Raspberry-Yoghurt Mini Bundt Cakes


I still haven't recreated the orange-poppyseed mini bundt cake that I once ate at a coffee shop in Seattle and that inspired me to bake mini-bundt cakes. However, after trying the delicious chocolate-pear mini bundt cakes a while back, I know tried a little lighter version. A recipe using raspberries and yoghurt, but also some nice müsli for some crunch.

Müsli is a mix of rolled oats with some grains, fresh or dried fruits, seeds and nuts. Some fancier version even include chocolate flakes, coconut, ets. You can use any kind of müsli but make sure that it is broken up in small pieces. Place the müsli in a sandwich bag and roll over with a rolling pin. You can also substitute it for plain oat flakes.

Ingredients (makes 12 mini bundt cakes):

  • 30g (2 tablespoons or 1/4 of a stick) butter
  • 75g (3/8 cups) sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 100g (3.5ounces or 0.4 cups) yoghurt
  • 50g (3/8 cups) flour 
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon lemon peel (freshly grated)
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 100g raspberries (fresh)
  • 75g (3/8 cups) müsli (or oat flakes)
Icing:
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice (fresh)
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • water - if necessary

 

Preparation:

Preheat oven at 370 degree Fahrenheit (190 degree Celsius).
  1. Prepare the batter: In a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Now, beat in the egg. Add the yoghurt and blend well. In a separate smaller bowl, sieve the flour and whisk together with the baking powder, lemon peel and salt. Now, add the flour mix to the butter mixture. Stir till smooth. Lighly fold in the raspberries and the müsli.
  2. Bake: Grease the little bundt cake forms. Fill in the batter. Bake for about 12-15 minutes. Insert a little wooden pick in the center of one of the bundt cakes. If it comes out clean, the cakes are done. Take them out and let cool for 30 minutes before icing them.
  3. Icing: In a small bowl, sieve the powdered sugar. Add the lemon juice and whisk toghether. Glaze should be thick but pourable. If too thick, add a few drops of water. If too liquid, add a little more powdered sugar. Pour the glaze on top of the cooled mini bundt cakes. It will run a little down the sides, no need to cover everything. Let dry before serving.





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    My Mom's Cranberry Compote (also good for Thanksgiving)




    A while back, my parents discovered that cranberries are good for the health and since then they were drinking and eating everything that had cranberries in it. Living in a small town and in Germany, it was actually quite difficult for them to get real cranberries. As my brother once brought home fresh cranberries, my mother and I looked up a short recipe to make a compote out of it. Cranberries are really tarte if you eat them raw, so better to cook them, and because they are slightly bitter, you need to sweeten them with some sugar or juice. 

    This compote was delicious. My parents liked to eat it just the plain compote or over pudding, I preferred eating it with waffles or over ice-cream. 

    This "compote" is also really good as a traditional Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce! Here, I would suggest to maybe substitute the juice with water.

    Ingredients

    • 1/2 cup brown sugar
    • 1/2 cup sugar
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 
    • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
    • 1 1/4 cup water
    • 1/2 cup Juice (orange-pineapple - for Thanksgiving replace with water)
    • 3 cups fresh cranberries
    • 1 apple (e.g., granny smith) - peeled and finely diced
    • 1/2 lemon - juiced

    Preparation

    1. Mix the sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, vanilla extract, water and juice in a small pot. Bring to a boil and let it reduce for a little bit. 
    2. Wash the cranberries, peel and dice the apple and add to the pot. Pour the juice of half a lemon over it. Keep boilong until about 4/5th of the cranberries are popped and the sauce starts to get thicker, about 10 minutes.
    3. Remove from heat and smash the cranberry-apple mix till you have the desired consistency. I would recommend to just roughly smash it and leave a few pieces in there. Let cool down for a little bit.
    Serve with fresh baked waffles (My Mom's Waffeln) or over vanilla ice-cream. Also great as the traditional Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce!










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      My Mom's "Kohlrouladen" (stuffed cabbage rolls)


      Stuffed cabbage rolls are a typical German dish and there are for sure many ways to prepare the stuffing and the sauce. In the US there are many recipes with a tomato based sauce. However, this is how my Mom makes it. The cabbage rolls are very flavorful and juicy. She pre-fries the stuffing as rolls and then wraps them in the cabbage leaves. That way it will be a little crispier on the inside.

      The addition of a bit of an instant sauce is not really necessary, but it deepens the flavor.

      Ingredients (for 4 cabbage rolls):

      • 2 slices of white toast bread
      • 250 g ground beef
      • 1 onion - finely diced
      • 1 egg
      • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
      • 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper
      • 2 tablespoon oil
      • 8 big leaves of savory cabbage
      • hot water and ice water for blanching
      • 1 tablespoon oil or butter 
      • 2 cups chopped white cabbage
      • 1 tablespoon butter
      • 2 cups water
      • 1 cube vegetable bouillon
      • 1/2 l water
      • 2 tablespoon instant brown sauce (e.g. "Knorr - Sauce Pur Bratensause")
      • salt, pepper to taste
      • 2-3 tablespoons "Soßenbinder" (sauce thickener, e.g. Mondamin, or corn starch)

      Preparation:

      1. Prepare the stuffing: Soak the white toast bread slices in water for a few minutes. Wring them out and add to a bowl. Add the ground beef, the diced onion, egg, parsely and salt and pepper. Mix everything together.
      2. Pre-Fry the stuffing: Form little rolls out of the beef mix. Heat up oil in a frying pan and fry the rolls for a few minutes from all sides till the outside turns a little crispy. 
      3. Prepare the cabbage rolls: Blanch the big cabbage leaves and be careful not to break the leavs. Therfore, you first place them in hot water (5 min for white cabbage, 2 min for white pointed cabbage). Then you take them out and place them immediately in ice water. Alternatively, you can also blanch the entire cabbage head in hot water and put it in ice water afterwards. That way it will be easier to remove single leaves. Now, use two leaves for one roll. Place both leaves on top of each other but crosswise. Fill the cabbage with the pre-fried beef rolls, fold in the sides and roll them up. Use metal sticks or tooth picks to keep the rolls closed.
      4. Slow cook the rolls and start the base for the sauce: Heat up oil in a big pot and add the cabbage rolls. Brown them on each side for about 5 minutes and then turn them. In a separate frying pan, heat up the butter and add the chopped cabbage. Fry the chopped cabbage till it turns slightly brown. Stir occasionally. Add the chopped and browned cabbage to the browned cabbage rolls. Deglace the frying pan by heating up a little bit of water, stir, and add to the pot with the cabbage rolls. Add water to the cabbage rolls till they are covered. Add the cube vegetable bouillon, stir and bring to a boil. Let simmer for about 30 minutes till the cabbage rolls are soft.
      5. Finish the sauce: Take the rolls out of the sauce when they are done and place on a plate. As the cabbage does not give such a strong flavor as browning beef, my Mom adds a little bit of instant sauce to the pot. Add salt and pepper and stir. Now,  add the "Sossenbinder" (substitute with corn starch if not available) to the sauce and bring back to a boil. Be careful and add first 1 tablespoon, bring to a boil and stir. It does take a few minutes before the sauce thickens, so be patient. If it does not thicken enough, add another one and so on. When the sauce reached the desired thickness, add the cabbage rolls back into it.
      6. Serve with boiled salt potatoes.













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      Swabian Potato Salad - German style



      Originally, this recipe of an authentic Swabian German potato salad was inspired by my college friend AM. We grew up together, went to elementary school, high school and even college together. While I grew up with my Mom's fantastic potato salad that uses pumpkin seed oil, this is not an authentic Geman potato salad. AM was the first with whom I cooked an original Swabian German potato salad :)

      However, my brother really has brought this salad to perfection. While both recipe versions (from AM and my brother) follow the same basic rules of an Swabian potato salad (using vegetable broth and oil), my brother described a more precise and detailed way of preparing it. He also specifies the brand of used ingredients, and he added mustard which was not included in AM's recipe. I updated the recipe to reflect my brother's recipe.

      Why "Swabian"?

      There are fundamental differences between the American and German potato salad. While the Americans like to use mayonnaise, the Germans use a simple salty broth as a dressing, making it a little lighter for the summer. However, there are also substantial differences regarding the regions of Germany. Depending on where in Germany you end up eating a potato salad, you can experience major differences. For example, Bavaria is putting bacon in it.

      This recipe is a potato salad that you can find in the Black Forest area of south-west Germany, an area that you can also call "Schwaben-Land" (where I grew up). This Swabian version is probably the simplest and purest version.

      "Schlotzig"

      What is so special about this simple Swabian potato salad? In order to be authentic, the potato salad needs to be really juicy, smooth and creamy, kind of thick. The potatoes need to soak in the vegetable broth/oil mixture and become real mushy. In German (or better in "Swabian") this is called "schlotzig".

      Ingredients:

      • 6 big potatoes (waxy and firm - in German "festkochend")
      • 1 liter salted water
      • 1 small onion - finely chopped
      • 1/4 cube or 1 teaspoon vegetable stock/bouillon (clear and see through, e.g. from Alnatura)
      • 200 ml water
      • 1 teaspoon potato starch or corn starch
      • 2 tablespoon water (cold)
      • 1/2 cup sunflower oil
      • 2 tablespoons vinegar, sweet (e.g. red wine vinegar)
      • 2 tablespoons vinegar, strong (e.g. "Weinbrand" vinegar)
      • 1 teaspoon mustard (medium spicy, not grainy)
      • salt, pepper to taste
      • 2-3 tablespoons flax seed oil 
      • optional: 1 tablespoon sliced spring onion or fresh chives

      Preparation:

        1. Prepare the potatos: Put the potatoes with skin on in cold salted water. Bring to a boil for about 15-20 minutes till they are soft (depending on size of potatoes). The potatoes are ready when you try to lift them with a fork and they slowly fall off. Then, drain the water. Wait a few minutes till the potatoes are a bit cooled off, but they still should be warm. Peel them. Next, slice them. You can use a knife or a mandoline. Finely dice onion and and add to the potato slices. I like to use a red shallot as it is a little softer and not so spicy.
        2. Prepare the dressing: Bring water to a boil, add the piece of the vegetable stock cube and stir. Don't add too much, it should not overpower the salad flavor. In a small cup, add 2 tablespoon cold water and 1 teaspoon potato or corn starch and mix well till smooth. Slowly, pour the starch mix into the boiling vegetable broth and stir till it reaches the desired consitency. You want to have it a little thicker, creamier in consitency. Now, add the mustard, the oil, and the two different vinegars. Stir till you have a good emulsion. Add salt and pepper. 
        3. Finish the salad: Pour the vegetable broth/oil mix over the potatoes and mix till all potatoes are a little bit covered. Don't overmix as you still want potato pieces and not mashed potatoes :) Now, pour the flax seed oil over the potatoes. The potatoes should now soak up the dressing, but there should still be a little left in the bottom of the bowl. Let sit and soak for a few hours. I like to put it in the fridge for that time.
        4. Serving: Before serving, add the chives/spring onion slices or chopped parsely and mix. I like the crunchy addition and little added color. This potato salad is a good side dish for Wiener Schnitzel, Wiener Sausages, or "Maultaschen".





          Updated: November 2018


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          Fancy Desserts at the Dorint Park Hotel Restaurant


          The Dorint Park Hotel

          I recently spent a few days at the Dorint Park Hotel in Bremen (Germany) - the city of the famous four town musicians (a donkey, a dog, a cat and a rooster). The Hotel is nicely located in a park at a small lake and conveniently also has its own restaurant (Park Restaurant at Dorint Park Hotel). On their Facebook page I saw those amazing dessert creations. I had to try them out :) I actually tried a few different ones, a chocalate cake one, a panna cotta one and a crème brulée one. The chocolate cake was definitely my favorite, however, all of them were just amazing! They tasted delicious and they just looked so cute, with lots of little different elements.

          Beside the dessert, I also had a normal entrée at the restaurant. I had the "Wiener Schnitzel" with a mushroom tortellini soup and a salad, which was quite enjoyable as well.

          Another highlight at the hotel was the little spa area and the wellness treatments. Even though, half the equipment in the spa was out of order, it was more than enough to relax and enjoy, especially if you try the Cleopatra Bath with goats milk ;).

          The hotel also offered a huge breakfast buffet with fresh fruit, juices, deli meats and different kind of breads, hot full english breakfast dishes, an omlette station, a cereal station, and fascinatingly, a real honeycomb :)

          All in all, the hotel did not disappoint and I can just highly recommend it!

          Baked Valrhona Chocolate - My Dessert Highlight!

          • A chocolate cake with a liquid core, muscovado caramel ice cream, raspberry sorbet, pears in elderflower, pickled blackberries in peach-olive sauce, peppered chocolate sand, figs, raspberries, meringue drops, caramel twirl, tempered chocolate, raspberry jelly discs, etc...

           

          Panna Cotta from White Chocolate

          • The bottom of the bowl is full of panna cotta, topped with a white chocolate disc, apricot and passion fruit sorbet and caviar, blackberry jelly drops, brownie crumble, sesame brittle, mango cream, meringue drops, etc...


          Burnt Raspberries and Roses

          • The bottom of the bowl is filled with a crème brulée, topped with an almond brittle twirl, tempered chocolate, sour cream foam, white peach sorbet, glazed peaches, candied olives and raspberries, meringue drops, etc...


          The Dorint Park Hotel





          Tortellini Tomato Veggie Stew


          This is a very quick but tasty and hearty vegetable stew. I first got introduced to it during my college time. However, later on it became a special Italien dinner option. You can easily fancy it up, making a two-course meal out of it by serving a side salad, adding some garlic bread and a glass of red wine :)

          You can also change it up a bit by using different vegetables including carrots, grean beans, chickpeas and sugar snap peas. However, the trick is not to overload the stew and I would suggest to use only three to four different vegetables.

          Note: While you can use tortellinis with any kind of filling, I prefer to keep the dish vegetarian with a cheese or a spinach filling. If you use frozen or dried tortellini, they will need longer to cook. I would suggest to prepare them beforehand separately and add them to the stew in the end.
           

          Ingredients:

          • 1 tablespoon oil
          • 1 onion (largly chopped)
          • 1 red bell pepper (cut in big cubes)
          • 1 zucchini (sliced)
          • 3 garlic cloves (peeled and smashed, otherwise whole)
          • 2 bay leaves 
          • 2 x 14.5oz or 1 x 28 oz cans tomatoes (diced or whole)
          • 1/2 teaspoon of each, dried oregano, rosemary, basel and thyme (or substitute with 2-3 teaspoons of italian herbs mix)
          • 1 teaspoon savory
          • 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
          • 1 can dark red kidney beans (rinsed and drained)
          • 200 g fresh tortellini (filled with spinach and/or cheese)
          • salt, pepper, cayenne pepper to taste
          Toppings:
          • fresh basil and parsely
          • fresh parmesan shavings 

           

          Preparation:

          1. Heat the oil, add the onions. Fry just for a short moment, then add the chunks of bell pepper and zucchini. Fry for about 5 minutes. Then add the garlic cloves, bay leaves and canned tomatoes. Bring to a light boil and add the remaining herbs and savory. Fill up with the vegetable broth and let simmer for about 10 minutes. Vegetables should not be too soft, still have a bite to it.
          2. Now, add the drained kidney beans and the fresh tortellinis. Let simmer for another 5 minutes till the vegetables and tortellinis are soft. Season with salt, pepper and cayenne for desired taste.
          3. Top with fresh chopped basil and pasely, parmesan shavings. Serve with some rustic bread. Or make a meal out of it and serve with garlic bread and a side salad. Don't forget a glass of red wine :)






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