The first time I even heard of a Cornish pasty was when I went to Cornwall (not surprisingly). I had planned to go on a camping trip with some friends near Newquay. (A town in Cornwall has been a tourist spot for more than a hundred years! Not surprising when you see those gorgeous beaches!) After days of planning, we hopped in the car and started driving. The five of us (one Scottish, one South African, one from Isle of Wight, one Irish, and myself, the American) had a grand ole time in our drive. We start driving from Crawley,…
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Continue ReadingHot cross buns are by far some of the most delicious and easy snacks that I make all times of year. (Though I do make them more often during Easter. After all, it is an easter treat!) I had heard about hot cross buns for a long time, ever since I was a kid. Though I’d never had a chance to see them until I moved to England. Until then, I had thought that they were just part of that beloved nursery rhyme: Hot cross buns! Hot cross buns! One a penny, two a penny, Hot cross buns! If you have…
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Continue ReadingTwo months into the years I lived in Italy, I realized that my roommates had bought tons and tons of cookies. I hadn’t figured out why and decided to ask. “Breakfast of course!” Obviously stunned by the response, they invited me to sample their breakfast the following morning. Italian breakfast cookies take Cookie Crisp to a whole new level! I had cookies for breakfast several times after that (usually Mulino Bianco, such a good brand!). Now, if you’ve browsed my site you may have noticed that I often cut back on the amount of sugar you’d expect to see in…
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Continue ReadingHave you ever visited Sicily or been to Mike’s pastry shop in Boston? If you have, then you probably had or saw a cannoli. The image of a single cannolo has haunted me the last couple weeks. I have yet to have had a successful attempt making them myself. After having made nearly everything from scratch (cannoli shells, ricotta, chocolate chips) perfection has alluded me. Today I couldn’t handle the cravings anymore. I took all the ingredients that create a cannoli and I turned them into a cake. Fresh, the cake was wonderfully airy with the occasional chunk of chocolate.…
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Continue ReadingGosh, I’ve had a crazy week! My sister has been preparing for a study abroad and I helped her pick out the destinations for her trip (she’s an assistant), I have a few deadlines coming up at work so I put in a whole 52 hours this week, I made a goal to finish a book on economics in the next month so I read a couple hundred pages, etc. I’m still in the Italian food mindset and so I whipped together my version of a panini I once saw in a bar in Reggio di Calabria (a city in…
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Continue ReadingWhen I first moved to Italy, I saw this incredible dessert in a pastry shop. I admired it for a minute or two, but I didn’t have the 24 Euro on hand to buy something I didn’t know if I’d like. It was this pie-like thing with an incredible lattice. The filling was yellow, and it had a powdered sugar sprinkled beautifully across the top. Several months after I saw the crostata, I finally had the opportunity to try one. I made a friend who was a pastry chef and we made dinner once. For dessert, she told me she…
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Continue ReadingHappy Easter! Only a few hours until Easter Morning! I can’t wait, there’s so much that happens each Easter that it turns the holiday into something magical. Osterbrot definitely makes it into the classic Easter tradition area. That is true, at least, if you are German, enjoy German holiday traditions, or just love Osterbrot. Usually, I usually have an Italian Columba this time of year. But to spice up #MarchGermany even more, we have the Colomba’s close relative: Osterbrot. Once this guy has cooled, I’ll have a slice with breakfast. From what my cousin tells me (she lived in Germany…
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Continue ReadingWow! it has been quite a bit of time since I posted a recipe! Sorry about that. After my brother’s wedding. It’s been really difficult to get back into the full swing of things. And then on St. Patrick’s Day, I went crazy and made six or seven different traditional Irish dishes. (Including an ancient, a 200-year-old ginger beer recipe that I found an old British cookbook.) With a few modifications and having wait a couple weeks I can tell you that this is ginger beer which you’ll get in a few weeks will blow your mind. I love the stuff and…
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Continue ReadingZwiebelkuchen made my taste buds explode when I first tried this dish. Making it is extraordinarily easy. Tasting it will make you want only more. If there’s anything you can do to add something wonderfully delicious to your meal zwiebelkuchen is it. I know you will agree with me if you haven’t had yet. And if you have, then I’m sure you agree with me! At first glance, you’ll probably have the same reaction I had… “Wait, is zwiebelkuchen a quiche?” You know what you’re probably right.I do think that zwiebelkuchen the essentially German quiche. While translates to an onion pie, to…
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Continue ReadingWelcome to the first ever Germany Food Month (#MarchGermany on Facebook/Instagram)! Don’t take this the wrong way, but when I think German food I think of this scene from Hogan’s Heroes. (I’m referring to the first nine seconds, or so, of this clip. But I highly recommend the show if you’d like a few laughs!) I love that show! (If you can’t see the clip let me know and I’ll try to find it again on YouTube!) Hahaha, call me an old-timer, but I love that show. So many good laughs. Anyway, as you might have gathered from watching…