Which ones would you like to see at einmaleins??

If you cook, your family will eat dinner together.
If you cook, you will naturally have a more sustainable household.
If you cook, you’ll set a lifelong example for your children.
If you cook, you’ll understand what goes into food and will eat more healthily.
If you cook, you’ll make your home an important place in your life.
If you cook, you’ll make others happy.
If you cook, people will remember you.

Great quote.

The Local reports the 400 year old barrel will be tapped for a celebration tomorrow for first time since it had been emptied in 1606.

The oak barrel in the town of Halberstadt measures five metres in diameter and holds about 144,000 litres of wine. Even empty, it weighs about 63 tonnes. Guiness World Records calls it the oldest giant wine cask in the world.

My lovely wife and partner, Trixy likes to bake, cook and create something amazing for our First Friday events every month. A while back she made flatbread crackers that were a hit. We promised the recipe and here it is, finally!

1 cup warm water
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
3 cups all-pupose flour, plus more for suface and hands
3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for bowl
coarse salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 large egg whisked with 1 talbspoon water for egg wash
sea salt, for sprinkling
1/3 cup fresh rosemary or thyme (or a combination)

1. Place water in a medium bowl; sprinkle with yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.
Stir in flour, oil, 2 teaspoons coarse salt, and the sugar. Stir until dough forms.

2. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface; knead with floured hands until smooth, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.
Let dough stand in a warm, draft-free place until it doubles in volume, about 1 hour.

3. Preheat oven to 350. Divide dough into 16 equal pieces: cover wrap with plastic wrap. Roll out 1 piece to roughly 4-by-10 inches on a lightly floured surface: transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush with egg wash: sprinkle with sea salt and herbs. Repeat with remaining dough, arranging 4 pieces per sheet.

4. Bake, rotating sheets halfway through,until crisp and golden, 18 to 22 minutes. Let cool on sheets on a wire rack.

Want a recipe card? Let us know and I will create one!

It’s hot outside. Watch Ruhlman, favorite food writer, author and story teller of mine make deviled eggs… and hey, he even makes homemade mayo. How cool is that?

I’m really into wine.
I dream of owning a house with a root cellar where I can store vegetables and fruit and of course a large selection of wine. I started reading several books on wine-making, the history of wine and of course had my share of great and not so great wines. I try not to be a big snob about it and hardly ever spend more than $15 on a bottle; and I enjoy movies like Sideways and Bottle Shock. I love the mood wine creates, the atmosphere in the vineyard and the mystic when opening a bottle of wine that’s been harvested somewhere around the world many years ago. I listened to the arguments of old world vs. new world wines and techniques and terroir. For me wine needs to be exciting yet accesible, I drink white, red, rose. I’m adventurous when purchasing wine but hate labels with animals or anything that comes straight from the marketing department. I want to see the dirt on the bottle, cause that’s where it’s from. After all wine is probably the highest acclaimed agriculutural product ever. Locality is great and Washington State is a great place to live for some excellent wine from both sides of the mountains.
But, let me tell you what I’m here for today:
I have been in search of the perfect table wine. Most people when asked about their all-time favorite wine, they talk about an experience rather than a pointless point system. A dinner party, a simple restaurant on vacation in the Alps, the birth of a child. Hardly anyone remembers the big Bordeaux’s or Rieslings with tears in their eyes. Perhaps the tears came when it was time to pay the bill ;-)
Although I am still far away from owning my own root celler, I would love to have a “table wine” in the house. A go-to wine for weeknights and casual friend visits. A versatile wine that you can have with any food or none. A wine that doesn’t break the bank, yet you can be excited to open a bottle. A good friend, one you want to keep around.
In my romantic dream world this wine obviously would be made by a friend of wine in un-labeled bottles, but the pocket book drives me back to reality and I so it might come as a surprise that my choice for “Perfect Table Wine” is the 2006 Pine & Post Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s a Washington wine that hit the market a view years to rave reviews and high ratings. A wine that’s actually distributed by the Seattle marketing power house Precept Wine.
So all my romantic notions are thrown out the wind. I am very impressed by this wine. First, there’s the price. This wine can be bought at a local grocery store for around $7. You can’t beat this. And neither can you beat the drinkability, the not-overpowering fruit and strong finish. Without too much alcohol in the back, this wine perfectly fits the bill for a weekday dinner. I’ve had the wine several times before, althought the 2006 Cab truly blew me away when I opened a bottle this weekend. All of the weakness of mass-produced cheap wine, that so often disappoint you when opting for an inexpensive quickie at the grocery store were missing. This wine is good. Gone are the days of random picks that often leave something to be desired. This is my new table wine. I will open another bottle tonight with leftover Mexican from the weekend.

Read soon on my choice for a white table wine.