Kruidnoten (Kruidnoot) – the quickest and easiest gingerbreads

funny name: Kruidnoten or Kruidnoot

funny, because it derives from Dutch. no idea what it means. but I know that is the name of small ball-shaped spice cookies, which are given away by Zwarte Pietów, Black Peter during Sinterklaas - Santa Claus. 5th of December in the Netherlands and 6th in Belgium.

is this recpe the original one? I don’t know. I found it somewhere in Internet. if it’s not – I don’t bother – I don’t care. they are very similar, delicious, and, most importantly, the quickest, and the easierst gingerbreads I have ever made. they are perfect if you don’t have much time to do gingerbreads that are time-consuming.

 

 

 

I can smell the specific scent of spice. cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cardamon.

the warm, light kitchen. the oven on.

masculine, manful, caring hands around my waist. kisses on my neck. I felt Christmas at the time. they are definitely coming.

 

for a hungry husband – beef stew with potatoes and ginger

sad autumn this year.

what dull weather. grey every day. even after my daily walk doesn’t make be happier. sad again. my thoughts and my guitar.

now I see I have to  re-string…

 

 

… and this recipe is for my hungry husband. ta dam.

 

 

 

 

 

do you watch your waistline? [light] buttermilk pancake layer cake

sweet but not too much. filling but light. looks time-consuming but it isn’t. love at first sight. or a bit, a should write.

there are no candles on it. that is not my birthday or name day. this is no occasion at all. today like every day. except the thick frosty fog. much greyer than yesterday.

 

 

I can’t fool myself – I am a woman, and every (statistic) woman was on a diet at least one time in her life.

so, of course, I watch my waistline. even if I pretend that I don’t.

if you fancy some sweets and you are on a diet, or just watch your waistline, try this cake. delicious, easy, light and tasty for others (who are not on a diet).

one frosty day of autumn and the chickpea and tomato soup with cinnamon

7 am. window shade up. grey outside.

twigs, leaves and grass frosted over. frostily.

dull colour of sky above. and cloudlets of vapour from mouth. clank of keys and put a stocking cap on a head. quick march and scrunching underfoot. briskly morning.

so the perfect filling and warm soup for a day like today is the chickpea and tomato soup with cinnamon. soup again, I know. however, autumn is the great season to cook soups. so is winter, but there we cook another kind of soups.

well, now I leave you with this excellence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

the quickest, the easiest version of a pumpkin cream soup – No. 1

humid autumn. dirty, dismal and sad leaves are lying on a wet ground. it’s raining. probably dull sky above naked trees in my garden has taken umbrage at the earth. or at me. well. it’s possible. I am chesty so I caught a cold again.

5th coffee to keep my mind awake and the quickest, the easiest version of a pumpkin cream soup.

there are plenty of recipes. and every each and one of them is way-out. but if you have just some pumpkin and ginger you will be able to do it. admittedly, I had all ingredients to do the pumpkin soup, full of all these ingredients I missed this time. however, that soup is delicious and I can strongly recommend you this one.

 

 

a perfect thing for a sad day – fresh and sweet celery salad

green tea, a warm blanket, and my laptop. it might have been the book I read. but… (there is some ‘but’, as always).

but now I have to write sth, so my book has to wait.

I can’t focus on my work. my thoughts are cruising in the room. they have no place to go and after a moment I can’t breathe.

now I feel that these thoughts are aggressive, tenacious, and attack me.

have to breathe deeply. have to keep my mind occupied…

‘I’ll do a perfect salad for bad thoughts’, it went through my mind and I put the plan in motion.

 

 

one of perfect presents – healthy oatcakes

“Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!”

~Amanda Bradley

of course, that is the most important in celebrating. but what about celebrating all these things during a party when you are a guest?

 

when you think about your relative’s or friend’s name day – immediately thoughts about a present appears in mind. and then one another one comes: what should I give him/her?

there are some interesting solutions this dilemma. books (that I prefer if I know a birthday person), CDs… and more, that you can buy.

but you don’t have to buy – what with sth you can do by yourself? I am not so talented doing DIY, but I thought about baking. unfortunately, ‘casual cake’ doesn’t look attractive as a present. for this reason, I decided to do special cookies. healthy, not very sweet, perfect if you watch your waistline. and perfect as a companionship for tea or coffee.

if you want to relieve your ‘cookie present’ – just souse them into melted chocolate. if you wish, sprinkle with chopped  peanuts or desiccated coconut mixed with cocoa powder until chocolate solidifies.

 

“creating the close kindship between bloggers and readers”

“These people aren’t your friends, they’re paid to kiss your feet.”
- Radiohead

hm, these lyrics bring sth to my mind…

I am lying on my bed with a laptop on my knees and browsing food blogs.

and I noticed the interesting phenomenon of creating  the mocked close kinship that bloggers build between themselves and readers. they approach to them directly, writing in the manner as though they were his or her (author of a blog) close friends. it may be irritated. but ‘the best’ thing is, on those blogs there are not-so-good-quality photos and some sort of ‘sheet of a diary’ with description of his/her spouse’s desires or child’s progression. and plenty of locutions suggesting that the blogger shares with readers (casual or not) his/her private life. and there are no comments there at all.

I’m not sure what should I think about that phenomenon. it’s noticeable among Polish blogs. fortunately, I found some amazing and admirably written blogs to follow. however, there are just only two or three Polish blogs…

have you noticed this phenomenon in a blogosphere? what do you think about that? is there sth wrong in that?

I am curious about your opinion, so… don’t be shy to leave a comment ;)

and for you – some photos of this year’s autumn..

for (my) consolation – penne with chicken and courgette

“I ate breakfast in the kitchen by candle-light, and then drove the five miles to the station through the most glorious October colouring. The sun came up on the way, and the swamp maples and dogwood glowed crimson and orange and the stone walls and cornfields sparkled with hoar frost; the air was keen and clear and full of promise. I knew something was going to happen. ”
― Jean Webster, Daddy Long Legs

 

I dig this surety that sth is going to happen. when I am waiting for sth all day.
by this time I am bouncing off walls of my empty flat. and I can’t bear it.

I struggle with a serious disease. sometimes I even think I wrestle with it. and that swine makes me sick and exhausted.

I try to fight but the disease is stronger than me. even stronger than my heart’s desire to be healthy.

it seems to be reliant on my activity. well, on the one hand, it is. but it depends how do you understand the word “activity”. but the truth is, it’s some kind of addiction, so, yes, it depends on me. in reality you feel like be in a cage of your mind, psyche.

 

I haven’t written about my reason of writing this blog yet. here you are my confession (it sounded too moving, sorry for that). I hope you will my spiritus movens to overcome this disease at last (after five years).

for consolation – penne with chicken and courgette recipe. very quick, easy, and extremely delicious!

 

 

addicted to baking – plum muffins

baking.
even if you enjoy cooking, when you start baking, you can’t stop.
even if you don’t get pleasure out of eating what you’ve done…
even if you are on a diet…
even if you have no experience of decorating your baked goods…
even if your home-made cakes don’t look mouth-watering (but they are tasty)…
as I said, your oven will be your best friend and you will be addicted to the racy fragrance of an yeasty cake in your kitchen. and, of course, you will discover how fun and easy it is.

and even if not very easy – well, it certainly is very fun!