Essigbrätlein

The husband and I celebrated our marriage anniversary at a local Michelin star restaurant. It was planned months in advance because for a table at Essigbrätlein you have to book ahead.

We opted for the 6 course pre-fixe meal. The meals change frequently so this is a brief synopsis of our dinner.
To start we had multiple amuse-bouches, one of which was a Brussels sprout leaf wrapped in a creamy filling and another was sunflower seeds with sunflower oil. The sunflower seeds on a spoon were crunchy and salty in one bite. The brussels sprouts were a stand out because the mascarpone like filling was the perfect balance to the fresh leaf.

First course was Trout with Fennel, a largely cubed trout sitting atop sliced fennel and dressed with vinaigrette. Next course was layered mashed potatoes with sauerkraut with soy sauce on the side. The soy sauce reduction seemed odd at first but once we tasted it all together, it worked. One of the most impressive courses of the evening, for me, was the pigeon over black salsify with a hint of horseradish all topped with fried shallots (imagine fried onions on the green bean casserole, but much lighter). The pigeon was pan fried and cooked rare. For never having tasted pigeon, this was the perfect introduction.

Finally dessert course was a chocolate mousse ice cream with crunchy chocolate nibs and chocolate comb. Chocolate comb meaning it looked like a honey comb but solely made out of chocolate. It melted in our mouths as soon as we ate it. I wonder how the comb is made because it was one of the most memorable chocolates I’ve had. Of course, rest of the dessert plate was delicious too.

After reviewing the wine menu, not a lot was tempting and the ones we liked were beyond our price range. Based on our preferences, the server brought an Austrian Blaufränkisch bottle; it paired with the meal flawlessly because it was light, like most of our courses, and fruity.

Dinner here is an indulgence (on the palette and your wallet), but it's worth the price and I highly recommend Essigbrätlein for a meal.

Farmhouse in Pessenbach

The husband has mostly German colleagues; of which few are fun. One that he’s become friends with is a German woman. She is witty and sarcastic; I attribute partially due to spending time in England. This is unusual because Germans don’t understand sarcasm, so people say. I confess Indians also don’t understand sarcasm so a room full of Indians and Germans would be boring.

She has varying hobbies including hunting. She has talked about hunting with older German men in the middle of dense woods; men that have been in the “club” for years. She normally hunts for wild boar (pig) but has experience with rabbits and other small animals. She also enjoys hiking and being out in the woods. So you’re wondering, why am I placing a ‘match’ ad for this colleague?

In Fall 2013, she took us to her family’s farmhouse in Pessenbach near Kochel lake, south of Munich. The home is from her great grandmother and has been passed down the generations. We drove on Friday night, spent three days in the area and returned on Sunday.


In my opinion, Germany is slower-paced, excluding big cities like Berlin and Munich, than many cities. Let me define slower paced; state of living is relaxed, people aren’t constantly on their smart phones, they accept the35- 40 hour work week and maintain it to devote time to personal life, there’s a lot of green space for outdoor activities and people take time to enjoy being outside whether it’s hiking, running, skiing or long walks. In another words, Germans live simply and in the moment.

So even with that, they like spending weekends and vacations in a home that takes them back in time. The farm home has modern amenities like bathrooms and heating but it still has old-fashioned architecture and surroundings. There’s a wood stove in the kitchen to cook on and a walnut tree in the yard. The neighbor sells milk from his cows to a local supplier. It is peaceful. This home’s environment defines slow living.

On that Saturday we hiked on one of many trails nearby while enjoying the changing colors and a serene day. That night we drank local beer, ate boar she had hunted and gazed at the stars.



Before leaving Sunday, we cooked ourselves breakfast to eat outside. Eating breakfast was just an excuse to enjoy the scenery.



Weeks after our weekend trip, the colleague hunted boar again and shared a leg with us. I roasted the leg in the oven and then with the leftovers made a wild boar and black olives stew, Italian style. I don’t have a recipe to share because I don’t remember precisely but there was onion, garlic, carrots, red wine, black olives, half can of tomatoes and thyme. We braised the boar in a dutch oven with the other ingredients and ate it over mashed potatoes. This recipe is precise and like our dish.

Boar is lean meat and tastes gamier than pork. It is typical for winter months served with root vegetables. The husband and I enjoyed both versions of the boar but preferred the stew (perhaps because it was harder to get an even temperature on the whole leg in the oven without overcooking).

When we arrived at the farmhouse on Friday evening, the colleague said she anticipates visits to the farm home because it recharges her batteries. After a weekend there, we agree.

Holidays 2013

Our holiday break was busy and fun. A week before Christmas day we welcomed guests from California, a family of 4. It was the husband’s cousin, her husband and their adorable two girls. They spent 10 days with us. We traveled with them and they visited Munich, Rothenburg Ob der Tauber and Wurzburg on their own. The girls were lots of fun to play with and the adults were lots of fun to drink with. Good company. I even learned how to make Sushi (one of our favorite foods) from her husband; that was a delicious Christmas Eve dinner. For Christmas I made stuffed turkey breasts with pepper and apple stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and roasted Brussels sprouts. The weather for the Californians? Cold and grey.

Happy New Year

Hope you all brought in the new year with celebrations or non-celebrations of choice. We had a small party of our own. Initially we’d planned to go out to eat and then celebrate at home but almost every open restaurant had a pre fixe menu with multi-course meal and bubbly at midnight. Although that sounded nice, we invited one couple and planned a Spanish themed dinner (with tapas), played games, danced and drank Champagne at midnight.

photo courtesy of friend C.G.

On the menu was Albondigas (from Enrique Becerra in Spain) where we were introduced to the mint in meatballs. In Indian and Pakistani foods, as well as in Middle Eastern cuisines, mint is widely used in ground meats however it was unique to have it in Spain. (We learned that mint (and other Arabic influences) came to Spain with the Moors.)

Long story short, when we had Albondigas with mint in Spain they were delicious so I recreated them for NYE. Additionally, marinated carrots with cumin and oregano, Puff Pastry Tarts filled with Fig and Red Onion Confit with Manchego, seasoned Marcona Almonds, and Spanish Olives and Cheeses. For in between courses, I created my version of Escalivada. It is Spanish salad of grilled vegetables in olive oil. I made mine with a base of mashed potatoes, roasted peppers, tomato sauce and topped with sobrassada, Spanish sausage. It was something unusual but well received. I’d say frying the potatoes in the sobrassada fat was worth it.

photo courtesy of friend C.G.

For main course I pre-made the almond/saffron sauce for Chicken in Almond Sauce over rice. No photos since we had all consumed too much alcohol by that point.

It sounds like a lot food but it wasn’t. And we weren’t stuffed. We were drunk though and danced a lot. All in good fun and in the name of NYE.

Moving into 2014, one of our first meals was Sauerkraut & Potato Latkes. (also known as Kartoffelpuffers = potato pancakes) We bought sauerkraut few days before the guests left. Quick thinking, I decided this would be the appropriate first breakfast in Germany.

Sauerkraut & Potato Latkes or Kartoffelpuffers
Makes 5

1 medium potato, boiled, peeled and shredded
1/2 cup sauerkraut
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
2 tablespoons schmaltz (vegetable oil also works)

In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, sauerkraut and eggs and mix well. Add the flour, salt and pepper to the mixture.

Heat schmaltz (or oil) in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the batter to the pan, pressing lightly to flatten. They should be approximately 2- 3 inches, flattened. Fry until the latkes are golden brown on both sides, 3 minutes per side, using remaining fat as needed.

Serve warm or at room temperature. (If the latkes are too greasy after frying, drain briefly on paper towels.)

Cookie Experiments

I’ve been on a cookie baking kick for the past couple weeks. I want to bake and share the goodies with the husband’s coworkers, for no reason at all. For someone that hates taking food to work, he has been patient about the cookie experiments.

Though I will be the first to write, some cookies haven’t been as successful as others. For instance, I tried theseblack and white cookies. My cookies were cakey and I wasn’t impressed. (A learning experience in this experiment is red food coloring; it is hard to find the “typical coloring” here in Nurnberg. I’ve bought from multiple shops and the bright, Christmasy hue of red that is expected isn’t there.

However I am happy to say this one is a keeper. Some of my friends and adamant blog followers (all 2 of you) will recognize this cookie as the Alfajores (best known from Spain and South American cultures). But there are some differences in the recipe; I did not use dulce de leche as the filler and no eggs in the cookie dough. They look like Alfajores but I call mine Hazelnut & Caramel cookies. And they are perfect for Christmas. Bake few and share some, your spouse’s coworkers will thank you.

Hazelnut & Caramel Cookies
Makes 24

220 grams or 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
80 grams or 1/2 cup ground hazelnut flour
60 grams or 1/3 cup brown sugar
210 grams or 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, diced

Preheat oven to 350°F or 180°C

Put hazelnuts on a cookie sheet with parchment paper and place in the preheated oven. Toast for about 10 minutes, stirring halfway. Be careful not to burn them.

Remove from oven and let cool. Once cool, grind nuts in a food processor for about 20 seconds.

In the same processor, combine ground nuts, flour, and brown sugar. Add butter and process until mixture just starts to form dough. As the dough forms into a ball in the processor, it will move away from the edge. Remove from the processor and form into a cohesive round ball.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes. Remove dough from the fridge and let it come to room temperature for 5 minutes.

Sprinkle a little flour on the counter surface. Flatten the dough and using a rolling pin roll to 1/4” thick round. With a round cookie cutter, cut out the shape and place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. If there is leftover dough from the cutouts, re-roll the dough into 1/4" and cut more rounds. Place the pan with the cut-out cookies in the fridge for 20- 30 minutes. (The re-refrigerating helps the cookies keep their shape. )

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden.

Let the cookies rest in the pan for 2-4 minutes and then carefully place them on a cooling rack.

For caramel sauce, use this recipe from SimplyRecipes; for detail description with photos, be sure to follow her instructions. They are spot-on! I halved the caramel recipe for the cookies.

Place 1 tablespoon of caramel sauce on the bottom side of one cookie. Place another cookie (of approximate same size) on top. Make sure you have two bottoms facing each other when making a cookie sandwich. Finish with the other cookies.

If you’re lucky, you’ll have made an uneven number and can snack on 1 or 3.

Chiemsee

In late September we attended a wedding on Chiemsee, Bavaria’s largest lake. The wedding was of an American to a German. The ceremony was mostly German but we understood when they were married, especially when they kissed.

On other days we explored on our own and visited one of King Ludwig’s castle, Herrenchiemsee. Ludwig built the palace as a replica to Versailles Palace. He was obsessed with admired Louis XIV and built the castle in his honor. Unfortunately Ludwig didn’t enjoy his masterpiece because he died (drowned/committed suicide/never came back from his lake trip, his death is questionable) before the castle was completed.

And the boat cruise around the lake is fun, on a nice (clear) day. If you have a spare weekend and happen to find yourself in the area, Chiemsee deserves a visit.

We loved seeing this grandma and granddaughter by the horses. I was especially amazed to see both women in their traditional clothes. We have learned from speaking with others, in parts of Southern Bavaria individuals wear dirndl or lederhosen on a whim, without a particular reason. Sometimes a beautiful day is a great reason to dress up.

Apotheke is a what?

One of the first things we do with guests is a walking tour of the old city, inside the walls, Altstadt. And each time, we fall in love with Nürnberg all over again. There’s a new hidden gem that I haven’t seen or discovered before. We both are lucky to have the opportunity to live here and call it home.

In addition to the gems, the city is massed with Apothekes. Apotheke is a drug store in the traditional sense, a pharmacy. They sell over-the-counter medication as well as the doctor’s prescriptions. There are cough drops, runny nose soothers, headache tablets, dry-skin lotion, dandruff shampoo, heavy duty stomach bug relievers and much more. So it’s an American drug store (imagine CVS) as well as the behind the counter pharmacy rolled into one. (without the diapers and hair curlers, there’s DM and Mueller for that.)

What I like about the German Apotheke is a common cold does not require a trip to the doctor’s office because the pharmacists are able to prescribe something that sooths the ailment. One time when I was refilling my prescription a family of four (they looked like tourists with their maps in hand) asked for an ointment for the younger kid that had scraped up his knee. The pharmacist made a recommendation based on what she saw. This is logical because it’s a recommendation from a professional and prevents a trip to the doctor’s office. Another time, I was recovering from a cold that refused to go away and when I went back the second time she recommended a pill in powder form. Once I bought it, she gave me a glass full of water to take my initial dose.

Apothekes prevents self-prescribing; unlike in America where individuals think they know the problem and buy over the counter pills. Also, pharmacists at Apotheke do not fill prescription without a doctor’s note or prescribe hard drugs without prescription so one can’t walk in and ask. In simple words, German culture disproves using prescriptions for simple problems. This is a welcome change from what we’re used to in America where all ailments have one solution, drugs.

A drawback is a doctor would thoroughly check the ailment in an appointment where a pharmacist does not. The other drawback is this reinforces policing the population. Although I don’t like “the idea” of the government or Big Brother telling me what I should and shouldn’t take, I have grown to like it because people can’t self prescribe medications.

What we haven’t figured out is why there are so many Apothekes in such close proximity. There are 4 in walking distance from our apartment. (And those are ones near us.) I joke that although Germans are cautious in taking medicine for simple colds, they must love knowing that a pharmacy is around the corner when that emergency arises.

The idea of pharmacy and prescribing medicine has been around for long time and we learned in a Pharmacy Museum in Heidelberg that many Germans chose Pharmacy as profession pre war era. Due to the conditions of the country post war, there were fewer pharmacists until recently.

Tuscany- Part II

About that trip I was telling you about.

The next morning we drove to Gaiole for few more tastings. The first stop was Barone Ricasoli. The history at Ricasoli is interesting, being the oldest winery in Tuscany and Barone Ricasoli was the first to write the Chianti recipe and marketing to importers in the 1800s thus putting the region on the wine map. Additionally, parts of the castle are preserved with artifacts from Barone Ricasoli’s era. The brief castle tour is worthy.

The Enoteca at the bottom of the hill hosts tastings. It is a fancier environment with modern décor. Post tasting, we went to the town of Gaiole for lunch and little sightseeing. Unfortunately, there was a bike expo that day so the town was filled with bike stalls and full of bicyclists. We found a lunch spot on the fly at i galletto briaco Ristorante Pizzeria. As soon as we sat down, the host announced,” no pizza!” Instead we ordered Ribollita (typical Tuscan soup with kale and white beans), penne with tomato sauce, ravioli with sage and butter sauce and mozzarella sticks. The sticks were a disappointment, not surprisingly; the nonna in the kitchen probably rarely fries up breaded mozzarella unlike chain restaurants in America. My ribollita was perfect and exactly what I was craving. I tasted a lot of onion and carrots as the base for flavoring. The husband’s ravioli was rich and creamy and our friend said the tomato sauce with penne had good flavor.

Castello D'Albola was the next planned winery. They offer tours and tastings for free and both were worth the visit. This was the first tour I learned about the grapes grown on site, and wine production.

And to finish off, we went to Poggio Alloro for tour, tasting and dinner. This place has been around since the 1970s and started by 3 brothers who wanted to produce wine and a farm to grow olives, saffron and vegetables. As of recent, the farm raises cows for meat. We learned of the struggles the brothers faced to start this vineyard. Notably, we saw one of the brothers working at his age on the farm. Followed by the tour, we sat outside and watched the sunset and the city of San Gimignano in distance with our wine tastings, olives, bread and cured meats.


Dinner started promptly at 8 and again it was communal. This time, the room was much larger, the guest list longer, the options diverse and proportions large. There were many things we ate that night; to name the outstanding ones were an appetizer with baked polenta topped with ragu and a frittata. The risotto was a little under done but cooking for a large group, daily can have possible mishaps. The main course was turkey with veggies and though it was good, I was sad we weren’t eating the steak from the cows. We finished with a Panna cotta. There were unlimited breads, cured meats, olives, water and house wine. You can’t go wrong with a place that lets you eat like a king.

Walking away from dinner, one distinctive quality of Poggio Alloro is their customer service. Everyone was extremely friendly, willing to answer any of our questions and very accommodating. I highly, highly recommend Poggio Alloro for a tour, tasting and dinner. If not all, at least the dinner. Reserve for Saturday’s communal dinner to have the steak.

The next day was rainy and cold so we toured San Gimignano. With interesting history, this town is medieval, walled-in, and has 14 towers still standing that encompass the old town. This should be on everyone’s list to visit because of its small town charm. We ate Gelato in a shop that has won “best gelato award” for few years. The artisan that makes the gelato is well recognized in Italy and sought after.

As a total surprise, my husband and the other husband planned a cooking class for us. I had no idea what was going on when the two women showed up and said “We’re here for the cooking class.” It was a delightful surprise. With the help of the cooks, we cooked Bruschetta with Raddichio and Cheese, Squash Blossom Zeppole (Italian fritters), stuffed Veal (stuffed with prosciutto, sautéed zucchini, and omelet), Pici (local pasta) with tomato sauce and basil, and Flortentine cake. Phew. We were thrilled to learn to make simple (eggless) pasta and stuffed Veal. Overall this was a magnificent experience.

Tuscany is exactly as I had imagined but so much more when experiencing it in person. Everywhere we looked there are rolling hills covered in vine groves and dotted with cypress trees. It is scenic. Chianti wine is fruity and pleasant with a meal or on its own. We learned of a new white grape grown only in the region of San Gimignano, Veranacci, it subtly tastes like Sauvignon Blanc which we are not fans of. The local cheese is Pecorino and if the local producer is selling it, stock up. We bought 1.5 kilos (we drove to Tuscany to bring back wine and cheese) from a cheese shop that produces pecorino, ricotta and few other cheeses.

October is one of the better times to visit; it’s the beginning of harvest season so the vines were full of grapes, ready to be picked. Unfortunately that also means many wineries do not offer tours or tastings however we found enough that offered tours and/or tastings. And this trip was extra fun because of our friends. Eating typical Tuscan food, drinking wine and sharing laughs will make this as an unforgettable trip.