{{Inspired}} Sunday Morning Breakfast

I love breakfast. It has absolutely become my favorite part of the day. I blogged about my discovery of "the most important meal of the day" on my food blog - and I am not exaggerating when I say discovering breakfast has changed my life.

But lately, breakfast time is more than just a meal - its my inspiration. Its a quiet Sunday morning, a little bit hungover. My husband puts on some good music, I put on the coffee and together me make a warm and filling breakfast. Its the highlight of my week, one of the few times we get to spend a few quiet moments together talking and laughing and just enjoying the moment with no stress from work or life getting in the way.

Every single day I find myself wanting to photograph breakfast time - and this week on Etsy I found plenty of items to add to my inspiration. And that I want to add to my kitchen.

(No seriously. Someone buy them for me. If I don't get that sugar/creamer/syrup set i might cry. and the orange mugs. and the lotus bowls. and the blue frying pan. and most definitely I must have the adorable mushroom kettle, I mean look at it! and the picture and the breakfast print...I have a breakfast nook that is just dying to have these on the wall. please? anyone? )

To see all these items, click on the picture which will take you to Etsy where you can click on each one individually.

Côte d'Azur

For almost a year now, I have been preoccupied with Provence. I have been obsessed with the food and flavors of the region - fresh goat cheese & olives, roasted lamb, scallops, sardines, fresh herbs, Rosé, and of course truffles. I feel like this past year I have been discovering what so many foodies already have - that Provence might just be heaven on earth.


Even though we live (relatively) close to there - it seemed like some exotic, far away place that I would probably never visit until I was old and rich (ha!). Yet somehow, as we tried to find a place to go for a last minute save-our-sanity getaway over the Easter holiday (a trip that would probably be Cory's only break from work for the year), we found ourselves booking plane tickets to Nice.

I'm not gonna lie. It was everything I ever dreamed of. It was a beautiful blue water, delicious local wines, Tapinade from Nicois olives on fresh croutons (um yes please for every meal thank you), and the warmest, friendliest people like, ever.

I completely fell in love. The trip was just what we needed to sooth our haggard souls after a long, stern winter in Berlin (which doesn't exactly bring out the best in people). Fresh air, a slower pace, good food and stellar service everywhere we went. Its amazing what seeing smiling faces can do for you. Its no wonder the French Riviera has been the escape of artists, poets, and royalty for centuries. Lucky for us, its just as enjoyable for regular folk too :)

(if you are one of the like three people who cares, you can see more photos on Flickr)

September

...Summer is sadly slipping away....

(Soup recipe can be found HERE on my food blog)

Currently Obsessed...

...with Strawberries.

They are delicious, pretty, and I seem to never get sick of them even when I eat a half kilo in one day and then make (and eat) this cake:

It's almost here....

Kosheri

So, while my trip to Egypt was amazing, for the most part the food there wasn't - which surprised me. There was one exception though - Kosheri. I had never heard of this wonderful little dish, but it is practically the national dish of Egypt. Our tour guide said the place to go for the best Kosheri in Cairo is Abou Tarek - and while I didn't really get to compare it to anywhere else, I can't possibly imagine how it could get any better.



Kosheri consists of pasta (macaroni and vermicilli), rice, and lentils.



At Abou Tarek, they bring you the fried onions, Tomato sauce, chickpeas and lemon on the side for you to mix in.



The best part though, is their hot sauce (mix it into the tomato sauce then combine with the rest) and this amazing lemony-vinegar sauce that just sent it over the top into delicious. I couldn't get enough and I don't know what I will do if I can't duplicate the recipe. I might have to go back to Cairo soon!

I have lots more pictures I would love to show you, but the editing process has been painstakingly slow, and is currently occupying ALL of my time. I will give you a day by day recap just as soon as I get it all finished - I am currently working my way through day 3....

The Spice of Life

My camera and my pantry met today, a good time was had by all.

Also, I have spruced up my food blog (with the help of the first image above), and I am fairly partial to it. Check it out.

Weekend in Bavaria

Our Hotel



Neuschwanstein



Good food and drink



Black Forest Cake



Some of the best Kartoffel Suppe (potato soup) I have ever had

Persimmons

Aren't they pretty? I think these are one of the most interesting fruits. They are also called Kaki's. Look for a Persimmon Cake recipe on my food blog soon!

**EDIT: persimmon cake FAIL! So, don't look for a recipe after all, back to the drawing board on that one! Yikes, it was like the most collossal cake failure ever I should have taken a picture...

Shoko Croissant, My Love

Warm, flaky croissant wrapped lovingly around rich, dark chocolate - it is the food of the gods.

I have a bakery right next door (and in case you didn't know, bakeries in Germany are little doorways to heaven...) and these little beauties only cost 80 cents. Someday soon I will share with you the joy of the Schinken-Kase Croissant (ham and cheese croissant).

**This is also posted over at my food blog...check it out for a little more lighthearted fare.

Introducing: Behind the Skillet

Ok, remember a few posts back where I said I had made a new food blog and was so nice to link you to it and everything? Well, that was on Wordpress, and guess what? I hate Wordpress. It sucked. So I decided to move it back over to Blogger and now it is up and looking perty. Don't take my word for it - go check it out! I have also included a link on the sidebar for your convenience. I am always thinking of you.

Sadly I still don't have any dishes with which to cook. I will try and keep you posted on what I am eating, just don't judge me by the fat content of my food, but by the content of my character.

Ahem...anyway...my shipment from the States (which consists almost entirely of kitchen stuff and photography stuff and a few guitars) should have arrived on Germany's shores yesterday. Yes, 8 weeks after it shipped (which was almost a full week after they picked it up. Obviously they aren't in a hurry). Now it has to clear customs (assuming it did arrive in port today which no one bothered to tell me) and drive to Berlin. I am reeeeaaalllly looking forward to being able to cook. Its hard for me to believe I haven't cooked anything in three months (which is how long my stuff has been in boxes). I wonder if I will remember how.

There is even more exciting news today...I got my washing machine! Yay! If you didn't know, we ordered this washing machine almost a month and a half ago. Today, it was finally installed. Yay for not dragging laundry on the subway anymore!! Here is a picture, which I thought you would enjoy because, yes indeed, my washing machine is in my kitchen.