These are perfectly seasoned, juicy homemade German hamburger-like patties! Known as Frikadellen or Fleischpflanzerl in northern and in southern Germany respectively, they are the tastiest, most delicious beef patties I have ever had! They have won my heart ever since I tasted them for the first time many years ago. My Lebanese taste buds immediately…
ADAS BI HAMED (LEMONY LENTIL SOUP)
This is one of the first recipes I created in my “cooking career”. I was relying on my taste buds, as I was not able to reach my mother for help all the time. It must have been around 1990 when calling Lebanon meant dialling a number hundred times until you got through. A nearly…
CRISPY CHEESE ROLLS
These cheese rolls are known in Arabic as Rakakat bi jebneh. They are usually made with Greek Phyllo dough and filled with a mixture of cheeses and parsley. Living in Germany I got also introduced to the Turkish Yufka dough that comes in triangle shape. The slightly thicker dough makes it more suitable for the…
BÛCHE DE NOËL (FRENCH YULE LOG)
Christmas season is a festive time full of traditions in Germany. It is a time for baking cookies, decorations, ornaments, and fairy-tale like Christmas markets. It is the time of the year where you are continuously enchanted by the sweet smell of mulled wine, hot chocolate and exotic spices. You won’t be missing any magic…
GERMAN VANILLA CRESCENT COOKIES
Christmas in Germany is unthinkable without these vanilla crescent cookies. Their buttery crumble infused with vanilla appeals to all tastebuds around the world, and especially at Christmas! Known as “Vanille Kipferl” in Germany and Austria, these crescent-shaped cookies are flavoured with vanilla and made of butter and finely ground nuts. Traditionally they should be eggless…
AUTHENTIC TABBOULEH
The queen among all salads, tabbouleh is a vitamin bomb, an expression I learned in Germany when talking about super healthy food. Parsley is an excellent source of folic acid and vitamins A, C and K! Key ingredients: Parsley An authentic tabbouleh is prepared with lots of parsley and little bulgur, and not the other…
CHOCOLATE CHRISTMAS COOKIES
As I mentioned in earlier posts about Christmas baking in Germany, cookie baking is a kind of national sport in German homes. The more you bake the merrier is the Advent season, and the happier is your family! These scrumptious chocolate cookies have all the ingredients for a melt-in-the mouth tasting experience. Flavoured with cinnamon,…
COCONUT BUTTER COOKIES
Baking cookies for Christmas is a German affair. A tradition passed on from generations to the next, baking a wide assortment of delectable cookies is each family’s pride. Recipes are shared and passed on from generations to the next. With no German ancestry myself except for my husband’s family, I was fascinated by my mother-in-law’s…
FRENCH SABLÉ COOKIES
The classic among all cookies, sablé is a melt in the mouth affair with apricot jam tucked in between two crumbly, buttery cookies. Everybody loves sablé. These scrumptious cookies are baked all year round and not only at Christmas. They are a life saviour anytime I need an easy dessert for a dinner party. The…
SALIKAH ON SAINT BARBARA DAY
Saint Barbara’s Day (Eid el Burbara in Arabic) on the 4th of December marks the beginning of Christmas season for Christians in the Middle East. On the eve of the 3rd of December, we prepare Salika. Also known as kamih or kamhieh, it is a porridge made of hulled wheat grains cooked in water with…
