Mama´s Kitchen gets a new look

This past weekend my nephew-in-law Timo painted my kitchen.......so very grateful to him for giving my kitchen a "grown up look"

Now, I just need to pick out curtains....will do that when I am in Chicago in a few weeks.  Love my kitchen and can not wait till Timo can come back and  give the other rooms in the house a makeover.

Returning to Blog World

Wow, it happened to me AGAIN.....life got a hold of me and before I knew it the month April arrived in full force, bringing with it more cold and snow..... Yes you read right, we are still "enjoying" winter here in Berlin. I am so ready for spring and garden work....time to enjoy the great outdoors again.

This Easter my niece and her family came to visit. My nephew in law can paint, so he brought his brushes with and gave my kitchen and hallway a makeover. WOW, it looks so cool now.. I can not wait to show you all the pictures...which I will do in another post. This post is dedicated to my great niece and nephew. I may be just a touch biased, but i think these are the two cutest kids around.  Counting the days till I get to spend time with them again.

Clara......

bubble bath angel wings

Felix and Clara expierence their first Easter american style!

Felix

Look what I can do!

Felix enjoys some TV time

Clara and Felix at the East Side Gallery

Ice Cream Sandwiches!

Extra Extra read all about it!

I finally got around to making my own ice cream sandwiches, while they are not 100% like the store bought ones in the USA, we just tasted tested them and I have decided they are way better than the german version. Now, do not get me wrong, there are many things the germans do well. Love the bratwurst you get at the Christmas Markets and well german butter is amazing. But they can not do ice cream sandwiches......but i can !

the chocolate wafers are baked, frozen and ready to for ice cream. Do to a time issue, I bought vanilla ice cream instead of making my own. Pretty sure that these sandwiches will be even better with homemade vanilla ice cream.

One has to work very quickly!!!! Next time will add sprinkels to the sides to jazz them up a bit

Looking for a gift? Here are the sandwiches all wrapped up and ready to go!

I found the recipe over at   http://www.browneyedbaker.com. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe with the world!

OLD-FASHIONED ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

INGREDIENTS:

For the Filling:
1 quart vanilla ice cream (homemade or store-bought)

For the Cookies:
½ cup vegetable shortening
1¼ cups light brown sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
½ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
½ teaspoon instant espresso powder
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour, divided

DIRECTIONS:

1. Line a 9x13-inch baking dish with foil, allowing excess to hang over the edges.

2. If you're using homemade ice cream, immediately after churning, spread the ice cream into the prepared pan. If using store-bought ice cream, soften it slightly and then spread it into the prepared pan. Freeze overnight.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

4. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the shortening and the brown sugar with an electric mixer for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, espresso powder and vanilla. Mix until incorporated. Mix in 1 cup of the flour, followed by 2 tablespoons of water, and then add the remaining 1 cup flour and another 2 tablespoons of water, mixing well until no dry ingredients remain (give it some time, up to 5 minutes of mixing). The dough should be soft and pliable but not sticky; if necessary, add more water, a teaspoon at a time, until the dough comes together.

5. Turn out half the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to an even 1/8-inch to ¼-inch thickness. Cut the dough into 2x4-inch rectangles (you could also cut into squares, or use a cookie cutter to make circles).

6. Transfer the cookies to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Using a skewer (or the tip of a thermometer - works awesome!), poke a pattern of holes on each cookie's surface. Roll out, cut, and poke remaining dough, rerolling the scraps as you work. Place the sheets of cookies in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking.

7. Bake 7 to 8 minutes, or until the cookies are just set. Do not overbake.

8. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool 2 to 3 minutes on a baking sheet. Transfer to cooling racks and cool to room temperature. Freeze cookies for at least 1 hour before assembling the sandwiches.

9. To assemble the sandwiches, have everything ready and work quickly! Match up cookies of the same size and have them laid out and ready for the ice cream. Use the edges of the foil to lift the block of firm ice cream from the baking pan and place it on a cutting board. Working quickly, cut the ice cream into 2x4-inch rectangles (you'll have a little ice cream left over). Using a narrow stainless steel spatula, place a rectangle between two chilled cookies and press the cookies lightly to adhere. (I found it easiest to do this one at a time. Cut one or two rectangles, assemble those cookies and place on a tray, then do one or two more, etc. until you're finished.) Return the sandwiches to the freezer for at least 30 minutes. Wrap individually in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container or zip-top plastic bag in the freezer.

(Cookie recipe adapted from The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook)

Chicken Jambalaya

 Happy Sunday Evening Everyone! This week I am sharing with you my try at Chicken Jambalaya. A   recipe I found in the Better Homes and Gardens  New Cook Book.

Recipe:

 Chopped Celery

 Chopped onion

 chopped Grean pepper

2 tablespoons butter

1 141/2 oz can tomatoes, cut up

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

2/3 cups long grain rice

dried basil, thyme, garlic salt, pepper, hot pepper sauce, bay leaf

2 cups cubed cooked chicken

In a skillet cook celery, onion, and green pepper in butter till veggies are tender. Stir in the undrained tomatoes, broth, rice, and spices. Bring to boil and then simmer for 20 minutes. Add chicken, cook till heated through.

What´s cooking in your kitchen this week?

Easter Bunny Parade

Oh, happy days......I get to put out all my bunnies! As in every year I treat myself to a new bunny. This year, I got lucky and found 2!

New Bunny Number 1....found him at TK Maxx 

Bunny Number 2....found him at IHR Servietten Lager Verkauf in Cloppenburg

Not a bunny, yet new to my tablescape this year.....a appetizer or cake stand. Like this one, as I can use whatever plates match the color scheme. 

Happy Week Everyone!

I am linking to following parties:

Tablescape Sunday, Tablescape Thursday, Masterpiece Monday

Oma´s Dumplings for Oma´s Soup

We all know that Grandmothers make the best cooks! Well, my sister´s mother in law sure did make the best soup ever and oh the dumplings that she put in the soup. This Sunday I am sharing with you all the dumplinr recipe, because that is simply thebest part of the soup.

Ingredients:

4-5 Zwieback
1 Egg
1 piece of Butter
salt and fresh nutmeg
1 tablespoon Griess/semolina

Directions

Mix all the indgriedents by hand and then let the dough rest a bit. Form into small round dumplings as seen above and drop into the hot soup.

Guten Appetit!