Trappists IV: Westmalle

Its been awhile since I posted in my series of trappist breweries. Well today's post covers the Westmalle brewery, home of the original tripel!

The Trappist abbey in Westmalle was founded 6 June 1794. Martinus Dom, the first abbot decided to brew their own beer, and the first beer was brewed in 1836. The first beer was described as light in alcohol and rather sweet. By 1856, the monks had added a second beer: the first strong brown beer. This brown beer is today considered the first double (dubbel, in Dutch). The current Dubbel is derived from a recipe first brewed in 1926. The monks began local commercial sales in 1856.

The brewery was enlarged and rebuilt in 1865 based on the example set by the Trappists of Forges (nearby Chimay). Father Ignatius van Ham joined the brewer team. Further commercialization and sales to traders commenced in 1921. In 1933 a new brewery was built and in 1934, the brewery brewed a strong pale ale of 9.5% abv giving it the name TRIPEL - the first known use of the name! The brewery was remodeled in 1991. It currently has a bottling capacity of 45,000 bottles per hour, and yearly output of 120,000 hL (in 2004).

The brewery produces three beers.

* Westmalle Dubbel, a 7% ABV Dubbel. Despite its dark color and strong aroma, it is not as rich and full-bodied as one might think upon imbibing. It does not go straight to the head, and is a local favorite because of its soft flavor. It has a brown color from dark malts and dark candy sugar as well as a dry finish.

* Tripel Westmalle, a 9.5% ABV tripel, was first brewed in 1934 and the recipe has not changed since 1956. It is made with pale candy sugar and has a very pale color produced from a mash of light pilsner malts. Styrian Goldings hops are used along with some German varieties and the classic Czech Saaz pilsner hop. After a long secondary fermentation, the Tripel is bottled with a dose of sugar and yeast. This beer holds up well in the bottle over time and seems to soften with age.

* Westmalle Extra, 5% ABV, a beer produced only for the monks (patersbier). It is not available for sale, but can sometimes appear at local beer festivals.

The abbey also produces milk and cheese.

Drink like a monk,

HolzBrew

HOW-TO: Homemade Tea Bunches!

As these last days of winter trickle away (at least we're hoping these are the last days) I have been looking for new things to sip and warm me up. The Glühwein season is over, and coffee just isn't doing it for me. I have a big selection of packaged teas, but they're boring me. So I started to make my own.

I used some great recipes found in a German Women's magazine, all of which use a combination of whole spices, root plants like ginger and other interesting ingredients like lemon grass and various herbs, many of which I had hanging around in my spice cabinet anyways! This has been lots of fun and the possibilities are endless.

Ginger Infusion

I can also imagine that these could make great gifts, with the ingredients either packed up in teabags or wrapped in cloth ready for preparation (see photo above!). Here are some delicious recipes:

TIPS:
A normal kitchen sieve works great.
If you have a thermos, use it! Just drain your tea right into the thermos. It will stay warm all day and you won't be able to get enough of it!

Ingwerguss – Ginger Infusion (citrusy and zesty)

1 small piece of ginger root (about 1.5 inches)
1 organic orange (or a regular one, well scrubbed)
Honey

Grate ginger into a glass carafe, or wherever you will be brewing your tea. Immediately add two tablespoons of honey or agave nectar and stir. Peel the orange into a spiral (or just make pieces, but make sure to take only the orange part, and leave the white). Add 1 liter (about 1 quart) of water, let steep for five minutes. Remove orange peel and enjoy!


Heiße Tasse – Hot Cup (spicy and refreshing)

2 tablespoons dried peppermint leaves (or a handful of fresh ones)
A pinch of chili powder (or ½ of a small dried chili)
Two cinnamon sticks
A dash of nutmeg (preferably freshly grated)
4 whole cloves


Break the cinnamon sticks in half, add the spices and chili power and peppermint leaves, and pour a quart of boiling water over the spices. Let seep for 5-8 minutes and the drain off the spices and serve. Sweeten with honey, if desired.

K and K Drink (Kardamom und Koriander)

4 cardamom capsules
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 piece lemon grass

Crush the cardamom and the coriander in a mortar and pestle. Cut the lemon grass into medium sized pieces and crush them with a rolling pin. Put everything into your carafe and add 1 quart of boiling water. Let seep for 10 minutes and sweeten with honey, if desired.

Pikant-Tee (Lightly Piquant)

3 tablespoons fennel seeds
1 teaspoon dried green peppercorns (found in spice aisle)
2 tablespoons dried peppermint (or a handful fresh)
3 pieces Star Anise
1 quart water

Crush the fennel seeds and the green peppercorns in a mortar and pestle. Put the crushed spices in a carafe with the star anise and the peppermint leaves. Let seep for ten minutes, drain off the spices.

Citrus Drink with Bay Leaf

1 organic orange (or regular one, well washed)
3 bay leaves
a dash of cinnamon
¼ cup orange juice
3 tablespoons milk

Peel the orange in a spiral and place peel in carafe along with the bay leaves and cinnamon. Brew with 1 quart water for 10 minutes and then drain off the bay leaves. Serve with a splash of orange juice and milk.

Enjoy the warm and cozy refreshments!

YES YUNS DID IT (transl: yes we did! in pittsburghese)

And a MUCH MUCH overdue tribute to my beloved Steelers and their Superbowl Victory #6
Our handmade Terrible Towels, English and Polish versions.

VerMints

Mints probably don't technically count as "food", but I'll be darned if I don't like these as much as some food items. I randomly picked up a pack of these lil' darlings at the airport, and have been addicted ever since. Good things seem to come out of Vermont (like Ben and Jerry's!) so I'm pleased to add this as a constant in my purse and mouth.

Real German Cuisine Challenge: Kalbsrahmgulasch

Ingredients (read about ziplocked cream further on..)

This is my second cooking session as a participant in Amiexpat's Real Germany Cuisine Challenge

This week, we made "Kalbsrahmgulasch" or Creamy Veal Gulasch. Mmmmm. The recipe can be found HERE

I started out by chopping everything and clariying the butter (heating it and skimming off the "white stuff". I used a handy trick I read somewhere on the internet and used kitchen scissors to chop my tomatoes. Then, I used the scissors to cut up my veal.

chopped onions and tomatoes

I browned the veal in the clarified butter, added the chopped onions and sprinkled with paprika, and then, finally, topped everything with chicken broth. I used chicken broth instead of the recommended beef broth because a) i am not one of those people who makes their own broth so b) the only one without MSG at the store was the organic instant chicken broth.

Then, everything got to hang out and simmer for a while. When I say a while, i mean an ETERNITY!! Ok, so i am not one of those people who is very patient. I like food that involves a lot of activity and not a lot of waiting. And I didn't start cooking until 8pm. So... instead of letting it all simmer happily for the recommended 45 minutes, i only waited 30...

sizzle sizzle

And then added the cream, salt and pepper. Now I had a little adventure with my cream on the way home when it burst in my shopping bag (which i noticed as I was waiting for the ubahn as a white puddle started to form..) but i managed to rescue the dinky german plastic container with a foil lid by slipping into one of my newly purchased ziplops. That's right, call me Ms. Resourceful.

Anyways, I had just enough cream left and, to me, the whole thing looked a little TOO creamy. So I added some tomato paste and some Sriracha sauce. Then I let it cook away, finishing it off with some Crème fraîche (which, indeed, is very cheap in Germany) and lemon zest (i couldn't resist licking the Crème fraîche spoon..yum yum).

In the meantime, I made rice in my rice cooker (basmati, cause that's what i had..) and heated up yesterday's baguette in the toaster oven. Here's the finished product.

DELICIOUS! The only thing I would change would be...my patience. I think the meat really could have used those extra 15 minutes. Next time...

It DID taste like an Indian dish! But in a really cool fusion German way. Yummy yummy.

the final product

By the way, Christina, thanks so much for starting that. I am having SO much fun(and my boyfriend is too!!!) ! I look forward to every week and can't wait for Kässpatzen!!

After a while, I'll have Artur do a guest blog post and rate my German cooking skills :)

up up and away!

Germany vs. USA: the culture clash

Ok, let's play a game.

Everybody list their favorite thing about living in Germany (either in this forum or on their blog... i'll link you here), and their LEAST favorite thing. It can be anything. We're going for the two extremes here. Don't worry about stereotyping or generalizing or whatever. Just vent (or rave!) Here are mine:

MY FAVORITE THING ABOUT LIVING IN GERMANY IS:

Man: "the biggest idiots always have the most beautiful wives"
Woman: "oh, you flatterer, you"

Lots and lots of vacation. Unlimited sick days. Only working 252 days a year (that's 70%! a total of 104 days not working)

MY LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT LIVING IN GERMANY IS:

The lack of silliness in everyday life. I totally can't joke with the cashier or the waiter. Not really, anyways. And my girlfriends just don't have a sin for the absurd. Or for self deprication. Or for making a fool out of themselves. Which is why they need Fasching. A designated day to make a fool out of yourself.

Ok! Your turn! what do you think?

Bremen—the traveling musicians and other tales from the North

Bremen at night

My Valentine's day present came early this year. At 3am. When I asked Artur, in the midst of our party on friday evening, how long I could sleep in. He answered:

"mmm..hmmm… it would be better not to sleep at all"

we packed, cleaned up the remnants of our party, threw out our guests and headed for the train station to hop an ICE at 6:50 am. Destination: Bremen.

The Hansastadt, the home of the traveling musicians, and almost on the North sea! I was thrilled as I drifted off to the gentle 220kph swaying of the ICE. When I awoke what seemed like hours later, I was awed by the scenery outside my window.

WOW! The north looks so different! The houses are different, the trees are different.. it's like being in a different country!

And then, the train announcer: In a few minutes, we will be reaching Würzburg.."

Oh, MAN! Still in Bavaria. Maybe I need to get out of Munich more often if Northern Bavaria already seems so different to me.

our spacy elevator

We dozed the rest of the way and checked into our space themed hotel after many mishaps with the Bremen tram system and fighting our way through the screaming chanting Werner Bremen fans. And when I say space themed, I MEAN space themed. There was a Saturn painted behind the reception, our room was curiously outfitted with early 90 style slanty metal, blue and yellow furniture. Even the elevator was lit with blacklights which illuminated a Disney world style planet and star mural on the shaft walls. Freaky. But despite the theme, it was a rather sterile business hotel, very nice, with the best feature being: the FREE minibar. That's right. Of course, there were only two beers, a coke, a water and an orange juice. But you better bet we took everything with us when we left. Along with the shampoo, soap and shower caps. I considered taking the slanted chair…

this sign says "weapons and dangerous objections forbidden between the hours of 8pm-8am

Bremen itself was charming. The Rathhaus and the Dom were the most beautiful buildings, and I fell in love with the surrogate city symbol, the Bremner Musikannten.

me in front of the "Bremerstadtmusikanten"

We spent Valentine's evening in a cute little corridor of clubs and restaurants where we drank two amazingly giant 4 euro cocktails and ate Mexican food, which for German standards was pretty good. I actually was hoping for fish, since we were so close to the north sea, but by the time evening rolled around we were so beat that we didn't have the energy to walk too long to find a place. The down blankets in the hotel were the best part of the day.

a giant tribal mask

In the morning we ate breakfast and braved the snowy gray weather into the city towards the giant and fascinating "Übersee" museum. You know how some museums manage, with a little effort, to make the most benign displays fascinating? This was one. We actually spent hours reading the descriptions of various plants, animals and customs from all over the world and examining the collections brough back from the first German colonists. Did you know that residents of many tropical countries weave themselves "sleeping bags" out of straw to keep out the mosquitos. Great idea!

Afterwards, we had time for our last two missions: take a picture in front of the Bremner Musikanten sculpture, and eat Pommdöner. The first was accomplished in a flash, the second was a bit harder. We had seen a sign for this wonderful Döner creation on saturday, and were now determined to feast on it for dinner. A cone of french-fries topped with pieces of döner. Could it get any better? This had to be a Bremen specialty, as we have never seen this in munich. After three tries, we hit the jackpot.

All in all a wonderful romantic surprise and a fun Ausflug. We would do it again anytime and take this moment to remind all those other Expats out there to get out and explore Germany!

Sushi Ota

I had done some legwork trying to find the best, most authentic, freshest, and all around most incredible sushi place in San Diego for Ashton's birthday. Overwhelmingly the response I got from friends and reviews was Sushi Ota in Pacific Beach. Reservations highly recommended, and listed with $$ I knew I wouldn't necessarily be wasting money on ambiance. Anything comfortable with a focus on the food is A-OK in my book. It's nestled next to a 7-11 and behind another restaurant, so it's barely visible from Mission Bay Drive. Definitely a "destination", not just a wander in kind of place. The majority of the people there were Asian, which is ALWAYS a good sign, and even with a reservation we had to wait for a half hour (very willingly, by the looks of contentment on the patrons).





Let me just tell you this. I've eaten a lot of sushi. I've eaten it in many varieties in many places, and while I still have a long way to go to become a true connoisseur, I feel as though I know what okay sushi tastes like, what good sushi tastes like, what great sushi tastes like, and what out of this world sushi tastes like. This was out of this world. While eating truly amazing sushi, cost cannot be a factor. You just have to go balls out and go for the gold. I don't even like to waste valuable tummy space with drinking. Water is the only liquid to touch my lips in these kinds of situations.

We started with the calamari, which was golden, crispy, with a tangy plum sauce that was divine. Next was the seafood dynamite, with their "secret" dynamite sauce baked over a bed of mixed seafood that was basically heaven in our mouths. Then, the main spread. I got a veritable fiesta of sashimi over a bed of sushi rice, all of which was possibly the best and freshest fish I've ever come across. Ashton got a "sampler" which included a giant baked scallop and clam (both seared in their own juices to plump goodness), shrimp tempura (which came with it, but in my opinion don't waste time with tempura when there is real sushi to be had! Wonderful nonetheless), and a tiny seaweed salad that could have been pulled out of the ocean and prepared to order as far as my tastebuds were concerned. He also got an absolutely stellar platter of sashimi as well, so the mixing and matching was out of control. We lost ourselves in this magnificent feast the likes of which I had dared to hope for but could have not imagined in all its glory.

For as full as we were, we were still tempted by the plum wine and red bean ice cream, which together was an excellent way to calm our full tummies into a final submission. As we tottered away, I think we both knew that words couldn't describe or duplicate this experience. It was something beyond that. I can just say that we will absolutely patronize this place until the day it either burns down or we die, because I can say it certainly won't go out of business.

Alka Seltzer Vitamins

That's right. Vitamins in Germany don't come in pill form. They come in fizzy tablet form. In a fancy tube. I really like them, although the first time I purchased them I didn't realize that they were fizzy dissolving pills, and stuck one in my mouth to chew up on the commuter train. Big mistake. I had pink strawberry flavored foam coming out of my mouth and nowhere to go. Oh dear.
Now I drink my daily multivitamin. It probably doesn't really help, but it sure tastes good (a LOT better than alkaseltzer) and I think the packaging is a pretty cool idea.

I wonder if they would be a hit in the US? I wish they would just make Crystal Light or other drink mixes in this fancy fizzing dissolving form, and not in that clumpy one. It would be a great marketing ploy "fit and fizzy"....

It's COLD outside! Don't open the window!!!!

I am having a cultural war at work. A war of windows. A war of fresh air. I war of warmth.

Ok, so here's the thing. I like "fresh air" like any other. But I have to say, I much prefer warmth. I admit it. I prefer stale warm stuffy air to fresh clear ICE COLD winter air. I don't like to shiver at work. I don't like to feel like I have to wear a sweater. I do not feel like imitating camping when I go to the toilet. I HATE FRESH AIR!!

I know that this is a very German obsession. It's driving me insane. Does anyone else have this cultural clash? There's a great article about the German fear of the "Zugluft" here, which seems to be in complete contrast to the "fresh air" obsession. In the summer, opening the windows is taboo, because of the "evil breeze". In the winter, opening the windows is a necessity because of the "stuffy air". Are they just on a mission to scare us expats away? What's the deal with the hypocrisy?!?! Somebody help me!!!!!!!

Real German Cuisine Challenge: Semmelknödel mit Pilzen

Me and my first Knödel

I am tagging along with American Expat and other expat Germany bloggers in working our way through the cookbook "Die Echte Deutsche Küche" for the Real German Cuisine Challenge.

Our first week's attempt is Semmelknödel mit Pilzen (link to recipe here), which is known, in Bayern, as Rahmschwammerl. Delicious, plus, I had never made my own Knödel before, and if my destiny is anywhere near becoming a German Housewife (he he) then I'd better master this one.

The ingredients

I started by cutting everything: chopping mushrooms, whizzing onions and parsely through the food processor, then soaked the bread in the warm milk.


Then, I cooked everything for the dumplings and had a blast forming them into lovely bready spheres (kind of like making a snowball. I had to fight an urge or two to throw one across the room) and plopped them into the boiling salt water (but not before making a cute little "test dumpling" to make sure they didn't fall apart).
The sauce cooked up quite nicely and I (unlike Amiexpat) did use Shitake Mushrooms, along with Austerpilzen and rehydrated dried mushrooms Artur and I got as a gift from his relatives in Poland (hand gathered, of course). It cooked up nicely and had lots of flavour, and the lemon juice was a lovely touch. I didn't need anything to thicken it—I just let it cook off for a while.

Overall rating: delicious, fairly easy, and very authentic. This will go on my list of German meals to make for my family when I go home. I can't wait for next week's Rahmgulasch (Creamy veal goulash).

Parkhouse Eatery

We've been passing this on our way to El Zarape for weeks now, and every time we go by it catches our eyes. FINALLY we made it over to the Parkhouse Eatery in University Heights, and despite the crowd out front got sat immediately at the bar. Why people dislike the bar, I'll never know (at least for two people). The building is the definition of quaint, and they have a great outside patio area complete with hanging vines and a wonderful atmosphere. I didn't even have a menu before my eye was caught by an amazing looking mimosa-offshot (their Sunrise Mimosa), which turned out to be a glass cascading with an inner rim of raspberry puree, a generous amount of champagne, and a THICK orange juice topped with a pineapple slice. Yes, please, I'll have one.

The menus weren't extensive, but 100% of what they offer looked unbelievable. It was honestly one of the best brunch menus I've come across. I was incredibly torn in a few different directions, but eventually settled on TRES EGG ES SCRAMBLES... served w/house potatoes, french white toast and homemade PH jam. Of the varieties they offered I went with the fresh spinach, artichoke hearts & feta cheese for $9.50, and Ashton got the spicy serrano peppers, cilantro, tomato & house-smoked mozzarella scramble.




Another note, their bread is from local spot Bread and Cie, and was superb. Either way, this was perfection. An A+ rating. The drinks were fantastic (and large), the meal was beyond wonderful, the eggs were cooked perfectly, the jam was tasty, and the potatoes were some of the best I've ever had. And the price was RIGHT! For the 2 of us, our meals (which were large enough for leftovers) and 2 sunrise mimosas (big enough to last the whole meal) it was less than $35. Worth every penny. I also peeked at the dinner menu and it looks like a great place for a date night. Great food, and while most entrees are around $20, it shouldn't be a budget-breaker for an occasion.

"Bush is dead"?! and other problems of the press

According to BBC Ex president George Bush is dead. He's not, of course, but apparently one of the technicians for a South African TV station wishes he were: the technician was "testing" the rolling headline system and "accidentally" pushed them button to go online, upon which the headline was on air for about three seconds. He meant to use it as a test phrase. Makes me wonder how often those little headlines running along the bottom of the page are just tech guys fooling around…

Apparently, the new policy is to now test all headlines is "gobbledygook" language so that the same error doesn't happen. I'll be on the lookout for the next "dsfkljsdkiuwsxcnx,yqweesa asdjsdf" headline post when I'm in South Africa.

This makes me think a lot about newspapers, and the press, and free speech, and bias in news coverage. I find German TV news to be wonderful and German newspapers (with the exception of a few) to be horrendous. Kind of the reverse of the US. I am especially disturbed by the frequent (daily, rather) photos of naked women. What's the deal with that? In my opinion, Bild and the like make our McPaper (USA Today) look like top journalism. As Artur pointed out, one of Bild's favorite tricks is to turn an unsubstantiated fact into a headline by adding a question at the end. Like: "Popcorn Causes Cancer! (is this true? Find out on page 11). I am also quite disturbed by the fact that all three "McPapers" in Germany usually have some form of the same headline. And when all else fails and there isn't any gruesome or scandalous news, there's always the favorite three topics: sex, the weather, and the price of beer.

Copy of the "Bildzeitung" claims "My dog ruined my marriage"

What do you think about German news media?

Oktoberfest 2009: the logo meets...Vegas?

Those Münchner love their Wies'n (the Munich resident's term for Oktoberfest, because it takes place on "Theresienwiese" or "Theresa's Meadow") There's no sadder moment for many than the second weekend in October, when it's all over. Now here we are, in the middle of Fasching, only four months after the Dirndl and Lederhosen Hochburg is over and the city is talking about it again. Because, the new logo was announced, unveiled on February 5th at the Stadtmuseum. And it's a giant pretzel. But not just any giant pretzel: it is completely devoid of salt or that lovely golden pretzel color, and there are no dancing Dirndlmädels or Stout Burschen in sight. It's a modern word pretzel. A feat of bakery, a neon parade of words twisted into that oh so famous shape. Oktoberfest 2009 meet Las Vegas.

courtesy of Muenchen.de

I, personally, am not a fan. Oktoberfest isn't something modern! It isn't "hip" or "innovative" or "sleek". It's old and dusty and traditional, boisterous and loud and heavy with customs and family heirs. It's a wonderful stereotyped thing that should continue to embrace its own kitschy yet authentic heritage. I liked, for example, the slightly modern take on the traditional in 2006:

And, can someone tell me what the deal is with the early 90s color scheme? Who decided that jaggedy neon letters and graffiti like motifs were cool again?! Were they ever? Apparently the 2012 Olympic committee thinks they are…

Bring on the Bretzen, but the baked kind, please!! Anyways, this logo will find a place with all the other Minikrugs to expand my memory collection. Maybe the nostalgia will grow on me…

this is why you're fat

A fantastic find on the internet. This site is so 'Merican I can feel myself gaining weight just visiting it. I think this is my first time linking to just another random food site without it being some sort of restaurant or other food critic-esque blog, but one visit to This Is Why You're Fat.com and you'll understand why. Here's a few of my favorites from the front page...

CORN DOG PIZZA... WOW.


Giant Breakfast Burrito
A seven pound breakfast burrito stuffed with potatoes, eggs, onions, and ham bits, lots of cheese on top and smothered in red chile.
Unbelievable. Honestly, these are just the beginning. It promises to be a sickeningly nauseous ride through artery-clogging and coma-inducing piles of gluttony of which the likes I hope I never see. Or maybe I do. It's really a mental struggle to try and deal with the obvious disgustingly over the top obese experience with what I'm sure would prove to be a tastebud explosion. It's a toss up. Either way, carnivore, vegetarian, food lover, any random person- I suggest you visit the site and just see what actually exists. Mind = blown.

Stripes on the Run (Zebras escape from Augsburg Circus)

Escaped Zebras! In Augsburg! Today, four Zebras escaped from a circus. From a circus! Pedestrians cornered one, but the police chased the other three through Augsburg (65 Kilometers from Munich) until they finally caught them. But then, one escaped again, and they needed two hours to corral him.

I can't help but make allusions to an old fashioned police chase and escaped prisoners...

Orlando

Well, I survived my first trade show in Orlando. It certainly wasn't stress-free, but the amount of relief felt after the fact more than made up for it. Unfortunately, beyond the show being an unbelievable learning experience for me, the city of Orlando (or at least the part around the Convention Center) is one of the tackiest places I've ever been in my entire life. If anyone has been to Pigeon Forge Tennessee (home of Dollywood!), let me just compare it to a watered-down version of that. I've never seen so many Denny's in my entire life in such a small area. Brunch clearly was not even an afterthought to these people. Ugh.

The redeeming culinary value of Orlando was found in the unlikeliest of places. Next to our hotel, in a completely standard tacky strip mall (think liquor stores and Subway) there was nestled a small, unassuming Italian restaurant called Ciao Italia. Thankfully a coworker who'd gotten to Florida before me had unwittingly stumbled across it and returned singing its praises. Being somewhat of a food snob (unbelievable, I know), I had low expectations, but was pleasantly surprised with the atmosphere inside. There were plenty of tables for large parties, white napkins, a great wine list, and a casual attitude with what seemed to be a very nicely put together menu.

We started with the Bruschetta al Pomodoro, which was FRESH FRESH FRESH. I maybe snuck a few pieces of calamari from my co-workers plate... and enjoyed it thoroughly. I also split a bottle of St. Andrews Pinot Grigio, which is one of the most flavorful ones I've had in a long time. I ultimately settled on the Penne alla Contadina (penne with imported prosciutto di parma, mushrooms, and peppers in a light tomato basil sauce.) It. was. fantastic. Just a fabulous, melt in your mouth experience. Their saucier should be given a raise and offered a 24 hour harem at his disposal. The prosciutto was flawless, the mushrooms were fresh, and the pasta could not have been cooked more perfectly.

Feeling full, I packed up half to eat later in my hotel room, but when they brought us out dessert menus, I couldn't help myself. My boss and I split a New York cheesecake and their Tartufo Nero (let's just say it involved chocolate, hazelnut, and a creamy center that I can't even describe). I mean, I LIKE cheesecake, but there is a huge difference between even mediocre cheesecake and GOOD cheesecake. I think it's a safe bet that this was by far the lightest, tastiest, and most wonderful cheesecake my tongue has ever been privileged enough to experience.

In fact, the next day after raving about it to our reps at the show, they asked if I would be opposed to going again the next night. Um, no. I would not be opposed to that. Not only was it fabulous, the alternative is Denny's, so yeah I think I can manage a repeat. This time I started with a Peroni and a Caesar salad (I love it when the dressing is a bit more oily and not just a straight cream- to die for) and a basket of garlic bread was gladly torn into by our party. This time I opted for the Ravioli de Pesce (Artisian ravioli stuffed with mixed seafood in a vodka basil sauce.) Keep in mind I was THIS impressed with the lower end of the price spectrum. Others who went even more balls out than I reached levels of ecstasy that until then were uncalculated.

From the rest of the party, their lasagna was impeccable, the salmon was just ridiculously orgasmic, and the veal chop was melt in your mouth excellent. In no way was I disappointed, and my expectations were blown out of the water. If you ever find yourself in this city dedicated to mass consumerism and commercialism, take a moment to locate this hidden gem on Westwood Blvd. You won't regret it, and maybe, just maybe, pass this info along and together we can give Denny's a blow they won't soon forget. Chalk up one more for the little guy!

Clothespins and Wild Pig Gulasch or: my adventure in cross country skiing in the alps (spitzingsee)

After a long month of studying for finals, it was time for some Erholung in the Alps. I signed up for a cross country skiing course with the Deutsche Alpen Verein and headed off Saturday morning to catch the train with my group. As if to further attest to my American chaotic nature, I managed to miscalculate my ubahn ride and nearly miss the train. Due to my lateness, I couldn't find the group I was supposed to share a ticket with, so I just hopped onto the train and hoped for the best, realizing very quickly that I was in the wrong section and that, since the train splits into three pieces after a short ride, I would have to hope over two sections before that happened if I wanted to get to my destination. I ran like a madwoman to the next section and the first stop, nearly losing my sleeping bag from my hiking pack in the process, praying that the doors wouldn't shut and the train wouldn't drive away before I reached the entrance. After repeating my mad dash at the next stop, I made it into the correct train car – which was oh so apparent due to the many hundreds of skis and snowboards packing the aisles. To make a long story short, I did locate my group (the only ones with the very long cross country skis) and managed to repress my flusteredness all the way to Fischhaus-Neuhasen.

There, we boarded a bus and rode up and up into the mountains until we reached the tiny town of Spitzingkirche. There, I rented my equipment (I was apparently the only non professional who didn't already have grade A equipment with me—something oh-so German) and trekked with the rest of the group 15 minutes down icy roads to the Albert-Link-Hütte, our base for the weekend. What a view.Upon arrival, we changed clothes and met our course leader outside—it was a bit chaotic, given that two other Cross Country Skiing courses, a ski tour course and an Avalanche Survival course were also staying there and getting ready to head out into the snow. Nonetheless, we managed to march down to the practice course together and spent the morning practicing everything from balancing on our skis to correctly shifting our weight. We even played a game where we had to try to pin clothespins on the other members of our group while wearing our skis and tripping over each other and the know.

By lunch, we had all the steps together, and we were finally allowed to try the full thing, and before we knew it we were (inching) down the practice track like (non) professionals. But it sure was fun, and the Alpine scenery was spectacular. Lunch never tasted better, especially because the menu at the Gasthaus is quite extensive and oh-so-delicious. I ate a gigantic baked potato with Kraüterquark and shared a Kaiserschmarrn for desert. Mmmmmmmmmm.The "weather station" at the hut. And carved wooden faces.

We spent the afternoon working on going downhill and stopping, and when the sun started to set we headed into the Hütte for an evening shower and a delicious meal in the Gaststübe of Wild Pig Gulasch and beer. And nothing tastes better than a beer in a warm cozy room after a day in the winter air. Mmmm. The Wild Pig, it turns out, had been shot by the owner's husband—he wanted to take a weekend to go hunting with his pals, and his wife told him "alright, but only if you bring back something that we can use". It turns out he did, two big bristly somethings, which we devoured in delicious gulasch form with Butterspätzle and Blaukraut. shoe dryer in the hut

After a night of intermittent sleep—I kept waking up dangerously close to the edge of my very high up bunk bed—one look out the window revealed a much winterier landscape. It had blizzarded in the night, and everything was white white white. I lifted by head from my hay pillow (that's right. It smelled like a giant Chamomile tea bag and was very crunch) and headed down the ladder. OUCH. My calves were quite sore. Very sore. I limped to breakfast but was immediately revived by fresh coffee, boiled eggs, ham and wurstaufschnitt, cheese, yoghurt and delicious bread made in wooden ovens on the premises. Then, we headed out to face the snow. I learned the hard way that rental skis aren't always well taken care of. Since the snow was so wet, it immediately stuck to my well worn skis, despite spraying them with multiple layers of "deicing" spray. I trudged along, hardly gliding, very frustrated, and by lunch I was so exhausted that I could hardly move. But the group convinced me to go out one more time, and our instructor lent me his fancy schmancy skis, so I was in good shape again to enjoy our last jaunt through the snow covered woods. Amazing and beautiful.

We had to run 15 minutes uphill to catch the bus to the train, and when I finally got home I was completely exhausted but I had enough energy left to unpack my delicious souvenirs: freshly baked wood stove bread, game (hunted) salami and smoked Bergkäse. Dellllliiiiccciiiouuuusss. Anyone interested in joining me for my next cross country ski adventure?