A cookie not just for the christmas time – Chocolate Chip Thyme Cookies

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I must say, even though I do love sweets, most christmas cookies are just not my favorite. (I guess I’m usually more a cake person). With the exception of my sister-in-laws super buttery “Mailänderli” cookies (She sometimes even dunks half of the cookie in chocolate….ridiculously good…).
But there is an other cookie I always enjoy, doesn’t matter what time of the year it is. The classic Chocolate Chip Cookie. Timeless deliscious!
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About half a year ago I had the idea to make my Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe and spice it up with some fresh Thyme. I took them to school and my study buddies enjoyed them a lot.
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This time I made them with dried Thyme- and after the bite of approval it is time to share this keeper with my blog friends and wish you all a wonderful christmas time with your friends and family!
Klick Here for the Recipe, or go to “Easy Desserts”

Love, Emily Lovestone

In the Mood for some Party Food

So in addition to my last post and Recipe The Flower Party Breads with delicious Fillings I also wanted to give you the idea of making similar fillings and fill them into puff pastry.
All you need to do is you butter a muffin form, cut scares from the dough and lay it out in the muffin form. Add the filling and fold the pastry endings into the center. Bake them for about 20 minutes by 200C/400F.
It’s a fast made Finger Food and you can prepare the Fillings in the Morning or even the night before.
You can play with different fillings. Here some ideas:
Spinach, Bacon, Potato: Cook the Spinach (I used frozen one), cook the Bacon bits and boil tiny pieces of potatoes. Mix it all together with Gruyere Cheese, Salt and Pepper, then add some cream and an egg.
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Pumpkin, Bacon, Cheese: Grate the Pumpkin, add the cooked Bacon bits, Gruyere Cheese, some Cream and an Egg, spice to taste. (Of course this one works also with Potato or Sweet Potato instead of the Pumpkin)
Salmon Cream: Mix Cantadou Horseradish (or use Cream Cheese and add some fresh Horseradish), some Cream, Parmesan, an Egg, fresh chopped Dill and Salmon pieces, Salt and Pepper.
Eggplant-Goat Cheese-Walnut: I used a Goat Cheese with Brie-conistency. Of course Camembert or Brie work the same. Put 2-3 Soft Cheeses in a Food Processor, with about 15 Wallnuts and some Cream, Parmesan, Salt and Pepper. Cut the Eggplants (about 2) in small pieces and cook them in some Olive Oil until golden brown, lightly salt them. Mix it all together and add an Egg. (Makes about 24 pastry pieces).
Ham and Cheese: Precook the Ham bits with some Onion, Mix it with chopped Chives, Cream, an Egg and your choice of grated Cheese and spice to your taste.
Spanish Tapas: Mix chopped Chorizo, chopped sun dried Tomatoes, chopped green or black Olives, Cream, and Egg and grated Cheese of your choice, spice to your taste.
Chili con Carne Style: Cook the Ground Beef with some Tomatoes and Tomato Puree, add some Chili, Corn and red Beans, some Cream and an Egg, Salt and Pepper
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Spinach-Feta: Cook the spinach and puree it or use frozen one, mix it with Cream, an Egg and crumbled Feta Cheese
Caprese: Chop up Tomatoes and Mozzarella, add some Parmesan, Cream, an Egg and chopped fresh Basil and spice it to your taste.
Broccoli-Almond Bites: Precook the in small pieces cut Broccoli, mix it with Gruyere or other grated Cheese, Salt and Pepper, Cream and an Egg, and mix in Almond pieces and sprinkle some on top when you filled them into the pastry.

And as you can see this list is endless and you can make all the combinations that you love and that come to your mind with the simple adds of some Cream, Cheese and an Egg.

Happy Party Time everyone
Emily

A new Oldie…

Yesterday I had the great opportunity to bake some Filled Flowerbreads for a business christmas party.
This time I used my Zopf Recipe for all the Breads and made different fillings. As they turned out super luscious, I wanted to share them with you. If you go on my Flower Party Bread Page, you can find a link on how to form this bread shape. My Tip: Fill all the breads generously.
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Ground Beef, Onion, Red Bell Peppers, Corn, Sour Cream, Gruyere – Cook the Ground Beef, with the Onion and Bell Pepper, Spice it, then add the Corn , Sour Cream and Cheese and mix it well and fill the bread.
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Cantadou Horseradish (Or Philadelphia and Horseradish mixed), Sour Cream, Salt, Pepper, fresh Dill and pieces of Salmon.
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Pesto as a base, then Chorizo pieces, chopped Olives, chopped sun dried Tomatoes, Parmesan
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Eggplant-Nut-Camembert
Prepare a Cream base in the food Processor: 2 big Camembert or Brie, 15 Walnuts and some Sour Cream, Salt and Pepper. Step 2: 4 Eggplants, small dices cooked with some Olive Oil until golden brown and lightly salted. Mix the eggplant with the Cream base and some Parmesan and fill the Bread.
Sorry for the bad photo quality (Cell phone). One bread I forgot to photograph totally. That one was a base of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, then topped with precooked Bacon bits and lots of Onion, Pepper and some Salt. Finished with some grated Gruyere Cheese and Oregano, then again formed into a Flower and baked for 50 minutes.

I hope you enjoy these Recipes as much as I love them, as they are so easy and great for any Party.

Emily

Enjoy some Italy on the plate

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This seems more like a summer recipe to you? Yep, very true…. I made it for a Party this summer and I finally thought of sharing it with you…..cause it’s sooooo good!
This dish is very rich and creamy and I recommend eating it with either Bread (homemade Focaccia would be great I think) or side dishes like salad or plain Pasta (and not like a friend of mine did, by eating A LOT of it plain and then get a little sick…).
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The Marinara I cooked for almost 2 hours to have a thick sauce to layer. If you can’t find any Creme fraiche, just use Sour Cream. Of course you can also fry the Eggplants in a pan, but I think it’s a lot easier and also less oily if you bake the slices in the oven after brushing Oil on them.
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The dish can be served either cold or warm and also as an appetizer, side dish or on a Buffet.
Find this Recipe Here or go to “Side Dishes”.
Enjoy and love, Emily

A cake for Breakfast

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So, I found this girl on youtube, called fullyrawkristina.
No, I don’t go fully raw (especially not while we have about 7 months of freezing cold weather a year). But as I love the 80/10/10 concept of health and living (I might do a post to explain it…, but not right now. Are you reliefed?) and fullyrawkristina and her youtube channel is all about the 80/10/10 lifestyle, I thought I do something inspired by her. So if you love carrot cake, sweetness, cashews and wintery spices: Continue reading. If not: Time to leave and maybe visit me an other time, thanks.
I have to make a confession: This dish is (wait with sniffing at it if you’re allergic to the word) vegan. (Damn, she did it again!) But trust me, you will love this creamy little glass of carrot spice heaven anyway.
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The great thing: I made it as a Dessert, but it’s a nice little Recipe for Brunch or Breakfast too.

——- Carrot base with Dates, cinnamon, Nutmeg, Clove, Ginger, dried Mulberries or Raisins ——-
——————– Cashew Cream with Cashews, Lime, and natural sweetness of Dates ——————–

Find the Recipe Here or go to “Vegan Delight Bites”
Enjoy!
Autumn greetings to you all
Emily

Let’s Couscous!

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I’m back with a few more recipes for you guys…..as mostly easy to prepare.
This Recipe can be perfect for a Buffet at a Party or a lunch or dinner for the family.
*** Couscous with crunchy spicy Falafel and a light “Yoghurt” Sauce ***

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As a little extra to the taste buds I sprinkled Pomegranate Seeds over the dish….goes so well with the oriental spices!
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Interested? Check out the Recipe Here or go to “Vegan Delight Bites”

A yummie weekend everyone!
Emily

The Chai Latte with no Latte

Chai in August? There is a good reason for that. 3 weeks of rain and wind and storm – movie nights, wool socks and tea. Does that sound like August to you?? Maybe in Australia! But not on this side of the world! And I am not kidding, when I tell you, I will make a soup for dinner…
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Most people that follow me, know about my passion for smoothies and so today I combined my passion with some warming spices which took me to creamy heaven! This delicious vegan Chai Mylk was born!
All you need is a blender, Bananas, Dates, Water, Cinnamon, Cardamom, Ground Clove and Fresh Ginger.
Even though its raw, the spices warm you from the inside.
If you follow the 80/10/10 or rawtill4 concept, this is a great breakfast in the winter time.
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Find the Recipe Here or go to “Vegan Delight Bites”
A great day to everyone! Let the fruit be with you!
Emily

Vegan Maki Sushi for dinner

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This vegan Maki Sushi is a wonderful dish for summer nights. For the Rawtill4 Lifestyle you don’t use the soy sauce and pickled Ginger, but it’s a dish, that everyone can join. I filled mine with either Tomatoes and Basil leafs or with different combinations of carrot, cabbage, Avocado, Cucumber and yellow Pepper.
Yuuummmm!!! And so easy to make! And if you don’t have a bamboo mat, don’t worry. I didn’t use one either. I used brown rice, which isn’t as sticky as the traditional Sushi rice, but it works.
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Find this Recipe Here or go to “Vegan Delight Bites”
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A nice weekend to everyone!
Emily

And it was (Cheesecake-) love at first sight

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Didn’t she just post a Cheesecake Recipe? I know I know! Am I excused if I tell you that this one is with White Chocolate?! (yummm…..)
I have to maybe explain you, that Switzerland, where I live, knows about Cheesecake for a very short time only. People here grow up with baked or non-baked Cake made with Curd Cheese. Some people call this Cheesecake. Don’t get me wrong. I always loved the light and fluffy Curd Cheese and fruit Cakes. But it’s simply indisputable not a Cheesecake the way the USA makes it. A Cheesecake in my eyes is not light and fluffy….well maybe fluffy. It’s going to ruin your diet! It’s sweet and creamy and that’s how I think a Cheesecake should be.
So many people here only know Cheesecake for maybe a bit more then 12 years (that’s a guess) and for most of the time in the past years it was only to buy at Starbucks….for a lot of money. They had only 2 varieties: New York Cheesecake and Raspberry white Chocolate Cheesecake.
When I moved to Basel 11 years ago to study, the Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake was our biggest treat. Every second week some friends and I would buy a piece and share it together. This sweet sensation made the sun shine on rainy days!
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Last week I was invited to a Party (maybe you saw my Flower Bread…that was for the same Party), and so I knew right away which Dessert I will bring. Cheesecake has so many lovers in this world and makes faces smile while eating. But which one? I actually thought of a Caramel Nut Cheesecake or a Peanut butter Chocolate one (mmmh, just by writing out those names my mouth is watering….I will make and post them one day! Promised.)
But then I thought about not getting too fancy… (In this country some people slowly get used to Peanut butter and love or hate it. It’s just not a very often used product. I must say…..I looooove it!!!! So maybe it’s the best for me, that we can’t buy my favorite brand here. Which would be Jif!!!) …and bring the “classic” one. The one that everyone here knows (because there was no other for a long time) Hello Raspberry White Chocolate Cheesecake! Welcome to the Party! And it was love at first sight…!

Ps: I wanted to make Hearts with my Raspberry Sauce and I do know, that Hearts do look a liiiiittle different……maybe you can see them with some creativity 😉
I should have practiced before. In my head it was so easy to do…
Gladly I had some sugar hearts left to decorate 🙂
Find the Recipe Here or go to “Easy Desserts”

A great weekend everyone!
Love Emily

Filled Party Bread in a Flower Shape

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After being invited to a Party, I wanted to bring a filled Bread that goes well with the salads and BBQ.
So I went to search for “pretty” looking breads and found this youtube video for a flower shaped bread. You can fast-forward to minute 4.30. A very easy way to get some Aaah’s!! and Oooh’s! at the next Party. Promised!
For the dough I use a brown flour base and filled it with Pesto, Sun dried Tomatoes, Olives and Bacon. The great thing about those breads is, that you can fill them the way you want or even make one half different then the other one. Other luscious fillings could be with Onion, Garlic, Nuts, Ricotta, Cream Cheese, Tomato base, Ham, Chorizo, Mushrooms, other Cheeses….and create a bread that for example goes more into the direction Pizza or the Alsace Tarte Flambée.
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The bread turned out great. Crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. Next time I might use the white butter dough from my Braided Bread. Depends if it’s again for a BBQ, where I would recommend the brown flour base, or if it’s for a Buffet.
Find this Recipe Here or go to “Breads&Pies”
A great weekend to everyone!
Emily