December 7th 2007

"Kochgeflüster" - the culinary fair

What comes to mind, if you think of a food-fair? Hmmmm... Sure, there you can find everything around food. But what does it mean: everything? Maybe you can taste culinary delicacies there? Or does it mean, that the latest products - concerning food stuff and so on - will be presented there like new spices, new kitchenware or new "food-compositions" like chili-honey or bell-pepper-kiwi-jam? In short - i was extremely excited and went - together with a friend of mine and my new camera - to Fürstenfeldbruck, where the annual food-fair took place in an old monastery. More than 60 exhibitors and Michelin-decorated-, organic- and gourmet-chefs came to pamper the customers' palates with culinary masterpieces. The exhibition took place in a big, but very gorgeous farm-house - for me it seemed as ist was used as a barn previously and modified accordingly. Now it looked really inviting. There many boothes offered (also self-made) culinary delectabilities or kitchenware. Moreover there were cooks, who presented a cooking-show. Even the famous Bavarian cook, Alfons Schuhbeck, had his own booth and provided on one of the exhibition-days an insight into his cooking-routine. Certainly there was a show-kitchen. Other cooks demonstrated their proficiency, too. Unfortunately we could not get to look at Schuhbeck yesterday. But we caught a glimpse of an equally competent female cook, who showed her skills. We kept on moving - nibbling, tasting and buying. Kokos-, chili-, ginger- oder orange-flavoured chocolatepowder for hot chocolate as well as a huge selection of sauces, spices, olives and jams... everything was there. So I packed my extra-strong thai-chili-sauce together with the delicious chocolate and the crunchy fresh baked bread in my bag and went home. My upshot: Eating is counted among the most beautiful things - and next year I am going to be back again!!!

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November 14th 2007

The cookery course

Some days ago my aunt gave me a ring, asking if I would like to accompany here to a cooking seminar at the Nockherberg in Munich ( a  place which is very famous for his legendary annual “Munich beer festival” ). She had already attended a similar course there and was full of praise about it. Therefore, she had not to convince me at all. Actually I was keen to catch a glimpse of the famous cooking artistic of Mr.Andreas Geitl - among other cooking activities, he is a brilliant Television Cook and so I hoped to get as much as possible out of it for my own .

On 10th of November at 2 p.m. we met at the restaurant - twenty cookery-learners for one day and the master himself. Coffee and sparkling wine drinking we discussed the order of the menu - and certainly each ones' duties.

The menu was as follows:

Prawn-Shashlick with saisonal salads and Mangocream

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Pumpkin-Ginger-Soup served in the fruit

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Haunch of a Deer Calf wrapped in a Fig-Chestnut-Cream
Red Wine Sauce, Savoy Cabbage with Truffles
Potatoe-Gorgonzola-Balls

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Chocolate-Ice-Parfait with mulled Wine-Pear-Bismarcks
And Williams-Wheat-Beer-Sabayon

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Chocolates, Cassis-Chili-Truffles

Our future cookery skills in focus we went - provided with red aprons - into the kitchen, where Andreas Geitl introduced us to the other cooks, who were supposed to help us if necessary. Then we were devided in groups. My group was responsible for the main dish. So my first job was to cut out the bones of the deer calfs' back. Bones and meat not used for the dish were destined for the sauce. Afterwards I had to remove the sinews. All what I had to do was entirely new for me and was added immediately to my basic knowledge of experiences. We twenty apprentices as well as thirty guests are going to enjoy our creations later in the evening. That comes to 50 guests. Quite a lot! So it was not enough to cut out the sinews of one Calfs' back - no, we needed five. But that's the way to learn it. Today I can proudly say, that I wouldn't ask the butcher any more to cut out the sinews of a piece of meat - now I am able do it by myself.

Not used to the razor-sharp knives I almost lost 2 of my beautiful fingers, only due to the immediate first-aid of the careful watching cooks they could be saved. With bandaged fingers but still enthusiastic I could continue my work.
A short break with coffee and cake was a welcome interruption.

Then we went on with our preparations. The sauce of the deer calf's roast had to be finished, other parties of the team prepared parallel the pumpkin-ginger-soup, the potato-gorgonzola-balls, the savoy cabbage, the mousse and the pear-bismarcks. My cuisine created the cassis-chili-truffles. I got explained, how to confect the fig-chestnut-fruit-cream for the roast. On polythene foil this cream was applied by me and wrapped  around the meat. Really, a great recipe.

Later I decided to visit the other partner-teams to see their creations. Time went by and we had to hurry up, because our guests were supposed to arrive at 7 p.m. The restaurant staff already had set the tables - absolutely wonderful!.
We were in time. The roast was in the oven, the soup was ready, the truffles werde drying, the salad was prepared as well as the sauces and the mousse was in the refrigerator. So we we were ready to start. After the guests arrived, Andreas Geitl asked them to come into the kitchen. Everyone got a drink, our guests could look around, if they wanted, and then they all went into the restaurant. We prepared the starters and served them. And then the easy part of the eveningstarted: we enjoyed our meal! Of course not all the work was done. Actually we had to serve the soups, the main dishes and the desserts as well, but it really was a cosy, culinary splendid, stress-free and amusing evening. At the end of the day everybody received a certificate stating that from now on we are promoted to “honorary-chief-cookers”. And I am absolutely sure - later all of us fell dead into bed. Me too!!!!

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July 14th 2007

Holiday in Portugal

Who does not like summer, sun, beach and sea? Me too. One day I realized that dream of mine - I took a flight to Portugal. What do we associate with this country? Of course, bright sunshine, a wonderful blue sea, fine- grinded sand and delicious seafood.

The food in that region of the country tasted quite different to that what we are used to. I remember very well the chicken “Piri Piri”  (chicken pieces very spicy and roasted on charcoal, “Torta de Laranja” ( Portugese orangecake) and exquisite crispy sucking-pig. The latter is considered as an insider tip. When we wanted to enjoy this delicious kind of  food, we had to go I in direction Messines, a city located in the mountains. On our trip to that place we stopped in Silves , a very ancient and famous town, to have an espresso, which is called here in the southern part: Bica.. Then we went on but interrupted again at a lake, rested between smooth hills, to enjoy the beautiful and romantic view.

From that place we had only 10 Minutes to go to reach our destination, a restaurant called “Silva”. The crowded dining room proved that we at the right place. And as expected, the pig was already waiting for us.
First the appetizer were served: paste of sardines, white wonderful smelling fresh bread and the everywhere present olives.
Unfortunately  we had to control our desire to eat  too much, as we knew, that a huge portion of suckling-pig would follow.
When our main dish was served, we almost jumped at it. Honestly I have to admit, that if I would have the choice between pork and beef - I would rather decide for beef, but this wonderful delicious juicily suckling-pig was at this moment definitely the best alternative.

Adresse:
Silva
Cx. 401F
Vale Fuzeiros
8375 – S.B. Messines
Tel: 00351 / 282 332 199

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June 11th 2007

Surprise

Of course, I do like surprises! But if surprises are announced in beforehand, it may happen that I create stress for myself as well as for that person who intends to surprise me. I am extremely curious what makes it very difficult  for everybody to take me by surprise. Recently my aunt called me asking to reserve for her the Saturday 9th of June. Ok, I accepted. A similar call received my sister. On the said Saturday we should meat at a secret place in Munich. Both of us nearly died as we could not estimate what was going to happen. With tricky questions, but where I carefully hided the actual desire, I tried to find out what might be the background behind that invitation. I guessed she would like to invite us in a restaurant, so I asked her:” should I be hungry when we meet or not?” “Hungry”, she said. I thought it over and came to the conclusion it has something to do with food and eating, but knowing my aunt, I was quite sure, it was not that easy. So I continued my questioning. Could it be a cookery course? “ Should I wear a special shoe outfit?” I was satisfied with myself – this question was obviously very tricky. “It´s up to you.” Do what you like but see that your appearance does not harm the people around”. Ok, no cookery course. What else can it be – a 'criminal dinner' or a 'dinner in the dark'? I checked the internet to find out what kind of events are taking place at that time in the area of Munich. I found nothing at all. Some days later, when I visited my aunt, I checked secretly the large wall calendar for any entry – but found nothing. Than I got the information, that my father would bring me on Thursday to Munich. Again my mind started spinning around. Can it be a party with a lot of drinking or even a wine-test? Nevertheless, on Saturday my father picked me up nearly 6 o´clock pm. When we entered Munich he started to explore the city in all directions in a manner of a real tourist sight seeing tour.  Later we drove past the Mariahilfplatz and stopped in front of a huge building. “As we have some times left, let's have a drink”, he said. Now I recognized that we were at the Nockherberg a very famous Bavarian restaurant and beergarden. And suddenly I knew what was going on. The very famous TV-cook Andreas Geitl was the head chef of this restaurant and I remembered that my aunt has booked a cookery course with him. But I did not know exactly when this was going to happen.
When we parked our car down in the car park I recognized immediately the car of my aunt, a silvery Mercedes. Ok, she was here. What does that mean? In the meantime my sister joined us. Up in the restaurant  finally the secret was disclosed. My aunt had participated at the cookery course which started already on that day in the early afternoon and we three and the other guests of the course members were invited to eat what the trainees had created. Mr. Geitl gave us a warm welcome and all participants of the course turned up. And here came the second surprise. Not only my aunt was participating, my mother was there, too, and even my cousin. Via restaurant with the beautiful decorated table all the guests were guided into the kitchen area were we had been offered a welcome drink – then we started with the dinner. The trainee-crew had to serve the food and wine and I can tell you: this “multi course dinner” was exceptional. Midnight, when the session was over, all participants of the course received a certificate signed by the master.
It was a marvellous evening in a beautiful surrounding and a absolutely extraordinary dinner.
After all I did not feel sorry for the days of waiting in a total ignorance.

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May 29th 2007

The Menu

Which TV-program do you prefer? A good movie? An exiting documentation? A game-show like “Who wants to be a millionaire”? Or can it be also a cooking session? As you can imagine my favourite is the cooking show. Afterwards I always try to copy what I have seen. Sometimes with more, sometimes with less success. To watch this wonderful TV cooking artists at their work is for me as exiting as may be a thriller for you.
Many times I have dreamed of, but never expected to get an opportunity to see life the magician creating a miracle of menu. But some day it happened.
A TV-station decided to create a new kind of  cooking-show. On the contrary to the common shows in the studio, the cook with his team visits a private home where he prepares the dinner on the spot for a person who should be surprised with.

As usual a pilot production has been arranged, my aunt was chosen to be the person who will be surprised and my kitchen was the place of action. And so, by the way, I asked my aunt to visit me at that day just for a chat. To complete the dinner round I invited two friends of her to join us for this dinner session.
On the day of the event the whole staff from television arrived at 12.30, the camera-team, the make-up artist, the moderator and last not least the master of the show -  the cooking magician.
During the TV-specialists arranged everything, the moderator interrogated me about specific details of  my aunt´s life.

After the master had checked the kitchen and their utensils he started with the actual cooking procedures.
One day before I called my aunt asking casually if everything is ok and remembered her of our date  the next day. I think my insistence in that case made here suspicious. Her reply gave me a feeling that she does expect something but did not know exactly what´s the actual reason behind that invitation.

During the preparation and decoration of the table the master worked in the kitchen on his masterpiece of  creation.
My aunt was expected at 6 pm. Already one hour before we were attacked by an oversized activation. During all that hectic the invited couple arrived.
I went to change, got a renovation of my make up by the professional and we all were waiting now for the chief guest.
Exactly in time she arrived. I welcomed her passing by the spotlights, the camera and the whole team I lead her to the table.
She did not faint, but nevertheless we were all sure that we did achieved our aim.