german whole wheat strawberry cake recipe (biskuit rolle)

My day started out pretty bad. My kids were cranky beyond my patience!!

So, when I tried out my first Erdbeer Biskuit Rolle ever I was surprised to have accomplished at least something which had a positive feedback. Anyhow, my mother made this cake in all kinds of fruit variations (raspberries, peaches, apricots, mangoes, currants and so on) but my personal favorite is still strawberry. My husband told me that this dessert reminded him of a strawberry shortcake, which of course I have to try out as well.

ingredients:

4 eggs
3 tbsp water
1 pinch of salt
125 g brown sugar
75 g whole white wheat flour
50 g cornstarch
400 ml heavy cream
400 g strawberries



what you do: 

• preheat the oven at 390 Fahrenheit
• separate the eggs
• beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff
• beat the egg yolk with the 3 tbsp of water and 75 g of the sugar until it bubbles, add the egg white and than add carefully the flour and cornstarch. Do not over stir it.
• pour the batter in a rectangular shape on a flat baking sheet lined with parchment paper. It should be 1/4 inch thick. (use a spatula to get the desired thickness)
• bake for 10 minutes
• prepare a dish towel, lay it flat and sprinkle some sugar on top
• flip the crust on top of it (remove parchment paper) and roll it up immediately 
• let it cool down
• cut the strawberries in little pieces
• beat the heavy cream until firm
• add the rest of the sugar and the strawberries
• refrigerate the strawberry creme until the crust is cool.
• fill the crust with 2/3 of the creme, roll it up again.
• cover with the rest of the creme, decorate with some strawberries and chocolate sprinkles

Guten Appetit!

rote gruetze / summer dessert a la German recipe

The summer is here!!! We finally got to go strawberry picking and we picked a lot!!!

So I started with freezing most of them (no way we can eat them all fresh) and I also cooked a big pot of Rote Gruetze, one of my very favorite summer deserts. The fruit mix is up to you, this time I only used strawberries (since I have tons of them, but traditionally it is a fruit mix of strawberries, cherries, raspberries and currants.

ingredients for 4 servings:


400 g strawberries (or a mix of berries, cherries etc)
400 ml apple juice or similar
1 tbsp kirschwasser or any other fruit schnapps
vegetable based gelatin use as instructed by manufacture
(you can also use cornstarch instead)




how to get there:

• clean the strawberries and puree them in a food processor.
• pour in a large pot the strawberries, add the juice, snaps and the gelatin, stir well and bring to boil.
• stir until the gruetze starts to thicken, about 5 minutes.
• let it cool down and serve with ice, vanilla pudding or vanilla sauce

enjoy!

simple whole wheat lemon cake recipe

simple whole wheat lemon cake

You need:

125 g butter (room temperature)

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

3 organic lemons (clean with hot water)

1 cup maple syrup

1 cup kefir

3 eggs

• preheat your oven to 325° Fahrenheit
• generously butter the cake pan
• cream the butter, and slowly pour in the maple syrup. 
• beat in the eggs and add the lemon zest and juice as well as the kefir.
• mix the dry ingredients in a bowl and add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients  
• bake at 325 Fahrenheit for 30-45 minutes. The cake is done when a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. 

I made this cake for my little ones. The cake is really moist and a big hit. I try to limit their sugar intake and have for that reason skipped the lemon glazing.

lemon glazing:

keep the lemon zest for the glazing, add 2 tbsp lemon juice and add powdered sugar. Mix well and cover the cake with it. 

Guten Appetit!

sweet potato pancake recipe (Kartoffelpuffer inspired)

Kartoffelpuffer tastes like home for me!!! It is greasy, I admit, but just too good to live without it.

Today I tried it with sweet potatoes instead of the normal cooking potatoes. I loved the result and so did my family.

So the ingredients of the day for 4 servings are:

1 kg sweet potatoes 

1 onion

1 tsp salt

8 tbsp flour (whole wheat)

3 eggs

frying oil

pepper

how you get there:

• peel the potatoes
• grate them, twist them in a dish towel to get the water out
• do I make sense???
• mince the onion
• beat the eggs lightly, add flour, salt and pepper and at last add the potatoes and onion
• heat the frying pan over medium heat, add vegetable oil or butter
• fry little pancakes, press them thin
• flip when they start to get golden brown
• serve hot with apple sauce

tip: if you like it fruity you can also mix a couple of peeled and grated apples in the batch.

Guten Apettit!!!

almond rice pudding (german style) recipe

Since it is raining (still!!!) my craving for something sweet is enormous and rice pudding jumped right into my head. I was out of milk and used almond milk and the result was better than I even imagined.

you need for 4-5 servings:

           1 l   almond milk (classic would be whole milk)

          60 g   butter

         250 g   arborio rice (any short grain will do, 

                 but brown rice does not work well)

        1 tbsp   cinnamon

        1 tbsp   maple syrup

        1 pinch  salt

• melt the butter in a large pot
• add the rice
• salt to taste
• add 1/2 cup of almond milk at a time until absorbed, repeat until all the almond milk is gone. you will need to steer it constantly so it won't burn.
• add the cinnamon
• when the rice looks really creamy you are done.
• you can eat it hot or cold
• sprinkle with some cinnamon and maple syrup if you like it extra sweet.

Note: combine with apple sauce or cherries.......

guten appetit!!

garlic pizza recipe (german style)

If you like garlic and pizza you will be in heaven. For this pizza dough you won't need any yeast and therefore no rising time is involved. The crust should be almost paper thin for best results.

for 2 pizzas you need:

220 g flour (I use whole wheat)

100 ml/g water

3 tbsp olive oil

1 egg yolk

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbsp creme fraiche (or sour creme)

2 garlic bulbs (I know!)

200 g aged cheddar

fresh thyme

2 tbsp olive oil for drizzle

• mix flour, water, olive oil, salt and egg yolk in a bowl to a smooth dough.
• divide the dough into 2 equal pieces and wrap in plastic foil.
• let rest for 30 minutes at room temperature
• preheat the oven at 430 Fahrenheit
• cut the garlic super thin
• grate the cheese
• roll the dough super thin in 2 ca 11" diameter pizza
• sprinkle with olive oil
• spread the 1 tbsp creme fraiche on each pizza
• add garlic and thyme
• salt and pepper to taste
• top with cheese
• bake for about 15 minutes on bottom rack.

 Guten Appetit!

Tip: serve with tomato salad

apple pancake recipe (apfelpfannkuchen)

This following recipe is from my sister in-law. It has a twist to the most common pfannkuchen which traditionally is eaten with apple sauce and sweetened with sugar and cinnamon.

you need:

3 eggs

375 ml milk

250 g flour

3 apples (grated)

1 pinch salt

• grade the apples (preferable peeled)
• mix all ingredients in a bowl, add grated apples at the end when the batter is well mixed
• heat a lightly oiled frying pan over medium high heat
• scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/2 cup for each pancake
• brown on both sides and serve hot 
• sweet with sugar and cinnamon as desired.