Poppy seed strudel w/whole spelt

There is no Christmas without a poppy seed strudel in my home.

Panettone w/whole spelt

All I want for Christmas is...a panettone.

Tomek's mom gingerbread w/whole spelt

There has to be gingerbread in every Polish home for the Holidays, prepared days ahead. This is an old family recipe...to be completed just before Christmas.

Stollen w/whole spelt (German Christmas bread)

I'd been buying Stollen for years and eating a lot of it. Than I thought, why don't I make it myself ... and eat a lot of it?

Whole spelt chocolate kipferls (Austrian croissants)

Austrian tradition, Italian recipe, my home...

Christmas fruit cake with whole spelt and brandy

My yearly Holiday special...

Candied orange peel (zest)

...and finally, I made my own.

Cantucci w/whole spelt

Give me a cantuccio and I'm in love.

Homemade vanilla extract

Well, I'm not in the USA anymore where vanilla extra is...Vanilla Extract. Here - not available (without overpaying). Since then, I've used an artificial substitution only once and then I've decided to make my own essence.

Soft ginger cookies w/whole spelt

Ina called them "ultimate". She knew what she was talking about...

Lady's kisses w/whole spelt

Baci di dama...who can think of a better name..?

Swirl biscotti w/whole spelt

These put a smile on Hania's little face...and went very well with my cappuccino.

Red and white cabbage soup with beans

Tuscan Ribollita with local cabbage, lots of it.

Fig-almond tart w/whole spelt

Happy Thanksgiving!

Potatoes stuffed with lentils

I made this for my parents when they came for a visit. But since they are still suspicious about my cooking...or maybe they were just not hungry, I was happy to eat the leftovers.

Roasted beet salad with rucola

I say: "Eat more beets!"

Tomato soup with barley

...and all I had was those two sleeping tomato cans. Miracles do happen!

Whole spelt feta quiche with vegetables + 2 free tricks

"Quiche svuotafrigo" or empty-your-fridge quiche. Exactly what I needed.

Poppy seed bars

It's not Christmas yet and I'm baking with poppy seeds already! Like.

Whole spelt Russian pierogi

Hania wanted pierogi. Can I deny anything this little, sweet 12-year old creature. Yes, I can. But not often.

Vanilla panna cotta with almond milk

The mystery of panna cotta (cooked cream) is solved! Even with a twist...

Giant white beans with roasted root vegetables and thyme

Sit back, relax and enjoy your meal.

Apricot-rye bars

Thank You, Angie!

Lentil burgers

I liked biting into this burger.

Carrot-almond cake

I felt an instant attraction. And I was not wrong...this time. I saw the making of this carrot cake on RaiUno yesterday. Italians like to eat it around November 1st.

Happy Halloween!

Try this recipe: Beans of the Dead and feed it to the ghost.

Quick spelt-rosemary rolls

They all thought I went to the store and got them.

Pumpkin drops

Full of pumpkin but you wouldn't know it.

Pumpkin and chickpeas with ginger

A beautiful combination.

Almond pulp tart (or cheesecake) w/whole spelt

I bet you'd get fooled.

That almond pulp - new ingredient in my kitchen

Next thing I have to find out is how to use coffee grounds in a coffee cake :).

Cherry tomato focaccia w/whole spelt

My little brain was saying: no, no, no! But I did it, I put whole grain in my focaccia.

Cream of broccoli soup

Just have to eat broccoli sometimes.

Grilled eggplant parmigiana

Why have I waited so long to do this?

Navy bean soup

What are those old beans doing in my pantry?

Armenian bread

The table was a mess during lunch but we cleaned it all up fast.

Pear-chocolate chip cake w/whole spelt

Pears and chocolate are happy together. Cake, tea and me are happy too.

Sicilian chickpea "panelle"

From the streets of Sicily to my home at the Baltic Sea.

Broccoli-potato croquettes with feta cheese

Broccoli never tasted better!

Sweet tiles (thin nut cookies)

Something sweet and light to go with my coffee.

Celery risotto

And the last bunch of vegetables in my refrigerator today goes to: Risotto!

Potato-mushroom pot pie

Julian wanted to go out on Sunday for lunch. How many times do I need to tell him that I don't like going out...unless on top of Rome for a 17 Euro Martini.

Pear-almond cake w/whole rye

Five pears were sitting on the table. Have been sitting there for the last five days. My first thoughts this morning went to them. Lucky pears!

Chickpea bread

Marzio talked about this bread. Marzio was our Italian neighbor. His caravan was just across from our tents, in Croatia. He knew about cooking, was very energetic and friendly. Romans and Greeks knew about chickpea bread 2000 years ago. And won some wars thanks to it, the legend has it. Centuries later, this traditional Italian farinata di cieci was called "the gold of Pisa".

Cream of pumpkin soup

It's OK. I'm not a big fan of pumpkins. I'm not a big fan of soups. But I'm a big fan of easy, fast, light and seasonal meals with an Italian touch and doing something different on Wednesday afternoon.

Plum-raspberry tart w/whole spelt

I bought a lot of plums again today. But the only person that is serious about eating them is me. Julian is afraid of plums because they are small and he can't really see a plum-gone-bad. Hania says she likes them but I'm not convinced. So I put the plums in a cake and everybody is happy.

Any-time crepes w/whole spelt

Before, we just had crepes Sunday morning. Lately things have changed. I make crepes anytime I feel like. Anytime I'm out of ideas what to make, eat, want or be. Like today.