Nosing-in

To borrow a phrase from my friend Kay who, with her husband, will have days when the two of them don’t even leave the house but rather putter around, read, eat, nap and just get away from it all. Today’s that day for me. No, I did NOT join in on the madness of Black Friday, which is a lesson in masochism.
Instead, I got out our Christmas decorations and went to work. A bit of German and a bit of American and a whole lot of whimsy and childlike fun. I put up two advent calendars on our bulletin board, one for me and one for Christian, as well as a Playmobil “Forest” advent calendar for both of us to play with. I also created an advent wreath, with pinecones and nuts I’d found on walks in Bavaria. And of course I put out the nutcracker, the Russian doll and the little smoker, a wooden man carrying a basket of apples with a pipe in his mouth. You put incense in the cavity of the body and the smoke comes out his pipe. Love it!
Today will be the start of my holiday baking. This year, on top of gifts, I’m making a bunch of seasonal goodies to give out to friends and family. Not unusual at all, right? Well, for NORMAL people, no. I’m not normal nor have I ever had any drive to do this in the past. But I’m on a holiday rampage, I tell ya. It’s absurd, almost, but I’m milking it for all it’s worth.
Christian has made it home to Germany safely, and I’m so looking forward to our first Skype conversation later today. He’s already indulged in his absolute favorite, Leberkäse, for lunch, and he napped in his old bed, with the snow falling outside his window. He’s now having Kaffee und Kuchen with his family…I’m so, so sad not to be there, but Hannah’s keeping me company. Man, is she ever! She’s getting too big to really punch me hard, but she’s swaying and prodding, keeping me entertained.
It’s FINALLY cold here in El Paso. That means no early walks. It’s 31 right now and the high will be 54. But so deceptive, with the sun shining so brightly and not a cloud in the sky. I’ll Skype with Christian, then attempt a brisk walk over to the Rio Grande, come home for a PB&J lunch, most likely nap, and finish watching “The Devil Wears Prada,” which I inexplicably have never seen before…
Anyone else nosing in today?

Comforts of home

It seems all Bavarian households have an orchid at their window...we do too, now.

I had never felt so AT HOME than I did when I went to go stay with Christian at his home in Rohr, Niederbayern. I was fortunate to have stayed with him and his family about 4 times, each time no less than two weeks, and twice for a month at a time. Despite the language barrier, I felt utterly at ease and at peace just sitting in the living room with his mom, having Kaffee und Kuchen in the back yard under the huge apple tree, and sleeping in Christian’s bed, his room having a view of the vast, rolling hops and rapeseed fields.
Christian’s and my niece Nina (the daughter of Frank, Christian’s brother) and her brother Dominik would come over almost daily for K and K and to play, and I guess that’s when (hindsight is 50/50) I knew I had it in me to actually have maternal and nesting instincts, as I loved so much to watch over them when their parents were occupied, and I was mesmerized by their rapid learning and growth. Their Oma’s home, Christian’s home, was a fortress of serenity, comfort, good food, good company, and a wonderful routine that never became mundane.

I grew up in quite the opposite atmosphere, never routine. I loved my childhood and my home, but I do admit I always wished I had more structure and routine growing up, and I got it rather late in life via my husband. I could show him spontaneity, and he could show me structure, discipline and a sense of routine that I find so comforting…to be safe in knowing that things will pretty much be in their place and as they always have been. I need a little (or a lot) of that.
We live in a 580 square foot apartment, and with the addition of one in January, space will be even more of a commodity. However, we’ve managed to begin to create a wonderful little home, filled with traditions from both sides of the Atlantic. Whereas Christian collects American sports team baseball caps, Homie figurines and books… I collect reminders of “home” in Rohr, with Lebkuchen tin boxes, incense smoker figurines, orchids for the window, family photos, garden gnomes and German language-learning books and tools. It’s a complete hodge-podge of American and German influences, and I just adore my home. I adore coming home and seeing what we’ve created with what we’ve got.
Sometime within the next few years we will make the permanent move to Bavaria but in the meantime, this is home sweet home.

What I miss about Germany…

I was born here in El Paso, spent most of my childhood here, and I’ve lived in the following cities: Dallas, Texas; Los Angeles, Calif.; San Diego, Calif.; Albuquerque, N.M.; Cloudcroft, N.M.; and Wellfleet, Mass. And although I can’t say I officially lived in Rohr, Niederbayern, Deutschland, I did spend months at a time there, staying with my husband and his family, last year.
Out of all of those places, none has stricken me so much as Rohr, with a population of about 5,000, a small community that has one grocery store, two bakeries, two butchers, one community pool, and miles upon miles of rolling hills of corn and rapeseed fields. It’s about one hour northeast of Munich, and a world away from crime, pollution, gangs or stress. And it IS where I call home.
Although we can’t live there again, yet, I can still look forward to the day when we can, along with our new addition, Hannah, who I want to grow up with both American and German customs, culture and language. And even if we don’t live in Rohr (most likely Abensberg, Regensburg or Munich), it will always be the place I idealize for how it changed me so profoundly and was so instrumental in turning me into who I am today. And I want Hannah to have that, always.

I order a lot of food and German products from Germandeli.com, a business that is actually based here in Texas, but carries all the products I used and adored while staying in Bavaria. Fa bath gels and lotions, Almdudler drinks, Knorr and Maggi fixes and spice mixes, breads made in Germany, REAL cheese (unfortunately all pasteurized, but still more real than what’s available here), semmelknodel mix, German DVDs and books, German tableware, etc. All the things I just adored when living in Rohr, right at my keyboard! And the site has a great link called “What I Miss About Germany,” where all German ex-pats living here in the U.S. can reminisce about their lives in Germany.
But there are some things I miss about Germany (from my perspective, being an American married to a German, and not having a good grasp of the language…yet). And they are:

1. The common sense of courtesy and decency shown to everyone, even strangers on the street.
2. The fact that it is a GIVEN that families will dine together every meal possible, without question.
3. The fog rolling over the hops fields early in the morning, with foxes, hares and deer in abundance.
4. The smell of the bakery from a mile away, each and every morning. AND walking home with a freshly-made loaf of rye bread or broetchen for the day.
5. How HOUSEPROUD all Germans are, with their lace valances on their windows, their orchids proudly blooming for all passers-by to see.
6. Kaffee und Kuchen promtly at 3 p.m.
7. German TV, with almost no commercials in sight.
8. German newspapers. Actually full of information. Actually taking a while to read and to digest the info. Actually not full of ads.
9. Biking to the next town to enjoy a beer or Schwip Schwap in a biergarten by a babbling brook.
10. Going to the thermal spas to soak in the mineral waters, and it being covered by insurance!
11. The Munich Airport. God, I could LIVE there. Neat, tidy, easy to navigate, the best hotel ever (The Kempinski), wonderful shops and cafes…
12. The clean streets, fresh air and courtesy, even in the Marienplatz in central Munich.
13. The on-time trains.
14. The obsession with bio-foods and organics, no matter what income level.
15. Homemade food being preferred to a restaurant, any time, any day.

What are the things YOU miss most about Germany??

What is health?

I’ve been thinking a lot about health recently, especially now that I am expecting. I mean, of course it’s obvious I’m responsible for two, but I never really grasped what true health was. I think I’m starting to get it.
In the past, to me, health was maintaining a certain weight, having glow-in-the-dark white teeth, perfectly aligned, glowing tan skin, shiny hair, abs like a washboard, biceps with bulges and the ability to run six miles a day. All surface values, all perpetuated in glossy women’s magazines and TV shows.
I have slowly but steadily come to the realization that health has MANY more variables that are NOT so patent.
For instance, when I first went to Germany, I was floored by the amount of food (and the calories) it seemed “everyone” ate. I thought to myself, “no way could I eat like that and not get obese! Sausages, potato salad, beer, cake every day at 3 p.m.?” But because I was staying with my husband and in-laws, I couldn’t just say no (which is considered rude in any country, but even more so in Germany). To negate the calories I ingested, I’d get up at 6 a.m. and walk 1.5 hours through the hops and corn fields of Rohr, Bavaria, doing the New York City “power walk” with my arms pumping and my gait almost a jog. Almost every day, I’d start walking up a steep hill, the “killer” hill, towards the end of my walk. And almost every day, a woman who had to have been in her 70s would bike right on past me, with nary a breath to be heard. Jesus. How did she do that???? She wasn’t a reed-thin muscle machine, but rather of a medium build, with sturdy legs and the most perfect milk and rose complexion I’d ever seen. No wrinkles to be seen. That was the first time I consciously said to myself, “Now that is a healthy, vibrant woman!” And the first time I actually felt jealous and a longing to just be “free” from worrying about calories, fat grams or how many miles I logged. I went home after my walk, had a big breakfast with a roll, yogurt, fruit and butter (lots of butter), Kotbüllar for lunch, Plum Cake for Kaffee und Kuchen, and slices of ham, salami and Emmentaler cheese with savory rye bread for Brotzeit. Never looked back.
For years I subsisted on non-fat frozen yogurt, apples, Crystal Light, air popped popcorn and the Stairmaster. And you know what? I did get down to an “ideal” weight. And you know what? I wasn’t happy. And you know what else? When I began to eat, truly eat and enjoy my food and my company and relax a bit, I did NOT blow up like a balloon. I have eaten more in about 1 year than I did for practically 5 years previous, and I’ve maybe gained 5 pounds. Five desperately needed pounds.
Of course, now that I’m pregnant, I’ve gained 10 more on top of that, but I have more energy at 4 months of pregnancy than I did on my “best” days of 800 calories and hour long runs.
I hope my child/children will grow up without that media pressure, and just go by instinct and how he/she feels, without being told how to feel! I may have learned quite late, but I’m so glad I have finally let go of some very persistent demons!

Last night, Christian made some great wurst und sauerkraut, served along with some bakery rolls we got at Albertson’s. We’re all packed up for Cloudcroft and leave tonight after work. Apparently it’s been raining like mad up there, and the trails may be muddy and sloppy, but I secretly enjoy that I have some running shoes up at the cabin just for that. You know, shoes that used to be white but now look like tents in camouflage?
I am most looking forward to sitting on the porch with a cup of coffee and a great book, listening to the wind in the trees, and hopefully some wild raspberries have started to pop up. Thank god there are still some secret patches only I know about.

Bun (or two) in the oven

Christian looks so proud!

Christian enjoys Kaffee und Kuchen at The Pastry Chef

Christian following a recipe to the nearest milligram

It’s in our closet, bubbling away

Even after a big breakfast, I wolfed this one down

The pastry display full of German pastries at The Pastry Chef, El Paso

No, no, no! I don’t mean I PERSONALLY have two buns in the oven. Well, I could, I guess, but I won’t know that for about a week or two.
What I mean is that Christian, my husband, has started the tedious, painstaking and loving process of baking artisan breads that we will attempt to sell at local farmers’ markets this summer.
His first loaves are sourdough, and he has let the starter ferment in our closet (the rest of the apartment is just too darn hot!) so you can imagine how our clothes will smell in a day or two, ha ha. All in all, the starter must ferment for two days, then the dough must be formed and it must rise for another two days. And THEN baking day. Jeesh!
And I thought Jiffy muffin mix took a long time.
But it will be SO worth it on Wednesday evening when his first loaf is finally baked and we can enjoy it with a bit of cheese (not ripe or soft for me, whahhhhhh), grapes, nuts and cold meats. I’m so looking forward to returning to the German tradition of Brotzeit for dinner, especially with bread made by my husband, with no preservatives or ingredients I can’t pronounce.
Speaking of German tradition, Kaffee und Kuchen is one I got to love while living with my husband in Bavaria. Every day at 3 p.m. on the dot, the entire family got together for coffee and cake and at least two hours of great conversation. Inside by the fireplace when it was cold, or out under the apple tree on nicer days. Not much of a chance here, but Sunday morning Christian and I did meet up with some friends for coffee (we’d just had breakfast about 2 hours before that) at the Pastry Chef, which features a German pastry/cake maker. We gave in pretty much immediately and each had a poppy seed croissant and coffee. So that was our K and K for Sunday.
But I so rarely see families getting together like that, to communicate, share their days, share their food and enjoy life.
I think K&K and families eating together should be mandatory! What other time is good for everyone but in the evening, winding down and being together? Christian and I make a point of having every meal together. We realize we can’t do that forever as job situations may change, etc., but if we CAN, then by all means, we DO!
Do you eat with your family at every meal if you can? If not, what are your dinner habits?

K&K Day…and Start Spreadin’ the News!!

Today is Sunday, the day before Christian and I go to NYC!!!! I’ve been several times, eaten at some amazing places, seen some great shows, stayed at high-rise hotels with a Central Park view … but this time I get to go with my husband, who’s never been to New York (actually very few places in the states, not counting airports). I think I’m more excited than he is! I get to see everything again through HIS eyes, and it will all be new to me again.
We’re winging it, basically, with an extremely limited budget, but I think that will make it fun and adventurous. Anyway, the only thing I want to take back with me are millions of photos and Flip videos, great memories, and recipes galore. I also hope I can post my blog daily, albeit not as long, with the dishes we tried and the restaurants we visit.
Of course, as I mentioned earlier, Les Halles is on the top of our list and a friend is taking us to Isabella’s on Columbus Wednesday night. All the other meals are just whatever we run across.
We’re staying at the YWCA, which has raised eyebrows with friends and family, but I have no shame about it at all, considering it’s only $100 a night and RIGHT on Central Park.
In preparation for tomorrow, we’re going to take it easy and have our first Kaffee und Kuchen in months this afternoon. We sort of gave up on the practice of K&K when we left Germany, since I work and we’re always running around like chickens with our heads cut off. We’ll sit out on our miniscule porch that faces a parking lot, and have some hot spicy Chai tea and some pastries we pick up at the International Deli (a German bakery/deli here in town). And we’ll say to ourselves, “24 hours from now we’ll be doing this at some outdoor cafe on Park Avenue or Lexington.” But honestly? Deep down inside, I’d LOVE just to have a K&K in Christian’s back yard in Rohr, under the apple tree, sitting at the picnic table with his mom, brother, sister in law and their kids…
We’re just about done using up the dregs of the fridge before we leave. Down to just eggs, lemons, gorditas and half a chocolate Easter bunny. Looks like I’m going to make a dumbed-down eggs benedict dish. No, no chocolate involved in this one! I’ll post the complete recipe later today, but it involves two gorditas per person (small, thick flour tortillas), two eggs per person, Neufchatel cheese, jalapenos and habanero Tabasco. We like to play around with trying to make our way up the Skoville Scale. I think we’re getting to the point where habanero tastes like Pace Picante Sauce.

Upper Valley Sunday

“Another Pleasant Valley Sunday
Here in status symbol land
Mothers complain about how hard life is
And the kids just don’t understand

Creature comfort goals
They only numb my soul and make it hard for me to see
My thoughts all seem to stray, to places far away
I need a change of scenery …”
The Monkees’ “Pleasant Valley Sunday”

I loved the Monkees growing up, and I thought this song was appropriate for my afternoon walk through El Paso’s Upper Valley today. I use the walks to clear my mind and to focus just on what’s in front of me. To take it all in. I can never get enough of the water in the irrigation ditches, the plants and flowers I run across, the farm animals and people doing their Sunday thing, be it walking their dogs on the levee, planting seedlings in their front yard, having a garage sale, or sitting on their back porch, watching me watching them.
This song by the Monkees shows how we’ve lost the childlike wonder and just have focused on the material things out there. My walks help ground me and let me see things through a child-like eye again. I need that! I LIKE getting excited when I see a duck in the water, or a pretty flower, or even a garage sale sign that is so quaint and “country.” I hope I never lose that perspective, nor you.
Christian Skyped with his mom and stepdad today. Another pleasant Rohr Sunday, with the two of them enjoying Kaffee und Kuchen in their living room, not a care in the world, at least today. Everything negative or pressing is forgotten on a Sunday, a time for family, relaxation, food and the enjoyment of nature. May we all have a designated time to appreciate all of the above.
Tonight, Christian is making beef ribs. A huge rack for the two of us (yet another reason for the walk this afternoon, ha ha. So I can continue to enjoy our ever-increasingly hearty meals). He wanted to make Gebrannte Grießuppe (http://www.mamas-rezepte.de/rezept_Gebrannte_Griesssuppe-12-541.html), which is a semolina soup with sausage. But since we had already bought the ribs, and our evenings are booked Tuesday through Friday, we decided on the ribs tonight. The soup tomorrow night.
Tuesday night is German night at the El Paso Club, a private members-only dining club at the top of the Chase Bank building Downtown. My dad is taking us. We’re not expecting much, lol. We’re already expecting it will be brats of some kind, a schnitzel (“art” something, meaning NOT made of veal, but rather pork), some pseudo-dumplings and canned sauerkraut. I hope to be pleasantly surprised! Before I met Christian, I too thought the range of German food consisted of the above. I’d really, really, really like to broaden the view of locals and show them that it’s WAY beyond brats, pretzels, beer and kraut. Although there’s nothing wrong with that.

American as Apfelstrudel

It’s been more than two months, since I was last in Rohr i. Neiderbayern, Germany. I’ve been jonesing for a slice or two of apfelstrudel. My husband’s apfelstrudel. Sure, he could make it here, but it just doesn’t taste the same. What is it about real, true apple strudel made and eaten in Germany that makes it taste so damn good? Even strudel made here locally, by Germans, doesn’t come close. And I used to adore apple pie — especially the apple pie made at the Mountain Top Mercantile in Cloudcroft, N.M. It was sublime. I know Cloudcroft vacationers from East Texas who would hoard the pies, freeze them, and take them back to Dallas or Houston to consume later. It was that good.
But it doesn’t do it for me anymore. Nope. Not after trying my husband’s warm strudel, sitting outside under the, natch, apple tree, looking over the rolling hills and hops fields, having a two-hour kaffee und kuchen.
Do you K und K with your family on Sundays or any other day of the week? Do you know anyone who does? If so, what are your kaffee und kuchen traditions, recipes and memories? I think the act of sitting down with your family, with a devoted time to just chat and enjoy each other’s company and some sweets and coffee should be required for everyone.