raisins and chopped almonds and stir to combine. Set aside to cool.

4) Once the dough has risen, take a 26cm (10inch) round spring tin and grease it. Preheat your oven to 220°C (428°F). Roll the dough out on your kitchen surface until it is large enough to fit into the entire tin - bottom and edges. Pour the filling onto the dough.

5) Now it's time to make Streusel, the topping - one of my favorite things and super easy. Combine the ingredients listed for the topping in a bowl and work with your hands until you end up with large lumps. Evenly distribute the Streusel on the filling, don't put them on the edge. 

6) Bake at 220°C (428°F) for about 30 minutes. Let cool in the tin on a cooling rack.

Here's how it looks:

This cake has just the right amount of sweetness combined with the slightly tart flavour of the poppy seeds and the raisins and chopped almonds add a little bit of a crunch with regards to the texture. I cannot remember one family gathering without it - it's kind of our signature. Some children might not like it because it is a little bitter and not just sweet, but my cousins and I have been eating it as soon as we had teeth and could! I especially remember feeding my youngest cousin when she was 3 years old and she would happily munch on it. 

Have fun trying and I hope you enjoy it as much as I (or rather we) do!