Of course summer inevitably has to end at some point, but somehow it feels harder each year. We went from “let’s do a little picnic for lunch break” to “where is my scarf?” in under a week. Suddenly the peaches don’t taste as good anymore and pears, apples and pumpkins are beginning to crowd the shelves.
“What do you mean ‘you made ketchup’?” – “Well, just that. I made ketchup.” It still amuses me when people get astounded by a simple statement like that. Most people consider ketchup something you’d -of course- buy at a supermarket and couldn’t care less about its ingredients list and high sugar content. Even though it’s dead simple to prepare and doesn’t take more than half an hour of one’s precious time!
Since we’re having the hottest summer weeks here in Germany, regular cooking and baking has been put on the back burner. While the plan foresaw a much, much slower pace, I still ended up spending countless hours in the kitchen. How did that happen?
I’ve been pretty good at holding my best intentions this year, well, until just now. Curious? Purchasing food magazines is only allowed when traveling (with one tiny exception) and buying new cookbooks has, these days, become more an exception than the rule. My cookbook library has grown exponentially over the last years and shelf space is a limited good in my office.
Summer is not an easy season for a food writer. You’d think that having choices is good, but in reality the abundance of colorful fruit at my grocery shop drives me nuts. I just can’t make up my mind what to cook or bake first, ending up – each and every time – with way too much stone fruits and berries. Every. Single. Time.
Ever since Oliver has taken up bread baking with his own sourdough, my bread baking has decreased – he’s just too good at it. But rolls, buns and similar are still my business. So today you’ll get a new recipe video of a Jewish favorite you might not even have heard of yet, unless you live in NYC or have a broader knowledge of its culinary intricacies…
