Sandwich With a Smile

my sack lunch from ZweiScheibenBrot, photo: Maeshelle West-Davies

When you are knee deep in tiling the bathroom, the last thing you want to do is lose your momentum by stopping to make lunch. That’s why I called for little reinforcement from the island. ZweiScheibenBrot (two slices of bread) just opened this month and is offering sandwiches you just can’t get anywhere else. With combinations like Salmon and Cream Cheese, Coronation Chicken, Ham and Egg, Tuna Salad, Prawn Mayonnaise, Bacon Lettuce and Tomato and, my pick, Cheese and Pickle; you feel like you’re home in the UK.

Cheddar cheese, free range eggs, plus your choice of white or brown bread……and they DELIVER with no minimum order! Is it lunchtime yet? Here’s their facebook page where they’ve uploaded some very yummy pics.

cute delivery girl, Ulrike, from ZweiScheibenBrot. photo: Maeshelle West-Davies

Ash Wednesday and It’s Veggie Day in Leipzig

Sorry I have no pic. I like the flyer a lot and picked one up with the purpose of writing about it……………and eating at one of the places participating. Somehow it must have fallen out of my pocket! I remember Fela, Cafe Cantona and Telegraph, but there were loads more! Here’s the facebook page.

photo: maeshelle west-davies

Ha Ha! Found it! Had put it safely in my purse instead of my pocket.

Here’s who’s in:

Barcelona, Cafe Cantona, Fela, Kesselhaus, Macis, Pilot, Stelzenhaus and Telegraph

Plus a special event at Restaurant Eden, Karl-Liebknecht-Str 112

5 course meal and reading by author Martina Hasse from Hamburg, “Die buddhistische Tempel-küche Chinas”.

There are only 44 seats, so you’d better reserve your place quickly……..if you can get one!

49€ per person

If you were too late for today, there’s another one 22 FEB, but this special event is tonight only!

Wondering what to cook….how about a British Christmas Dinner!?!

By Maureen Nielsen-Marsh

The Christmas Feast has its roots (parsnips perhaps) from before the Middle Ages.  However, it’s during the Victorian period in England that the dinner we now associate with Christmas began to take shape.

Goose and beef were once the centre-piece, but turkey became popular as the perfect size for family gatherings and it continues so today.  The idea of Christmas was transformed by the Victorians and Charles Dickens’ book a Christmas Carol helped to popularise and spread the traditions of the festival.  For a classic British Christmas dinner choose turkey, bread sauce, roast potatoes (a must have!) roast parsnips and Brussels sprouts!!  To finish it all off a Christmas pudding is normally brought to the table in flames with brandy sauce to accompany it or, if this is not your thing, a sherry trifle.

The Roast Potatoes

The best part of any Christmas dinner!!

This classic four-step wonder of a recipe will give you perfect potatoes every time. The secret? Goose fat.

You will need: 1kg floury potatoes (e.g. Maris Piper), goose fat

(1) Preheat the oven to 220°C.  (2) Peel the potatoes, cut into large chunks and then parboil in boiling salted water for 5 minutes. Drain the water and then toss the potatoes in the pan to roughen their edges. (3) Put a generous amount of goose fat in a roasting tin and put in oven, until smoking. Carefully take the tin out of the oven and add the potatoes to the hot fat, basting them as you do so.  (4) Put the tin back in the oven and cook for about 1 hour until the roast potatoes are golden and crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle. Turn them over from time to time whilst they are cooking to make sure they colour on all sides.

The Turkey and Bread Sauce

You will need: 1 free-range turkey weighing approx. 4kg, salt and freshly ground black pepper, 175g unsalted or lightly salted butter

For the Bread Sauce: 450ml full-cream milk, 1 small onion, 4 cloves,  75-100g fresh white breadcrumbs, freshly grated nutmeg (according to taste), 40g butter or 2 tbsp double cream, cayenne pepper, for sprinkling.

(1) Preheat the oven to 180°C. Put the turkey in a large, deep roasting tin. Season it generously with salt and pepper and massage into the skin.  (2)   Melt butter in a large saucepan. Fold a piece of muslin in four and lower into the melted butter so that it soaks up virtually all the butter.  (3)   Take the butter-soaked muslin and lay it over the turkey, making sure it completely covers the breast and upper thighs.  (4)   Pour about 300ml water into the roasting tin and place in the oven. Cook for approx. 3 hours 20 minutes, basting the bird approximately every 30 minutes with the pan juices.  (5)   To test that the turkey is properly cooked, pierce the thickest part of the thigh with a skewer. If the juices run clear then the turkey is done. If they are pink, cook for a further 15 minutes before re-testing: do this until the juices do run clear.  (6)   Once done, transfer the turkey to a large serving dish, discard the muslin and cover with foil and leave in a warm place to rest for at least half an hour. (7)    While the turkey is cooking, make the bread sauce. Pour the milk into a heavy-based saucepan. Stick the four cloves into the onion, add to the milk and bring very, very slowly up to the boil, so that the milk has plenty of time to absorb the flavours of the onion and the cloves.  (8)  Remove the onion and cloves and stir enough breadcrumbs into the milk to give a thick sauce, season to taste with nutmeg and salt. Stir in the butter or cream; adjust the seasoning, then spoon into a warm serving bowl, sprinkle with a little cayenne pepper and place on the table. If making in advance, leave to cool, then cover with cling film and store in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat thoroughly before serving. Sprinkle with the cayenne pepper just before serving.

The Brussels sprouts

You will need:  900g Brussels sprouts, trimmed, 20g butter,  4 tsp sunflower oil, 150g bacon lardons (or rindless back bacon, cut into short fat strips), 20g flaked almonds, 400ml double cream,  2½ tsp lemon juice, 5½ tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs, 4 tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese, salt and freshly ground black pepper.

(1)  Preheat the oven to 200°C.  (2)  Place the sprouts into a saucepan of simmering salted water and cook for 4-5 mins, until almost, but not quite, cooked. Drain thoroughly, allow to cool slightly and then cut each in half.  (3)  Place the butter and oil into a wide frying pan over a medium heat. Add the bacon lardons and almonds and sauté for 3-4 minutes, until lightly browned.  (4) Add the sprouts and sauté for a further 2-3 mins, stirring constantly. (5)   Add the cream and bring the mixture to the boil. Boil for 2-4 mins, until the cream has reduced to a rich sauce. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  (6) Remove from the heat; add the lemon juice and spoon into an ovenproof gratin dish.  (7)  Mix the breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese together in a bowl and then sprinkle evenly over the top of the sprout mixture.  (8)  Place into the oven and bake for 18-20 mins, until the top is golden-brown and the cream visibly boiling.  (9)  Remove from the oven and serve in the gratin dish (when the dish has cooled slightly).

The Trifle

This traditional trifle recipe couldn’t be easier, use ready-made custard and sponge to save time.

You will need: 1 packet trifle sponges, broken into 5cm pieces, ½ packet of amaretti biscuits or 150g  macaroons or ratafias, 150ml sweet sherry, 1 tbsp cognac, 4 tbsp blackberry or raspberry jam, 450g fresh blackberries, 450g fresh raspberries, 85g toasted flaked almonds, 600ml ready-made (or real) custard

For the syllabub topping:  125ml sherry, 2 tbsp brandy, 1 lemon (juice only), 55g caster sugar, 425ml double cream, freshly grated nutmeg.

To garnish: 2 oranges (grated zest only), 85g flaked almonds

(1) Lay the sponge pieces and biscuits in the base of a deep glass dish: spoon over the sherry and cognac and leave to soak in for a few minutes.  (2) Warm the jam until it is runny then pour over the soaked sponge and biscuits. Sprinkle the fruit and flaked almonds on top then pour over the custard.  (3) To make the syllabub topping, place the sherry, brandy and lemon juice into a bowl and stir in the sugar until it dissolves.  (4) Pour in the cream with a pinch of nutmeg. Whisk together using a wire balloon whisk until it holds its shape. Don’t over-whisk, or whisk too vigorously, as the cream may split!  (5) Spoon the syllabub over the trifle and chill, preferably overnight.  (6)  Just before serving, scatter with the grated orange rind and/or flaked toasted almonds.