Christmas Granola

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It’s about 2 weeks until Christmas and as it’s still quite warm in London I can’t say that I have really got into the Christmas Spirit yet.
I therefore decided to make some Christmas Granola, which I invented as I found a German Spice mix for German Christmas Gingerbread “Lebkuchen”. Unfortunately, I don’t really have the time to make the classic Lebkuchen this year but I did want to use the spices in some way that I could feature on this blog… and homemade granola is another of my brunch favourites, so there we are!

The Spice mix I used contained Cinnamon, Cloves, Ginger, Nutmeg, Star Anise, Cardamom and Coriander seeds. I’m pretty sure you can get similar spice mixes out of Germany as well but if not, then there’s are some online recipes for “German Christmas Spice Mixes”. Having looked at a few of them, it seems that you can basically mix any of the usual “Christmas Spices” in ground form as long as you use smaller quantities of the stronger/spicier ones.

If you want an actual recipe, one option I found is a combination of 35g ground cinnamon, 9g ground cloves, 2g each of ground coriander seeds, ground ginger, ground cardamom and ground nutmeg.

The granola itself is based on one I found on one of my favourite blogs by food photographer Valerie Rizzo: Eating Brooklyn.

I particularly like this recipe as it is for toasted granola as opposed to the more common oven baked one. Toasting the oats, seeds and nuts filled my kitchen with a bit of a fire roasting smell which, combined with the Christmas spices, did make me feel a little more Christmassy… that and “Elf” being shown on TV, as I was making it!

For 10-12 servings you’ll need:

  • 3 cups oats
  • 1 cup sunflower seeds
  • ½ cup almonds
  • ½ cup cashews
  • ½ cup pecans
  • 1/3 cup dried cranberries
  • ½ cup dried apricots, chopped into small pieces
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
  • ½ tbsp gingerbread spices (see above notes)
  • ½ cup maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp sunflower oil

Mix the oats with the sunflower seeds in one bowl.

Chop or crush the nuts into rough pieces. You can either do this by putting all the nuts in a food bag and bashing the bag with a rolling pin or by chopping them up roughly on a big chopping board with a big knife. If you do the later, keep the nuts separately as pecans and cashews are much quicker chopped up than almonds.

Mix the cinnamon with the other spices in a small bowl.

The oat & sunflower seed mix, as well as all the nuts now need to be toasted. As it’s quite a large amount of oats and nuts the toasting needs to be done in batches. I always start with about 3 batches of the oat & sunflower seed mix by heating a non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat and spreading a thin layer of the oats & seeds in the pan. They need constant stirring so nothing burns – you are aiming for an even golden colour.

Once the first lot is done, set the toasted batch aside in a big bowl and mix with a teaspoon worth of the spice mix, while the granola is still warm. Continue this until all the oat & seeds as well as the nuts have been toasted and the spices are mixed in (if any spice mix is left at the end, just stir it all in then). Stir in the cranberries and apricot pieces.

Finally pour in the maple syrup and oil and mix everything well with a metal spoon, then spread the granola on 2 baking trays to cool down. After an hour or so, it should be cold and can then be kept in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Serve however you like your granola, probably with some Greek yoghurt and fresh fruit.
I quite enjoyed mine on top of a posh vanilla yoghurt…

Apple Cinnamon Waffles

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I have only got one waffle recipe on here so far and I was also running a bit late with this post again, so I needed it to be something quick and easy to make/write about. My fruit basket presented me with two old apples that were starting to go a bit wrinkly, so I thought I’ll better quickly turn them into apple and cinnamon waffles.

I guess any normal waffle recipe would do for this, as long as you add some grated apple and a good pinch of cinnamon, which is pretty much what this recipe is.

When it comes to the grated apple, I suggest you grate the whole apple – skin, core, pips and all (well maybe not the little woody bit the apples hangs on, which I have no idea what it is called in English). I find it quicker to then pick out the pips from the grated apple,  if they don’t get grated up anyway and I don’t think it’s the end of the world to eat one, should it get overlooked. Although when we discussed this in my office the other day, my colleague Anna brought up a story of some Russian having an apple tree growing inside of him…yikes! Turns out the story was actually about a fir tree growing inside someone’s lungs…or not…but you can google that yourself but NOT when you’re about to eat, please.

Anyway, back to waffles…kinda lost my thread now… so without further ado here’s the recipe!

For about 6 waffles you’ll need:

  • A waffle iron (funny that)
  • 250ml milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 40g sugar (I think up to 50% less is ok here too, if your apples are sweet)
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 Tsp cinnamon
  • 180g flour
  • 15g baking powder
  • 3-4 apples, grated
  • a little oil for the waffle iron
  • icing sugar and/or maple syrup to serve

Separate the eggs and whisk the egg whites with the pinch of salt until it forms stiff peaks.

In another bowl whisk the egg yolk, milk, sugar and cinnamon. Mix the flour with the baking powder and add to the eggy milk and whisk well.

Stir in the grated apples and then fold the egg whites under, preferably with a handheld whisk.

They need baking immediately, so oil up your waffle iron and bake the waffles at quite a high setting. They need to be well baked through because of the high amount of grated apples.

One slight warning, I found that the waffles kept sticking to the iron despite frequent re-oiling. Longer baking made a difference but I still needed to pull them loose with the help of a fork…
Would be great to hear some of your experiences on that, thanks!

Pumpkin Cupcakes

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I know, I know…
I am very aware that this post is overdue since I said I’d put up a new weekly post on time for the weekend.
Well, what can I say, things just got a bit too busy last week and I’m really sorry for the delay!

This delay is even more annoying as I had timed the recipe for this post with American Thanksgiving and now it’s not even Thanksgiving weekend anymore.

In fact, yesterday was the first Advent which means that for us Germans, one of my favourite times of the year has just begun: the Advent Season! Die “Adventszeit”, or rather the first Advent Sunday, is the start of baking and eating all the lovely gingerbread spiced cookies Germany does so well, so I should probably blog about that. But I still have 3 more weeks for that and as I had planned to tell you about these little pumpkin cupcakes as an alternative to pumpkin pie, I’m going to do it anyway – even if it is 5 days late!

Traditional Pumpkin Pie is a very American thing and, I find, not necessarily to every European’s taste. I therefore wanted to make something a little different for my friends here and went on the search for a pumpkin cupcake recipe. I tried out two different ones and – along with my tasting team – decided that this one gives the better result for the cupcake. As for the icing, I stuck with what I knew works, which is the same icng as with the Chocolate Guiness Cupcakes.
See https://thesweetestbrunch.com/2011/11/04/chocolate-guiness-cupcakes/

So if you’re not fully over all things pumpkin yet, you might try making them – or wait for the whole Thanksgiving thing to come around again next year!

Cupcake Recipe from: http://www.sweettreatsandgoodeats.com/2010/10/pumpkin-cupcakes-with-cream-cheese.html

For about 24 cupcakes you’ll need:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp ground allspice
  • 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • 4 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree

Preheat the oven to your oven to gas mark 4 and line your muffin tins with wrappers.

Mix all dry ingredients together, so that’s the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice. Set it aside.

In another bowl cream the butter and sugars together with an electric mixer until fluffy. Then add your eggs, one at a time, followed by the pumpkin puree, which is also added best slowly, in about 3 batches.

Bake them for circa 15-20 mins (do the tooth pick test to check they are ready). Then let them completely cool down before icing them with the following icing:

And for the icing you need:

  • 300g cream cheese
  • 150g icing sugar
  • 125ml double cream (or whipping cream)

Lightly whip the cream cheese with an electric whisk until smooth, then add the icing sugar and carefully whisk it in. Add the cream and beat again with the electric whisk until it makes spreadable consistency.

Enjoy!

French Toast Soufflé

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It’s taken me over 8 posts to feature French Toast  – but here at post number 9 it is! Well, French Toast of sorts, as I decided to try out a French Toast Soufflé which I came across on another blog (see below).

Most of my readers will know how to make basic French Toast. It’s a great way to use up white bread that’s starting to go a bit stale. A slightly more upmarket version would be French Toast made with brioche, which I had originally planned to make the other morning when my friend Tracey stayed over.

As I couldn’t get brioche in my little local supermarket I got a baguette instead and turned it into one of these French Toast  “soufflés”. Of course, as you can see on the photo, this is not really a soufflé but more of a bread and butter pudding style oven bake. But made in small individual ramekins the ‘soufflés’ do have a raised peak and even rise a little and after all, soufflé sounds just so much more sophisticated!

The best thing about this dish is that you can make it up the night before and keep it in the fridge overnight, allowing the flavours to infuse the bread. A great trick, if you want to show off a brunch treat when guests are staying over, without having to get up early to slave away at the stove first thing in the morning.

Recipe from: http://jennysteffens.blogspot.com/2011/08/french-toast-souffle-baked-french-toast.html

For 4 individual servings, you’ll need:

  • 1 baguette, which can be a day or two old
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup (plus more for serving)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • icing sugar, for serving

Cut the baguette into small square cubes by slicing it into thick slices, then cutting each on in to about 6 pieces.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon.  Add bread cubes and toss until all of the cubes are coated.  Scoop or pour into individual ramekins.

Cover and chill in the refrigerator overnight or for at least 1 hour.  Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.

Serve warm with powdered sugar and maple syrup and some stewed fruit, such as the plum compote from my Quark Pancakes, see https://thesweetestbrunch.com/2011/10/07/oat-pancakes-with-plum-compote/

Lemon & Lime Crumble Slice

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It seems the season of colds and flu has begun, boohoo. Many people around me have come down with nasty colds. To ward off all these bugs I have increased my Vitamin C intake and one of the ways of doing this is to have a glass of warm water with freshly squeezed lemon first thing in the morning (apparently, this way is detoxifying and kick starts your whole digestive system). When a cold has already got a hold on me, I have cups of hot lemon, ginger and honey, which is soothing on a sore throat and warming all over.

So with these lemon remedies coming in to season again, I am surrounding myself with citrus fruits and had a few spare ones to try out another Pioneer Woman recipe: creamy lemon crumb squares (see link below). It sounded so easy and quick to make, I had to give it a go.

However, I amended it a tiny bit, as I like limes as much as I like lemons – or maybe even a little more.

I also preferred a slightly more British name instead of ‘Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares’, so I’m calling my version ‘Lemon & Lime Crumble Slice’ in honour of all the yummy British crumbles over here.

This recipe based on Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares by Pioneer Woman: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/03/creamy-lemon-crumb-squares/

For 10 -12 slices (depending on the size you cut them of course), you’ll need:

  • A deep enough baking dish, – such as one a brownie dish (I used a Perspex one I usually use for pasta bakes, measuring 23×30 cm – the original recipe suggests an 8×11 or 9×13 inch pan)
  • 1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar (not too tightly packed)
  • 1 cup oats
  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk
  • juice of 3 limes and 1 lemon (should yield about ½ cup)
  • zest of ½ lemon and ½ lime

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix butter and brown sugar until well combined. I used a wooden spoon for this, which works well.

Now mix the baking powder in the flour and add a pinch of salt. Then add this flour mix, as well as the oats, to the butter/sugar mixture and combine. Press down half of the oat crumb mixture into the bottom of your baking dish, using the back of a spoon.

For the filling, mix together the condensed milk, lemon & lime juice and grated lemon & lime zest with a whisk – electric or handheld – either should do the job nicely and pour it onto the bottom layer of the crumb mixture and spread evenly.

With your (clean!) hands rub the other half of crumb mixture into actual crumbs (that’s Streusel for the German Readers – and for the Brits: think crumble topping) then cover the lemon & lime layer with the crumbs but don’t press it down.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the crumble toping is golden brown.

Allow the dish to sit on counter until it is cooled down completely, at which point it should be refrigerated, until you are ready to slice and served. The slices should be kept in the fridge and are best served cool.