Christmas Chocolates in Germany

Ach ja, I really wanted to do a post on the crazy assortment of chocolates that fill the shelves here during Xmastime. But as usual, I procrastinated and only had the chance to document this. In addition to Blätterkrokant, there's Dominosteine, Schokoladenkränze, Marzipan-Kartoffeln and a plethora of other "Christmas-flavoured" chocolates filled with such flavours as cinnamon, roasted apples and caramelized almonds. After living here, I've come to realize how much I missed out on as a kid!

We have Lindt products in Canada, but it ain't nothin' compared to the flavours that they offer in the shops here. Browse through the lindt.de site and see the variety for yourself! It's effing insane!!! It'll definitely be a while before I can say I've tried all their Xmas chocolates. But anyhoo, back to this lovely Blätterkrokant. Imagine caramel cracknel surrounded by nutty-tasting nougat and a coating of milk chocolate. When I first tried one exactly 1 year ago, I swear time stopped for a few seconds.

Museum Heimathaus Münsterland ― Grußkarten zu Weihnachten

"Postkarten aus Deutschland und verschiedenen Ländern aus aller Welt, teilweise gelaufen, in unterschiedlichen Drucktechniken, karten vom Ende des 19. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart."

RELiGIO is a really kool religious museum of sorts located not far from Münster. It's in a small town called Telgte. We visited it the other day and I found it fascinating! What's more, we were able to see the "only during Christmastime" Krippenmuseum, where artists from all over the world have their mangers (most are sculptures, but some are paintings or drawings) showcased at the museum. Sadly, most of my pics of the mangers turned out too dark. Here are some aesthetically-interesting postcards I spotted and I've decided to share instead. Still pondering what country they're from... any guesses?

Christmas Dinners: Dec. 23―26, 2012

Ya-hoo for conquering my first official Xmas in Germany! Not that it was hard to do ;) Gotta say that the traditions here are not far from what I grew up doing. One key difference is that people put up their Xmas trees much closer to Dec. 25. And a small % of people put up Xmas lights outside their homes. But yeah, similar to back home we did nothing but eat for a few days in a row.

Dec. 23 ― Roasted Duck with  Red Cabbage & Potatoes

Dec. 24  ― Steamed Trout & Potatoes

Dec. 25 ― Slow-cooked Deer with Mashed Potatoes & Savoy Cabbage

Dec. 26 ― Sausages & Salads with Homemade Bread

Unfortunately, I cannot say I took part in the creation of any of these homecooked meals. But much love and thanks to the talented chefs and amazing people in my life who prepared them! It's been awesome indeed to have eaten such varied, delicious dishes over the past few days. #trulyblessed

The last time I'd eaten duck was ages ago, so you can imagine what a treat that was to have! As well, the only fish André and I ever eat is frozen, so being fed 1 whole trout on a dinner plate was luxurious indeed. Oh, and Klaus & Cilly's deer dish?! Absolutely s-t-u-n-n-i-n-g. Firstly, I'd never tried deer before, and boy, was it surprisingly tender. Its taste and texture kinda tasted to me like a cross between liver and beef. Effing can't begin to describe to you how good the deer paired with mashed potatoes, man. And then back to basics at the end of the 4-day eating streak with Renate's typical German dinner ;)

Schoko-Werkzeuge 2012 Weihnachtsmärkte

We spotted these rather realistic-looking chocolate tools Werkzeuge and such at a few of the Xmas Markets this year, and André says he only started seeing them at the markets within the past few years, so the concept's still new-ish. I was curious to know how good they tasted, but at the same time I was fine with simply admiring them as pieces of art. The scissors and the keys tickled my fancy the most. It cost a whopping 4,00€, however, for one of the smallest pieces they had (I think that was the price of the mini car), and I refused to pay more than that. Schmeh, there's always next year!

2012 Goslar Christmas Market / Weihnachtsmarkt

I've been living in DE for almost a year, ya'll! How exciting is that?! When I was just a visitor last December, I had the chance to check out what German Christmas Markets were all about. As such, this year they weren't as magical for me. Having said that, however, they're still part of a charming tradition that goes back hundreds of years! I had heard from several of my students that the Goslar Christmas Market was worth checking out. So that's exactly what we did not two weeks ago.



Goslar's Christmas Market definitely attracts more tourists than our Christmas Market in Braunschweig. It's located in the Harz Mountains, the centre of the little town is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it's famous for its Christmas Forest (see photo above). To tell the truth, we were disappointed at finding out the famous forest had just been strategically placed in the middle of the market, but it's kool to walk through nonetheless. What do I think is so special about Christmas Markets in general? I personally love the idea of being snowed upon while enjoying hot, alcoholic beverages with loved ones.

...and for those of you wondering what kind of food you'd find at a German Christmas Market, here are some pics you can feast your eyes on! In addition to the plethora of grilled sausages one could choose from, here's a list of other typical foods available: pretzels, fries/chips/pommes, caramelized almonds and lots of fried sweet things (e.g. Schmalzkuchen, Schneeballen, etc). Do note that every Christmas Market is slightly different in that it serves up local/regional specialities that another city or town might not. I find it quite pricey to eat/drink at Christmas Markets; you're definitely paying for the experience.

Vanillekipferln / Vanilla Crescents

Xmas cookies are a big deal here. We call 'em Weihnachtsplätzchen and they're all the rage in the bakeries during Xmastime. The Vanillekipferl is a rather popular variety, and one of my personal faves. As such, I decided to try and make em myself, but not without altering the original recipe a tad bit. I used grounds hazelnuts instead of ground almonds and I also added a splash of vanilla extract, an unknown ingredient to German bakers. They turned out softer and nuttier than traditional Vanillekipferln, however André gobbled them down none the less. Tip: Dip em in icing sugar while they're still warm!

Tiramisu Recipe

I will not, by any means, call this recipe my own. I think it's a Renate original, of which I've made minor changes here and there. Anyhoodles, I am very proud of myself because it turned out heaps better than I expected! And it was the first time I'd made tiramisu with whipped egg whites. Another delightful thing about this recipe is the nutty, textured addition of chopped almonds. Woo-hah! (Got you all in check..)



Ingredients

4 egg whites
4 egg yolks
7/8 cup icing sugar
500 g mascarpone
30-40 ladyfingers
5-6 shots of espresso
1/8 cup almonds, finely chopped
1/8 cup amaretto
1/8 cup cocoa powder
1 deep (glass) baking dish

Instructions

Using a mixer, whip the egg whites vigorously until they form stiff peaks. In a separate bowl, whip the egg yolks and icing sugar until frothy. Gradually fold the mascarpone into the egg yolk and icing sugar mix. Afterward, gradually fold the egg whites into the mascarpone mix. Set aside.

When the espresso has cooled down to room temperature, one by one, quickly dip each ladyfinger into the espresso and place it into the dish. Create a layer of dipped ladyfingers in the dish. Using a pastry brush, spread some amaretto over the ladyfingers. Then, cover the layer with some chopped almonds. Finally, cover the layer with 1/3 of the mascarpone mix.

Repeat this process twice to create 2 more layers of ladyfingers so that mascarpone ends up being your topmost layer. Using a sifter, sprinkle a thin layer of cocoa powder over this topmost layer. Wrap the dish in saran wrap and let it sit in the fridge overnight. Then, hear your guests oou and ahh when they finally get the chance to dig into your homemade tiramisu the following day. Showstopper!!!

Our Advent Calendar

Mister Glücklich (Mr. Happy) and Miss Sonnenschein (Ms. Sunshine) are celebrating Xmas with all their crazy friends! Meet the entire crew! There's Mister Träumer (Mr. Dreamer), Miss Quasselstrippe (Ms. Chatterbox), Mister Vielfrass (Mr. Eats A lot), and Miss Ungezogen (Ms. Naughty). There's also Mister Aua (Mr. Ow), Miss Kicher (Ms. Pea/Bean) and Mister Muskel (Mr. Muscle)! Yipeeeeee!

Sprungfeder ― WTF IS IT??!

Sprungfeder means "coil spring" in English, hence the crazy shape of these unbelievably edible things. The Xmas Market has officially started in BS, folks! I took a lovely stroll through it today, and boy was it packed! They have all the same food stands and vendors as last year, but this year'll be different for me! I'm gonna try all the foodstuffs I never had the chance to try (e.g. Braunkohl, Mumme-Schokolade Getränke, Sprungfeder, Schneeballen, etc). You'll find out what the other things are real soon. I myself have yet to discover WTF a Sprungfeder tastes like, but don't they look like deep-fried Slinkies?