For the Love of Food

I had the privilege of going tot he National Zoo (Smithsonian National Zoological Park) twice on my trip to DC. Both times it was a really big hit with my son.

It was his first time at a zoo and he was wild about all the different types of animals he could see up close and personal because they have a few enclosures with glass walls. But, his absolute favorite exhibit was the Kids’ Farm, and his favorite animal was the cow. He is going to love it if we can ever take him to see his great grandmother’s farm (dairy cows) in Wisconsin.

Oh, and as the above picture exhibits, our son is signing “monkey” in American Sign Language. He thought the monkeys were fascinating to watch. There was this one monkey that had us cracking up. He was peeing into his hand and then washing his face with it.

I also found these really cute harness/backpacks with a leash. It allowed me to get my little guy down from the stroller with the large crowds of people when I was by my self and keep track of him. He can run very fast when he wants to. I have actually had a few mothers here in Germany ask me where I got it because they’d really like one. But, I’ve never seen them here.

Ok…so onto an odd subject. Just something I noticed while at the zoo… Continue Reading »

In order to make my trip to DC slightly foodie related, I decided to check out some of the farmer’s markets in town.

I ended up checking 3 markets out:
-the Rosslyn Farmer’s Market
-the farmer’s market next to the US Department of Food and Agriculture (which had a surprise – see below)
-and the Eastern Market (a great tip from fellow food blogger from Adventures in Shaw)

It really hit me when I saw these markets that these were true farmer’s markets and not the open-air markets that I shop at in Germany. What’s the difference? Continue Reading »

On our first full day in DC we decided to go and revisit the places where my husband grew up (on and off b/c his parents were in the military).

This time around we had our son with us (he didn’t exist last time we visited), and we took pictures with him. For my in-laws it’s just surreal since our little guy looks just like my husband where he was the same age (and like my husband’s father too…). Continue Reading »

This begins a series of blog posts about my trip recent trip to the US.

So, we flew through Paris because we always try to fly with Air France. They are really great with children and have great play areas/play grounds in their air ports to keep the little ones busy while waiting for your flight.

We always seem to fly through around lunch time. And, I’d like to share with you what just over 18 1/2 Euros can buy you: Continue Reading »

Since I didn’t do any cooking while on vacation, I had to hurry and make my Taste&Create entry as soon as I got home. I was able to make the recipe in time, but do to some problems with our server, was unable to blog my entry. So, here it is.

I was partnered with Sweatha from Experiments,Emotions,Experiences with food. And, I made her Twirly Whirly Pizza. Continue Reading »

Well, we have made it back home safely from our short trip to DC. In the next few days I will be putting together a series of posts about my trip and all that we saw.

Just a quick preview:
-we visited with friends
-we visited with family
-we saw my husband’s childhood homes
-we ate many different places
-we saw a few farmers’ markets
-we went to the zoo twice
-I walked about 7-8 miles each day (and had no feet pain – I love my shoes!)
-we took lots of pictures
-we went shopping
-we didn’t cook a single meal for 10 days – I am so happy to be back in my kitchen!
-but, I learned some great new recipes and I can’t wait to share them with you!

Ok, so I have lots (and I really mean lots) of emails to read through, comments to read and answer, photos, to process, websites to get back on track, and a Taste&Create recipe/post to make/write.

It is going to be a chaotic 2 weeks, so please bare with me – we will be finishing renovations sometime in the first week of September, getting a couch delivered shortly after, and my brother is coming to visit us!

Fleisch Küchele is the German version of a hamburger. Every region/state has their own version and name for this burger.

What sets it apart from the traditional American-styled burger is it’s insane amount of bread crumbs. It gives the burger a thicken, lighter, and heartier feel. The taste is also altered by the large amount of bread crumbs.

I found myself making these the other day – seriously – I just started dumping in breadcrumbs into my ground beef, cracking an egg, and mixing. And, I have to say that I was really surprised about the bread crumb’s ability to hold the burger meat together when used in such high quantities. Continue Reading »

The other day I had some cheese to use up. So, I decided to make a pizza and accidentally came up with my favorite cheese pizza!

I followed my basic recipe here, but instead of just using Gouda cheese, so sprinkled on some shredded cheddar cheese and some dry oregano on top.

When I was in high school and lived in Texas there was a pizza place in my neighborhood that made pizzas that tasted just like this. Who knew I could recreate it at home with such ease!!

I’d like to introduce you to a unique tomato growing in my garden this year.

In German it’s called a Reisstomate – which translates to tear tomato because you can, literally, tear off pieces of the tomato. They are like having a larger tomato made-up of a cluster of cherry tomatoes.

They’re fun to eat and nice and sweet

I came across the most fabulous vegetarian/vegan burger I have ever eaten to date on Love and Olive Oil!!

I used to be a vegetarian…and am not any more, but I do still enjoy eating meat free. So, when I saw this interesting-looking recipe for a walnut-lentil burger – I just had to bite -literally!!

We were all just so taken aback by the delicious flavors and texture. It is not meant to try to imitate meat (like many veggie burgers try to) it is meant to taste de-li-ci-ous! Continue Reading »