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Playful and hungry

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Playful and hungry

Tag Archives: whole wheat

“Snowflake” Cookies

26 Sunday May 2013

Posted by Playful and Hungry in Playful food and photos

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

baking, cookie, dessert, food photography, hazelnuts, healty eating, lego, recipes, vegan, vegetarian, walnuts, whole wheat

Yes, I made snowflake cookies. Or at least, that’s what I chose to call them. I do know it’s May. Or, it’s supposed to be May. I’m not sure if the weather right here in Germany knows that it’s May. There was night frost in some areas this week! Kind of crazy…

Schneekekse_1

Okay, I will stop complaining. We’ll be on vacation the next two weeks. I decided to make some cookies as a little supply and as a present for the person with whom we’re staying. As they are snowflake cookies, they’ll remind us of the cold that we espace…

And just to give you some facts: They’re whole wheat, or at least, they can be. They can be made using either xylit, regular white sugar or whole cane sugar. Whole cane sugar yields a malty, caramel like flavor which I really like.
And of course, you don’t have to use the same kind of nuts I used. Actually, you could also use just hazelnuts or just walnuts or you use almonds… it’s up to you!

Schneekekse_3
T
hat’s a big cookie for a tiny Lego girl, if you ask me…

Snowflake Cookies
yields about 60 cookies, whole wheat and can be sugar-free

  • 200g / 1 2/3 cups whole wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry)
  • 120g / 3/4 cup ground nuts (I used half hazelnuts and half walnuts)
  • 100g / 1/2 cup cold margarine (earth balance / alsan)
  • 100g / 1/2 cup sugar (whole cane, white or xylit)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract or 2 packages bourbon vanilla sugar
  • 1 tbsp cold water
  • pinch of salt
  • optional: confectioners’ sugar for decoration OR powdered xylit

Mix all the ingredients, using either your hands or a food processor. I think using your hands is much more fun and better for taste testing the dough… ;)
The dough is supposed to be smooth and it shouldn’t stick to your hands. Add some more flour if it’s too sticky, add a little more cold water if it’s too crumbly.
Form a roll and cut of slices, about 0,5 cm thick. Put on a baking tray, lined with baking paper. Bake for about 12-15 minutes at 350 F / 180 C. Decorate with confectioners’ sugar while still warm! Enjoy and hope for better weather!
Note: you can easily make powdered sugar from xylit in your food processor or blender. Just put 2 cups in your blender and mix, that’s it. It’s a great sugar-free alternative for decorating cookies and other desserts.

Schneekekse_2
No problem… since she has a fancy Lego phone, she’s just calling a friend…

2013-05-26 Schneekekse_4So they can enjoy that cookie together!

I’ll see you in two weeks. Hope all the “snowflakes” are gone when we’ll get back!

Homemade Soft Pretzels – whole wheat!

21 Sunday Apr 2013

Posted by Playful and Hungry in Playful food and photos

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

baking, bread, breakfast, cooking, dessert, food photography, healthy, lego, playful, Pretzels, soft pretzels, vegan, vegetarian, whole wheat

click for German version / Deutsche version hier 

Fresh soft pretzels are one of the first things that come into peoples’ minds when thinking of Germany.
What most people don’t know: It’s actually just the south where those pretzels are really popular. You can also buy them in the north. But the south is famous for it’s soft pretzels.

Bretzels_1

I’m from the north. ;)

Bretzels_3

To finally get rid of the prejudice: People in Germany don’t look like the little lego guy above. They don’t wear leather pants and they don’t drink beer all day. Actually, leather pants are just the traditional costume in one particular state (Bavaria)! And there are 15 more states that don’t have leather pants. They do have beer and pretzels though. But no leather pants. And no dirndl. Just saying.

Bretzels_4

The lego guy is a traditional Bavarian.

Okay. I do have a pretzel food critic from the south (He’s not from Bavaria and he doesn’t wear leather pants). He liked loved my homemade pretzels. I love them, too. So I guess they are really good!

At first, I thought whole wheat pretzels were a completely new idea. After all, I’ve never, neither in the north, nor in the south, seen a whole wheat soft pretzel. As I’ve never seen them or heard about them, I always thought soft pretzel won’t work with whole wheat, or they won’t taste good.

I was proven wrong.

In both points.
1. Whole wheat pretzels taste great! I might even like them better than their white relatives.
2. My friend from the south told me, that some organic bakeries sell whole wheat pretzels, too. However, they don’t seem to be that popular. I really don’t know why.

Pretzels

Whole wheat Soft Pretzels 

yields about 8 pretzels 

  • 400g (3 1/3 cups) whole wheat pastry flour (Germany: Weizen 1050) 
  • 1 package active dry yeast
  • 60g (1/3 cup) margarine
  • 160g (2/3 cup) soy milk (plus 4 tbsp in case you need more liquid!)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 liter (4 cups) water
  • 3 tbsp baking soda (Germany: Natron)
  • coarse salt for sprinkling

Combine four, dry yeast and 1 tsp salt in a bowl. Add margarine and milk. Start with 160g (2/3 cup) milk and add more if needed. Knead the dough by hand or use your food processor. (I always use my hands… honestly, cleaning your hands is easier than cleaning a food processor!). The dough should be smooth and not sticky. Use more water if needed (the exact amount always depends on your flour). Put dough back in the bowl, cover with a towel and let it sit for 30 min.

Put 1 liter water (4 cups) in a pot, add baking soda and bring it to a rolling boil. Now it’s time to form your pretzels! Roll into a log first and then form the “knot”. You could also watch a youtube video for more detailed instructions. Or you simply form pretzle sticks or buns! Place your pretzels into the boiling water, one by one, for one minute. Remove from water and put on a backing tray, lined with baking parchment. Brush with water and sprinkle with coarse salt. Let them sit for another 30 min. Bake for about 15-20 min, until golden brown in color (180 C / 360 F ).

Bretzels_5

Enjoy!

Those pretzels would be fun when served with Dessert Beer! =D

Indian Naan Bread

12 Saturday Jan 2013

Posted by Playful and Hungry in Playful food and photos

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

baking, bread, cooking, food, food photography, healthy, healthy food, healty eating, indian, lego, naan, recipes, vegan, vegetarian, whole wheat

No Indian meal without Naan! I could go without the basmati rice. I often do eat my Indian curries without basmati rice. Don’t get me wrong, I really like basmati rice, it’s my favorite kind of rice. But Naan bread is just SO much better! So when I do have the choice – rice or naan, it’s gonna be Naan! A lot of Naan!

Naan Elephant

If you want to be really authentic: Try to eat your indian meal using the naan bread the grap the veggies and suck up the sauce. No knife, fork or spoon needed! Okay, that’s for pros. Might be easier than chop sticks, though.

My twist on Naan bread was to use whole wheat  flour. It fills you up and makes you feel much better. I also prefer the hearty flavor! However, feel free to use either whole wheat flour or just normal white flour – it both works in this recipe. Just keep in mind that whole wheat flour need a little bit more liquid than white flour.

Naan

Naan Bread 

inspired by “The Lotus and the Artichoke” (have a look – it’s a great website and a unique approach)

  • 1/2 package dry yeast (or 20g fresh yeast)
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1 Tbs warm water
  • 1 3/4 cups / 220 g wholewheat pastry flour (Germany: Weizenmehl 1050)
  •  1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 Tbs soy yogurt
  • 2 Tbs water or soy milk
  • 2 Tbs oil

Whisk yeast, sugar, warm water in a small bowl. Let it rest and rise for 10 min. Combine flour and salt in a large bowl. Mix soy yogurt, soy milk, oil in another small bowl and add this to the yeast-water mixture. Add combined wet ingredients to dry mix in large bowl. Fold, mix well. Knead for 5-7 minutes until dough is soft and rubbery. You can add slightly more water or flour if needed. The dough should form well and not be sticky. Cover dough and let it rise in a warm place for 2-4 hours.
Heat a large pan on high heat. Separate the dough into 4 different pieces and form long, oval naans. Cook dough in the pan. Each side should cook 4-5 min on high heat. Once there are brown spots and bubbles on each side, this delicious bread is done!

I am getting hungry by looking at it. And so does my little zoo right here…

Naan Panda

So, it’s your turn. What’s your favorite part about indian food?

Coming up: Navratan Korma and Mango Lassi!

Gingerbread Pancakes – Breakfast before christmas

13 Thursday Dec 2012

Posted by Playful and Hungry in Playful food and photos

≈ 12 Comments

Tags

breakfast, dessert, food, food photography, healthy, healty eating, lego, pancakes, vegan, vegetarian, walnuts, whole wheat, wholewheat pancakes

Time to get festive!

Image

One thing I love about christmas time are all the spices! Cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, all spice… I love them all. They warm me from the inside when it’s freezing outside…

There are all these foods they only sell around Christmas. One of them is “Lebkuchen”, which is the German equivalent to gingerbread. But it’s more like a soft gingerbread and the spice mix is slightly different. The most famous one is the Nuremberg gingerbread. Try it if you get a chance! (I might be posting a recipe for “Lebkuchen” / soft gingerbread before Christmas, too, stay tuned!)

Image

To cut a long story short: “Lebkuchen” tastes great and so do pancakes (I guess I don’t have to tell you!) – so let’s combine both things! That’s what we did for breakfast today. It warms you form the inside and fills you up for a while because it’s whole wheat. And it’s a really delicious and easy way to make pancakes just a little bit different than usual!

Image

Gingerbread Pancakes / Lebkuchen-Pancakes
serves two

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/4 cups water
  • 2 tbsp soy flour
  • about ten chopped walnuts (1/8 cup)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tbsp stevia
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp “Lebkuchen” spice mix OR ginger bread spice mix OR one dash of each: Cinnamon, cardamom, muscat, all spice, coriander, ginger, cloves, mace)
  • dash of salt

Mix all the ingredients, adding just as much water as you need to create a pancake batter (the texture should be like a thick cake batter). Put about one tablespoon of dough in a non-sticking pan and cook at medium heat until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip and cook until browned.

Serve with maple syrup. Or vanilla sauce, chocolate syrup, agave syrup, apple sauce… whatever you want! And remember – those are wholewheat pancakes. They will really fill you up! This a breakfast for two hungry people.

Image

But if you’ve been building snowmen and pancake skiing all morning, like this little friend of mine, you probably are hungry. However, don’t worry, the delicious smell that comes from the spices should be enough to make everyone crave these pancakes.

One more, just because I like it.

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