Banana Pancakes

Good morning!

It’s a lovely Saturday, right? I love Saturdays. It’s the first day of the weekend, you can sleep in, cuddle until noon, then lazily take the day one step at a time.

I tend to be an early-riser, though. Most of the time I’m up at between 9 and 9.30 a.m. at the weekend. You know, for a person whose normal working days start at 8 a.m., this IS a sleep-in, I tell you! Besides, if I’m up before anyone else is, I can have a couple of hours to myself – this is the time to make myself a cup of tea, read those newspapers brought to me from abroad that I never otherwise have time to read, do some yoga, make a breakfast. I love making breakfasts on Saturday mornings! It has become something of a tradition of mine – a Saturday morning breakfast, then a walk in the park, then some shopping. Bliss!

Choc Jack Cupcakes

Наскоро ме попитаха каква е тайната ми в кухнята, защо се получават толкова добре нещата, които правя. Замислих се за момент, а после ми просветна. Алкохолът! Аз наистина слагам алкохол навсякъде – вино на пилето с картофи, бира на задушените зеленчуци, уиски в къпкейковете, ликьор в мъфините…

Затова този уикенд реших да направя малко по-специални къпкейкове – шоколадови с Jack Daniel’s. Обожавам Джак! А сладко и особено шоколад вървят страшно много с уиски – някак си двата вкуса се допълват взаимно и всеки кара другия да изпъкне по-пълно и цветно. За тази рецепта е подходящо също и ирландско уиски – каквото имате. Шотландските не са много добра идея, защото опушеният вкус е прекалено доминиращ и разваля впечатлението от какаото в кексчетата.

А глазурата…даааа, глазурата…Масло, разтопен шоколад, ванилия и уиски – малко, само за вкус, чието дискретно присъствие усещате след като какаото е престанало да доминира. Вълшебство!

Cheese Broccoli Muffins

I’ve always been fascinated with the Le Petit Prince. When I was in Paris this summer, I spent half of the time looking for the perfect fridge magnet with the perfect illustration and quotation from the book. Finally, on the last day I found it in a souvenir shop in Montmartre, where we had to go in, trying to find shelter from the pouring rain.

If you have read the book, you should know the planet of le Petit Prince  - a tiny asteroid where nothing much happens and nothing much grows. Except for the damned spoilt rose. And the baobabs. The baobabs which would take over the whole planet with their roots if le Petit Prince did not do his job of trimming them. 

Paleo Almond Meatballs

So, we are sick. (Thanks, bro!) I had forgotten how awful it was – your whole body aches, your head is spinning, your throat is sore and your nose is red and running – you get the whole picture! Things got even worse after a short trip to IKEA and their meatballs – a couple of hours later I thought I was going to die (or, OK, at least throw up).
So I decided to make proper meatballs, not some made-in-Sweden-imported-frozen-in-Bulgaria shit. And since I’m trying to eat paleo (only real food, no junk, no grains, no dairy, no legumes) for at least half of the week (yes, I’m weak and pathetic and I love cupcakes and alcohol, I know!), I decided to make these paleo almond meatballs and see if they work wonders with my flu.

Nepalese Tea

I remember that day as if it were yesterday. My birthday this year, early spring, still rather winter in Germany. Saturday morning, I was on the train on my way from Frankfurt to Marburg to meet a guy I didn’t know but whose room I was living in. The weather was crispy cold – “frisch” in German, nothing to do with fresh in this case.
I’m not sure what I was expecting but what I got was a warm welcome and the best tea I had ever had in my life – hot, freshly boiled, just what I needed to get pleasantly warm. Oh, and a present! And a new friend who is here to stay, I hope :)