My Mum's Cheese Bites

In this post, I mentioned my Mum's home-baked cheese crackers (on the Thursday in that post). Some of you were asking for the recipe, and here it is.

Maybe "crackers" is not the right term for them. One of the characteristics of a cracker is that it cracks when you bite or break off a piece. These don't; they are softer than crackers. So maybe we should call them cheese cookies (sounds odd), cheese straws (not really) or cheese bites (suits them best, I believe).

Anyway, here is what you need:

For the dough:

120 g grated cheese (a good, well-aged cheese such as a Conté works best - remember, the saltier and spicier the cheese, the less spice you'll need for the dough)

240 g regular white flour (not self-raising)
120 g cold butter, diced
1 egg
60 g sour cream
1/2 tea spoon salt
1/2 tea spoon sweet pepper powder
some pepper (preferably freshly ground)

For the topping:
 
1 egg yolk
1 table spoon milk
seeds (sesame, poppy, caraway, whatever you like and have at hand)

Make a dough and let it rest in the fridge for at least an hour. Take it out about 1/2 hour before you proceed; if the dough is too cold, it will be brittle and hard to work with.

Heat the oven to 180C.

Roll out the dough, not too thin. Now you can either cut finger-length strips and twist them once or twice (depending on their length), or cut out shapes like hearts etc. with cookie cutters.

These were the "twisted" ones we had the other day.

But they work just as well for Christmas or a New Year's Eve celebration.

Cookie cutters come in all shapes and sizes.

They are nice all year round!

Mix the egg yolk with the milk and spread it on top of the strips or cut-out shapes. Sprinkle liberally with the seeds.

 

Bake in the oven for about 12 - 15 minutes. Don't let them get too dark; keep checking. Let cool on a rack before trying one for quality control :-) and of course before packing them in a tin or other container. They won't keep well all that long, not like some sorts of Christmas cookies you can still eat weeks or even months later. Therefore, you better eat them soon - they taste best with a glass of wine or cocktails, and with friends :-D

Berlin Week

Although I only spent the first three days in Berlin, the week was dominated by this work-related trip.

On Monday (27 May) morning, I boarded the first of three trains that took me from Ludwigsburg to Berlin, a journey of about 620 km one way. Much to my surprise and delight, all three trains were almost punctual - I caught all my connections, the seats I had booked were available, and I arrived at Berlin Alexanderplatz with enough time to spare before the 4:30 pm meeting at the hotel where I was staying.

The hotel wasn't really at Alexanderplatz, in spite of its name - it was almost 1 km away, but it was an easy walk with my little red trolley suitcase. After checking in and moving into my room, I went downstairs to see who was there already and grab a coffee.

My room was modern, comfortable and surprisingly quiet.

This explains the quietness of my room - my windows faced a church (St. Bartholomew's).

On the way to my room

Staircase

The meeting (the annual general assmbly of the association of Data Protection Officers [DPOs], of which I am a member) took place as planned, with no big surprises. 

We had a few minutes to ourselves afterwards before the informal Get Together started. Maybe some of you think that DPOs are not among the most exciting folks to party with, but believe me - there are some colourful and inspiring characters among us, and one never lacks of topics for conversation (where data protection does not feature as highly as you'd expect).

Good food and drink were provided, and I had a fun evening before retreating to my room relatively early, tired after the long journey.

The conference began in earnest on Tuesday (28 May) with sessions from 9:00 to 5:00. Before, in between and after, we were very well cared for in terms of food and drink, and there was a good choice of talks and presentations to attend.

The evening was dedicated to a gala dinner with an award ceremony. Not too posh to feel stiff, and again, with very nice food, drink and conversation.

A longer than usual coffee break mid-afternoon allowed me to pop across the road to Volkspark Friedrichshain, a beautiful park with plenty of fountains and sculptures to discover. I would have liked to explore more of it but of course time was limited - still, it was good to have the chance to stretch my legs and air my head.

The church as seen from the street.

Märchenbrunnen ("fairytales fountain") in Friedrichshain park

I loved the stone basins each with two pups looking over the rim!

This elephant was my favourite sculpture. There were loads more, but schildren were playing there, and so I didn't take more pictures. 

Wednesday (29 May) was the second and last day of the conference, again with a series of (more or less) interesting talks and good meals. Because of my long journey home, I didn't stay until the very end, knowing that I wasn't going to miss anything terribly important, but left early in the afternoon. Again, my trains were on time, and by 9:45 pm I was home.

One of my fellow DPOs had her 1-year-old dog with her. He was extremely well behaved.

Good job that Thursday (30 May) was a public holiday (yes, another one) in my part of Germany! Much as I enjoy such trips and events, they are tiring, and I was glad to have a chance at sleeping in and then spend the day at my own leisurely pace.

The weather was better than expected, and I enjoyed a walk of a bit over 2 hours late afternoon. Also, I got a few things done at home which I had meant to do for a while but hardly get round to on a normal working day.

Cornflowers are supposed to be all blue, right? Not these ones!

On Friday (31 May), I finished work early and met my sister for a few errands in town. Back home, a late light lunch was followed by the usual cleaning round in my flat. I packed the little red suitcase for the third time that week and headed to the station. Quite miraculously, my trains were on time yet again! I arrived in Offenburg with a delay of only five minutes or so.

Our customary and always delicious meal of salad, bread and cheese, accompanied by a bottle of wine, started off O.K. and my weekend together.

Friday had already been a largely wet and somewhat chilly day, and Saturday (1 June) looked to be no different. It rained almost all day. 

Mid-morning, we were invited to a birthday brunch in a small town nearby. A few hours at home followed, then another invitation, this time within the village. One of O.K.'s fellow musicians in the village band and I have been preparing something for the upcoming fête marking the band's 100th anniversary, and the family of five invited us to stay for a meal as well.

Sunday (2 June) was a little better weather-wise. After it had been raining rather heavily all night and the entire morning, the sun came out, making for an uncomfortably hot and humid afternoon - it felt like I imagine the monsoon season in tropical latitudes (not that I've ever been anywhere near a tropical country). We wanted a walk, and while it was good to be out and about without constant rain, it was also exhausting due to the muggy heat.

We had been listening to the news several times during the day. There were severe floods in the south of Germany, and while our area was not immediately affected, the local rivers were running rather high, and several trains were cancelled because their routes were through flooded areas. 

It didn't look great for my trip back to Ludwigsburg on Monday morning, but it appeared even worse for the Sunday evening, and so I decided to remain at O.K.'s and go home on Monday morning, as planned.

Rainy Week

It rained every day last week. That didn't make it easy to fit in walks and other outdoors activities, but I still managed not to remain stuck at home or at the office all the time.

Monday (20 May) was a holiday in Germany (Pentecost Monday), and I was still at O.K.'s. It was exactly the kind of day I love, from beginning to end.

We packed our rucksacks with sandwiches and water bottles, donned our hiking boots and walked straight from the cottage at about 11:30 with a more or less clearly formed idea of where we wanted to go.

The first stop was Nächstenbach, just outside the neighbouring village of Zunsweier. A parking lot there has an information board with suggested walking routes as well as a set of sign posts. On that day, the annual Brunnenfest ("fountain's fête") was held on a nearby crossing: benches and tables were set up, and one could buy food and drinks from a row of counters. There was even an icecream van parked in one corner. A number of people were already there, but (surprisingly) nobody we knew. Anyway, we had only just started on our walk, and so we stopped briefly just for a small shandy each.

On we went into the woods, following the signs for what used to be a tiny settlement of 19 buildings that had sprung up in the 19th century near a mine where ore had been found, in the middle of the woods. The mine was given up long ago and the houses left to crumble, until nowadays nothing more than a few low walls and bumps in the ground remain. One of the entrances to the mine is still there, but closed.

entrance to the former mine

We stopped at a clearing with benches to eat our sandwiches before continuing on to the village of Diersburg.

My view from where we sat down to have our sandwiches

It's been a few years since we'd last visited the ruins of the castle there, and we had a good look round - quickly done, as it is rather small.

 View across Diersburg

(partly?) abandoned farm on the outskirts of Diersburg

On the way back to O.K.'s village, a little rain fell; not enough to make us wet through but enough to make us glad that we were close to home. By the time we reached the cottage (with 20 km under our feet), the rain had stopped, and we could sit outside with O.K.'s Mum for a sundowner. 

Later, O.K. roasted green asparagus for us and served it with spaghetti and different types of pesto - delicious!

I took my usual Monday-morning-trains on Tuesday (21 May) back home; they were on time so that I was able to start work as expected. After work, my sister and I went for a walk.

My office day on Wednesday (22 May) was uneventful until it was time to go home: Trains stopped in Zuffenhausen and didn't continue to Ludwigsburg. Fortunately, after we'd had torrential rainfall mid-afternoon, the sun came out; also, I was wearing comfortable shoes. And so, although I had not planned on walking home, that's what I ended up doing, taking in the cemetery along the way where I visited my Dad's and friend R's graves.

For Thursday (23 May) after work, my Mum, her friend and I had actually planned to meet at the "Wine After Work" event by the lake (maybe you remember it from last summer), but it was threatening to rain (on and off) and was windy, making it feel colder than it was. Instead, we met at Mum's friend's; she has a kind of self-built conservatory off her flat leading onto a beautiful garden with many flowers out this time of year. We shared a bottle of sparkling wine and my Mum's home-baked cheese crackers - delicious!

More rain followed nearly all day on Friday (24 May). After work, it was cleaning, shopping and washing - the usual. A little after 9:00 pm, O.K. arrived, and we had a meal of bruschetta with a salad of baby spinach leaves, yellow pepper and feta cheese.

Saturday (25 May) would have been my Opa's 110th birthday. My sister, O.K. and I met at my Mum's for pizza and wine in the evening. For breakfast, O.K. and I had spontaneously decided to go to "Bubbles", a favourite café of ours in the middle of town, where we were joined by my sister.

We spent the afternoon of Sunday (26 May) again with my sister, this time at her allotment. The garden really is very beautiful, and an oasis of wildlife, peace and quiet (provided the noisy neighbours aren't there). I brought Tabouleh which I had prepared the day before, and grilled slices of Zucchini which I had made before breakfast that morning. My sister provided most of the drinks as well as plates etc., and of course the entire "venue".

When the first rain drops started to fall, O.K. and I went home. We had a small dinner (not much appetite left after what we'd been eating during the afternoon), and a little after 8:00 pm, he drove home. The rain had stopped by then, and there was still well over an hour of daylight left, which made me decide for an hour's walk around Osterholz, the small wooded area between Ludwigsburg and Asperg.

I was glad to have gotten so much walking time in - the following week, a working trip to Berlin would mean spending my days mostly sitting on trains and in conference rooms.

Back to Work

Returning to work after a week or two (like in this case) usually has me start full of energy - only to feel quite exhausted by the end of the week. While I had two good after-work walks, a family BBQ on Saturday and a walk around the village with O.K. on Sunday, thunderstorms with extremely heavy rainfall caused total chaos for public transport and made for a very long journey on Friday evening.

Monday (13 May) was a mix of rain, sun, and rain again. Because there had been a Bank Holiday the previous week on Thursday, and many people took the Friday off as well, most of my customers and colleagues had not been as busy as usual. That meant there were less emails I had to deal with on my first day back than usual, and I managed to finish work at 5:00 pm.

I put out a few items from my cellar to be collected by the bin men and then went to walk for nearly two hours on the fields. 

A wonderful sunny day, pleasantly warm at 25C/77F, followed on Tuesday (14 May). After a good day working from home, I set off for my standard walk to Benningen. I have various options to get there, and meant to use one of the variations only to find that this particular path was blocked for construction work. It meant I had to go on a roundabout way, adding about 20 minutes to the normal duration of my Benningen walk. But it also meant I found a path I have never walked before, which made it all worthwile and interesting.

Wednesday (15 May) was my usual Office Day. It was mild but windy and rainy after a sunny morning. At 6:00 pm, my sister and I met at our Mum's; she made a delicious cheese quiche for the three of us.

No walk was possible on Thursday (16 May), because after work I met with my volunteer group. We managed to hold our meeting outdoors at the former industrial site (you've seen it a few times on my blog) next to the station, which had opened for the season that same afternoon. Drinks at the outdoor bar have become rather expensive, but the food truck (which will only be there occasionally) served big portions of freshly cooked food at a good price, such as a large bowl of rosemary spuds with cream cheese and chives for 5 €.

Not long after we had all gone home, a thunderstorm began, and it kept raining all night.

On Friday (17 May), I shifted my usual train journey to Offenburg forward by an hour or so, as I was sure there were going to be delays due to more passengers than normally (Pentecost Monday was a holiday, and schools were to close for the next two weeks). I was right in that there WERE delays, but not quite the way I had anticipated!

Already 10 minutes after the train left Ludwigsburg, we stopped somewhere out on the fields between Ludwigsburg and Bietigheim because of a problem with a signal box. We got going again after about 30 minutes - that in itself would not have caused too much trouble for me. But once I arrived in Karlsruhe, still considering myself lucky because I managed to catch my connection (only because that train was delayed as well), the chaos started: We were told the train couldn't leave yet and we had to wait in Karlsruhe for 15 minutes... then for 20... then for 30... 

No useful information was forthcoming via the loudspeakers or from staff, and the Navigator app came up with inconclusive and inconsistent information as well. Eventually, I made my way to a regional train that was supposed to get me to Offenburg, only to learn that it was ending in Rastatt (again, no reason was given). Right, Rastatt was closer to my destination than Karlsruhe, so I boarded that train - along with about 8 million other people (that's what it felt like).

We slowly trundled to Rastatt, where we all had to get off the train. By this time, the station building was closed, and we were all out in the rain, huddling under what little shelter there was. Information? Zero!

At some stage, a bus turned up, offering a ride to Baden-Baden - another step nearer my destination. Again, everyone squeezed in (we were all wet by then, so you can imagine the "steamy" atmosphere in the overcrowded bus), and we finally arrived in Baden-Baden. It was getting later and later, but at least the station building was open so that we could get out of the rain. But shops? Cafés? Toilets? Taxis? Closed, or not available.

At around 10:00 pm, a man from the city's fire department and a lady from who knows what city department turned up with a megaphone. They informed us that they were now going to organise buses for the stranded passengers as well as handing out free water bottles. I still had water in my own bottle - during the past 5 hours, I had hardly dared to drink anything since I had no reliable access to a toilet. But knowing that all this organising would take at least another hour, I finally arranged for O.K. to pick me up. It took him about half an hour to get there, and we took along three other stranded passengers who needed to get to Offenburg.

By 11:00 pm, O.K. and I were finally at his cottage and settled down for a very late supper. Phew!

(I later learned that it had taken until midnight for the first buses to be ready in Baden-Baden. It was all due to a railway control center there having been flooded after the heavy rain.)

Saturday (May 18) was a much more relaxed day. A sunny morning was followed by a shower, then the sun came out for another bit before it started to rain again.

We did some jobs in and around the cottage and then I needed a rest; a headache had begun to form, and it didn't go away, not even after our evening meal of spaghetti with different types of pesto. By 10:30, I was ready for bed, hoping to sleep off the headache (which was not really successful).

There was no rain on Sunday (May 19), but it was windy and looked too unsettled for us to embark on a longer walk. Instead, we remained in the vicinity of the village and later met with the family on O.K.'s Mum's patio for coffee and delicious rhubarb cake (with probably the last rhubarb of this season from the allotment) and then a BBQ, which was very nice in spite of my headache never really going away and me being rather tired. 

Spot the lizard! It was a good day for them.

The parent stork didn't do me the favour to look up, he or she was too busy looking after the little ones - I hope they have survived the heavy rains; it is not unusual for baby birds to drown in their nests or die of cold when it rains all the time and they haven't got a chance to dry.
This nest is one of at least three in the village.

I blame the exhausting journey on Friday - instead of two, it took almost six hours, and I was constantly on alert as to what was going to happen next, and what alternatives I had.

[Two of the dates in this post were wrong - now corrected.]