The Cooks Hangout

Do you also have a nagging to-do list in the back of your head? Filled with little projects that you want to approach at some point, but chances are slim you’ll ever get to tackle them? I do. I have. Back in 2008 Melissa had planted a seed in my brain when she composed the spice rack of her dreams and ever since I had found way too many excuses to dodge the effort. The fine art of procrastination. But now I can finally tick this one off!

If you follow German food blogs, chances are you have come across a dessert called Arance. Robert originally dug out this fruit dessert from one of Marcella Hazan’s books and while it is the incarnation of the word simple, it never ceases to amaze people. Many food bloggers have joined the praise since his original post and I – too – have added this recipe to my list of quick and proven dessert fixes. That was back in 2007.

What?! You’ve never heard of Thylehogichi? Well, neither have I. But THYme LEmon HOney GInger CHIli tea sounded a little stiff and boring, hence the new word creation by simply using the ingredient’s first letters (the kind of creativity, that arises from somebody who has caught a major cold, *cough*).

I know that most of you come here for the recipes and rest assured, I have something sweet up my sleeve (and perhaps a little intimidating on first sight) – just not today. Today is about a topic that is close to my heart and – as all your copious comments on an earlier post on delicious:days have shown – close to yours, too: how to organize recipes. Having used an imperfect, sometimes chaotic mix of online bookmarking tools, a couple of folders for rip-outs and handwritten Moleskine recipe books, I was never really satisfied with the situation.

Grrrrmpf. Finally the list I have been looking forward to the most. And despite the fact that there is little, if any, more appealing to me than celebrating my recollection of great meals during the last 12 months, making the final choice has been much harder than anticipated. Let alone my growling stomach. We’ve had our fair share of travel last year, discovered lovely new places, found hospitality that made us feel very welcome and genuinely embraced, enjoyed lively company and – obviously – ate our heart out.

Compared to the picky eater I once was, I’ve made major improvements. Nowadays I consider very few things inedible or not worth trying (tripe might be among the few that still give me the hibby jibbies). But I am fighting on all fronts, working hard on myself to overcome culinary childhood indispositions like raisins, capers or mussels - with growing success. Isn’t it a huge gain to constantly be able to discover new food favorites? And once the hey-this-is-not-so-bad enlightenment kicks in, I tend to indulge in newly found faves as often as possible…

There are only two occasions where I could be caught singing, one would be me driving in the car, the other is in the kitchen, cooking or baking. Since I’m most positively one of the world’s worst singers, these are the only safe places for me – and ensure no collateral damage. Music CDs are the only things in our apartment, that could almost rival our cookbook count. Yes, that means I’m one of those people, that still prefer to buy the physical CD, with booklet and such, over an iTunes album. (But then I do purchase single songs at iTunes, sometimes. Especially disco tracks from the 70s and 80s.) Anyways, 2009 some fairly good music found its way into my heart.

Recipe inspiration is ubiquitous today, cookbooks and magazines guarantee for constant inspirational influx. Yet when in doubt, I love to turn to food blogging buddies, whose recipe repertoire and quality level have proven successful over the years. Here are some awesome recipes, that made their way into my favorites folder last year and got cooked, baked or prepared multiple times since – and they for sure have the potential to make you food-happy, too:

Initially we were scratching, biting and pulled dirty tricks to avoid the first (and second) generation iPhone virus, but as soon as Apple announced and released the 3G S, there was no turning back. Oliver and I had to have an iPhone. Said, done. And let me tell you, I wasn’t so excited about an electronic gadget since… probably my first Atari console. Not in my wildest dreams I would have imagined how useful it would become in daily life. Of course you can use it for a gazillion things, but I will list only those, that the food lover in me appreciates dearly:

As much as I like to throw my money at new kitchen tools and gadgets, I’ve learned to tame my enthusiasm and rethink possible acquisitions. Kitchen and pantry space is a precious good in our apartment and cluttered shelves and drawers are a pain in the ass. Let me list my favorite new additions (and some failures, too):