Light Meals and Weekend Treats from an English Woman in Berlin
I have mentioned a few times that one of my favourite meals is a Charcuterie and cheese board, or a meat and cheese night as my husband and I fondly call it. I love putting together a selection of cheese and cured ham or salami, it is such an easy meal to throw together that still feels elegant and special. I like to spend time carefully curating specific hams and cheese that work well together and I leave my husband to do the wine pairing! Whether it is sitting out on the balcony with a crisp…
These sausage rolls are a far cry from anything you can find in a British supermarket or shop! In my opinion sausage rolls need to be approached with caution. Whether it is sneakily trying one (that ends up being more than just one) when fresh out of the oven or making sure you are strategically placed near to the sausage rolls at a party, these really are the most addictive finger food! But not all sausage rolls are eaten when piping hot out of the oven, or freshly made with crisp and buttery puff pastry …
It is so easy to think of a potato salad as a pile of stodgy potatoes that are smothered in an acidic mayonnaise. In fact, a potato salad is pretty much a staple at any BBQ or picnic that we all have a slight fondness towards! At the first rays of sunshine us Brits (and Germans..) head out to the parks or into the garden armed with sausage rolls, meat, sandwiches, quiches and basically anything else that can either be thrown onto a grill or packs up nicely into a box and is easy to eat while all squashed up on a tiny bit of the picnic blanket …
Making a curry was the dish that got me into cooking and also experimenting with different spices and flavours. When I first moved to Berlin (many, many years ago – 2008!) it was impossible to find jars of ready made curry sauce or even paste in the supermarkets. In fact, it still is. At the most you can get your hands on a Thai red or green paste and in some very special cases you might be able to buy a madras paste but most of the time it is really down to a bland, generic jar of curry sauce …
I have made no secret of my love for Middle Eastern food. It is one of the most vibrant and delicious cuisines with a real taste of the spicy and sweet mix. Almonds and pistachios cooked with apricots and sultanas, slow roasted meats such as lamb cooked in tagines with roasted peppers, fresh spices, seasoned with plenty of chillies and all with plenty of heat and flavour. My personal favourite is an Iranian pilaf rice dish. Cooked rice seasoned with nuts and fruits and plenty of spices …
The humble aubergine may have received a little negative press recently in relation to arthritus. And I say little because it really is little. Self-taught nutrionists make up a very small % of the actual nutritional advice out there and are the ones without any real case-controlled studies to back their points. Research is also very limited and overall most of us seem to get on ok with the aubergine! Including aubergines in your diet is incredibly healthy and a great way for those working on weight loss or controlling type 2 diabetes….
It seems like this sunny weather is sticking around although I have felt slightly British the last few days by complaining about the heat already..! Every year it always takes me by surprise the lack of air coniditioning in Berlin. I get that Berlin is hardly the Mediterranean climate but the summers are hot! So instead, it means plenty of afterwork beer garden visits to the Prater or sitting on the balcony with a cold glass of wine….
Firstly, this is not Korean Fried Chicken not because I don’t like the delicious, crunchy and lightly crispy bits of tender chicken that are gently spiced but because in my opinion the marinade on these Korean Chicken Wings is mouth wateringly good enough. Besides, fried chicken is different and anyone who turns their nose up at it just hasn’t experienced it properly. My fondest memory is when I was in New York at Hanjan. Their spicy and tangy bits of crisp chicken were so good but it was here that I also had marinaded chicken and this was incredibly soft…