Lindt & Sprüngli *****

Lindt & Sprüngli is the world’s leading manufacturer of premium chocolate, generating more than one billion dollars annually in worldwide sales. Based in Switzerland with sixteen worldwide subsidiaries, the Lindt & Sprüngli trademark has been a symbol of quality, using only first-grade materials, distinguished by purity and unequalled flavor. We spare no effort to continue earning the confidence of chocolate connoisseurs all over the world. 

The word “quality” has a special significance and a special tradition in the company. In 1879 Rodolphne Lindt set a standard with hi “Chocolat fondant Rod. Lindt fils,” which was unique in its time. It became a standard by which all successive generations of chocolate manufacturers worldwide strive to meet. In 1899, the Lindt brand name, the manufacturing process, and the obligation to maintain supreme quality, became the company: Lindt & Sprüngli AG. The preoccupation with quality has been emphasized by the fact that there has been a master confectioner in each of the five generations of the family, an expert who by professional training knows the Lindt product inside and out. Quality is the basis for, and the key to Lindt & Sprüngli’s success.  

Source: monster

Gewurztraminer ****

Gewurztraminer is the most typical Alsatian wine. Gewûrz means "spicy" in german. It is the main characteristic of Gewurztraminer. Traminer means "coming from Tramin", a small city in south Tyrol of Austria where the grape is coming from. Gewurztraminer is the name of a grape but also the name of the wine made from the grape!

Gewurztraminer was first grown in Alsace around the 19th century. The grapes now cover roughly 20% of the vineyards in the region. Gewurztraminer replaced a grape called Klevener or Savagnin. Nowadays klevener wines can only be found in the village of Heiligenstein and around. Klevener is a dry white wine with slight spicy flavor while less aromatic than Gewurz, it sould be drunk young.

It is obviously in Alsace where Gewurztraminer grapes give the best results. The wine is delicious, fruity and with strong aromas, a very perfumed and flowery bouquet. Gewurztraminer is sweeter than Riesling, which is a dry wine.

Thick and rich wine, which can age, Gewurztraminer is better with sauerkraut, sausages and the Alsatian cheese Munster, curry seasoned dishes, chinese and mexican cooking and other spiced dishes. A Gewurztraminer can even be served as a dessert wine.

Gewurztraminer is better when served at 10°C (50°F). Gewurztraminer can last up to 10 years in their best years. 

Source:terroir-france

Leberkase (Leberkäse) ***

Leberkäse is a traditional German food made from mixed ground meats baked into a loaf. Essentially, Leberkäse is the German version of meatloaf, featuring traditionally German ingredients, including liver and pork. Some German restaurants offer this delicacy on their menus, as do German butchers, and it can also be made at home and ordered from specialty companies that supply various European food treats.

In German, “Leberkäse” literally means “liver cheese.” One could suppose that the name is a reference to the fact that Leberkäse contains liver and that it can be used sort of like a cheese, but more likely, the term comes from a Middle High German word meaning “loaf.” You can also see Leberkäse spelled as Leberkase or Leberkass.

Austria and Switzerland also serve Leberkäse, reflecting the cultural exchange in this region of Europe, and some regions have their own special Leberkäse recipe, turning it into a local delicacy. In Bavaria, for example, Leberkäse contains no liver at all, only corned beef and bacon, while other producers include veal liver, other pork products, veal itself, and a variety of other meats. Onions are typically included in Leberkäse as well.

To make Leberkäse, cooks grind the meats they are using together with the onions to create a uniform blend, and then pack the ingredients into a loaf pan for baking. The Leberkäse is baked until it develops a crispy crust, with the outside remaining tender and pink. Leberkäse can be served hot, or eaten cold in a variety of ways. Leberkäse sandwiches with mustard, for example, are very popular in Berlin, and some people also like to pan-fry this food as a snack.

Culinary historians believe that Leberkäse dates to the mid-1700s, although it is hard to pin down precise information about its origins. Like other meatloaves, Leberkäse was undoubtedly developed as a way to use up scrap meats efficiently. Making Leberkäse would also be less expensive than using high-quality cuts of meat for roasts, making meat accessible to people in the lower classes who could not afford it otherwise. The dish may also be related to sausages, dishes made from ground meats packed into casings.

In regions where Leberkäse includes liver, the dish may not be to everyone's taste. Liver has a very distinctive flavor which some people find too intense. For people who want to explore Leberkäse without encountering liver, Bavarian-style Leberkäse is highly recommended, as it usually does not contain liver.

Source:wiseGeek

Quiche ****

In French cuisine, a quiche (English pronunciation: /ˈkiːʃ/) is a baked dish that is based on a custard made from eggs and milk or cream in a pastry crust. Usually, the pastry shell is blind baked before the other ingredients are added for a secondary baking period. Other ingredients such as cooked chopped meat, vegetables, or cheese are often added to the egg mixture before the quiche is baked. Quiche is generally an open pie (i.e. does not contain a pastry covering), but may include an arrangement of tomato slices or pastry off-cuts for a decorative finish.

Although quiche is now a classic dish of French cuisine, quiche actually originated in Germany, in the medieval kingdom of Lothringen, under German rule, and which the French later renamed Lorraine. The word ‘quiche’ is from the German ‘Kuchen’, meaning cake.^[1] The Lorraine Franconian dialect of the German language historically spoken in much of the region, where German Kuchen, "cake", was altered first to "küche". Typical Alemannic changes unrounded the ü and shifted the palatal "ch" to the spirant "sh", resulting in "kische", which in standard French orthography became spelled "quiche."^[2]

To this day, there is a minor German influence on the cuisine of the Lorraine region. The origin of Quiche Lorraine is rural and the original Quiche Lorraine had a rustic flair: it was cooked in a cast-iron pan and the pastry edges were not crimped. Today, Quiche Lorraine is served throughout France and has a modern look with a crimped pastry crust. Consumption of Quiche Lorraine is most prevalent in the southern regions of France, where the warm climate lends itself to lighter fare. The current version of Quiche Lorraine served in France does include cheese:either Emmental or Gruyère. Unlike the version served in the United States, the bacon is cubed, no onions are added and the custard base is thicker.^[4] 

 ^{Source:Wikipedia}

^{Yummy: Recipe} 

Tapas *****

Tapas (IPA: [ˈtaˌpas]) is the name of a wide variety of appetizers, or snacks, in Spanish cuisine. They may be cold (such as mixed olives and cheese) or warm (such as chopitos, which are battered, fried baby squid). In North America and the United Kingdom, as well as in select bars in Spain, tapas has evolved into an entire, and sometimes sophisticated, cuisine. In these countries, patrons of tapas restaurants can order many different tapas and combine them to make a full meal.

The serving of tapas is designed to encourage conversation because people are not so focused upon eating an entire meal that is set before them.  Also, in some countries it is customary for diners to stand and move about while eating tapas.

Source:Wikipedia
 

Antipasti ***

Antipasto (plural antipasti), means "before the meal" and is the traditional first course of a formal Italian meal. Traditional antipasto includes cured meats, olives, roasted garlic, pepperoncini, mushrooms, anchovies, artichoke hearts, various cheeses (such as provolone or mozzarella) and peperone (marinated small green bell peppers, not to be confused with pepperoni). The antipasto is usually topped off with olive oil.

Many compare antipasto to hors d'oeuvre, but antipasto is served at the table and signifies the official beginning of the Italian meal. It may be referred to as a starter, or an entrée outside the United States and English Canada.

Source: Wikipedia
 

Culinary Use of Kale ****

Kale or borecole is a form of cabbage (Brassica oleracea Acephala Group), green or purple, in which the central leaves do not form a head. It is considered to be closer to wild cabbage than most domesticated forms.

Kale freezes well and actually tastes sweeter and more flavorful after being exposed to a frost.  Tender kale greens can provide an intense addition to salads, particularly when combined with other such strongly-flavored ingredients as dry-roasted peanuts, tamari-roasted almonds, red pepper flakes, or an Asian-style dressing.

In the Netherlands it is very frequently used in the winter dish stamppot and seen as one of the country's traditional dishes, called Boerenkool.  In Ireland kale is mixed with mashed potatoes to make the traditional dish colcannon. It is popular on Halloween when it is sometimes served with sausages. Small coins are sometimes hidden inside as prizes.

A traditional Portuguese soup, caldo verde, combines pureed potatoes, diced kale, olive oil, broth, and, generally, sliced cooked spicy sausage. Under the name of couve, kale is also popular in Brazil, in caldo verde, or as a vegetable dish, often cooked with carne seca (shredded dried beef). When chopped and stir-fried, couve accompanies Brazil's national dish, feijoada.

A whole culture around kale has developed in north-western Germany around the towns of Bremen, Oldenburg and Hannover as well as in the State of Schleswig-Holstein. There, most social clubs of any kind will have a Grünkohlfahrt ("kale tour") sometime between October and February, visiting a country inn to consume large quantities of boiled kale, Kassler, Mettwurst and schnapps. These tours are often combined with a game of Boßeln. Most communities in the area have a yearly kale festival which includes naming a "kale king" (or queen).

Curly kale is used in Denmark and Holland, Sweden, to make (grøn-)langkål, an obligatory dish on the julbord in the region, and is commonly served together with the Christmas ham (Sweden, Holland). The kale is used to make a stew of minced boiled kale, stock, cream, pepper and salt that is simmered together slowly for a few hours. In Scotland, kale provided such a base for a traditional diet that the word in dialect Scots is synonymous with food. To be "off one's kail" is to feel too ill to eat.

Kale is a very good source of iron, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin K and Carotenoids (which provide vitamin A).

Source: Wikipedia

A recipe for yummy gruenkohl-mit-kasseler-kochwurst.

Crème brûlée *****

Crème brûlée (crème brulée in L'Orthographie 1990) (French for "burnt cream"; pronounced /ˌkrɛm bruːˈleɪ/ in English, [kʁɛm bʁyle] in French), burnt cream, crema catalana, or Trinity cream is a dessert consisting of a rich custard base topped with a contrasting layer of hard caramel. Although often served cold in North America, traditionally it is to be served warm.

The custard base is traditionally flavoured with vanilla, but is also sometimes flavored with lemon or orange (zest), rosemary, chocolate, coffee, liqueurs, fruits, and even spices such as ginger.

 Source: Wikipedia

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