ANZAC biscuits on ANZAC DAY

Today is Anzac Day (25 April), a public holiday,  here in Australia and New Zealand and it's a day to commemorate the fallen soldiers in World War 1. It marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War. ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

Traditionally baked on ANZAC DAY are the ANZAC biscuits, an oat biscuits that is easy to make and very scrumptious. In fact, it's one of my daughter's favourite biscuits also because she can almost make them by herself. You basically  just need cup - and spoon measurements for this recipe and then you stir the dry with the wet ingredients together. Easy! I still melt the butter and golden syrup on the stove and let her watch as I am a bit wary about flames and heat. Other than that it's an easy recipe to whip up in a few minutes.

I have also added caramel to the mix to create this caramel ANZAC biscuit, just for a little twist but if you want the traditional way just omit them.

Recipe for ANZAC biscuits

Ingredients:

1 cup plain flour

1 cup good-quality whole rolled oats

1 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup of caramel bits (optional)

3/4 cup, firmly packed brown sugar or caster sugar

125g butter

2 tbsp golden syrup

2 tbsp water

1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Method:

• Preheat oven to 160˚C. Line 2 baking trays with non-stick baking paper.
• Combine flour, oats, coconut, caramel bits (if using) and sugar in a large bowl.
• Stir butter, golden syrup and water in a small sauce pan over low heat until the butter melts and the mixture is smooth.
• Stir in the bicarbonate of soda. Add to the oat mixture and stir with a fork until well combined.
• Roll tablespoonfuls of the mixture into balls and place, about 4cm apart, on the lined trays. Bake, swapping trays to upper and lower oven shelves halfway through baking, for 15-18 minutes, or until lightly golden.
• Set aside for 10 minutes to cool before transferring to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container for a week.

Happy Easter!

 

Happy Easter to all of you. Have a wonderful break and lots of yummy food!

Kale and pear quiches

Today was a whooping nice day, it felt like 30˚C and it also happened to be a Sunday - yippee!
That's definitely beach weather we thought and started early, or at least tried, to get to the beach. We weren't alone and by the time we got there, it was already quite busy. Never mind, with coffee and ice- cream in hand we walked through the sand and found a nice spot.
The thing with the Australian sun is though, I can never bear her for long. So, after two hours we packed our stuff and strolled through Surry Hills, were they had a music festival of some sort. Bands played at different shops, cafes and along Crown Street to entertain the passers by.

On Crown Street is also a very nice grocery store/deli where I bought some nice ingredients for our dinner. Kale, pears, smoked bacon and sour cream shortcrust pastry from Careme. If you haven't come across these guys from the Barossa, you must. Of course, to make shortcrust pastry yourself is not difficult but if you short for time or can't be bothered, then try Careme.

The combination of kale and pear works really well, and the bacon and Gruyere give a lot of
yummy savoury flavour. The sour cream in the pastry makes it so flaky, it's more like puff pastry.
Delish!

Kale and pear mini quiches

Makes six

1 pack (375g) sour cream shortcrust pastry, Careme

 

4 smoked bacon rashers, rind removed

150 g kale, stems removed

100g  Gruyere cheese, grated

3 eggs

125 ml thickened cream

125 ml milk

1 large pear

Preheat oven to 200˚C. Roll pastry out on a lightly floured surface, then cut into six squares so that they are large enough to line the tin base and sides. Cut away any excess pastry from the edges. Prick bases with a fork a few times. Chill for 15 minutes.

Put tarts on a baking tray. Line the tarts with baking paper and fill with pastry weights or uncooked lentils. Blind bake in the oven for 10 minutes, then remove paper and weights and bake for a further 5 minutes or until pastry is golden. Remove and set aside.

For the filling chopped bacon and cook in a frying pan over low heat until bacon is brown and crisp. Add chopped kale and ½ cup of water and cook over medium heat until kale is soft and water has completely evaporated. Set aside to cool.

Once cooled sprinkle bacon and kale over the six bases, followed by the grated Gruyere cheese. 

Whisk together eggs, cream and milk, then carefully pour the egg mixture over the bacon.

Finely slice the pear with a mandolin and place a few slices on top of each filling.

Return quiches to the hot oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden and set.

Serve with a green salad.

Sago (tapioca) pudding with ginger-caramel and coconut ice-cream

At a restaurant I once had sago pudding inspired by the Malayan sago gula melaka. Whenever my grandmother would make Rote Gruetze, a berry dessert from North Germany, she would use sago to thicken the sauce. In this dessert sago itself becomes the main ingredient which I really like. After cooking the sago you need to rinse it under cold running water to remove the starch which makes it very sticky, but let me assure you, the beaten egg white makes all light and fluffy again. The sago has no sugar in it as the sweetness completely comes from the syrup and ice-cream. The coconut milk adds a refreshing note to it and prevents it from becoming too sweet.

My mother-in-law once gave me little Buddha moulds which I think are fun to make the sago pudding in. I made this dessert for German friends visiting Sydney as it is nothing you would necessarily come across in Europe and it's also great to prepare ahead.

 

Sago pudding with ginger-caramel sauce

300g sago
1 egg white
200g palm sugar, chopped
½ cup water
4 tbsp white sugar
2 cm piece ginger, peeled, sliced
1small can coconut milk


Bring a large pan of water to the boil and when boiling, add sago. Stir frequently as the water returns to the boil, to avoid them sticking. The sago will float to the surface and be transparent when cooked. Strain and rinse with cold water a couple of times to remove the starch.
In a clean bowl beat the egg white until soft peaks form. Add sago, stir to combine and pour into four jelly moulds. Cover with cling film and refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.
Stir palm sugar and water over medium heat until sugar has dissolved. Stir in white sugar. Stir until completely dissolved. Add ginger and simmer for about 5 minutes, or until syrup has thickened slightly. Strain through a fine sieve into a pouring jug and refrigerate for approximately 1 hour.
Carefully turn sago puddings out onto plates and serve topped with a little of the coconut milk and syrup, accompanied by the coconut ice-cream and toasted coconut.


Quick coconut ice-ceam

For this you need an ice-cream maker.
(makes approx 4 cups)

1 cup coconut cream
1 1/4 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk


Place coconut cream and both milks into a large jug and refrigerate until cold (at least an hour).
Pour mixture into an ice-cream maker and churn until finished. Put in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to two week.

Serve with toasted shredded coconut.

Apricot chicken recipe

Recently I made apricot chicken for Sunday dinner and it proved to be quite popular. 
It's such an easy recipe, nothing fancy but yummy. However, it has nothing to do with the old-fashioned recipe that uses French onion soup powder and canned apricots. I first used fresh apricots which work as well but dried ones are more my taste and available all year round.

I love the sweetness through the dried apricots and the crunch through roasted almonds.
Ras el Hanout, a Moroccan spice blend adds a nice warmth to it, perfect for autumn weather (that inspiration I took from Janelle Bloom's cookbook). Ras el hanout translates as "head of the shop" and implies the blend uses only the best spices the seller has to offer. Depending on where its purchased the blend of spices will vary though.

Mine is from Herbie's in Sydney and it lists Paprika, Cumin, Ginger, Coriander Seed, Cassia, Turmeric, Fennel Seed, Allspice, Cardamom Green, Dill Seed, Galangal, Nutmeg, Orris root, Bay Leaves, Caraway Seed, Cayenne, Cloves, Mace, Black Pepper, Brown Cardamom, Whole Kashmiri Saffron Stigma. What an extensive list and it smells truly amazing.

Apricot chicken recipe

1 kg chicken boneless chicken thighs, trimmed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 brown onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons Moroccan spice blend such as Ras el Hanout
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup apricot nectar
40g dried apricots, halved
2 tablespoons flaked almonds, toasted
1 handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Heat oil in a large casserole dish and fry the chicken on each side until golden. Remove from casserole and set aside. Saute onion and garlic on medium-low heat until softened. Add spice mix and fry until fragrant. Add stock, apricot nectar, apricots and chicken thighs and bring to the boil. Turn down heat to a simmer and cook, covered, for 20-25 minutes or until chicken pieces are cooked through. Remove chicken thighs and boil sauce until slightly reduced. Add chicken and season.
Serve sprinkled with almonds and parsley.

Serve with brown rice or couscous.

Vegan Banana Cake

I am not sure why I thought of making a vegan banana cake as so far I have been making a very traditional one and it always turned out nicely. But then there is so much talk about the so-
called superfoods which I liked to try in a cake. There are some superfoods I would  not touch, no matter how healthy they might be but chia seeds have become one of our favourite seeds in our family. They are so versatile and don't really taste like much but sprinkled on a smoothie it adds a nice crunch to it. Don't let them sit too long though or they become soggy and starting to gel. Funny seed that is.

The chia and almond spread is from the health food section at Coles which seems to be widely available. I bought the spread because it somehow attracted me without knowing what I am going to do with it in the first place.
It actually works well instead of peanut butter but also adds nice flavour to the cake.

 

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Vegan banana bread

30g linseed (finely ground, I used a coffee grinder)

150ml canola oil

200g plain flour

50g wholemeal flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
 a good pinch of mixed spice

200 g brown sugar

2 ripe bananas

2 tablespoons chia and almond spread

Preheat oven to 180C. Stir together linseed and oil and let sit. Combine both flours, baking powder, spices and sugar in a large bowl. In another bowl mash bananas and mix with chia and almond spread and linseed-oil mixture. Combine dry and wet ingredients and stir until thoroughly combined. Fill into a Gugelhupf or loaf tin and bake for 30-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with icing sugar.

French Toast a la Kate Gibbs

A little while ago Kate Gibbs, Margaret Fulton's granddaughter, visited us at Breville and talked about her new cook book "After Toast". She had also made a 12 hour/80°C slow-cooked pork shoulder with brown sugar crust in the Breville Sous Vide. It was devine.
I am so intrigued to get my hands on one of those sous vides soon, especially after she mentioned how perfect it is for BBQ parties. She tends to sous-vide steak beforehand and just slaps it on the hot grill when the guests are there. Et Voila; always the perfect steak with a beautiful char grilled smokey finish. Sounds good to me.

Her new cook book is aiming at the aspiring cook and is filled with easy-to-make recipes. It will give you inspiration for breakfast, lunch and dinner yet also has delicious ideas for snacks and desserts.
The photography and styling is beautiful and they went to my favourite farmers market at Eveleigh for the market shots. Very nice!

Happy winner of the After Toast cook book.

This weekend I could no longer resist to try her recipe for spoonable French toast with maple berries. I am in love with raspberries at the moment and the combination of custard bread, maple syrup and tart berries really resonated with me.

As Kate puts it her take on the classic French dish is ideal for the sleepy-headed at breakfast time.
Instead of individually frying them and tossing them the whole dish goes in the oven and is spooned out. It's ideal to share and easy to make. 

There is no actual photo of the finished recipe in the book but that is how my French toast a la Kate Gibbs looked like.

Here is Kate's recipe for French toast

500 ml milk
3 free-range eggs
zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon caster sugar (see note)
1 tsp vanilla extract
10g butter (oh yes, use butter, it's French after all)
6-8 slices yesterdays bread, cut into triangles
125g raspberries, fresh or frozen
1 tbsp maple syrup
yoghurt, to serve

Preheat oven to 180degrees.
Whisk together milk, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla extract.
Butter a 20cm baking dish and arrange half the bread slices in the dish. Scatter most of the raspberries over, then top with remaining bread slices. Pour milk mixture over the top, then decorate with remaining raspberries. Drizzle with maple syrup and let it all soak for 10 minutes.
Now bake for 45-50min, or until golden brown on top but still soft inside.
Serve with dollops of yoghurt.

Now, I actually added 1 tablespoon of caster sugar to the milk mixture and instead of yoghurt used double cream. I know it's so much fatter but then again, it's so French! I also used a loaf tin and layered the slices in a different way but it works just as fine.
Can't resist maple syrup so would definitely serve some extra to drizzle over when scooped on the plate. Delicious!

Cassie's Charity Bake Sale

My dear colleague Cassandra baked all week and through the night for her charity bake sale on Valentine's Day - truly amazing! Everything looked so beautiful and she made over $700 which she gave to a local animal rescue centre. Good on ya, Cassie!

There were cakes, cupcakes, gluten free cupcakes, caramel popcorn, chocolate bark, peanut brittle, shortbread hearts, cake pops and pink meringue kisses.

I bought the chocolate bark and peanut brittle and both were delicious. For the recipes check out Cassandra's blog Food is my friend. 

January Daring Bakers Challenge - filled speculaas cake

Francijn of Koken in de Brouwerij was our January 2013 Daring Bakers’ Hostess and she challenged us to make the traditional Dutch pastry, Gevulde Speculaas from scratch! That includes making our own spice mix, almond. 

Let us start with a little history, about the Netherlands and spices, Francijn shared with us:

Until 1800 cloves, mace and nutmeg are exclusively found on the Maluku Islands, in the East Indian Archipelago. That's why these islands are called “the spice islands”.
To make one's fortune in Europe through the spice trade, one needed a monopoly on the European trade. Since 1500 the Portuguese owned that monopoly.
The Republic of the Seven United Netherlands, too, wanted to get rich from the spice trade, and established the Dutch East India Company around 1600, to join forces. Since 1660 the monopoly on spice trade was firmly in Dutch hands. In the Dutch Golden Age, roughly the 17th century, the republic got rich through this trade, and flourished like never before, economically, artistically and scientifically. In many Dutch cities the heritage of this century is still visible. Sadly, this wealth must be considered in the light of war and repression. The Dutch used much violence and oppressed people to establish and defend their monopoly.
Only after World War II Dutch India became independent from the Netherlands. Until that moment the trade of spices, coffee, rubber, tobacco, opium, sugar, indigo and tea from Dutch India contributed significantly to the Dutch economy.

Speculaas spices
When spices had become commonly available in the 17th century, bakers' guilds began to make their secret spice mixtures. A mixture that gloriously survived the ages is “speculaaskruiden” (speculaas spices). Speculaaskruiden contain at least cinnamon, cloves, mace and ginger, and these spices to taste: pepper, cardamom, coriander, anise seeds and nutmeg.
The smell of speculaaskruiden is overwhelming, especially when you take the trouble to mix them yourself. The deliciously warm and woody aroma is a perfect fit for the chilly Dutch winter months.
From the golden age onward, this spice mixture was used to bake a crisp, buttery biscuit: speculaas. For centuries it remained a luxury item, baked only in the holiday season, and often given as a present. Sometimes bakers made the dough three months in advance so that the flavor would permeate the dough.
Ever since the 15th century, the 6th of December has been celebrated as the nameday of St. Nicholas, combined with an exchange of gifts on the evening before. But in the age of the Dutch East India Company St. Nicholas became associated with speculaas. And that is not so strange, as St. Nicholas was the patron saint of sailors as well as many bakers' guilds.

 

Recipe Speculaas Spices
Speculaas spices can be bought in a store. But it's more fun to make your own mixture, so that you can adjust the flavor. Here is a representative recipe from the extensive Dutch tradition.
Mandatory:
Cinnamon 40 to 60 % of the total amount
Ground cloves 1 or 2 parts
Mace ½ or 1 part
Ginger ½ or 1 part
Optional:
White pepper ½ or 1 part
Cardamom ½ or 1 part
Coriander ½ or 1 part
Star anise ½ or 1 part
Nutmeg 1 or 2 parts
A convenient way to mix the spices is as follows:
Take at least 1 or 2 teaspoons of ground cloves, ½ or 1 teaspoon of mace and ½ or 1 teaspoon of ginger.
Add to taste ½ or 1 teaspoon of white pepper, ½ or 1 teaspoon of cardamom, ½ or 1 teaspoon of coriander, ½ or 1 teaspoon of anise, and 1 or 2 teaspoons of nutmeg.
Measure or weigh the amount of spices you have now, and add an equal amount of cinnamon.
This method yields at least 4 and at most 18 teaspoons of spices, so if you plan to mix just a few spices, use bigger or more spoons to get a reasonable amount.
Take your time to smell the ingredients individually before you decide how much to add. And remember the proportions, that will make adjustments easier next time.
Store the spices airtight, dry and dark, they will not spoil for a long time.

Recipe Almond Paste
As we are going to make stuffed speculaas, we will need almond paste. You can buy it in a store, but homemade almond paste tastes better.
Ingredients:
125g raw almonds or ground almonds
125g granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon lemon zest
Grind the almonds for one or two minutes in a food processor, until you see nothing but very small pieces. (Or skip this step if you use ground almonds.)
Add the sugar, and grind for another one or two minutes. It must be very fine after this step. Add the egg and let the food processor combine it - if it is powerful enough. Otherwise you will have to combine it with your fingers. Store the almond paste in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Although the flavor gets better as days pass by, it is not wise to store the paste for too long, as it contains a raw egg. For the same reason you should not eat the paste unbaked.

Recipe Speculaas Dough
Ingredients:
250g all purpose (plain) flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
150g brown sugar
A pinch salt
2 tablespoons speculaas spices
175g unsalted butter
Method:
Put flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and spices in a bowl.
Cut the butter in dices and add.
Knead until smooth.
Feel free to add a little milk if the dough is too dry.
Wrap in clingfoil and put in the refrigerator for two hours.
You can choose to make the dough a few days in advance, just like the almond paste, that will benefit the flavor. Freezing is no problem.

Assembling and baking the Gevulde Speculaas
Ingredients:
speculaas dough
almond paste
whole almonds without skins for decoration
1 large egg
shallow baking pan, 8x10 inch (20x26 cm) or, round with of diameter 10 inch (26 cm)
Directions:
1. Grease the pan.
2. Preheat the oven to moderate 350°F/180°C/gas 4
3. Divide the dough into two portions.
4. Roll out both portions on a lightly floured surface, until they are exactly as big as the baking pan.
5. Put one of the layers in the pan and press it lightly to fill the bottom.
6. Lightly beat the egg with a teaspoon cold water.
7. Smear 1/3 of the egg over the dough in the pan.
8. Roll out the almond paste between two sheets of clingfoil, until it is exactly as big as the pan, and put it on the dough in the pan. (If you chose to make the paste soft, you can smear the paste instead of rolling it.)
9. Press the paste lightly down to fit in the pan, and smear the next 1/3 of the egg over it.
10. Now put the second layer of dough on top of the paste, press it lightly, and make as smooth as possible.
11. Smear the last 1/3 of the egg over the dough.
12. Decorate the pastry with the almonds.
13. Bake for 40 minutes in the preheated oven.
14. Let cool completely in the pan, then cut it in portions as you like.
15. If you wrap the stuffed speculaas in clingfoil, after it has cooled completely, you can store it a few days at room temperature. Freezing is possible, but fresh speculaas tastes better.


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Happy Australia Day with Macca's

Australia Day is nearing (Saturday, 26 Jan) and I am gearing up for a big picnic, as you do on this highest national day. Speaking of said day, last year I was working on a commercial for McDonald's and I think they really nailed it with this ad choc full of Australian-isms.
Australians are very nice people but sometimes hard to understand. I am not just talking about the Aussie twang. They just love to shorten everything as much as possible. Sometimes they even use completely different words no one else uses.
So, if you happen to be from somewhere else (like me) you might not understand a single word they saying in this ad. But don't despair, I have compiled a list of a few words and sayings that will prove to be helpful. I am sure there are heaps more and if you happen to be Australian, let me know what is missing.
And of course McDonald's has a nickname in Australia - locals like to call it Macca's.

Key Australian Slang – Make it short! 
The first thing you can do to get into the lingo is to abbreviate as many words as you possibly can. Here are some examples:
Arvo - Afternoon
Barbie - BBQ and not a Barbie Doll!
Bikkie - Biscuit
Brizzie - Brisbane
Breckie - Breakfast
Chrissie - Christmas
Cozzie - Swimming Costume
Exy - Expensive
Kindie - Kindergarten
Maccas - Macdonalds
Mozzie - Mosquito
Oldies - Parents
Pokies - Poker machines
Trackies - Tracksuit pants
Yewy - Do a U-turn
Reno - Renovation
Sunnies - Sun glasses
Rellies - Relatives
Ute - Utility van
Skandi - Skandinavian

Australian Sayings 
Chuck a sickie - To pretend to be ill so as not to go work (you'll get away with one or two a year)
Fair dinkum - That's absolutely correct
No worries - No problem, will do
G'day mate - Hello
Good on ya! - Good for you
She'll be right - Everything will be OK
Strewth! - Wow! Gosh!

German Lebkuchen

Mmmh, Lebkuchen!
I am not sure how many variations of Lebkuchen there is but the mix of spices is key.
This recipe is great as it makes a large batch and is easy as you don't have to roll or
form by hand.

 

Ingredients

70 g dark chocolate melts
20 g butter, softened
200 g icing sugar, sifted
2 eggs
70 g ground hazelnuts
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons rum or apple juice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon mixed spice
250 g plain flour 

For the icing

180 g icing sugar, sifted
6 EL orange juice or water
125 g glace or candied ginger

Method
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
For the dough, melt chocolate in a water bath, set aside. In a a stand mixer beat butter and icing sugar until pale and creamy. Add all other ingredients and mix until combined. Spread dough into a Swiss roll tin (30x 24cm), smooth top.

Bake in pre-heated oven for 20-30 minutes or until a skewer inseretd into the centre comes 

out clean.

Cool the gingerbread cake in the tin. In the meantime mix together icing sugar and orange juice. Spread icing evenly over cake. Chop glace ginger and sprinkle over the icing. Let set before cutting into squares.

German coconut maceroons

So here is one of our recipes from the magazine…. enjoy baking the light and fluffy coconut macaroons with chocolate base.

Ingredients
3 eggwhites, at room temperature
330 g caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
170 g desiccated coconut
Zest of 1 lemon
150 g dark chocolate, melted
Method
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Place the eggwhites in a bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until soft peaks form. Add the sugar in batches, beating continually, until the mixture becomes stiff and glossy. Add vanilla extract and fold through with a spatula. Add the lemon zest and coconut, in batches, and gently fold through with a spatula until evenly distributed, being careful not to overwork the mixture.
Spoon 2 teaspoonful of batter on a baking tray lined with greased baking paper. Bake in the oven for 10–12 minutes, or until the macaroons are lightly browned.
Gently remove from the baking paper immediately and cool on wire racks. Once cooled dip macaroons in melted chooclate and let set on a wire rack.

Swiss chocolate cookies - Brunsli

 Brunsli (Swiss chocolate cookies)

Only a few sleeps left til Christmas… enough time to bake another batch of cookies… so why not try Brunsli? One of the most popular Swiss Christmas cookies and absolutely delicious with coffee, tea or even a glass of wine.

Ingredients
250 g sugar
250 g ground almonds
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp plain flour
2 egg whites
Pinch of salt
100 g dark chocolate, chopped

Method
Place the sugar, ground almonds, cinnamon and flour in a bowl and mix well.
Use an electric mixer to whisk egg whites and salt until soft peaks form. Gently fold in the sugar-almond mixture with a spatula until just combined. Don’t overwork.
Melt chocolate in a warm water bath and fold gently through the sugar-almond mixture. Form the dough into a ball, cover and let cool at room temparature for about 1 hour.
Dust the work bench with sugar and roll the cookie dough with a rolling pin to about 5mm thickness. Cut into shapes with cookie cutters and place on a lined baking tray.
Let the cookies dry at room temperature for a few hours (best over night). Pre-heat oven to 250 degrees Celsius and bake cookies for 5 min. Remove from baking tray and place on a wire rack to cool.

Happy Holidays

While Christmas bells are chiming, oh, may there come to you
A dear little fairy, who's always good and true;
The little happy fairy, who drives away dull care,
And makes all things upon the earth seem ever bright and fair.
She'll whisper to good Santa to bring what you most wish;
So if you have been longing for a fine pudding dish,
She will not, as in by-gone years, forget and bring to you
Something that you do not want, though beautiful and new.
By Winifred Sackville Stoner Jr.

And a German poem I grew up with:
Markt und Straßen stehn verlassen,
Still erleuchtet jedes Haus,
Sinnend geh' ich durch die Gassen,
Alles sieht so festlich aus.

An den Fenstern haben Frauen
Buntes Spielzeug fromm geschmückt,
Tausend Kindlein stehn und schauen,
Sind so wunderstill beglückt.

Und ich wandre aus den Mauern
Bis hinaus in's freie Feld,
Hehres Glänzen, heil'ges Schauern!

Wie so weit und still die Welt!
Sterne hoch die Kreise schlingen,
Aus des Schneees Einsamkeit
Steigt 's wie wunderbares Singen -
O du gnadenreiche Zeit!
By Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff

 

See the our Christmas ebook at ISSUU.

Merry Christmas with s'more

Icy cold air, snowflakes and twinkling candles on a Christmas tree. The smell of mandarines, peanuts and cinnamon in the air.
Mum or grandma baking Christmas cookies in the kitchen… These are all typical Swiss and/or German Christmas childhood memories.

Living in Australia, where we have a BBQ for Christmas and go to the beach, bringing back some of those memories inspired us to our new magazine for Christmas. So if you want to know what a Brunsli, Mailänderli or a Lebkuchen is, then look no further and get baking.

To keep you going whilst you are baking or just in case you get really hungry, there is a hearty Baked Beans recipe.
And just in case you are searching for gift ideas, why not give some beautifully wrapped home made cookies or if you would like to venture further, have a look at Juliana’s craft project.