Homemade Pasta

Good things come to those who wait.

This phrase couldn’t be more true than when it comes to shopping in Germany. Generally, most products are much more expensive in Germany compared to the USA.

Luckily, there have been several times when waiting has proven to provide excellent discounts and savings on products I desperately wanted.

A few weekends ago, it happened again.

I found the pasta maker that I’ve been eyeballing since October for almost half the price.

Rather than the original €130 price tag, this beauty was reduced to €70.

Admittedly, €70 is still a lot for a single kitchen appliance, but this is one of those items that time has not crossed off of my wish list.

Just a day later, I put my new toy into action.

9 months after taking my Italian cooking course, I finally was able to use the recipe for homemade pasta.

I cut the prepared dough into four portions then started running the dough through the pasta maker one portion at a time.

Fresh, homemade tagliatelle.

I boiled half of the fresh pasta in salted water for dinner and dried the other half to be given as a gift.

A wire hanger makes a great drying rack for pasta. I imagine a thicker wooden hanger would be even better.

I enjoyed my homemade pasta with a spicy tomato cream sauce, similar to this recipe.

Homemade Tagliatelle

Recipe reposted from the original post which contains photo instructions for making the dough and rolling/ cutting the pasta by hand.

Ingredients

For 4 servings

• 200 grams. all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs
• good pinch of salt
• drizzle of olive oil

Method

1. Create a large circular well in the flour which goes all the way down to the cooking surface. Crack the eggs inside the well and add the salt and a little olive oil.
2. Using a fork, begin to whisk the eggs pulling in flour from the side as you go. Keep the well sturdy and continue pulling in flour. Continue to whisk in the flour until you have only a small well-wall left.
3. Begin to knead in the remaining flour with your finger tips. Work gently at first and then, as the dough starts to harden, knead regularly.
4. The dough will be quite dry. Keep kneading for about 10 minutes or until your dough is smooth and elastic.
5. Make a ball with the ugly sides under and then squeeze out your dough until it is like a thick pancake. Dust your working table very lightly and dust the top of your ball of dough.
6. Using a rolling pin, start in the center and push all your weight into a back and forth motion until you reach the ends. Rotate the dough 45 degrees and then repeat.
7. Keep rolling out the dough and when it becomes too big, have a friend hold down the ends for you or simply fold some of the dough over the edge of the table and lightly lean on it. Roll until your dough is about 2 mm thick.
8. Fold in two inches of the ends of your dough on both sides. Dust with flour then fold over again on both sides. Dust and repeat until you reach the middle. Fold the two ends on top of one another.
9. Using a sharp knife, cut straight down through your pasta to create a uniform width of about 1/2 cm. Keep slicing without moving your already cut pasta.
10. Grab a hold of the first layer of pasta and shake out to separate the strands and remove excess flour. Pile up.
11. Cook your pasta in a pot of boiling water which is very well salted (as in one whole handful of salt.) When you add the pasta the water will stop boiling. Once it begins to boil again, your pasta is cooked.
12. Remove the pasta from the water and add directly into your prepared sauce. You may need to add a little more pasta water.
13. Serve your pasta with more parmesan, salt and pepper.

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Cookin’ Man

I love Indian food.

With its complex flavors, unending variety and reliance on whole, natural foods, it is without a doubt, my favorite.

Want to know what makes Indian food even better?

Indian food cooked with love.

Last night, Sebastian took control of the kitchen and created a delicious, made-from-scratch Paneer Masala.

My lousy photography doesn’t do this meal justice. It was just wonderful!

Am I lucky or what?

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Barbecue Chickpea Pizza

Last week, Sebastian came home with a BBQ Chicken pizza. It smelled fantastic. Right away, my mind started on a recipe for a completely homemade, made from scratch, vegetarian version.

I’m so glad he gave me the inspiration, because this BBQ Chickpea Pizza with sourdough crust turned out exactly as I’d hoped.

 

I made the sourdough pizza crust earlier in the week. The recipe made enough dough for two very large pizzas. I immediately used one half for the veggie pizza I posted here and simply placed the remaining dough in the refrigerator.

The dough continued to slowly grow in the fridge, holding up exceptionally well for this recipe which was made three days later.

I also made a homemade barbecue sauce for the pizza. I find the bottled sauces in Germany to be way too sweet. After tossing a bunch of ingredients in a pot and letting them cook together, I was left with a delicious, tangy, smoky and sweet barbecue sauce.

I used a bit less than 1/4 cup of the sauce directly on the pizza dough then used another 1/2 cup to cook the chickpeas in. I was left with enough sauce to fill a medium sized jar which is now hanging out in the fridge, waiting to be used.

I topped the sourdough crust and BBQ sauce with freshly shredded gouda cheese.

As mentioned earlier, I cooked about 1 cup of drained and rinsed canned garbanzo beans in 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce. I let the sauce cook until it had reduced and thickened around the chickpeas.

On top of the cooked BBQ chickpeas, I placed a few plain chickpeas, a sprinkle of smoked paprika, thinly sliced red onions and fresh mozzarella cheese.

 

The pizza was cooked at a moderately high temperature until the crust and cheese were golden brown. Sprinkled with finely sliced basil leaves, this pizza was good to go!

Delicious!

Homemade BBQ Sauce

(I sort of tossed in ingredients as I went along so this is more of an estimate than an exact recipe. Adjust the spices to fit your tastes.)

Makes about 2 cups BBQ sauce

Ingredients

1/3 cup molasses

2 Tbsp. sugar

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

2 Tbsp. finely chopped red onion

1 cup ketchup

1 tsp. tamarind paste

1 tsp. apple cider vinegar

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. chili powder

1/ tsp. ground mustard

1 tsp. smoked paprika

red pepper flakes to taste

Method

1. Whisk all ingredients together in a small sauce pan. Heat to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low and simmer until the sauce reaches a desirable consistency.

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Sourdough Pizza Dough

Yesterday I shared a recipe for sourdough bagels from a book published 8 years before I was born: Sourdough Cookery by Rita Davenport.

Today I’m here to share another recipe from the oh-so-talented sourdough baker, Rite Davenport.

In her book, Rita shared not only her recipe for the dough, but also her pizza sauce recipe and suggested toppings.

You’re going to have to buy her book to get the whole kit and caboodle, but I’m happy to share the sourdough pizza dough recipe.

Sourdough Pizza Dough

Makes 2 very large pizzas

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups sourdough starter

1 cup warm milk

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 Tablespoons cooking oil

2 1/2- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

olive oil for brushing

Method

1. Add the milk, salt, sugar and vegetable oil to the sourdough starter. Stir together. Add flour 1/2 cup at a time. Stir well after each addition. Add enough flour until the dough is too stiff to stir with a spoon. Dough should be heavy but elastic.
2. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead 5-10 minutes.
3. Place dough in a greased bowl. Cover with a damp cloth and set in a warm place, free from drafts and let rise about 2 hours or until doubled in size.
4. Divide dough into two equal parts. Stretch or roll out each part to create a round pizza dough. Create a slight ridge to form a crust.
5. Brush the dough with olive oil and continue to create your pizza as you wish.

Our first pizza dough was used as a base for a vegetable pizza which included tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, spinach and broccoli.

Oh so good!

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Back from France

Sorry to keep you waiting, but as you can see, I made it safely through the streets of Paris and then back to Germany without any trouble.

I’ll create a post on Paris at some point, but to be honest, I’m still so overwhelmed by the whole experience that I just need a break.

Katie and I returned after an overnight bus trip on Wednesday morning. Wednesday and Thursday were spent showing Katie around Bonn, cleaning and packing bags in preparation for her return to the US.

Katie let me use her kindle to read The Hunger Games. Although I wasn’t too interested in the story when she described it, she encouraged me to read the first two chapters before making a decision. I’m glad she was so persistent because the whole of Wednesday was spent finishing the first book and I am now hooked. Can’t wait to read the second book!

It’s hard to believe that after so much time looking forward to my friends’ visits, they are both back in the US and here I am again with a tiny German kitchen and a list of recipes I want to try.

Over the weekend, I tried two different recipes using my sourdough starters. Both recipes are from a gag-gift that’s actually been more gift than gag (lucky since it’s a cook book!)

A colleague of mine knew I was baking with a home-grown sourdough starter. While at a book sale, she found this 1977 Sourdough Cookery book and bought it for me as a joke.

Well, good recipes are made great with time as the recipes from this cookbook prove.

Today, I’m going to share the recipe I was most excited about, sourdough bagels.

I’ve never made bagels before, and was surprised by how easy they were. Sure, there are a few extra steps compared to regular bread baking, but the additional actions only add about 15 minutes on the total time.

 

Well worth it when the product is as delicious as these bagels.

So, collect your ingredients and let’s get starter!

Place the sourdough starter, eggs and oil in a large bowl.

Mix together the dry ingredients before incorporating them into the wet.

A sticky, elastic dough will form. Add more flour as needed to create a dough that begins to remove from the sides of the bowl.

Knead the dough until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Let rest and rise until doubled in size.

Split the dough into 8-12 smaller balls. I made 8 large bagels. Gently press a floured finger through the middle of each small dough ball.

I ‘gently’ stretch my dough by swinging it around on my finger while screaming “woo-hoo!”

As you can see, the woo-hoo method worked just fine.

I wasn’t sure how much the dough would rise while resting so made lots of different sized holes in the bagels. The smallish holes made the best final products.

Boil the bagels for 7 minutes before draining and placing on a greased baking sheet.

I sprinkled freshly ground spices and herbs on some of the bagels while they were still wet.

These two were sprinkled with a lavender herb salt.

Here’s the same, beautiful bagel after baking for 25 minutes.

This lovely bagel is dressed in a freshly ground sea salt, chili and orange peel seasoning mix.

Immediately, I gobbled it up with butter.

Over the last few days, I’ve been enjoying the bagels for breakfast.

Toasted plain bagel with butter, cinnamon and sugar.

Perfect for an egg and cheese breakfast sandwich.

If you are interested in sourdough baking, I recommend the following websites for step by step instructions on creating a sourdough starter at home.

I was so sure that my home-grown yeast sourdough starter would fail that I also made a lazy man’s sourdough starter at the same time.

Lucky for me, both sourdoughs took off with fantastic fermentation. I’m now alternating between each healthy sourdough variety for my baking.

Don’t be afraid of sourdough baking, as you can see from this recipe, it can be a lot of fun!

 

Sourdough Bagels

From Sourdough Cookery by Rita Davenport

Ingredients

1 cup sourdough starter

2 eggs

3 Tablespoons cooking oil

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 gallon water plus 2 Tablespoons sugar for boiling (I used 1 tsp. baking soda and 1 tsp. salt rather than sugar)

Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine sourdough starter with eggs and oil. Mix together flour, salt and sugar. Add to starter mixture. Add enough additional flour for the dough to leave the sides of the bowl.
2. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead for 8-10 minutes or until smooth and elastic, adding more flour if necessary.
3. Cover with a damp cloth. Set in a warm place free from drafts until doubled in size.
4. Turn out onto floured surface and divide into 8-12 pieces (depending on the size you’re after.) Shape each piece into balls. Punch a hole in the center with a floured finger. Form a doughnut shape by gently enlarging the hole, working each bagel into a uniform shape.Cover and let rise for 15-20 minutes.
5. Add sugar (or baking soda and salt) to water and bring to a boil. Drop each bagel into the boiling water one at a time. Cook for 7 minutes, turning once. Drain; place on greased cookie sheets.
6. Bake at 375 F (191 C) for 25-35 minutes. Bagels should be golden brown and crusty.

Variations:

Herb Bagels- Prepare bagels as above, except combine 2 teaspoons dried marjoram with dry ingredients.

Onion Bagels- Prepare bagels as above, except add 1 teaspoon dried minced onions to dry ingredients.

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Rainy Weekend in France

Yesterday and today it rained.

Steady, unrelenting, cold rain.

Although we only made it out to wander the grounds and speak with the owners, the few moments of clear skies and fresh air were much appreciated.

Two cold and rainy days on a summer vacation may seem terrible to some, but I’ve really enjoyed napping, reading, eating and relaxing.

Eating has consisted of potatoes, pasta, butter, cheese and bread for the last two days.

Being forced to stay inside has given Katie and me plenty of time to plan our two days in Paris, clean up and pack.

Tonight is the last night in the country.

 

We came to see the countryside, hike, relax and breath.

That’s just what we’ve done.

Now we’re heading to the big city for action, energy, crazy-busy sight seeing and limited sleep.

(Photo of Katie and the car from our first day here.)

Wish us luck as we travel back into Paris with our tiny little navigation-free car.

Prayers are always welcome.

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Big and Medieval

Today was another gorgeous day in the French countryside.

We started off a bit late today after sleeping in and talking all morning.

We arrived at our first stop just in time to witness everything close up for the three hour lunch break.

Crap.

Katie and I made the best of the pause by wandering the streets of Évron and photographing the famous Basilica of Nortre-Dame-de-l’Epine.

The Basilica was built between the 11th and 16th centuries.

The architecture of the building is both Romanesque and Gothic.

The Basilica was very quiet. Peaceful and quiet.

At 1:30, the tourist information office re-opened and a very friendly English speaking French girl was happy to help us find things to do.

Just not in Évron.

We still had another half hour to wait before the bank that supposedly exchanged traveler’s checks was reopened.

When we asked what else there was to see in Évron, the girl just laughed and said, “only the Basilica.”

Long story short, we were sent from place to place regarding the traveler’s checks. Emotions were high. Katie and I both lost our patience, then miraculously, the post office exchanged a small amount of Katie’s infuriating fake currency.

A note to any and all travelers, regardless of what your parents, guide books or bank tellers say, NEVER rely on traveler’s checks for your European vacation.

Just use your debit card. The fees are minimal and ATMs are everywhere.

Simple. Done.

After that, we moved on- figuratively and literally.

We moved on to visit the Medieval city of Saint Suzanne.

Like any tourist trap, Saint Suzanne was beautifully maintained and provided plenty of photo opportunities.

From the tower of the old castle, I was able to enjoy spectacular views of the land below.

I wish Katie wasn’t afraid of man-made heights, because the climbing structure that was in place in the tower was really cool.

 

I can’t image defending a castle.

Before leaving Saint Suzanne, Katie and I popped into a little shop that sells soap and perfume.

Although the welcoming party was a bit creepy, everything smelled fantastic.

 

We had an easy drive back then kicked up our feet for a bit.

Back at the gite, I made a simple dinner while Katie posted pictures on facebook.

We had baked camembert cheese with jam and warm baguette along with an arugula salad with carrots and tomatoes.

I love the look in the lady’s eyes on the cover of the cheese. That’s the same look I have when a dinner of cheese is involved.

Right now it’s sprinkling rain outside. The fresh smell coming through the windows is working wonders to settle my soul. I have a feeling tonight will be a very restful sleep.

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Bastille Day

Much to my ignorant surprise, July 14th just so happens to be the French National Day, Bastille Day.

Thanks to the friendly graphic designers at Google, I came to this revelation after pulling myself from a much desired sleep only to discover that everything is closed on Bastille Day.

After sharing the news with Katie, she researched our options as I made scrambled eggs for breakfast.

All sight seeing and traveling would have been a waste of gas, so we decided to stay around the rental property and have a relaxing day.

 

In our case, Bastille Day may as well have been called “Be Still Day.”

 

Once we had no place to be at any certain time, Katie went back to bed and I made a pot of black tea.

 

The property we are staying on has a lovely little bridge where the owners have positioned a table for two.

The morning and majority of my afternoon were spent drinking tea, reading Julie & Julia and listening to the sound of the babbling brook while the sun shined on my face.

 

Around 3pm, Katie emerged from her cocoon of sleep and we made a very late lunch, or early dinner, depending on how you look at it.

She made the pasta and I made the garlic cheese bread.

Together, we enjoyed our meal back out on the bridge and planned the remainder of our day.

The owners provided us with a booklet of hikes in the area so after lunch, we tidied up, put on our hiking shoes, and set off on our first official hike.

The Sentier de Bel-Air foot path has an average incline of 75% and is 11 kilometers long, beginning and ending in the town of Saint Germain-de-Coulamer.

The national hiking trails are well marked in France.

Once we were on our path, we simply needed to follow the yellow marks.

The path markers were even kind enough to show where we were meant to turn and paths that are going the wrong way.

Looking for the yellow slashes was sort of like a treasure hunt. With every found mark, we were gifted with the satisfaction of knowing we were heading the right direction.

Although we had the map, we didn’t need it as the marking was undoubtedly clear.

The path took us past farms, fields, sunflowers, cows, forests, crumbling old homes and tiny villages.

We walked and talked for two and a half hours before reaching our final destination.

 

Waiting until later in the day to take a hike was actually very smart.

The sun was not too hot and the scenery looked gorgeous cast in the early evening light.

Happy Bastille Day, France.

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Three Charming Towns

After a day of incredible beauty, I feel drained.

It’s hard to imagine that one could ever become accustomed to the breathtaking sights we saw today.

 

Three very different yet very beautiful French towns were visited, and after 8 hours of oohing and aahing, I can’t wait to sit back, relax, and process the wonderful day I’ve had.

Katie and I slept in today- luckily not as late as yesterday. While she showered, I ate breakfast and planned the driving route we would take.

As I showered, she ate and recorded the driving directions in writing. We’re a good team like that.

The offline android navigation system Sebastian lovingly prepared for us unfortunately has yet to work, so Katie and I are back to written directions, following maps and learning from our wrong turns.

We’ve actually been doing very well considering that most of the roads we’ve been driving are unmarked tiny French country roads; known by the local farmers but unfamiliar and baffling to the American tourists.

The first stop of the day was to visit Saint-Léonard-des-Bois, a small village located in the valley straddled by the Normandy and Western Loire borders.

Popular for outdoor activities, this village boasts hiking paths, canoeing routes, mountain biking trails and rock climbing. 

 

Katie and I wandered around the center of the village and hiked up a very steep path in hopes of obtaining a panoramic view of the village below.

We were unsuccessful in our sight seeing, but got our hearts beating along the way.

 

Once back down the hill, we took in the remaining sights of the bridged river.

On the road again, we navigated our way to the second stop of the day, my favorite village, Saint-Céneri-le-Gérei.

Situated almost as an island surrounded by the river Sarthe, this village has not surprisingly attracted artists since the 19th century.

 

If any little village will inspire creativity, this is certainly it.

The natural colors of the stone houses surrounded by woodlands and bursts of blossoming color made me want to set up an easel and attempt to capture the beauty around me.

Saint-Céneri-le-Gérei felt oh so very French.

Our oh so French lunch fit right in to this village.

Baguette with goat cheese, arugula, tomatoes and fresh cracked pepper- packed this morning. We also had chips and brownies.

Katie and I enjoyed our very French picnic along the banks of the river Sarthe.

A more pleasanter spot for a relaxing picnic, I could not imagine.

We ate on the large rock overlooking the bridge to the right and the church to the left.

Rightfully named as one of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France "The most beautiful villages of France," the town was not only beautiful, but tranquil, reverent and calming.

I could easily move to this village and spend my days painting amongst the natural world around me.

 

We had a good long wander about.

We looked into the church, walked around the chapel and even watched a group of school children play a game of ball from canoes.

After pulling ourselves away from the picturesque French village, Katie and I found our way to the town of Fresnay-sur-Sarthe.

Actually, it was the second time we’d found our way to Fresnay; the original arrival unbeknownst to us, as we turned around after our first and worse misnavigation of the day.

Sadly, my camera battery died just as we entered our third and final town, so the remainder of my day was captured using the camera from my phone.

Although it was no Saint-Céneri-le-Gérei, Fresnay-sur-Sarthe was a small town with big character.

Complete with medieval walls, a dungeon, stunning bridges and stone houses that have become jagged and crooked with time, Fresnay was unlike the other two villages we had visited today.

We spent a bit of time in the beautiful Church of Notre-Dame where three very friendly old ladies were eager to share their English booklets explaining the history and symbolism of the church.

The next moment of awe occurred as we viewed the town below from the medieval walls. The Sarthe river laid the way for yet another round of beautiful photographs.

Once we’d seen all that we thought we could see for the day, we decided to drive back ‘home’ to the gite.

 

As luck would have it, the most inviting sunflower fields lined our way back.

We couldn’t help but park the car and capture the brilliantly cheerful sunflowers.

Driving away, we agreed that this was the way a vacation should be.

Back at the gite, I prepared dinner while Katie wrote in her journal. We had roasted potatoes with garlic and rosemary. Katie ate chicken nuggets with avocado and I had patties made with lentils and mixed vegetables over arugula.

Attempting to take in as much beauty as possible in a day can drain a person.

After enjoying a glass of red wine, I feel like it’s time for bed. I’d better be off- we have another full day planned for tomorrow.

Bonne nuit.

Good night!

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Tuesday in France

How was your day? Mine was like this.

 

We slept in late before awaking in a converted stable in the French countryside.

After quick showers, we were off to the nearest town to do grocery shopping and attempt to, yet unsuccessfully, exchange Katie’s traveler’s checks.

The afternoon was spent indoors as a rain shower passed. We ate tomato soup with a baguette and fresh garlic herb cheese, watched the rest of Amelie and read.

Once the rain passed, we put on our hiking boots and took of to explore the immediate surroundings. A croissant was had for snack and baked camembert with warm baguette and cherry jam was enjoyed as dinner.

On the agenda for tonight- planning the remainder of our days in the French countryside.

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