Winter is the time for baked apples. They are everywhere – at least here in Germany. I don’t know why, but in summer we eat pretty much the same but call it apple compote or something else ;P Well… these here are Apple Crumble Cupcakes. You could also call them Baked Apple Cupcakes or Apple Compote Cupcakes – no matter what name you give them they are very delicious ;)
Baking with pumpkin is not really popular here in Germany. It’s a shame because there are so many delicious bakes with pumpkins you can do… The best example is probably this simple Pumpkin Streusel Coffee Cake. Quick and easy to prepare and very tasty as well. There’s no other way to say it. It’s the perfect cake for fall.
If you ask someone in Germany about the origin of lentil stews you will sometimes get the answer »it’s probably something that is coming from here«. It’s a dish everybody knows from their grandparents, so it must be something we invented ;P But that is not the case at all. Of course! ;) Dishes like this one here have been around since the dawn of time. Well, almost. Lentils have been cultivated and used for thousands of years. This version of a classic lentil stew here is called Lentejas con Chorizo – means »Lentils with Chorizo«. That was easy, right? ;P
Cakes with apples are great all year round. They are always “in season”, right? No matter if it’s summer or the deepest winter – I could eat them all the time! The reason for that is not only that apple cakes are always delicious. You can get apples all year round – I think that is an important factor that they are so popular everywhere 24/7 and 365 days a year ;P That’s also why I bake quite often with apples. No matter if it’s a simple Crumb Cake with Apples or a delicious Spiced Apple Bundt Cake like this one here. Serving apple cakes & pies is always a good option ;)
I got something for all you kale fans out there. Well… actually there is not that much kale in this Zuppa Toscana, to be honest. It’s actually more like “the green icing on top of the cake”. Yeah, you could say that ;) Anyway – the soup is the perfect meal on a cold winter day to warm you from the inside and give you all the energy (means calories) you need to keep you warm when going outside ;P
Some of you might have noticed it already – I am a huge fan of stews and all those dishes where you throw a lot of stuff into one pot and cook it. Sometimes it’s not easy to decide on what to cook because there are sooo many options ;) Today I got a new recipe for a stew with Brussels sprouts, potatoes, and chorizo – Germany meets Spain, you could say. The latest delicious addition to my stews recipe list.
I love my job, but in between I love to bake and try new things in the kitchen. A lot of my friends and colleagues encourage me to bake - for a very simple reason: they get the leftovers - and it seems they like it most of the time ;) 
