Black olive tapanade

About 2 months ago, I asked my husband to go to the Metro by myself, because I had to finish a cake. We were running low on all sorts of necessities. Olives aren't really a necessity, but I asked him to bring a small jar, as I wanted to have some for a salad. Well, he came back with a large bag. Since then it had been sitting in my cupboard, unopened, because I couldn't think of a way to use up all those olives.

Last week, it came to me. Black olive tapanade. I love the stuff as a dip or on top of bruschetta. As the temperature has been slowly climbing, I also thought, some olives would go well with all the mezes we have been eating.

So out came the olives, my food processor and a couple of other ingredients, and we have been eating a lot of this really healthy stuff in the last 2 weeks. I took a jar of it along to a friend's house and it took her all of 5 days to finish it.

My version of black olive tapanade is

2 cups black olives

1 1/2 tablespoons capers

4 cloves garlic

generous slugs of very good quality virgin olive oil

2 teaspoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon black pepper, salt to taste

Put all of the ingredients into the food processor and pulse. Do not pulse too finely, it should still have some texture and not become a cream

 

Spread some of this stuff on slices of baguette, top with grated parmesan and broil. You can watch them being inhaled, as soon as they come to the table, or just use instead of butter, as my friend has apparently been doing I couldn't believe, how fast she went through the jar.

 

I cannot believe, how easy it is to make and am pretty angry at myself, for having waited so long to try this out, it's really expensive out here. It tastes better than the storebought stuff,  plus I know exactly what is in it. The only downside is, we're going on holiday soon and I have loads of tapanade. I've filled some in a jar for now, and stuck the larger part into small ziplock bags and froze them. Just be sure to always top up the tapanade left in the jar, so it won't go moldy on you and keep it in the fridge. I hope, that freezing won't harm the rest of the tapanade, if it does, I'll come back to let you know.

 

DYI Quark- Part two

DYI Quark- Part two

 

Well now that the milk has been fermenting for a couple of hours, let's just check the progress. See? It has set and doesn't move, when I gently tip the container

 

Now take a knife and cut a criss cross pattern right down to the bottom of the container. This will start the process of the whey separating form the solids

Wait for an hour or so,till you see the separation well. In the meantime prepare your cheescloth. If you don't have a cheesecloth a clean cotton dish towel will be just as good.

 

 

First set a sieve atop a large container and lay the cheesecloth into the sieve. Fill in the fermented milk and carefully gather up the corners of the cheesecloth and close it with a clip or rubber band. This will prevent dust or anything else from settling atop your product.

Almost immediately you will hear the whey dripping off into the bowl beneath

Leave the cheese alone and go do something useful for a change.

After a couple of hours you will see, that there is quite a lot of whey in the bowl benaeth, Carefully open the cheesecloth and have a look, whether the cheese is of the consistency you need. I like it a bit firmer, you can always dilute it with milk or cream, if it is too dry, but if for example you mix in some fruit or want to bake with it, it is better when drier.

If the cheese is the way you like it, fill it into a clean container and off into the fridge

Do not throw away the whey. It has a lot of nutrients, you can add it to bathwater, drink it, add puried fruits for taste, use it instead of the liquid in your bread baking or use it as a fertiliser in your garden. Just do not pour it down the toilet

The whey is chocablock full of nutrients, keep it. Refrigerate it, if not needed at once, or you can even freeze it



DYI Quark- a picture tutorial

Quark



 

For us Germans, Quark is the cheese, that gets eaten most. Whether salty or sweet, cold or used in cooking or baking, this cheese is extremely versatile. I remember going to Germany as a child and having this cheese under my jam in the mornings instead of butter. My grandmother made the most delicious cheese cake with it, flavoured Quark, similar to flavoured Joghurts, are sold in every supermaket. If only, my mother would have been able to get the cultures, we wouldn't have been limited to having Quark every four years.

 

I get my culture in Germany, as well as the rennet, using this link

http://www.jean-puetz-produkte.de/shopdev/index.php?main_page=advanced_search_result&search_in_description=1&zenid=9516290d7d257377755b01b7243f405a&keyword=Quark&x=0&y=0

 

But you can also get the cultures here

http://www.cheesemaking.com/Quark.html

 

I promised to make a picture tutorial, the way I make Quark, this is step one

 

Get your equipment together

I use a machine, but you really don't need it, the Quark culture does not need as high a temperature as Joghurt for example. If you don't have a machine, just warm the milk to about 28-30 degrees and add the culture and rennet (Lab). Pack it well and let it ferment WITHOUT MOVING, that is important.

 

I usually put about half the milk (UHT) into the machine and add some culture (see picture), whisk it well. I heat up the other half a bit (to speed the process up) and add that together with the rennet into the room temperature milk and mix well. Do not put the culture into the part of the milk, that you are heating up on the stove, that will very effectively kill the culture. You will have to dissolve the rennt tablet in a bit of hot water, before adding it to the milk, a tablespoon of water will suffice, if you are using liquid rennet, just count the drops as reccommended by the manufacturer. I get the tablets, as they are lighter in transport (I have to lug it all the way from Germany to Shanghai and every gram counts)

 

Add enough culture as fits on the tip of a knife

sprinkle the culture onto the milk

whisk through

half a tablet of rennet is enough for a liter of milk

 

dissolve in a tablespoon of HOT water

heat up the other half of the milk

 add it to the other half

cover the container and let the milk ferment

 

 

I have added the pictures in the order I make my Quark. You will have to wait a couple of hours, before I can finish the Quark, as the milk needs to ferment. As soon as you start the fermenting process, do not move or jiggle the container. When we lived in Korea, before my machine days, I choose a spot in my appartment, where it was warm and not in the way. Sometimes I had to wait a bit longer, for the milk to reach the right consistency, but you can make Quark without the fancy machine. The Quark is ready for straining, when it congeals to a soft tofu.

 

The next steps will be shown, when my milk is ready

Home made grisini

Home made Grisini

 

500gr flour

2 teaspoons dried yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoon olive oil

 Around 250 mls warm water

 

I use a machine, so I just dump everything in and start the machine, my lovely little darling will do all the work. In the meantime, I preheat my oven to about 45 degrees Celsius.

 

After about 10 minutes in the machine, I check the dough, if it’s too hard (dry)I add some water and start the little baby up again, if the dough is nice and soft, it’s ready. Too wet, add some more flour.

 

Now I get my stainless steel bowl and add around 2 tablespoon olive oil into it, take the dough from the machine, form into a ball and use that ball, to wipe the interior of the bowl with the oil. Clingfilm on top and off into the oven until the dough has more than doubled.

 

Now it’s elbow grease time. Turn out the dough on a floured surface, punch down and start kneading, until the dough has a semi soft/hard feeling. It just should not be sticky anymore. Now I knead in some grated cheese (sharp cheddar or Parmesan is nice), 3 tablespoons of sesame seeds. Divide the dough into half and into one of the halves, knead in about 2 tablespoons of freshly chopped Rosemary. Pinch off small lumps of the dough, roll into a ball and then into long ropes. Once the rope has the thickness and length you want, sprinkle some semi coarse salt along the top of the rope and roll gently back and forth,  that is enough to get the salt to adhere.

Lay the ropes onto a baking tray lined with baking paper and once full, off into the oven (170 Degrees Celsius) until golden brown.

 

My daughter just came home from school with a friend and both just started munching. I swear these are so easy to make and once you have tried them, you will NEVER, EVEEEERRRRRR buy them from a store again. I wanted them for my husband’s birthday tomorrow, but I think I will have to make some more.

Home made Grisini is no rocket science, just very nice to have a machine to help you knead. I have found that especially with yeast based breads, the amount of water depends also on the brand of flour and also the warmth and humidity of the day. As I can never know, which brand I will be getting here, and the weather being so unpredictable, I sorta wing it most of the time, I rely more on the feel and look of the dough, if it looks and feels right, it usually is.

 

Experiment with what you put into the dough, I think, tomorrow I will omit the cheese and just add garlic and rosemary

Sweethearts



Small sweethearts that my daughter made for her friends, coloured sugar pressed and cut out with small heart cutters.  Originally thought to sweeten tea, her friends ate them straight out of the packets when my daughter handed them out yesterday in school.

We found the free downloadable and absolutely cute stickers here:

http://www.livinglocurto.com/2009/01/valentine-freebies/

Recipe for the hearts is here

http://suchprettythings.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/02/sugar-hearts.html

Valentine macarons

A couple of days late, I know, BUT school is restarting tomorrow and my daughter wanted to make something special for her friends, especially since one of them dared her to make them.

Now, who can resist a dare???

Not us, so here they are. Macarons with a Valentines' twist

Hot pink raspberry flavoured macarons with a strawberry/lavender filling

Kathleen, these are for you

Mavis and Hotel Transylvania

Today's cake is for Natascha, who loves Mavis and Hotel Transylvania. I had to google the film, as I had never heard of it before. I think I might have to buy it, sounds interesting. Anyway, here is the cake, had real fun making it.
Happy birthday Natascha, hard to believe, that the little girl I met years ago shortly after we arrived in Shanghai, is turning 10 already

The "Birthday Boy" with his cake

Just got this in today, picture of the cake, where you can see, how large it was in reality

Thank you, Herr Matter, for allowing me to post this wonderful picture

Mango/Banana Smoothie for a healthy breakfast

Mango/Banana Smoothie for a healthy breakfast

1 mango

2 bananas

2 tablespoons plain joghurt, I make my own

2 teaspoons bourbon vanilla sugar

1 cup freshly pressed orange juice

1 ½ cups milk

Cut open mango and scoop out all the flesh. Peel bananas and put into blender together with all other ingredients. Turn on blender and let run for around 1 minute, till mixture is nice and frothy.

Pour into glasses and serve

And did you guys notice the etched leaves on the glass? Here it is again

Well these glasses were etched by lil ole me

 

Blueberry muffins with a cinnamon streusel topping

Last night, I suddenly felt like making something else for breakfast this morning. Having had bought so many blueberries at the wetmarket on sunday, I thought, why not make some fresh blueberry muffins for breakfast. To cut down on the time I would need this morning, I went into the kitchen and weighed everything out. I premade the streusel and mixed all dry ingredients together. All I had to do this morning, was melt the butter, pour the cold milk in and add the egg. Mixing the dough went quickly, as everything was ready and waiting. I switched on the oven, as soon as I came down and BEFORE making my coffee, so that by the time I had filled the muffin liners, the oven was ready.

Seeing my daughter's face, when she came down for breakfast made the half hour worth while, that I had to get up earlier

Blueberry muffins with a cinnamon streusel  topping

Ingredients:  

160 gr all-purpose flour

140 gr sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

60 gr butter, melted and cooled

1 egg

90 ml milk

120 gr fresh blueberries

Topping:

120 gr sugar

50 gr all-purpose flour

60 gr butter, cubed

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C. Line muffin tin with liners. (Done last night)

Combine all dry ingredients. 

Then mix egg with cooled butter and milk and stir well to break up the egg. Pour into the dry ingredients and incorporate. Fold in the blueberries. Fill liners ¾ way up.

To Make Crumb Topping: 

Mix together  sugar,  flour,  butter, and  cinnamon. Get your hands in there and mix well, rub the flour and sugar into the butter, until you have fine streusels, you don’t want them too large, as the muffin tops do not have that much space. Sprinkle the Streusel onto the filled liner and gently press them, so that they adhere to the dough.

Bake for about 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done.

I made 13 muffins with this recipe

Pecanbrownies with a twist

Pecanbrownies with a twist

 

 Served with chocolate sauce, strawberries and blueberries, photo thanks to my beautiful daughter

My nifty brownie pan

 see how rich and dark my home made vanilla extract is?

 

Into my pan, which has been brushed with pan release

 

But now for the recipe

 

Ingredients:

 



200 gr dark chocolate

120 gr butter

50 mls red wine

2 large eggs

100 gr brown sugar

60 gr white granulated sugar

2 teaspoons home made vanilla sugar

2 teaspoon natural vanilla extract (I make my own)

80 gr flour

30 gr cocoa powder

200 gr chopped pecans

 

The how to:

 

Melt the chocolate in the butter (microwave) and make sure it’s melted completely, stir smooth and let it cool down.

Mix flour and cocoa powder and set aside

In a clean bowl, whip the eggs with the sugars until thick and creamy, add vanilla extract. When nice and thick, mix in the cooled chocolate/ butter mixture and then the red wine.

Sieve the flour mixture on top and beat in. Add in the pecans at the end and fold in

 

Pour into brownie pan and bake at 160 degrees Celsius for around 15 to 20 minutes. The cake is done, when moist crumbs stick to your toothpick, but the top looks dry, I think 15 minutes is enough

Wolfsbarsch auf einem Bett von Zitronenreis

Ich hatte gestern ueberhaupt keine Ahnung, was ich kochen sollte. Auch hatte ich gar keine Lust gestern durch den Smog von Shanghai zu laufen und mir etwas vom Markt zu holen, der Smog is momentan echt schlimm.

Also Kuehlschrank auf, die Gefriertruhe auch und reingeguckt. Naja, vielleicht war es ja ganz gut so, weil da ist ja noch recht viel drin. Als erstes fiel mein Blick auf eine Schuessel gekochtem Reis.Hmmh, der muss weg und einfach wegschmeissen? Nee, nee, das geht mal ueberhaupt nicht. In der Gefriertruhe waren auch noch genug Fischfilets, da wir ja vor 2 Wochen eine Grosspackung Fischfilets geholt hatten. Also erstmals 2 Filets rausgeholt, und zuerst einmal Internetsurfen. Da war aber nichts, was mich so richtig gereizt hatte. Also musste ich meine grauen Zellen anstrengen.
Da fiel mir die Paeckchen ein, die ich damals mit Couscous gemacht hatte, so in etwa koennte es doch werden, die kamen ja auch spergut bei meinen Lieben an.

Also, rein in die Kueche und ausprobieren
 

Im Ofen gebackene Wolfsbarschfilet auf einem Bett von Zitronen/Rosmarin Reis

Oven baked Seabass fillet on a bed of lemony/rosemary Rice

2 grosse Fischfilet, 2 large filets of fish

Saft von 2 Zitronen, juice of two lemons

2 Zweige Rosmarin, gehackt, 2 twigs rosemary, finely chopped

Halbe grosse Zwiebel, half of a large onion

4 Knoblauchzehen, 4 cloves of garlic

3 Tassen gekochter Reis, 3 cups cooked rice

2 ½ Essl. Butter, 2 ½ tablespoons butter

4 Essl. gehackte Fruehlingszwiebeln. 4 Tablespoons minced spring onion

Zwiebel mit Knoblauch fein hacken

Finely chop onion with the garlic

Butter zerlassen und Zwiebelgemisch dazugeben

Melt butter in a large frying pan and add onions

Wenn die Zwiebel glasig ist, Rosmarin dazugeben, kurz mitbraten.

When the onions are softened, add the rosemary and fry a bit longer

 Den Reis mit in die Pfanne geben, gut vermengen.

Add rice into frying pan and heat through

 Mit Zitronensaft und Salz abschmecken.

Add lemon juice and salt to taste

Zum Schluss 4 Essloeffel gehackte Fruehlingszwiebel mit reingeben und erhitzen

At the end add the spring onions and heat through again

Fish

4 grosse Stuecke Backpapier zurechtschneiden

Cut three pieces of baking paper

Auf jedem Stueck papier in die Mitte den Reis loeffeln

Arrange the rice down the middle of each

Die Fischfilets jeweils halbieren und mit etwas Zitronensaft traeuffeln und mit Dijon Senf beschmieren

Cut each filet in half and drizzle some lemon juice onto each piece and smear with Dijon mustard

Auch mit Salz und Pfeffer wuerzen

Den Fisch auf den Reis legen und die Paeckchen gut verschliessen

Salt and pepper the filets and lay a piece of fish on each bed of rice

In eine Auflaufform geben und im vorgeheiztem Ofen ca 25 minuten backen

Wrap and place into baking dish

Put into a preheated oven and bake for about 20 minutes

Mercedes Silberpfeil aus dem Jahr 1937

Ein echtes Schaetzchen, irgendwie haben die alten Autos alle mehr Charakter fuer mich, als ihre neueren Modelle.

Letzte Woche wurde ich gebeten, doch bitte dieses Auto als Torte zu modellieren.

1.5 kg Butter, 24 Eier, l liter Schokoganache und keine Ahnung wieviele Stunden spaeter, wurde dieses "Baby" geboren. Ein Frankfurter Kranz in Autoform.

Buchteln, gefuellt mit Erdbeer/Lavendel Marmelade

Buchteln, gefuellt mit Erdbeer/Lavendel Marmelade

German old fashioned dessert rolls, filled with strawberry/lavender jam

Zutaten:

500 gr Mehl (flour)

1 ½ Essloeffeln Trockenhefe,(tablespoon dried yeast)

50 gr Zucker (sugar)

2 Teel. Bourbonvanillezucker (2 teaspoon bourbon vanillasugar)

80 gr Butter

2 grosse Eier (large eggs)

1 teel. Salz (salt)

Geriebene Schale einer Zitrone (zest of one lemon)

Erdbeer/Lavendel marmelade (Strawberry/lavender jam)

40 gr Butter fuer die Form ( Butter to butter the pan)

1 Eigelb (egg yolk)

Milch mit Butter erwaermen, sodass die Butter schmilzt, kurz abkuehlen lassen bis lauwarm

Heat the butter in the milk, so that the butter melts, let cool down until it’s just a bit warm

Alle trockenen Zutaten in den Mixer geben und einmal trocken laufen lassen, sodas sich alles vermengt

Put all dry ingredients into your mixer and let it run, so that the ingredients are well mixed

Die Eier in die lauwarme Milch verquirlen

Mix in the eggs into the warm milk and combine well

Feuchte Zutaten in das Mael schuetten und den Mixer  ca 10 Minuten laufen lassen

Add the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and let the machine knead the dough for about 10 minutes

Aufgehen lassen, bis sich der Teig verdoppelt hat

Cover and let rise, till the dough has doubled

Auf eine bemehlte Arbeitsflaeche geben und nochmals gut durchkneten

Dump the dough onto a floured surface and knead through well

Eine Auflaufform oder Springform mit zerlassener Butter auspinseln

Melt some butter and butter a cakepan or casserole dish well

Kleine Kugeln formen, flach druecken und in die Mitte etwas Erdbeer/Lavendel marmalade (oder andere) hineingeben. Die Seiten hochbringen und gut zusammenkneifen. Mit der zusammengekneiften Seite in die Form legen. Etwas Abstand lassen, das der Teig wieder gehen soll

Break off bits of dough and roll into balls. Flatten them and put some strawberry/lavender jam inside.  Bring up the sides and pinch well together. Place them seam side down into the baking dish. Leave some space in between, as the dough will rise again.

Restliche Butter auf die Buchteln pinseln und nochmals aufgehen lassen, gut abdecken.

Brush the left over butter onto the rolls, cover with cling wrap and let rise again.

Eigelb mit einem Schluck Milch verquirlen und auf die Buchteln pinseln.

Beat the egg yolk with a tablespoon of milk and brush onto the tops of the rolls.

Im vorgeheiztem Ofen (160 gr Umluft) ca 20-25 Minuten backen

Shove the pan into a preheated oven (fan forced 160 degrees Celsius) and bake for around 20-25 Minutes

Mit Vanillesosse oder einer Kugel Vanilleeis servieren

Serve with either a vanillasauce or vanilla icecream