Wiener Schnitzel

So last week I made some classic austrian Schitnzel with a slight change. I used chicken instead of Veal. There is something disturbing about me using Veal. It freaks me out to think that it's a baby cow who has never seen daylight and has never stood up until it's killed. I also made some potato salad, and cucumber salad. There is this place hee in NYC on Ave. C. and 7th St. called Zum Schneider which is a classic german place and has some of the best food of that type in NY. But the problem is they tend to be a bunch of little elitist assholes. And it's always packed full of ex frat boys. 

Everything was super easy to make with this and surprisingly quick. Also this gave me so many leftover it was ridiculous I had so give some away.

The cook book I used was from austria and it has measurements but it really cooks more like my mother where things are done to taste. 

First I boiled some potatoes about 2-3 pounds. I wanted leftovers so I made more. You boil them but watch them so they don't get mushy, just tender. Then drain and slice them but not to thin. Bow make a mixture of vinegar, sugar, water, one red onion,beef broth, salt and pepper. Then pour it over and mixed together and garnish with chives. Then let it sit because the more it marinates the better it tastes. you can eat it warm or cold.  ( I also like a mix of red and yellow potatoes, not baking dir covered ones)

The cucumber salad is really easy. Thats just some sour cream, water, more vinegar, and some sugar. Lots of pepper, but be careful because the regular pepper is deceptively spicy. Make your mixture of wet ingredients and let it sit in the fridge, while you mince a buttload of garlic and mix in with sliced cucumbers. The garlic is key to marinate with lots of salt on the cucumbers before you mix it together with the sour cream mixture. 

The fried chicken is very easy too. What I did was pound it thin even though cutlets are pretty thin already and might be fine on there own. 

Then what I did was cut them a little on the edges so they wouldn't curl up. Then you simply flour, coat with 4 egg mixture, and bread crumbs. Then fry in oil. I used a combination of grape-seed and vegetable oil. what ever you use it will attribute some flavor to your meal. Don't ever fry in olive oil it burns too easily. Avocado oil is the best to fry anything in due to it's extremely high burning point. Also grape-seed and almond oils are excellent. Canola is fine too but not the best for you.   Fry it to its golden brown and remove with tongs. That's the easiest way. I also patted it down with paper towels to remove some grease. Have fun hope it tastes good!

- k

Another Beakfast

So here's a more Fall version of a simple breakfast I like. I try to eat as seasonally as possible when I'm not stuffing my face full of cheeze-its and frozen ellios pizza. Which is amazing. But really it's pretty simple. I don't see many people eat pear, except for salads. But I think pears are my favorite fruit.  When I went to Austria this summer steffi had me try toast with butter and ramps or small baby chives on it. It was onion grass I think. But it was amazing and just the right amount of flavor. The butter in austria is incredible too. Here it's fa too processed and tasteless. But you can find good butter from farmers markets and some good bread too but nothing will compare to Austrian baked bread. I think there should be a bakery here that specializes in Austrian bread. It's much more dense and mainly dark with many types of seeds opposed to our pristine terrible white and even whole wheat. Whole wheat is the new white bread. It's really not much better for you. I think bread and tortilla wraps are very difficult and un expected to be so processed. I prefer bread with only ingredients I can pronounce and less than 8 of them.

Also freeing bread is an excellent way to keep it and use it as toast. I tend not to finish a loa within even two weeks so freezing it for some time is an excellent idea.

- k

Avocados

I think it is fair to say that I am slightly obsessed with avocados. I would happily eat one for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and on top of that, it is my absolute favorite drunken food! I remember late nights in NYC where on my way home I would walk into numerous little delis looking for a ripe avocado to devour! I knew leaving NYC also meant I would have to leave all the beautiful ripe avocados they sell there. You can only buy stone hard ones here in vienna! It took mine more than a week to ripen. I ate my first one yesterday since I have been back in vienna, and although not as good as in NY, it was still pretty delicious!! Just spooned out the avi and put it on some delicious austrian dark bread with a little salt.

-Steffi

Kristin's Pumpkin Soup

My roommate Kristin made some really amazing pumpkin soup for the two of us yesterday. I was really beat from the weekend, so I really was no help at all in the kitchen. She prepared the whole thing all by herself, and I did the dishes after. Neither of us are really the kind of people to follow directions in cooking. We both just go by feeling, so I don't have any measurement, but I highly recommend to just go with your gut! It is a super simple recipe anyways!

One hokkaido pumpkin (you don't have to remove the skin of this pumpkin, if organic)

save the pumpkin seeds

Milk

yogurt 

lemon or white wine

pumpkin seed oil

salt

pepper

bouillon cube

(vegans- just skip the yogurt and replace milk with rice milk)

Cut the pumpkin in to medium sized pieces, and save the pumpkin seeds. Boil the pumpkin in some water until soft. Once they are through pour out some of the water and puree, slowly adding milk and water until the desired consistency is reached (trust your gut) Put it back on the flame and simmer. Meanwhile take your seeds and throw them in a pan with some melted butter or olive oil and fry them up until they are super crunchy. Let them get darker then they are in the picture, because ours were not through all the way! Add the lemon or wine, salt and pepper, as well as a little bouillon, all of this to taste. Lemon or wine, according to Kristin is essential (or else the soup is to, quote "bampfig und nussig"), so don't be shy with it. A little splash of pumpkin seed oil after serving, as well as a spoon full of yogurt, and that's it.Truly simple and really delicious.
( pumpkin seed oil is one of my favorites! it is even super hard to find in NYC, but one place I know of that sell's it is 'the cheese shop' on bedford ave. williamsburg. Sadly it is overpriced because it is so hard to find, but I think it's worth it! )

Thank you Kristin!
-Steffi
( Kristin and I have been planning on making some homemade bouillon, so I will be posting that recipe soon!)