Where am I taking Tom for his Birthday?

Here is a little game I am playing on my personal blog, The Family Buzz. Thought the readers here might want to play too.

I am taking Tom somewhere special for his birthday. Over Easter we will be off to this great city. Can you guess by looking at the pic above where this is? Actually, there is a cheat to this, but I hope you are all honest enough to guess without the cheat.

If you do guess right then I will send you a postcard from this place, so make sure you leave your address!

Buttermilk Scones and Frozen Berries

It was an unusual morning today, as we decided to skip breakfast at home and sleep in a few more minutes. Soeri came over to our bed, snuggled up to us and fell asleep again. So, when we did all get up again it was a little later than usual.

Morning Snack: I decided to make buttermilk scones. I had de-frosted the dough yesterday evening and just had to put it in the oven for a few. Unfortunately it was a few to many, and it turned out a little darker than usual .... ooops! Actually I was distracted with Soeren lecturing me on how he did not want the sprinkle stuff on top of his mousse or yoghurt but on the side instead. On these lovely dark scones (they were fantastic and soft on the inside and did not turn hard on the outside like I thought they would) I spread some margarine and some cranberry jam. In the diary section he got that lovely Italian Straciatella quark. To nibble on I added a few cashew nuts, raisins and an all fruit organic bar.

Afternoon Snack: These fantastic CCWA Muffins were a real hit. Soeren wanted one again today. This time I cut the muffin in half and spread the frosting inside. Some Apple mousse and, as requested by Sir Soeren, the frozen berries on the side, finishes the snack box.

Adult Variation: Scones are really great. You can just about spread anything on them. If you are not the sweet tooth kind of person try out a nice slice of camembert cheese and a few tomato slices. I also encourage you to give the muffins a try. You will never want to bake any other type! If you do not want the apple mouse just put the frozen berries in a blender and add a bit of apple juice. This is a great refreshing drink to take with you.

Pigs in a Blanket, Watermelon and CCWA Muffins

I remember when I first moved to Germany 13 years ago, I was anything but a cook. As my mother waved me off at the Doha International Airport she gave me a little present. A cookbook with mostly english recipes. One of the recipes I found cool was "pigs in a blanket". Basically, a sausage wrapped in pastry dough. I believe I have come a long way since then and my mother is extremely surprised and proud that I can cook so well. She loves this blog! So, Mum today's tiffin is dedicated to you!
Morning Snack: I took a normal turkey wiener and wrapped it in some puff pastry I had left over. Before that I spread the puff pastry with a nice helping of cream cheese. A few slices of orange crunchy bell peppers and a all fruit organic bar. I made some apple mouse again and used a few ingredients leftover from baking as toppings - walnuts and coconut flakes.

Afternoon Snack: Ummmmmm! Juicy watermelon! I cut a slice in little wedges. Watermelon really gives that summer feeling doesn't it? Yesterday, I baked these CCWA Muffins and of course Soeri gets one of these in his snack box. I urge everyone to try this muffin recipe. There is nothing like it and every mother will definitely have a good conscious giving these to their children!

Adult Variation I think these are wonderful snack boxes and I would not change anything .... well maybe two muffins instead of one ;-)

Chocolate yoghurt, tomato mozzarella and plums

OK, today I wanted to give Soeren a piece of the Rucola Herb Quiche I made last night. However, he was not too impressed. So, I had to change plans.
Morning Snack: I made this yummy chocolate yoghurt on an impulse. I had a little bit of the cocoa powder left over and did not fancy putting it back in the huge container so I just mixed it in some natural organic yoghurt. See there ... Soeren came running over with a spoon in his hand "Let me taste!" Toasted a toastie (biscuit) and spread this with margarin, a slice of mozzarella and some tomatoes. Thirst quencher is a strawberry flavored Actimel.

Afternoon Snack: I was at the market again yesterday and once again bought those juicy tasting plums, this time a few sunny yellow ones as well. With this a très yummy chocolate chip chinois!

Adult Variation Instead of the toastie, go for a nice brown baguette and sprinkle a nice portion of fresh basel before closing the sandwich. Try out the chocolate yogurt I am sure you'll like it. If not make a chocolate frappe to go. Chinois tastes great with a large café au lait so get yourself one of those, kick off the shoes and take a short break.

Broccoli, Fleischkäse and Marble Cake

Fleischkaese or Leberkaese is a German speciality, especially in Bavaria. It is often eaten with sweet mustard and a roll. Another great way to serve this is with a fried egg and some fried potatoes. I usually buy the fleischkaese made with turkey.

Morning Snack: I find turkey meat a little healthier (don't ask me why ... I just imagine it to be) and the type I buy is fortified with calcium and has no added conservatives. I bought some of our favorite bread "Bernd" and added a nice helping of cream cheese and a thick slice of the fleischkaese. I quickly steamed the broccoli sprouts for 2 minutes in the steamer and then let them cool under cold water. This keeps them nice and green and stops them cooking further. A generous helping of blackberry yoghurt with a few vanilla breakfast squares to sprinkle on top wraps up the snack box.

Afternoon Snack: No, we did not bake again yesterday! This marble cake is a speciality at our bakery. The baker never tells me exactly what he puts into this cake but it is sooooo soft and fluffy. I did bribe him once with some baklava I had brought back from Dubai which prompted him only to tell me this much ... he adds yoghurt to it to make it so smooth. Anyway, Soeri's eyes always light up when I ask for the cake. As there was actually one left over on the shelf I decided to buy it. To this I included a few crunchy organic apples.

Adult Variation: As I mentioned above the fleischkaese is typical German and you just might get this in some good sorted stores. If not use some pastrami and a nice helping of dijon mustard. Add a few slices of red onion and a couple of pickled gurkens and voila! You have a delicious lunch. Instead of plain broccoli you can take this in two ways. If you have a microwave in the office then simply add a generous helping of grated cheddar cheese, a few almond flakes, salt and pepper. At lunch time just "nuke" it until the cheese has melted over the broccoli.
If you do not have the luxury of a microwave then just roast the almond flakes and take a small helping of some blue cheese salad dressing in a separate container. This tastes fantastic. You all by now know I am a yoghurt fan, so if you too enjoy yoghurt then take a nice helping of your favorite type. Now that the weather is getting warmer outside you could even put the yoghurt in the freezer the night before. By lunch the next day it should be nicely chilled and just right.
A slice of you favorite type of cake and a large cappuccino to go is a great way to take a little break in the afternoon. Hope you find a few minutes to sit outside in the park and enjoy the weather while eating this.

Straciatella Quark, Beer Rolls & Cashew Nuts

We were a little late getting out of bed today due to the fact the time was pushed an hour forward over the weekend. Surprisingly things went quite easily without the usual hectic in the morning. Must be due to the weather. The temperature is rising and we can slowly feel that Spring is on it's way!

Morning Snack: What better way to celebrate warmer temperatures then a nice cool Straciatella quark. Dolce Vita pure! With that he got a nice little "bier brötchen". Literally translated it means beer roll, but before all of you raise your eye brows, no there isn't any beer in it! Instead plenty of really great and healthy stuff, like flax seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds. I asked the baker why they were called that he said because he adds malt to the dough, which gives it this dark color. These "bier" rolls were spread with cream cheese and I added a slice of calcium fortified mortadella. I boiled an egg and cut up a few carrot batons. To be honest, Soeri actually only took half of that egg. When I had taken that picture I left the snack boxes open so that the egg had some time to cool. I went upstairs to get Soeri's rain coat and as I came down he was sitting at the breakfast table eating half of that egg!

Afternoon Snack Sometimes at breakfast I have Swedish crispbread (Knäckebrot) with margarin and honey on it. Last week Soeri seemed to have developed a taste for it so I decided to make him a crispbread honey sandwich. With this I added some fantastic cashew nuts (sent all the way from Dubai) and seedless organic blue grapes.

Adult Variation: Today's variation would be more on the filling. If you can find a nice dark bread roll with so many seeds then please make sure you get a few. Fill it with mortadella if you like, but you can also use a nice ham or some hungarian salami. Instead of the hard boiled you could make a small portion of scrambled egg. Make sure you add a few herbs to the eggs then. I know quark is not easy to find in all parts of the world so simply replace this with natural yoghurt and add a few chocolate chunks to it. It's your own Dolce Vita!
Crispbread is not only healthy but a great alternative to normal bread. So if you get your hands on this then please do try it with honey. If not, you could try a rice cracker spread with honey. It is also very light and with the honey tastes pretty good. Cashew nuts are a great source of very important minerals and vitamins, not to mention they make great "nerve" food. Always great in the office to nibble on in between meetings ;-)! Today's fruit - grapes. Sweet, juicy and refreshing.

Spinach, Fruit Salad and Berries!

We love spinach and I often serve this wonderful vegie in many different ways. I tend to use mostly frozen spinach as according to the "researchers" it is supposed to be healthier than fresh. Fresh spinach, once it reaches our supermarkets has obtained a high count in nitrate. Different to the frozen variety, which is frozen straight after plucking is healthier and low in nitrate.
Morning Snack: I mixed a sandwich filling with spinach, cottage cheese, corn, diced chicken breast, 2 teaspoons low fat mayo, a pinch of thyme, salt and pepper and a tiny shot of olive oil. Mix this well. I used finnish bread and spread a bit of butter and filled with the filling. The whole thing went into the sandwich maker with the gill plates inserted (the sandwich maker has three different types of removable hot plates - normal one that makes the sandwiches, grill plates and waffle plates). Press the sandwich maker together and let the bread crisp nicely. The fruit salad is a made with plums, apples, strawberries, melon, oranges, kiwis, grapes and some almonds my mum brought from Dubai (thanks mum). Yummy!

Afternoon Snack: A scrumptious pancake filled with blackberry jam and a black berry yoghurt with frozen mixed berries on top. Very berry indeed!
I got an email from a reader asking me why I always (almost always) gave Soeri yoghurt in his box and how did I get him to start eating the yoghurt, as her daughter would not touch anything "yoghurty". The reason Soeri gets a portion of yoghurt in his snack box is because he hardly drinks milk. A bit with his cereal at breakfast or a cup full at the KIGA with the afternoon snack is as far as it will go. I try to supplement this with additional sources of calcium like yoghurt, cheese etc. I used to buy these little kiddies yoghurt that we get in Germany (Frucht Zwerg etc.) and for us the organic yoghurt we get in jars. Soeren always used to eye these up and one day I just put the whole jar and a spoon in front of him and he just felt so proud to be eating "grown up" yoghurt. Ever since then I almost always buy the jars and "fine tune" it a little with fruit/cereal/granola additions. I think kids enjoy just being a part of the ritual with the grown ups. They see us how we eat and they want to be a part of that too.

Adult variation: If you cannot find finnish bread to make these then any other bread will do just fine too. I plan to use the leftover filling in pitta bread for lunch today. The pancake are easily made and you can substitute with any type of jam you have at home. The frozen berries keep the yoghurt fresh and cool until its time to eat.

Club Sandwich Deluxe and Waffles

Club Sandwiches are probably the most well known sandwiches. I have tried so many different variations from all over the world. Well I thought I would try making my own Club Sandwich.

Morning Snack: Egg salad, cooked ham, cheese and tomatoes makes up my sandwich. The sandwiches are coated in a mixture of egg and milk and quickly fried. I made a batch last night and Soeri wanted to take one today, which was easy as I had some of the ingredients leftover. An organic "Alnatura" (they make a lot of organic food stuff here in Germany) almond bar goes into the box as a treat. I used up the last of the pineapple and passion fruit quark and added a few vanilla cereal squares to sprinkle on top.

Afternoon Snack: Nothing like scrumptious waffles and when they are accompanied with fresh strawberries and maple syrup they would make anyone's day. Soeri was so excited about this that he wanted me to put these in the red snack box (that's the one for the morning snack) I told him he could eat the blue on e first if he preferred. He thought about it and said "No, I'll eat that in the afternoon, then I have something to look forward to the whole day!" Cute!

Adult Variation: This is perfect the way it is. Just make sure you add a double portion of the sandwich. I had made a light green salad with this last night which is great and refreshing. If you opt to take a salad with you, use a light salad dressing, like a vinaigrette as the sandwiches are very filling. Pack the dressing portion separately. The rest of it does not need to be changed. I hope you enjoy it!

Veggie Patties & Nutella Banana Wraps

These vegetable patties I made last night are so versatile, they can be eaten just about any way you like.

Morning Snack: I used this to fill a pitta bread. Spread some herb quark, sliced a few ripe tomatoes and filled the pitta with the patties and tomatoes. The patties are crispy on the outside and soft and tender on the inside and the added sunflower seeds gives it a nice crunch. For the fruit I chose some of the nice juicy organic plums, we all here can't get enough of. A little morning treat is the hanuta chocolate waffle.

Afternoon Snack: I had two tortillas leftover that were using up unnecessary space in my refrigerator so I decided to make a sweet wrap. "Nutella and Banana on a tortilla, mum?" was the comment I got from Soeri as he saw me take his all beloved Nutella jar out of the kitchen cupboard. "Yeah, a new treat ... try it?" Of course he opened his mouth so wide. Well it really did taste great and so we treated ourselves to the second leftover tortilla (I mean it would be senseless leaving ONE tortilla all alone in the refrigerator)! A few dried cranberries and a vanilla yoghurt tops off the snack box.

Adult Variation: The vegetable patty pitta is really great and as they can be eaten hot or cold they can be taken in the lunch boxes. If you can't find the quark you can replace with either cottage cheese or just cream cheese. Besides the tomatoes, you can add lettuce and a few cucumber slices. Plums are nice and refreshing but you can also use peaches. The wraps are great with a large cup of café au lait. You can spoon the yoghurt in between mouthfuls of yummy Nutella wrap!!

Egg Salad and Frankfurter

We got a small basket full of eggs from one of our neighbors who has his own chickens. In return I had to lend a sympathetic ear and hear about all the new regulations that are being applied for bird breeders. Anyway I did not mind as the eggs are 100% from happy hens and taste really good.

Morning Snack: I used some of the eggs to make a quick egg salad. Just use a few hard boiled eggs, onions, peas, mushrooms, herbs, a bit of mayonnaise (low-fat) and some yoghurt or quark. On two slices of sunflower seed toast bread (did not get to the bakery in time!) I spread some margarin and some of the egg salad. Turkey frankfurters is something that normally goes against the German food protocol, but I find they not only taste better than the usual pork ones, they are also low on fat. A few sweet cherry tomatoes and a container full of sweet melon to finish.

Afternoon Snack: A milk bread alongside sliced apples and organic white grapes and an organic almond bar. As these bars come in a double pack I took one out of the packet.

Adult Variation: I recommend a nice dark roll with some type of seeds (sunflower, pumpkin etc.) for the egg salad. You can always add a few lettuce leaves and if you are not a fan of frankfurters you could make yourself a ground chicken patty or just add a nice slice of good ham to the roll. A tomato salad is refreshing. Simply cut up the cherry tomatoes in half, add a good shot of olive oil and balsamic vinegar a few chopped red onions and some basel. By lunch time I am sure the tomatoes have soaked up the dressing and it should taste great. Instead of the milk bread you could use a slice of any plain dry cake. Either something you bake yourself or what you buy in the store/bakery. A cup of espresso with it and you are "zinged" for the afternoon!

It's a round up!

Today I am trying something new in Soeren's snack box: the Pumpernickel. After I took the picture I realized that everything was nice and circular shaped!

Morning Snack: The pumpernickel is spread with butter and Leberwurst, Soeren's favorite spread. I added a few cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices for the refreshing taste. The Babybel cheese for extra calcium and the nice juicy yellow kiwi.

Afternoon Snack: See that delicious rich chocolate muffin there? Well I decided to bake these yesterday (without Soeren) as a little surprise. These tasted so great but must be taken with a tall glass of milk as they really are extremely rich in consistency. I'll be posting the recipe on What's For Lunch Honey? soon. I added some of his favorite pineapple and passion fruit quark and a few blue seedless organic grapes.

Adult Variation:
Pumpernickel is hard to find in some parts of the world, especially the US. You could order it from an online German store as it really tastes great with all sorts of toppings. You could use some nice strong cheddar cheese if you are not a big leberwurst fan or even just tomatoes and cucumbers on a bit of butter tastes great. If you can't find any yellow kiwi, use the green variety. They really are a vitamin kick for the day! As I mentioned above - a tall glass of milk should be taken with the muffin. You could even have a nice cool yoghurt frappe!
Whatever you do decide enjoy every bite!

Wrap meets Pretzel

The clash of the gigantics! The Mexican tortilla wrap and the German Pretzel, both are pretty much the food ambassadors for their countries and are well known across the world. Both are also loved by kids and adults alike.

Morning Snack: We had wraps for dinner last night and I kept a bit of the filling back for today.
The filling is pretty simple: Ready grilled chicken from the rotisserie, cream cheese, sun dried tomato pesto, green bell peppers. Mix these together and that was it. The rest of the fillings are the usual wrap condiments: Lettuce, tomatoes, grated cheese. With this some sweet and succulent pineapple and a few dried cranberries.

Afternoon Snack: The pretzel - always good for any time of day. I spread a bit of butter on it and cut it half as it was so big, it did not fit in the box. The natural yoghurt has a few chocolate crunchy biscuits in them. I am still trying to get Soeri to get to know (and eat) a few more dried fruit. The last time I put some in his box they came back. I'll keep trying until I come up with another idea like sneaking lettuce in sandwiches and wraps!

Adult variation:
Bigger wrap, more filling and some hot salsa to spice it up! Wraps are great as leftovers and even better to take in lunch boxes. The pineapple is refreshing and the cranberries are sweet after the spicy salsa. Pretzels taste great plain or with butter. Get yourself a nice afternoon coffee and then treat yourself to the cool and crunchy yoghurt. The dried fruit are another great nerve food when you're having a hard day at work.