Chocolate panforte

I started making panforte a couple of years ago. It's a delicious, chocolatey, nutty slice which is wonderfully spiced. When I bought some all spice in the UK this week, I knew this would be the first thing I'd make. It's technically an Italian Christmas recipe but I think it can be eaten at any time, including after Christmas! 

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups gluten free flour
• 1/4 cup baking cocoa
•  1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp finely ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp allspice
• 1 cup blanched almonds and/or hazelnuts
• 200g mixed dried fruit
• 1 cup honey or agave syrup
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 100g dark chocolate

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Line the base and sides of a 23cm round springform cake tin with baking paper and set aside.
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa, cinnamon, ground ginger and pepper into a large bowl and set aside.
3. Place the almonds in a dry fry pan and heat them over low heat, toss them and moving them constantly until they brown on each side. 
4. Add the almonds, ginger to the flour mixture and stir to combine.
5. Place honey and sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over low heat. Stir from time to time until the sugar has dissolved. Roughly chop the chocolate into smallish pieces and add to the hot honey. Stir well to melt completely.
6. Add the chocolate mixture to the fruit and nuts and stir with a wooden spoon to combine everything well. It will be a very stiff mixture.
7. Press the mixture into the prepared cake tin. Bake for 30 minutes. Cool in pan before turning out.
8. Dust the cake heavily with sifted icing mixture and use a large, sharp and warmed knife to slice through the panforte as cleanly as you can. Allow to cool and harden.

Store for at least a couple of days before eating if you can, the flavours develop much better this way. It will keep for at least a month in a cool, dark covered, well wrapped in greaseproof paper. 

Festive salutations

                            

I hope that everyone had an enjoyable (or at the very least tolerable) Christmas. 

Christmas in Leipzig has been a lot of fun. Unfortunately snow has been pretty much non-existent besides the odd flurry but there's been much to enjoy. Weihnachten Market, gluhwein, eating stollen and pfeffer nuse, I've really been enjoying Christmas in a cold climate. 

Germany has some lovely Christmas traditions with old fashioned religious undertones.  First there's St Nicholas Day on December 6th, Many children put a boot called Nikolaus-Stiefel (Nikolaus boot)outside the front door on the night of 5 December. 'St. Nicholas' fills the boot with gifts and sweets overnight, and at the same time checks up on the children to see if they were good, polite and helpful the last year. If they were not, they will have coal in their shoes instead courtesy of a goat like beast called Krampus. 

                          

pic courtesy of Wikipedia

Pretty weird! That said, Eastern Germany in general is not very religious at all. According to friends of mine who lived through DDR times, to be religious was to be viewed with suspicion by the Government and thus subject to increased surveillance. Churches in Leipzig (specifically Nikolai kirsche) were involved in peaceful resistance against the totalitarian state which of course resulted in the Peaceful Revolution of October 1989. But I digress, my point is that many more people are atheist like myself than I've met previously so Christmas is more about celebrating friends and family than a religious occasion per se. 

 It's become more of a tradition in Australia and the UK to join friends for drinks on Christmas Eve, an occasion we enoyed with some Welsh friends here, although the streets were pretty quiet as the Deutsch traditionally have their gifts and festivities on Christmas Eve (the 24th December). We did our present opening on Christmas Even in Australia when we were young children, more so Mum could enjoy the stress of cooking on Christmas Day without the added bonus of sleep deprivation. 

Christmas Day here we enjoyed leftovers from the last Leipzig Apartment Supperclub, tofurkey and Veg Wellington (which we'd frozen) along with roast veggies, red wine gravy and broccoli. Dessert was Christmas Pudding although we were too full to eat it as usual. Quite different to a traditional Weihnachten meal here which usually involves goose, potato salad and cabbage. Far more effort is put into Christmas sweet treats here, we went to Chris' coworking space Christmas party a couple of weeks ago and despite the time of 6pm, everything was sweet! From chocolate to biscuits to gluhwein. Quite different to the dip, cheese and biscuits of Australian Christmas parties but great fun. 

                             

Christmas decorations were kept to a minimum. I used to have lots in Australia but of course these went when we got rid of everything except two suitcases, 5 boxes and two bicycles to move to Germany. And as we're moving in mid February, we don't really want any excess baggage. 

It's certainly cold here (-8 today) and I'm waiting/hoping for snow. We're off to the UK tomorrow for a week to visit friends and relatives. I'm looking forward to hits the cafes and pubs to enjoy fry up and roast dinners that I haven't had to cook myself! It will also be lovely to spend time with people, and enjoy the novelty of a fully English country (in the sense that I don't have to mentally translate things). I have to stress the absolute bliss of having central heating. It makes such a difference, especially as our Apartment has excellent insulation and double glazing. I can remember winters in Melbourne where I'd work in bed with gloves and a hat, constantly freezing cold. 

It's with sadness that I write that Mr Pablo is definitely feeling his age these days. As an 18 year old senior kitty he is of course, beyond much medical help and we are trying to make his remaining time with us as warm and comfortable as possible. We're having a lovely house sitter come and stay when we're away which certainly is a great relief. 

                         

As I finish this, it's just started snowing! 

Easy vegan gluten free Christmas pudding

This pudding recipe is inspired by a recipe which was passed down from Nana Brown, my Step dad's mum. I made it gluten free, and vegan by using coconut oil instead of suet. You can substitute the dried fruit for your favourite and include glace cherries and citrus peel if you like them). It ideally should be made several months in advance to allow the flavours to develop but even a week is great. It needs to sit somewhere warm and dry, secured tied to ensure there is no mould. Wrap the pudding in a metre of unbleached calico which has been boiled in hot water before use. 

Ingredients

• 2 cups brandy
• 250 grams brown sugar
• 250 grams coconut oil
• Equivalent of 3 eggs using No Egg egg replacer (follow instructions on the box)
• 250 grams gluten free flour
• 60 grams walnuts/almonds/nuts of choice
• 1 kg mixed fruit (I used sultanas, currants, apple, peach, prunes and apricots) 
• 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs or crushed gluten free cornflakes 
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon mixed spices
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon golden syrup/treacle
• Zest and juice of 1 orange
• 1 flat teaspoon carb soda in 1 tablespoon of hot water

Method

1. Soak fruit overnight in brandy. 
2. Melt coconut oil. Add  to large bowl with sugar, and egg replacer and stir well. 
3. Add mixed fruit, nuts, breadcrumbs and salt . 
4. Stir in golden syrup/treacle and orange zest and orange pieces.
5. Sift flour and spices and stir into mixture. 
6. Add bicarb soda mixed in 1 tablespoon of hot water last.
7. Use 1 metre of calico and lightly flour the inside of it where the pudding will sit. 
8. Place a piece of greased buttered paper to make the base. 

To cook:

1. Tie with string, leaving a small amount of room to swell. 
2. Boil in large boiler on a plate for 4 hours (top up with boiling water as needed). After this the pudding cloth (with pudding inside) should be allowed to dry completely.
3. Hang pudding in a warm dry place for up to 3 months. If you do not have any hooks, it can be hung off a broom handle. 
4. Christmas Day, Boil for 1 to 2 hours to re-heat until pudding is piping hot. 
5. Serve hot  with warm custard

(When boiling, bring the water to the boil before inserting pudding/s. Rest them on a plate in the hot water)

Serves 12 or makes 12-15 small puddings

What about the lit Brandy, how much? and how long does it burn?

You only use a small amount of Brandy, generally about 1 tablespoon, (the flame is small and blue in colour, not easily seen in a brightly lit Kitchen) the flame goes out on it’s own within about 30 seconds. Make sure you warm the Brandy. Heat the empty spoon, not too hot, you only want the Brandy warm about blood temperature, then measure the Brandy onto the spoon, then, straight onto the pudding, and light! It’s always more impressive with the lights turned down.

Food for thought

                                                    

                     

Things are tickling along nicely in Leipzig. Last week we had our first snow! The funny thing is that I have only seen snow twice so when I went outside that morning to ride my bike to school I thought all the white stuff everywhere was salt. I've seen these huge vats of salt for putting on the ground ( I think?) in preparation for snow so I thought, 'Oh wow, snow is coming! ' It wasn't until I got to school and the teacher said it was snow that I realised. Silly me!

                         

We've been enjoying various things like going along to flea markets, life drawing class, winning at English trivia and seeing some English comedians last weekend. I also started a little social group for expat women in Leipzig and so far we've gone out for cocktails and watching a movie at ours in English with Deutsch subtitles. Good fun! 

Some bizarre flea market goods:

Love these drawers:

We also have the big Leipzig Weihnachsmarkt (Christmas market). Think lots of lights and decorations, stalls with gluhwein, stollen and pastries and lots of things to eat, drink and buy. 

I've been a bit under the weather the last week with bad sinus that went to a runny nose and has now become a cough.Just coming good now. So annoying! The weather doesn't help, although it's definitely been warmer the last few days. 

Things I've enjoyed reading:

I nearly died. So what? Meaghan Daum, The New York Times

Pussy Riot: when friendly people like us become enermies of the state it is very strange, Carole Cadwalladr, The Guardian

The absolute best and weirdest german integration class I ever had, from Oh My God My Wife is German.

Jarring experience, Alexia Schmidt, Courier Post. Great tips here for using your jarred preserves in recipes!

Living the veg life, Health Perch. I really like the info charts,especially the last one to assist people transitioning to a veg life. 

I'm loving this house

These gingerbread terrariums are a great idea! 

I also wrote an article myself about my experiences of Idiopathic angioedema for XO Jane. I have been trying to get more freelance writing work but it is difficult if you do not have a suite of published work to present. I'm working on some other topics also, not just writing about me. Hope everyone is enjoying the lead up to Christmas. X