A dress made of chocolate

Photo: News.dk

Photo: News.dk

How would you feel like wearing a dress that's made ​​of chocolate?

One of the highlights in the Copenhagen Fashion Week is the dress made of chocolate. The dress is designed by Jesper Høvringin and made by chocolatier Bernadette Magleena Rylkon. It is brushed with 5 kg of organic chocolate, and it took  not less than 100 hours to make it.

One of the challenges in the Fashion Week is to prevent the dress from smelting - it's been cooled down by heavy aircondition. Chocolatier Bernadette Rylkon reveals that she's going to taste the dress in the end of the Copenhagen Fashion Week!

The dress is sponsored by Magnum Ice Cream, to celebrate the fact that Magnum is now using 100% organic chocolate in all production.

Here's a video link to the manufacturing process of the chocolate dress.

 ... Such a sweet dress, ain't it?!  :-)

Chickpeas with chili & zucchini

I felt like having something spicy and light for supper, so I prepared precooked chick peas with the vegetables I had at home.

Ingredients:

1 chopped clove of garlic

1 red onion, chopped

1 small zucchini in small cubes

1 red cut into cubes

about 3 cm of fresh red chili, thinly sliced

olive / canola oil for frying

(I added also the rest of a bit dry Romano lettuce, finely sliced)

0.5 tsp ground cumin

0.5 teaspoon of ground coriander

0.5 teaspoon of turmeric

some freshly ground pepper

add salt & fresh herbs to taste

Recipe:

• Fry onion, garlic and the thinly sliced chili in oil
• Add zucchini and red pepper pepper, fry and stir a few minutes.
• Add cumin, coriander, turmeric, pepper and salt.
• Add precooked chick peas, and fry for a few minutes.
• Finally, add Romano salad, stir about one minute.
• Garnish with fresh herbs.

Bon appetit!

Raindrops keep falling ...

There's been plenty of raindrops falling on our heads this summer ...

... soft, mild and tiny little misty kind of raindrops

... heavy and big ones, that leave marks in the sand 

... some lonely raindrops, that appear from nowhere on a sunny day

 - and disappear as soon as they appeared

... raindrops that we would anticipate - those that fell first after a lightning and thunder 

... raindrops that caught the rays of sunshine and shone like small diamonds

... raindrops that drummed on our windows and lulled us to sleep

... and raindrops that woke us up.

And we learned that

"The best thing one can do
when it's raining is to
let it rain".

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Just the way you are

My dear hubby has cooked a delicious, juicy blackcurrant jam, and he got fresh bread rolls from the baker for breakfast. It's now 17 years since we said "I do" to each other. As we stood at the altar, one of our friends played Billy Joels "Just The Way You Are" with her saxofone - from that day on, this song has had a special meaning for us.

Just the way you are

"Don't go changing, to try and please me,
You never let me down before,
Don't imagine, you're too familiar,
And I don't see you anymore.

I could not leave you, in times of trouble,

We never would have come this far,
I took the good times, I'll take the bad times,
I'll take you just the way you are.

Don't go trying, some new fashion,
Don't change the colour of your hair,
You always have my, unspoken passion,
Although I might not seem to care.

I don't want clever, conversation,
I never want to work that hard,
I just want someone, that I can talk to,
I want you just the way you are.

I need to know that you will always be
The same old someone that I knew,
What will it take till you believe in me,
The way that I believe in you?

I said I love you, and that's forever,
And this I promise from the heart,
I couldn't love you, any better,
I love you just the way you are.

I don't want clever, conversation,
I never want to work that hard,
I just want someone, that I can talk to,
I want you just the way you are."

Billy Joel

I've listened to this song several times today - thinking about the years we've had together and the things we've gone through, side by side. My heart is filled with gratitude and confidence  - We can love one another, just the way we are - finding acceptance, forgiveness and hope in His love, because He first loved us.

Copenhagen's Flea Market at Halmtorvet

To brighten up a cloudy day in July we decided to visit Copenhagen's Flea Market at Halmtorvet.  Halmtorvet (engl. straw-market) was a place to buy and sell hay and straw in 1800s.  At that time Halmtorvet was located just outside the city walls, by the western gate of Copenhagen.

Halmtorvet & Øksnehallen (Picture:eco-net.dk)

Today,  Halmtorvet is located very close to the Town Hall Square and the Central Station in downtown. About 10 years ago, the city of Copenhagen restored many of the buildings in Copenhagen West, Øksnehallen among others. Øksnehallen (engl. taurus hall) was built in 1901 to house the cattle market. After being restored, Øksnehallen  has functioned as a place for cultural activities and diverse exhibitions.

One of the buildings by Øksnehallen

The Arts and Music School of Copenhagen is located in one of the brick buildings next to Øksnehallen.  Behind these old, green doors you'll find modern painting / drawing / music studios, where many children, teens and young adults are taking lessons in music, drawing, painting, photography etc.

Our youngest was very keen on to start playing drums summer 2011, so we signed him up to drum lessons at the Music School. He was on the waiting list for 8 months, before he was able to get in. 

8 months is a long time to wait, when you're 10 years old! But that's also a long time to save up . . . so by the time he was able to start attending the drum lessons, he had saved quite a bit up - and since he really likes to keep on playing the drums, we helped him with the rest, so he could get a beginners drum set to practice at home. 

On Saturdays in the summertime you'll find Copenhagen's Flea Market at Halmtorvet. The whole square is filled with different stands, all of them selling various types of old items and retro-type collectibles.  I was greatly taken by the cool signs, that were spread around one of the stands - the selection was abundant, there were signs from Denmark and abroad! For some years ago "the new black" was to spice up rooms and apartments with different signs. I've actually visited an apartment, where the first thing I saw in the hallway was a huge motorway junction sign!

The bright red Swedish Dalahäst-horses reminded me of Tommi's and Annika's play room in the Pippi Longstocking- movie!

This  tray with it's nostalgic motive and colors caught my eye.

The colorful coffee tins, the yellow coffee pot and the orange bread cutting board

took us directly to a 70's kitchen!

The atmosphere of the "70's kitchen"kept hanging around me, and I fell for this ABBA-style retro shirt.  I found the blue jacket also from the Flea Market!

Our "expedition" ended in one of the cafes by Halmtorvet,  where we had a delicious lunch. We were served a plate consisting of 4 different courses, that you usually eat together with dark rye bread:

• Fried flounder within the remoulade sauce (remoulade is made ​​mayonnaise, cucumbers, pickles, carrots and capers
• Smoked salmon with creamy avocado-dressing
• Chicken and asparagus salad
• A thin grilled steak

The lunch plate kept us well-fed the whole day

- We got yoghurt and cold, fresh watermelon for dinner ;-)

P. S. Getting back to work after the summer holidays has gone smoothly - there's been good time to the writing tasks, and it's been a pleasure to meet the colleagues! During the lunch break, we've often eaten outside, in the small garden - so - the sommer is not over yet!

Foccacia bread

This foccasia bread tastes fantastic, and it is very easy to make. If you use some whole grain flour, seeds and grains - it is very healthy as well! You can also add some feta, olives and sun-dried tomatoes on the top of the bread before baking it.

In this recipe I've used only 10 grams of yeast, because I let the dough rise in the refrigerator overnight (10-12 hours), and afterwards in the baking tray about 1 ½ to 2 hours. If you do not have the time, you can increase the amount of yeast to 50 grams: This reduces the rise-time to about 30 minutes, and to 20 minutes in the baking tray.

Ingredients:

· 5 dl water

· 10 gr fresh yeast

· 1 tablespoon salt

· 1 tablespoon olive oil

· 1 dl oatmeal

· 1-1 ½ dl seeds and grains (I used a blend of wheat and ry grain, sesame- , sunflower- and flaxseeds)

· 5 dl fine wheat flour

· 3-4 dl whole grain flour

1 cup coarse salt

fresh or dried herbs (I used a pinch of dried rosemary)

You can also mix the oil, herbs and salt - those who love garlic can chop 2 cloves of garlic to the mix. Heat the oil and herbs a half an hour, in about 50 degrees; to infuse the aromas of herbs and garlic to the oil.

Recipe:

• Dissolve the yeast in lukewarm water.

• Add salt, oatmeal, seed mix, oil and flour, and mix them well. The dough should be fairly spongy and mushy - not as firm as the normal bread dough. I used a firm, small wooden spoon to mix the dough.

• Cover the dough bowl with a lid or foil, and place it in the fridge to rise overnight (10-12 h).

• In the morning, line a baking tray with a parchment paper, cover the tray with a kitchen towel and let the bread rise about 1 ½ - 2 hours.

• Use your fingers to dimple the dough, and brush the olive oil and sprinkle with course salt, rosemary or other herbs. If you wish, you may want to add some feta cheese, olives and sun-dried tomatoes.

• Bake in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, in a fan assisted oven about 200 degrees, in a conventional oven at 250 degrees - or until the bread is golden brown.

Foccasia is a tasty side dish to a meal, and it makes an excellent sandwich. I recommend the following sandwich-fillings:
- Pesto, hummus, grilled sweet peppers, a slice of mozzarella, lettuce and tomato slices
- Pesto, Parma ham, a slice of mozzarella, lettuce and tomato (greatly inspired by my friend Gry, who served us the most tasty sandwiches last week!)

I prepared a picnic lunch sandwiches with these fillings last weekend, when we met our special friends in Tivoli: These sandwiches were delicious to the last crumb, and they gave us & the children energy to keep going the whole afternoon ;-)

Blueberries, strawberries & pies

The last day of summer holidays ...


... I baked a feta-spinach-pie in the morning and mixed a pizza dough as well - Our dear friends from Great Britain came over with their children in the afternoon! When they were living here in Denmark, we spent a lot of time together, but since they moved to England, we've cherished the moments when they're visiting Denmark, often in July- August.

... So, today we enjoyed the fruits of our "pizza-project" - the children got to decide the filling of their pizzas :-)  My friend made a hot and delicious oil to garnish our pizzas with - this oil just lifted the homemade tomato-mozzarella-pesto-pizzas to a top culinary experience! She just took a few gloves of garlic & a half red chili pepper and chopped them, stirred them together with a pinch of salt into one dl of olive oil - amazing!

... It was wonderful to talk & share - the children had also good time together - playing drums and games on X-box etc. Our boys got to talk English, and they managed it quite well ;-)
It wasn't hard to say goodbye, since we have the pleasure of meeting our friends again before they travel back home!

... Later my hubby suggested at trip to a nearby farm, "Jordbærgård", where you can buy the fruits and vegetables of the season. We got some rhubarb, blueberries, strawberries and black currants! He'll be making  some jam, and I think I'll bake a blueberry pie tomorrow.
There's just something about baking - I find it relaxing, so crumbling a dough of butter and crushed almonds after the first day at work is something I look forward to!

... I baked also a small cherry & nectarine pies to this afternoon, inspired by Veikeä Verso and La Tartine Gourmande. I used almond- and rice flour together with powdered milk, butter and sugar to the dough (the recipe will follow next week) - the pie tasted of summer!

... Now I'm feeling a little blue ... The alarm will go off early in the morning, and we're about to be back in the routines of everyday life. It's been wonderful to enjoy the easygoing and slow pace the last three weeks, with slowly mornings and late breakfast etc.!

... Well, our children have still two weeks to go before the school starts again, so some of us are still in the holidaymood ;-)