Category Archives: rec

Kuchen und Plätzchen, pic, rec, sweet, vegetarians

tarte au citron et aux amandes

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this tarte has almonds in the crust and almonds sprinkled on top of it. i’m undecided if i like the crust better than the last one, since it was a tad dry. but it worked very well with the lemon filling (which was not as tart this time).

Ingredients:

crust

  • 75g flour
  • 25g ground almonds
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • a pinch of salt
  • 40g chilled butter, cut into pieces
  • 1 teaspoon cold water, more if needed

filling

  • 2 eggs
  • 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1 Tbsp freshly grated lemon zest
  • 80g sugar
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 20g sliced almonds
  • icing sugar

mix together flour, almonds, sugar and salt. using a pastry cutter, cut the chilled butter into the flour until only a few pea-sized pieces of butter remain visible. sprinkle water over the mixture and toss until it holds together. press dough over bottom and up sides of a 18cm-diameter baking pan. freeze for about 20 minutes until the crust is firm.

combine eggs and sugar in a heavy saucepan and whisk. mix in lemon juice and zest. whisk over medium-high heat until the mixture becomes thick and almost boils  (about 5-7 minutes). remove from heat and whisk in butter.

preheat oven to 200°C and bake crust for about 15 minutes, until golden. (you may want to do the complete blind-baking thing, but it worked for me also without the beans)

reduce oven temperature to 175°C. spread filling in the crust and sprinkle the almonds over. bake for about 20 minutes, until the almonds start turning golden brown and the filling is set.  sprinkle with icing sugar before serving.

Monatlicher Blog-Event bei Low Budget Cooking: Kleine Kuchen

the tarte was made in a 18cm-diameter baking pan (to be more precise: in the 18cm-diameter lid of my glassware pot), and so i’m submitting it to the blog event kleine kuchen (small cakes) by low budget cooking.

pic, rec, savoury, Sonstiges, vegans

mango chutney

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the mango chutney was definitive a highlight of our dinner. i never made chutney before (actually i barely ever tasted it), and so i was at first a bit sceptical how it would turn out. a combination between several internet recipes and again jaffrey’s book yielded this:

Ingredients:

  • 1 green mango (about 500g)
  • 100-150ml water
  • 185 ml vinegar
  • 180g brown sugar
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1/4 tsp cardamom
  • 4cm ginger
  • 30g chopped raisins
  • half of a fresh red chili and chili pepper flakes (to taste)
  • 1.5 tsp salt

peel the mango, remove the core and cut in small cubes. dice ginger and garlic. cook these three together in water until the mango is tender. add vinegar, sugar, chilis, cardamom, salt and cook until a little thick (this took quite a while – i think more than one hour). if you want to preserve it, pour into sterilized jars while still hot.

and how did we get the lava in the jar?

pic, rec, savoury, Sonstiges, vegetarians

paneer

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i’m planning for another indian dinner and so i made paneer today. it’s very easy, just bring milk to boil, add lemon juice and stir until the milk curdles. strain on musselin cloth and rinse with cold water. press into a solid form and you’re done. (if you need more detailed instructions – there are plenty around on the net…)

Ingredients:

  • 1.5l milk (3.8% fat)
  • 5 tbsp fresh lemon juice

i think i could have done with a bit less lemon juice, but i was impatient while waiting for the milk to curdle.  now the cheese is in the fridge and i’m curious how it will turn out.

in the lower right corner you can see whey – this is what’s left after straining the paneer.

pic, rec, savoury, vegetarians, Vorspeisen und Snacks

spinach pancake for st.patrick’s

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st.patrick’s is generally not observed in germany, but i thought it would be nice to eat something green tonight. these spinach pancakes (adapted from this recipe) were made like this: prepare 250g spinach, fresh (should be blanched an chopped) or frozen (should be unthawed and cooked for a few minutes).  in a bowl, mix 200g flour, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 1/2 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp baking powder,  1/4 tsp baking soda, 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg. in another bowl pour 250ml buttermilk and beat in two eggs. add 2 tsp melted butter. stir this mixture into the dry ingredients, then stir in the spinach. adjust consistency with a bit more buttermilk if needed. cook pancakes in a buttered pan, 2-4 minutes each side. pancakes that are done should be placed in the oven at 175°. mix a cup of sour cream with 1tbsp lemon juice and serve with the pancakes. we had also carrot salad with it.

i’ll leave you with the two other greens i found in the kitchen and a selection of st.patrick’s day greeting cards.

pic, rec, Süßspeisen, sweet, vegans

coconut milk rice with mango

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i love rice pudding, but i don’t like stirring all the time to prevent the rice from sticking at the bottom of the pan, as it is often the case when you make the rice pudding with milk. here is a stick-free version:

Ingredients:

  • 1 mango
  • 1 tsp runny honey
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • lemon thyme
  • 200g short-grain rice
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 15-20g vanilla sugar (to taste)
  • one can (400ml) coconut milk

peal and cut the mango, marinate it in honey, lemon juice and a little bit of lemon thyme. cook rice and salt in water for 10 minutes.  strain the rice, put it back into the pot. add cinnamon stick, vanilla sugar and coconut milk. cook over low heat for another 10-15 minutes (stirring only occasionally), until the rice reaches your desired consistency/creaminess – i like it if the grain is still a bit firm inside, as in risotto.

we eat this as a quick lunch, or as dessert, it can also add to any brunch buffet. actually, you can eat it at any time of the day. and by the way, can you spot our table decoration?

Kuchen und Plätzchen, pic, rec, sweet, vegetarians

apple pie coffee cake

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“i don’t have any eggs, but i want to bake cake!” – in such cases it is a good idea to check for cakes at vegan yum yum. i ended up with the apple pie coffee cake, modified it a bit here and there (added almonds and actually de-veganized it by using dairy products instead of soy milk …) and here is my version:

Ingredients:

apple filling

  • 800g apples
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 100ml orange juice + 3 tbsp
  • 2 tsp corn starch

batter

  • 200g flour
  • 60g ground almonds
  • 130g sugar
  • 1.5 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 50ml plain yoghurt
  • 70ml heavy cream
  • 60ml milk
  • 100ml sun flower oil

for sprinkling

  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon

to prepare the  filling, peel, core and chop the apples. sprinkle with sugar and set aside for a few minutes. in a large pan melt butter and slowly cook the apples in it for about 10 minutes. lid should be covered. then add orange juice (i guess apple juice would be better, but i didn’t have any at hand) and boil for about 2 minutes. mix corn starch with 2-3 tbsp cold orange juice, stir in and boil again for 1-2 minutes. the filling should thicken now and can be set aside.

for the batter mix in a large bowl flour, ground almonds, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and sea salt. in another bowl mix plain yoghurt, heavy cream and milk (at whatever ratio of this ingredients your fridge allows, of course you may also want to switch to the vegan original by using soy milk) and sun flower oil. pour over the flour mix and stir a few times. spread a bit more than half of the batter in a greased sprinform tin (mine is 26cm in diameter), spread apple filling on top of it, then spoon remaining batter on top of the cake, the apple filling should still be visible though.

mix sugar and cinammon and sprinkle on the cake, bake at 175° for 30 minutes, reduce heat to 160° and bake for 10 minutes, then reduce to 150° and bake for another ten minutes.  (this was how it worked for me, but check for instructions on baking time also the original recipe.)

the cake just vanished during one afternoon coffee… and of course it is always a good idea to visit vegan yum yum, also without lacking any ingredients.

Kuchen und Plätzchen, pic, rec, sweet, vegetarians

yeast pastry with apple, almonds and pistachios

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these swirls/rolls are made like this: in a large bowl mix 300g flour, 1/4 tsp salt, 35g sugar. make a well in the middle. crumble 20g fresh yeast into the well, sprinkle a knife tip of sugar on it and disolve the yeast in 150ml lukewarm milk. let it stand for a few minutes, until the yeast-milk-mix becomes bubbly. add  70g cold butter, cut in smaller chunks. knead well until the dough comes together nicely. cover with a dish towel and let it rise on a warm place for at least 30 minutes.  meanwhile prepare the filling: chop 30g of pistachios, grate one large apple. mix together with 3tbsp ground almonds, 2tbsp sugar and 3tbsp creme fraiche. when the dough is risen, knead again for a few minutes and then roll it out to a rectangle (approximately 25 x 45 cm). brush with 3tbsp of melted butter. then spread the filling on it. roll it up and cut in slices (about 3cm wide). put the rolls on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, cover again with a towel and let them rise for another 30 minutes. brush with 1tbsp melted butter mixed with 1 tbsp milk (which i used) or 1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tbsp milk. bake at 180° for 20 minutes or until golden brown. i like these rolls especially because they are very fluffy, and the filling is moist and not to sweet.

BreadBakingDay #28 - last day of submission April 1, 2010this is a sumbission to bread baking day, an event created by zorra and hosted this month at tangerine’s kitchen.

pic, rec, Süßspeisen, sweet, vegetarians

coconut custard with pineapple

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we had some coconut milk left from yesterdays bombay curry, and with one sachet of vanilla custard powder, 20g sugar and some milk it became our dessert today. just fill up the coconut milk (we had about 250ml) with milk until you have 0.5l liquid*, and prepare the custard according to manufacturers instructions, probably with a bit less sugar. i also added a knife tip of cardamom. let it chill in the fridge and serve with pineapple.

*referring to german custard package sizes

Beilagen, pic, rec, savoury, vegetarians

green lentil dāl with spinach

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we had indian food tonight, consisting of green lentil dāl with spinach, bombay curry with tomatoes and coconut milk,  carrot raita, rice and naan bread.  bread, curry and raita were made with recipes from the grosses buch der asiatischen kueche (but i found similar versions on the internet 1,2,3). the bread started as a disaster, as i made only half the amount of the recipe, but added the full amount of liquid to the batter. with a lot more flour and two tablespoons i was able to shape bread-like things on the baking tray, and in the end they were not half bad.

the dāl was made like this: cook 130 g green lentils for about 30 minutes until they are done. in a large pan heat 1 tbsp clarified butter (or use ghee which i did not have), add 1tbsp grated ginger, 1/4 tsp chili pepper flakes and 1.5 bay leaves and stir for a few seconds. add 200g spinach (i used frozen spinach) and 1/2 tsp coriander and cook for 5-10 minutes. add the lentils and 1tsp salt (optionally a bit water), cover the pot and let it simmer at low heat for 20 minutes. season with 2 tbsp lemon juice and black pepper. i also added 1 tbsp crème fraîche.

Brote, pic, rec, savoury, vegans

rosemary focaccia

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rosemary focaccia

if i only had known before how easy it is to make great italian bread! after the ciabatta a few weeks ago i tried focaccia today. the recipe was compiled after checking here and and once again at delicious days: dissolve 20g fresh yeast in 250ml lukewarm water, add a knife tip of sugar. mix 275g flour (type 550) with 1tbsp rosemary and 1tsp ground sea salt. add half of the flour-mix and 1tbsp olive oil to the yeast-water-mix and stir for 2 minutes. add the remaining flour and stir again for 4 minutes, it’s ok if it is quite sticky. about the rising: it is important to give the dough enough time, like up to 24 hours, preferably in the fridge. i let it rise on the counter for about an hour (that is: i forgot it there), by that time the dough had already almost doubled its volume. then i put it in the fridge for 6 hours. 2 hours before baking time i let it warm up in the living room (at 21°).  the finish: pour the dough on a baking tray lined with lightly oiled parchment paper. try not to destroy the bubbles. use oiled fingertips to bring the dough in shape, you may also want to punch a few holes in it to make for the authentic look. mix 1tsp of coarse sea salt with 1tsp of rosemary and sprinkle on top of the foccacia. bake at 210° (or higher, but my oven is very hot…) for 15-20 minutes.

yes, this is really delicious. but what was the first reaction from my fellow eater? “i thought you were going to make it with olives!” and after like five slices “hm. i’m thinking the whole time how it would taste with olives…”. well, you are welcome to give it a try. here is the recipe.