Raspberry yoghurt, raspberries and yellow plums

The weekend was a quiet one for us. After the Robbie Williams concert I was kind of tired and on Saturday evening Tom and I took in a double helping of Pirates of the Caribbean (1 and 2). So we just stayed at home relaxing with Soeri and playing board games etc.

We made some great raspberry yogurt ice-cream yesterday and the last of the yoghurt and raspberries I packed into the lunchbox today. He also got a few yummy and ever so sweet yellow plums, that we used to make a lovely preserve with on Saturday. A friend of mine brought back delicious goose liver pate from France and Soeren has developed a true liking to the stuff. He can't get enough of the stuff. So that is what he wanted on his bread. The bread is a plain rye bread and I spread it with a bit of butter prior to adding the pate. A herby chunk of Babybel and a few carrot sticks with a hard boiled egg completes the box today.

Adult Variation: Foie Gras is a real delicacy and we enjoy it warm on slices of toast. So that is what I recommend for today. By the way we make sure that our foie gras comes from "happy" farms and not from those farmers who force feed their geese. It is more expensive to buy but we prefer to give out the extra Euro, knowing that it comes from a proper method.
The rest of the box is great the way it is so I will just wish you happy lunching!!

Poppy Seed bagutte and pretzel stick

Off to Berlin in a few. But before I do here is todays!

A great baguette with poppy seeds and sunflower seeds. Spread as always with cream cheese - herb flavored and a bit of that great italian ham. A pretzel stick plain and Soeren did not fancy butter on it. He wanted blueberries though and was not happy till the very last one was in his container. Some juicy plums and a few bell pepper sticks. The treat today: Almond creamy bar!

Adult Variation: Looks great - only I would like to add a few rucola leaves to the sandwich and some sun dried tomatoes too. What do you think? Otherwise it is just brilliant the way it is!
See you on Monday and have a great weekend!

Currents & Wild Garlic Roll

Berlin tomorrow - Robbie here I come!!

As I am going to be off the next two days, I have plenty to do at work. So this is just a short post today and I promise to fill you in on the Robbie concert when I get back.

Red Currents today - a container filled with these lovely and healthy berries. I did add a bit of sugar to give them a little bit of a sweetness as they were a little sour! This lovely roll is abother creation from my baker. A lovely ciabatta type roll with wild garlic, bacon bits and roasted onions. We had them for dinner last night with tomato and mozzarella. Delish! I filled his roll with a slice of the tomato and some cream cheese.
A cute mini danish filled with vanilla pudding. Organic bell peppers and a chicken/vegie burger rounds it up for today!

Adult Variation The only thing I would add to this is that tomato mozzarella salad from last night!!
Otherwise I'd keep it the way it is!
Happy Lunch

Zucchini, Oranges and Apricots

Two days to go to Robbie!!

The heat is stifling ... but I am still NOT complaining. Only this: It has not rained for a few weeks and my garden is looking more like something from a dried up desert than a lush green and colored paradise!!

Yesterday, I got some great organic zucchinis and for dinner I just sauteed them in olive oil and garlic and sprinkled some og my herb mixture on top. Great! Soeren got a few in his sandwich. Also spread with cream cheese and some Italian ham. Organic carrots and apricots and juicy orange wedges go along with this. A lovely chocolate cake with dark cherries (bakery) and a great chocolate almond chip cookie we baked yesterday as a special treat.

Adult Variation: Would you change this one today? No? Neither would I!
Have a great lunch!

Melon and Blueberries

Weekend was great! How was yours? We partied on my dad-in-law's 60th birthday and it was fab!

This week I am doing a little internal countdown as on Thursday I am off to Berlin to see ROBBIE WILLIAMS in concert! I can hardly wait. Tom will be doing the lunchbox Friday for Soeri. If he remembers to take a picture of it I'll post it when I return!

Today's, has a great pumpkin roll spread with butter, Italian mortadella and a slice of German cheese. A few cherry tomatoes and a carrot. Fruity blueberries and juicy melon. That in the back in a honeycombed waffle. Scrumptious! Treat a little Kinder milk chocolate!

Adult Variation: I think besides offering you an entire roll I would keep it the way it is.!!

Blueberries, Chinois & a Roll

WOW! It was so hot yesterday, my thermometer for outside was reading 40°Celsius!! In actual fact it was just 37°! According to the meteorologists it's supposed to cool down today ... to an amazing 33°! OK I know I lived in Kuwait, Qatar and Dubai but hey we were spoilt there and had air conditioning everywhere we went. It's tough when one is not equipped for such hot temperatures. I am not really complaining. I think I can still take the heat much better than some of my European friends. Now, they really are collapsing in this heat.

We cooled down yesterday at the pool. It really was great! Just hanging out with a few of your girlfriends and the kids splashing and playing about. The nicest thing was I was really able to enjoy it ... I mean with head too. The last few weeks I have been working on a documentation and pushing time to meet the deadline. I finished it today and my deadline is on the 25th! So, after my final touch ups etc. I think I can relax and take it easy.

We are off to the grandparents this weekend. Tom's dad turns 60 and is having a party. We've got Soeren to learn a little poem by heart (in German) and he really has it down to the last word. The only thing that will get in the way is his shyness ... believe me even if it does not sound like he is a shy boy, when he has to do these things, his finger goes into his mouth and he is overcome by a great shyness.

Today's has a pretty great multi-grain roll, spread with this new herb flavored cream cheese I have tried out this week. A few mini salami sausages and cherry tomatoes and great healthy blueberries. More on blueberries and a great treat here. With that half a nectarine. A lovely soft french chinois goes with the last box of the week.

Adult Variation:
I think I would like to suggest a few slices of pastrami on that roll today. Add a bit of mustard - dijon a few caramelized onions and voila! A little mozzarella with the tomatoes, a dash of olive oil and balsamic vinegar makes a great salad. The rest stays.
Folks, I hope you all have a great weekend and if it gets too hot here's a little tip for you. Fill some ice cold mineral water in one of these spray bottles and take it with you. When it gets sticky and hot spray a little dose across your face, especially the temples, and neck. A nice refresher for in between.

Brioche and a vegie burger

My brain seems to be melting in the high temperatures. You can see the proof of it in the picture. It is not even REAL morning and it is hot!

I will be taking Soeren to the pool after KIGA today to try and cool down a little. We'll be going with his buddies Justin and Jeremy and their mummies and we plan to take a huge picnic. The swimming pool is a public one and located in the woods, so it should offer plenty of cooling shade! Looking forward to that!

Today's is filled to the brim. A vegie chicken burger, with more organic kohlrabi and the herby cream cheese as a dip. Because "it tasted soooooooo goood!". The same is spread on a soft rustical rye bread. A container full of apricots and plums. In the back we have a wonderful spongy butter brioche spread with butter and some banana flavored yoghurt with chocolate covered cornflakes.

Adult Variation:
I like the vegie/chicken burger, however I would suggest adding it to a nice roll. Spread it with some herb flavored cream cheese to and of course a nice dollop of dijon mustard. I think the rest is pretty good. But an espresso to go with the brioche would be a great idea.

Have a great warm sunny day!

Simple Things

It's true, the best things in life are sometime so simple. Take for example our dessert yesterday.
I had ordered an ice cream maker and it arrived last week. I was always under the impression the ice cream making is a lot of work. I was so wrong. Soeren and me whipped up a strawberry yoghurt ice cream that could not have tasted better. Simple, natural yoghurt, pureed strawberries and a tiny bit of sugar and the ice cream maker does the rest. Amazing! Today we are going to give raspberries a try.

Today's is also pretty simple and something that Soeri wished for. On our favorite bread we spread a bit of butter and some Leberwurst. Lovely peaches from Italy. You can really taste the sun in these. The rest of the strawberries with our homemade flavored vanilla yoghurt with a few granola bits.
Simple!

Adult Variation: Keeping it also simple for you folks I can suggest a few things. If you are a fan of such things a fresh goose liver pate or a chicken liver pate is also great. I f you don't like these kind of things then I would suggest a few grilled aubergines and zucchini on the bread with a nice helping of hummus. Simple but delish.
Mid-week and I hope you enjoy the day today.
If you have not already noticed, thought I'd mention my postcard game on my other blog. Join me and a few other bloggers send postcards around the world.

Foccacia and Kohlrabi

Yesterday evening we decided to change the location of our dinner! At around 6 PM Tom came home and we got on our mountain bikes and headed off to one of our favorite spots, the Belvedere Castle. I had packed a quick supper, with some delicious foccacia, italian salami and ham, olives, kohlrabi, carrots and cherry tomatoes, herb flavored cream cheese to dip and some lovely local cherries.

What you see in today's lunchbox is very similar to our little picnic. I managed to save a piece of that lovely foccacia and spread it with the herby cream cheese and added some Italian salami from Milan. The kohlrabi and carrots are organic and you can really taste the difference. The small container contains more of the herb flavored cream cheese to dip. At the farmer's market Soeren was delighted to see these local dark cherries. They are as juicy as they look and he picked a bagful for home and a tummy full for himself. That mini cake is from our baker, who is rather pleased I am doing a review about his bread!

Adult Variation:
Nothing is being changed today. I think if I did I would only disappoint you all, right?
Just enjoy that lunch break to the fullest.
Ciao

Peaches & Plums

Hope you enjoyed the Blog the Bread #1 Review over the weekend. I hope I can do this on a regular basis.

Today's lunchbox is a fruit of the day! Soeren was not able to decide what he wanted peaches or plums, so I gave him both! That, with a delicious blueberry pancake I made yesterday as a little treat, with maple syrup. The normal rye bread is spread with butter and has a slice of cream cheese and a few tomatoes on top - Soeren's new favorite! The treat today is a great "Kinder" choco fresh!

Adult Variation:
The tomatoe cream cheese mixture is currently our fave at home. We enjoy this with my Italian herb mixture sprinkled on top of it. It is so perfect for warm summer days. I think I would leave the rest as it is, yes with the "Kinder" choco fresh too!
Thanks for your ideas last week on the adult variation. It was fun hearing your ideas.

Blog the Bread #1 - Bernd the Bread

Looking for Soeren's lunchbox? Sorry, none today? Soeren is off to his grandparents for the weekend.

Instead I thought I'd treat you to my first promised German bread review. Under Blog the Bread I'll be posting a few posts every now and then talking about the breads I use and what a large variety is available here in Germany. If you're interested, tune in later.

Now, I have to drive Soeren to his grandparents - see ya'll later

---

Well here it is at last. My first German bread review.

I'll start by introducing my baker: His name is Herr (German for Mr.) Becker. I am always joking around with him and calling him "Becker the Baker". He has 4 wonderful daughters: Katarina, Katy, Kim, Keila and his wife Kathrin (a lot of K's). They all help out at the bakery and are such a wonderful and kind hearted family. Soeren is always getting free treats when we go and we are there 3 to 4 times a week!

The bakery produces (mostly) organic breads and pastry and the thing I like is that Herr Becker is always trying out new things. Kneading and mixing up concoctions, always busy and always with a huge grin on his face.

This bread here is our favorite. It really is hard to choose one favorite when the variety is so huge. But it is something I always buy. It is only available on Mondays and Thursdays. On one of those days I do always go and get a loaf.

Bakeries in Germany sell their large selection of breads in uncut loaves. They are all piled and sorted nicely on shelves behind the glass sales counters. In the glass counters you are disillusioned by the colorful selection of wonderful pastries, cakes and cookies. I think if I was ever left in there at my own risk I would dive into the counter - one of my more crazy fantasies!

The loaves of bread are sold by weight and depending on what's in them. One of the very best moments is to come home with a bread that is still warm, cutting a slice with the bread knife and the aroma of this wonderful freshly baked good spreading throughout the house, getting some fresh butter out of the fridge and spreading it on the slice. As the butter melts and trickles into the bread you take a huge bite. UMMMMMM! Heavenly!

Did you know that there are at least 300 German bread types to choose from! I think however that, that is just a rough basic number and in actual fact the number is a lot higher. What I like about the bakeries here is you can often buy just half of a loaf. Which I do very often. I buy a half of one type and half of another type. This way I have a variety and it does not spoil that quickly.

Anyway, back to this bread. This one has a name - Bernd the Bread! I am being serious. He is so popular he even has his own TV series for kids! No jokes!

The bread is made from rye and is packed with flax, sesame, sunflower and oats, as you can see on the crust. This is also one of the very few breads that Soeren will eat with crusts. Now surprises there, eh?

I love to eat this one spread with cream cheese and a spoonful of pesto alla genovese on top. That is so scrumptious!

We eat a lot of bread at home. There are two or three times a week when I will cut up the fresh bread slices and spread a variety of cheeses, hams, salamis and other cold cuts or fish out on the table. There are also tomatoes, carrots or salads to go along. We then sit at the table and enjoy laying our own slices with whatever we want and like. This is a very typical German way to have a light supper and is often reffered to as "kaltes abendbrot" meaning a cold supper. The word "abendbrot" is also very revealing as "abend" means evening and "brot is the German word for "bread". So the word itself says a lot about how the German eating habit in the evenings is ;-)

Of course, if any "real" Germans reading this would like to add or modify anything I have written, please do.

Hope you enjoyed this first little review. I'll be doing this type review for each type of bread that I buy and on an irregular basis but mostly on the weekends, when I have more time ;-)

I'd love to hear your comments and feedback about your bread experiences in your country or home.

Happy Weekend!

New bread at the bakery

Pretty terrible stuff happening in Bombay. To think my dad is actually flying into Bombay today. I was kind of freaked out yesterday as I was not so sure if he was already there or flying later today! I was pretty relieved to hear his voice when he picked up the phone. I am still not too pleased that he id not want to postpone the trip.


Our baker presented me with two of his new creations yesterday. I was quite honored when he told me he wanted me to try them out and see what I thought. They are still not publicly on sale and he wants a few of his dearest customers to give their opinion ... and he considers Soeren and one of his dearest LOL! I got extras for his lunchbox too.

That is a rustical red bell pepper bread roll. It is made with olive oil and part rye and part white flour and has fresh roasted bell peppers in it. It was truly delicious. I spread that with some butter and added a slice of cream cheese and some italian mortadella.
The next new creation is something I have to stay away from. It is so heavenly I cannot even begin to describe it. Puff pastry base covered with layers of nuts and honey and a bit of sugar icing. The baker said it was all inspired by us and the Middle East. The puff pastry is supposed to be something similar to the baklava I brought back from Dubai. You can imagine that I was left speechless.
Cherries, red bell peppers complement the rest. The treat today: Raisins!

Adult Variation: Maybe I can inspire you to give me some of your Mid. Eastern variations today. How will you change this one?

7/11 - A Sad Day for Indians

My thoughts go out to all my fellow Indians. This is a sad time for India and many Indians around the world.

The blasts that rocked Bombay yesterday were senseless and inhuman.

My deepest and most humble condolences to those affected by this attack.

At Mumbai Help you can get information and assistance for those who require more information and for those who are close enough to give a helping hand.

Very Berry!

Looks like that "day off" was a one off thing and Soeri is going back to KIGA with the usual verve!

Yesterday, I picked him up from KIGA. I was armed with my camera and wanted to take a few pictures of Weimar and the farmer's market. Those interested can find some of them here (I'll be uploading a few more later today). Anyway, I am always amazed at how he picks up and learns things that I sometimes think he could not have gotten all that. Last week I bought a new tripod for my camera and Soeri came along to the little photo shop. I was talking to the salesman about what I wanted. I had a perfect perception of what I wanted. Soeren was quiet and listened to everything I was saying. Anyway, when the guy went off he asked me what a tripod was. I am the type who explains in great detail as Tom keeps telling me that a 4 year old can't possibly digest everything I explain. The salesman was rather amazed that Soeren actually listened with great interest. To get back to the point - when I was taking pictures yesterday I did not take my tripod with me. Soeren of course as clever as he is says:

"Mum, you know I really like the motives you have chosen but don't you think bringing the tripod would make the quality of the pictures a little more sharper."

It was said so professionally that it knocked my socks off and made me smirk.

With the berries I bought at the farmer's market yesterday I made a delicious dessert. With some real homemade vanilla yoghurt (not the yoghurt - but the flavoring) which I will be posting on my food blog sometime later. The roll is a dark so called "beer roll" but only had malt in it - no beer! It also has wonderful sesame seeds, poppy seeds and flax seeds. It is spread with flavored herb cream cheese. Two meatballs and the last of my soccer Babybel cheese chunks. A container full of carrots and bell peppers top the box off. Treat today - two Oreo chocolate cookies.

Adult Variation: I am really enjoying reading your ideas on how you would change Soeri's lunchbox to fit into an adults diet. So keep 'em coming!

Bagel, Mango and Nußecke

Yes, he went to the KIGA today! I think in the end he realized it's not so hot being at home with mum working all day. So, he was happy to join his buddies this morning.

We went to Ikea yesterday. I gave him up at the Smarland, where he played for an hour and a half. Had a such a ball, that he was disappointed in seeing me. He asked "Don't you need to get some other stuff?"

Today's is packed with a brilliant sesame bagel, with that cream cheese slice again and a nice juicy turkey breast with herbs. Fruity and sweet mango chunks. Some nice cucumbers and two cherry tomatoes. That in the back is a nutty Nusecke. Real good stuff and I bought four yesterday. Can you do the math? Here's one ... where are the other three?

Adult Variation:
So, lemme see your variation and ideas to this one. If any of you are new. This week I am getting any or all of my readers to give me their ideas of how they would change Soeri's lunch box to fit into their own!

Herb bread and granola bits

How was the weekend? For us we had a pretty good one. We were at a wedding, met up with some old friends and went on a picnic to a lake. Great time!

Besides that Italy won the Soccer championships. Germany won their match for 3rd place. Not bad for a weekend!

I have a question for you all and the advice would help! What do you do when your kid says he/she does not want to go to school/pre-school? Ok I understand school is a bit different because of the learning/projects/tests etc. But nursery, kindergarten etc. is different.

Do you say "OK for one day - I can relate to that as sometimes I too do not fancy going to work!" Or are do you say "Nothing doing ... you're going and that's final!"

I opted for the first variant today! Soeren for the first time since two and half years said he just did not fancy going to KIGA. It surprised us to hear that because it was not just out of a mood. We tried to ask him why, but at the moment he was in no mood to discuss it. So I said "OK ... fine, but mum has to work all day and daddy is at the university all day. No one has any time to play with you. All the neighbors kids are at school etc. So you'll have to keep yourself busy." He agreed.

As I write this up though he seems to be getting the first bouts of "hey playing alone all day ain't so hot" feeling! Let's see how it goes.

I had made the lunch box before we decided that he would stay at home so I thought I'd share it with you anyway.

A delicious herb bread (yes it will be in the review!) spread with cream cheese. A wiener sausage with a few cherry tomatoes. Luscious, sweet grapes and a vanilla yoghurt with crunchy honey flavored granola bits to top off. Treat today a creamy almond bar.

Adult Variation: I'd like to turn the table around this week. Why don't you tell me how you would modify the lunch box for yourself. It would interest me how you make the variation. So, all this week I am looking for your variations to Soeren's lunchbox. I really look forward to your responses!

Egg Salad, raisin bun, kiwi and cranberries

We're hoping for rain today! To finally cool off the high temperatures we have been having. I kind of wonder why the heat here bothers me sometimes. Not so much but I do feel uncomfortable with it. I mean I spent a large part of my life in countries like Kuwait, Qatar and Dubai and there the heat and the temperatures are a lot more drastic then in Europe. The only way to explain it, would be that in those countries the difference in temperatures is not so drastic throughout the year. In winter it gets to 20 ° C and in the summer well it is in the 40's ° C. Here in winter we go as low as -10/15° C and the last couple of weeks we had 30° - 35° C! Now that is a huge difference.

Anyway, we still are the summer type of family and Soeren is happy to have any excuse to peel his clothes off. Yesterday, I was putting away the groceries, he went out into the backyard and I could hear him talking with his buddy Julius. When I came out they were both butt naked running about the garden with the watering can!!

Wish it was that easy for us to cool off!

Today we are doing egg salad again. Every time I get a large amount of eggs from our friendly farmer I try and use a few up by making egg salad. It's quick and easy and we enjoy it on our sandwiches. The bread is one that is a basic at our home. A normal rye bread fresh and light. Carrots go along with it for the crunch. Lovely yellow kiwis and a handful of dried cranberries for the fruity section of the day. The huge raisin bread is spread with butter and honey.

Adult Variation:Egg salad is a great spread and I'd like to recommend to add a couple slices roast beef slices to the egg salad sandwich. Top it off with a few pickled gurkins and this is one tasty sandwich. I love the raisin bread too - I normally don't spread it with anything just like dipping it into my cafe au lait. Maybe you'd like to give that a try too.

So, wish you all a fantastic Friday and a great weekend. We plan to go to a wedding party, a cake and coffee party and a picnic this weekend. See you on the other side!

Tomato and cheese, plums, and vanilla yoghurt

I have already started taking pictures of the bread for my German bread review. This one was actually the first one. Our favorite one called "Bernd". I am not quite sure how I will tackle the review and on which blog I'll publish it. But at least I have made a start and I thought I'd keep you updated.

The weather has been hot, hot and hotter. And no sign of rain anywhere. Yesterday, the KIGA had a Splash! day. Everyone brought their bathing shorts/swimsuits and the let the sprinklers on and filled up their big basin with cool water. The kids had a blast as I was told.

Today's is keeping it fresh and cool! So, a slice of "Bernd" spread with margarine and a cool slice of cream cheese (I say slice because that is the newest invention - cream cheese slices!) and slice of lovely Italian tomatoes. Two small meatballs accompany the sandwich. Fruity and juicy plums. Vanilla yoghurt with a few vanilla cereal squares for the topping.

Adult Variation:
This looks really good. You can substitute the cream cheese slice for some soft mozzarella cheese. Add a spoonful of pesto all genovese and believe me it will be a great sandwich. Plums are so fantastic and refreshing so I hope you take a big portion. Instead of topping the yoghurt with the cereal squares you can use fresh chopped strawberries too.
Stay cool and enjoy your Thursday lunch!

Cheese Quesadillas and a fruity salsa

So, we lost to Italy yesterday! Amazing game though and we played brilliantly. The Italians were just a tad better. I think we had a fantastic team and a great trainer and I really believe the German soccer is gonna go places!

Still no need to sulk and that's why today's lunch box is exceptionally scrumptious.
Lovely cheese quesadillas with a fruity pineapple avocado salsa. Local cherries and a fantastic cake made with a sponge base vanilla pudding and roasted almonds. The recipe for the quesadillas and the salsa will be posted on soon.

Adult Variation: Fantastic lunch box today and I really do not want to change a thing. Just hope you enjoy the great weather and your lunch.

Empty?

ARRGGHH! The lunchbox is empty! Yes, that's right ... isn't that a nightmare?

Actually Soeren got a very high temperature yesterday evening. No idea what it was or where it came from. We decided to keep him home today just in case. But he is doing fine so no worries. He's been enjoying the lovely warm sunshine in the garden while I worked out on the terrace. It was nice having him around and listening to him sing and talk about things.

We whipped us some great lunch:



Creamy and smooth mashed potatoes with chives, green beans with a touch of olive oil and provence herbs and a lovely fish filet coated in bread crumbs and grated cheese.

Hope that makes up for the empty lunchbox ;-)

A Quickie

Today's lunch box was a real quickie! Even the picture is a bit shaken.
We were a bit late as we all were a bit tired from yesterday. Tom played soccer the whole afternoon yesterday (like I keep saying the fever is getting hotter here!) then we had a few friends from the team over for a barbecue. Soeren of course went to bed a little later than usual and we as well ;-)!

So it was a few leftover mini grill sausages that he liked so much and a wonderful carrot nut bread spread with cream cheese for the lunchbox. A few refreshing cucumbers and a container full of lovely grapes. I know you all want to know what is in that container at the back. A wonderful dessert I made yesterday with a lot of dark rich chocolate. The recipe will be posted here sometime later this week, so check back then.

BTW: If you are interested in reading about a little trip we made to the strawberry field a couple of weeks ago you may do so here. A few nice photos of luscious strawberries will make your mouth water too!

Adult Variation: The idea with the grill sausage is great. If you have a nice big spicy one you can take that along with you. A pasta salad is great with it and if you need a recipe for one you'll find a nice one here. I know you want that chocolatey dessert too ... soon folks! Hope you have a nice start to your week!