Breakfast with Brad

Today I leave for the states, but before I went Brad surprised me with a homemade breakfast. We had eggs, pancakes with nutella, fruit salad and yummy coffee. It was absolutely delicious and a nice way to spend my last morning in Munich. Still need to finish packing and then head to the airport. Taking a two week hideous from blogging, but will update it as soon as I return.

Die Liebe der Gauntletts

Happy Valentine’s Day

Just got back from a wonderful dinner with Brad and it was delicious! He had organized our whole date, which was really sweet since busy season just started last week. He told me to meet him at Max-Weber Platz at 19:15 and would take it from there. We then headed down the street to a little French bistro, called Le Faubourg. The place was adorable, with a staff that spoke perfect French and in the corner overlooking the restaurant was a tiny bar with thousands of wine bottles. The place had about twenty tables and everyone was filled. We did experience a slight hiccup when we gave the hostess our last name as they did not have our reservation. I felt really bad for Brad, but the place was still able to accommodate us. After we sat down, Brad checked out the wine list and I reviewed the menu. Everything looked wonderful and it was hard to decide what to order, but I started with a tuna tartar and a whole fish dish for my main course. Brad went with a scallop risotto dish (my second choice) and then the lamb. All of our dishes were delicious and the presentation was truly beautiful. I am not sure how they were able to debone my fish and still keep it completely intact (tail and head), but they did.

Gute Nacht! Die Liebe der Gauntletts

Super Bowl Party!

Today was our Superbowl Party and we had a great time, but I should back up to yesterday as it was a big day. Brad had to go to work, so I decided to walk with him but only half way as I had to pick up the beer and start making the chili. He told me which beer to get (Augustiner Hellas) and I was able to go into the store near our flat to get it. Thankfully the store is only half a block from our flat as the beer is in glass bottles and of course I had to buy an entire crate (twenty bottles). Super heavy and I definitely got my arm workout in for the day. After putting the crate on our patio to chill, I stated the chili.

I was nervous that not everything would fit into the stock pot we have as the one we use in the states is bigger but took a chance. I did decide to brown the meat in a different pan in order to avoid a possible overflow, but as I began pouring everything it I could tell it was going to fit. Everything was going well, until I got to the part of opening the cans. For some reason, the cans here are more difficult to open plus we have a crappy opener from Ikea and this combination made it almost impossible to open all six. I got the tomato cans open and decided to add all the spices, fresh jalapenos and Tabasco sauce into the pot prior to trying to pry the black bean cans open. Bad idea because as I was trying to open the cans, I noticed I had purchased fiery black beans. Oops…hopefully it will not be too HOT!!!

Back to today and thank god I purchased sour cream because the chili was the hottest dish I have ever tasted. You know it is fiery when Brad who hates sour cream placed a large dollop of it right on top. Oh well, I enjoyed it and believe everyone else did too.

Gute Nacht! Die Liebe der Gauntletts

Shopping for the Superbowl Party

After hitting the gym this morning, I went to the grocery store to buy all the food for this weekend. Brad really wanted breadcrumb chicken for dinner, but I had to remind him that Munich does not have bread crumbs. However, they do carry corn flakes and I could make corn flake chicken instead. His eyes immediately lit up and said, “I love it!” Therefore, tonight we are having corn flake chicken, mash potatoes and brussel sprouts in a mustard sauce. Then, I must get all the ingredients for chili, cornbread muffins, cream cheese (Russell’s famous dip), and chicken wings. Unfortunately, all of my groceries would not fit into one of the small baskets, so I had to put a euro deposit into the shopping cart and use that instead. See most people go shopping everyday here and do not purchase massive amounts of food in one shopping trip. I am sure the Germans looked at my cart and thought, she must be American. Oh well, I had to do it. The only thing I could not get on this shopping trip was the beer as I had too much to carry and to be honest there are so many kinds that I did not know what to buy. And of course, my go to option, Bud Light, was nowhere to be found. Hopefully I can talk Brad into going to our local getränken shop tomorrow before work.

Afterwards, I dropped the groceries back home and got ready for my walk with Cheryl. It is so nice out (heat wave) and glad we were able to get together again. I met them at their flat and we hit the trail. They recently went to the restaurant in Munich’s Olympic Tower and thought it was excellent. The food and view were both incredible. Brad and I went up into the tower the first weekend we were here and noticed a restaurant, but were unsure if the food would be good since the view is probably what you are paying for (like the signature room in Chicago). But Cheryl said they both got the tasting menu, which was paired with wines and it was delicious. She recommends it for special occasions or when visitors come to see us. Plus the restaurant won a michelin star, which is always a good sign. We chatted about their move back to the US and then it hit me that they are moving back in a month. Where has the time gone? I am really sad they are leaving as it has been great having them here.

Finding Out the Superbowl Champs

It officially took three days for me to figure out who won the superbowl. I was doing so well, until I turned on CNN at the gym and there it was the homecoming parade for the superbowl champs. Such a bummer, but I am still excited to watch it for a few other reasons –commercials, half time show, commercials and I guess the football too. Plus, I can now watch Glee. YEAH!!!

Off to make my shopping list for tomorrow’s dinner and our super bowl party. Hopefully I can find everything I need and will not have to run around to ten different stores.

By the way, our Munich heat wave is taking a break, but is scheduled to return tomorrow.

Milagros

Mexican food has officially arrived in Munich! My book club and I had lunch at Milagros yesterday and it is some of the best Mexican food I have ever eaten. The owner is from California (grew up in Los Angeles and spent the last 12 years in San Francisco) and is half Mexican. He fell in love with a German woman, had a few kids and recently moved back to Munich just like he always promised her they would (sounds familiar). So he sold his business in the states, moved to Germany and opened a restaurant. All of the dishes were developed in Mexico and hired staff that were from there as well. You may be wondering how I know all of this information; well after we all ordered (3 shrimp ceviche’s, tacos, tortilla soup and steak tortas) the owner came over to us and told us his life story. It was really nice and then he brought us four different types of salsa with homemade tortilla chips. All four of the salsas (two red base, guacamole and a sweet one with pumpkin seeds) were delicious and we suggested that he sell bottles of them.

Our lunch came and we were not disappointed. I had the shrimp ceviche, which arrived in a martini glass with a side of homemade wheat tortilla chips…simply scrumptious! We then decided to share a dessert -churros with spicy dark chocolate dip. The churros were still hot when they came out and the chocolate was out of this world good. All of us were so impressed that we decided to plan a LoAHF lunch as well as dinner with our husbands for March. I cannot wait to take Brad here. Plus, if you are ever having a bad day, check out their website as the intro is absolutely breath taking. http://www.milagros-restaurant.de/

The Munich Heat Wave

Monday, February 07, 2011 –
Munich is officially having a heat wave! I thought it was only going to last for a few days, but the past four days have been absolutely gorgeous (each day warmer than the one before) and today is by far the warmest. The sun is shining, snow is gone and you can actually see peoples smiling faces instead of only their eyes. After enjoying a wonderful workout, I decided to walk home from there and stopped at Edeka on the way. During my walk, I noticed all the cafes had their tables set up outside, but one thing was missing from the chairs…fleece blankets!!! I was super excited as this only confirms that we are in fact having warmer days. Plus, I even saw a guy driving around with his convertible top down…it was not an Audi, but a BMW, which are nice too…I guess. We were out with Stephan last night and he said that winter is over and spring is here. I feel like I have to trust him since he is from Germany and has been living in Munich for several years and is probably an expert on the topic. I hope the weatherman and Stephan are right because I love it! I only wish Brad was able to enjoy it with me, but we did get to spend all of Saturday together, which was wonderful. During busy season in the states, he would work both days, but this past weekend he only had to on Sunday. I love the Munich office as they rarely force the team to come in both days.

By the way, when I was in Edeka today I noticed something sitting on the shelf that I probably spent 2 hours looking for on Friday…Sardellenpaste. Oh well, my dressing turned out great and it was vegetarian too.

I got a BBM from Brad this morning and it officially took thirty minutes at Allianz to find out who won the superbowl. I guess one of the Partners asked him if he watched the game and who won, so as Brad was explaining a first year shouted out the winner. Poor Brad, but so far I have been able to avoid it. Stay tuned to see if I make it until Sunday!

Breakfast, Dirndl/Lederhosen Shopping, Home-Made Stir Fry and Black Swan

Today was officially my favorite day in Munich thus far. Brad and I were able to spend the entire day together and it was wonderful!!! I was really surprised when Brad sent me an email earlier in the week saying he got us tickets for Black Swan Saturday night and asked if I could make reservations at Vorstadt Café on Saturday. See Brad is the midst of busy season, which usually means he spends both weekend days in the office, but Europe is different. Now, everyone has been telling us this for months and I must be honest, I was a little skeptical. But I am beginning to become a believer, since we were able to spend the entire day together and he did not open his computer once.

We walked to Vorstadt Café and the weather was absolutely gorgeous, even at 9:45 AM. We arrived at the restaurant on time and they did in fact have our reservation, YEAH!!!! I had checked out the menu last night and actually did something pretty funny. I translated most of the menu using google and actually typed some of the options into my phone so we would know what everything was without having to get out our giant translation book, which was in my bag (just in case). Brad ordered a Weiss Bier und G.I. (scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, fruit salad, mixed bread and variety of jams/marmalade). I went with Heisse Schokolade mit Rum und Provencale (scrambled eggs with olives, herbs and tomatoes, homemade apple sauce, Nutella Crepe, mixed bread and variety of jams/marmalade). All of our dishes were really good, but I would not order the hot chocolate again as it was cold and a little on the strong side. Afterwards, Brad and I decided to walk back to the Schwabing area where some of the Dirndl/Lederhosen shops are located. We go into the one shop and I start pulling dresses to try on. After finding four dresses, I go in to the dressing room. I was able to decide that I want a silk dress instead of cotton, but unfortunately the shop did not have anything I loved. We were going to go to another shop, but I was kind of over it for the day. Maybe we will go again after the busy season as we do not really need them until early September.

The weather only got better as the day went on and we wanted to be outside as long as we could. Therefore, we continued to walk around the city and eventually found our way back to Maxvorstadt. We stopped at the BioMarket to get vegetables for the stir fry and then went home. Brad likes to cook dinner on the weekends for me (what a wonderful husband), therefore he does the shopping. It is funny to see him in the store as he does not go nearly as much as I do and I can tell he wants to just get out of there quickly, but cant because he has no idea where or what things are. Super Cute!

Our hot water was not working this morning, so Brad went downstairs to speak with the waiter restaurant and I cleaned our flat. We then picked a bottle of wine from our small collection and started to make dinner. The dish turned out great and was incredibly easy. We ended up adding ginger to it and believe it really made the dish. We were able to skype with Joe for a bit and then headed to the cinema to see Black Swan. I loved the movie and cannot wait for it to come out on DVD; however I can understand why my mom and dad did not enjoy it. Brad thought it was okay and had a bit of 80s like humor. He was a good sport and the next time we want to see a movie, he will get to pick it out.

Missing Shoes and A Walk Through the Park

Last night, Brad had to cancel our lunch date as he has several back to back meetings today and only has thirty minutes for lunch. I kind of had a feeling this would happen as busy season started this past week and was surprised he even invited me. However, we are having dinner tonight and spending all day together tomorrow, which is more than we would if it were busy season in the states. I am planning to make two dishes from my Naturally Thin cookbook (Caesar Salad and Spinach, Chive and Ricotta Linguini) and hopefully they will turn out well. I went shopping yesterday for most of the ingredients, but decided this morning to make the ceasar salad. Therefore, after my walk with Cheryl I planned to visit the Basic Bio Mart to purchase anchovy paste, which in German is called Sardellenpaste.

I did go to the gym this morning and wanted to share my funny story. My day started off like most mornings, Brad and I had coffee and breakfast together before heading off to work and I got ready for the gym (Monday, Wednesday and Friday it does not open until 9 AM). After enjoying more coffee, sending a few emails and checking my kitchen for all the ingredients needed for tonight’s dinner, I packed my gym bag and headed to the ubahn. After about a ten minute commute, I arrive at my gym to check in and obtain my locker key. I head to the locker room, but as I am taking off my snow boats I realize that my shoes are at home…bummer! However, I still really want to work out and start to think of what I could do without shoes. Yoga or Pilates do not start for another hour and I cannot wait, so I decide to ride the bike in my socks. Luckily, the gym was not overly crowded and all the bikes were free. So I picked one in the center (hoping no German lady would sit next to me) turned on CNN, put my headphones in and began to ride. I had brought a book with me too, so I looked very focused and prayed that no one would notice. About half way into my ride, an older woman sat at the bike two over from me and I was certain she was going to say something as she appeared to be sour. The sight of her brought me immediately back to my childhood, when my sister and I would go swimming in my grandmother’s community pool. The old ladies would always yell at us for splashing, even though we were not, and for some reason I thought this lady would start doing the same thing, but in German. Therefore, I spent the last 20 minutes fearing a scene would occur and would never be able to show my face at this location again. I know this may sound a little dramatic or over the top, but the Germans can be harsh and have no problem telling you what they think. Luckily, I was able to complete my ride, clean the machine and went into the locker room without a confrontation.

I had some time to kill prior to meeting Cheryl for our walk and decided to look for the Sardellenpaste. I thought this would be very easy to find and be out of the market with all of my ingredients in no time, but man was I wrong. After visiting a bio mart, neighborhood market and the Japanese shop, I decided to head home and regroup. After making some falafel for lunch, I looked on the internet for substitutions, just in case I was unable to locate it. Thank goodness I did because after trying two more stores with no success, I decided it was time to go to plan B. The most popular suggestions for Caesar dressing were the following: capers packed in salt, miso and olives packed in oil. Since, I did not want to get my immersion blender out to make salad dressing; I decided to purchase an olive di crème, which looked like olive tapenade. To my surprise the dressing turned out really well and I am kind of glad I was unable to find sardellenpaste as I would probably have never used it for anything beside salad dressing and there are only so many times you can eat a Caesar salad.

My walk with Cheryl was really wonderful. She took me through a park near her flat and it was connected to Olympia Park, which I love! She also pointed out a few restaurants that we should try as well as a beer garden. I really do enjoy spending time with her and so glad KPMG had us come to Munich early. I am sad that they are leaving in a month, but hopefully we will keep in touch and she will not mind if I email her with crazy questions.

It is getting late and I still need to check out the Vorstadt Café menu and then make dinner for Brad.

Haben ein tolles Wochenende! die Gauntletts

Lunch with a Fellow Hausfrau

Today, I enjoyed a morning workout, lunch with Nita and some shopping for our flat. We went to Tushita Teehaus for a vegetarian meal. This place was extremely small, but very good. I had a curry dish which included pumpkin, sesame tofu, a yogurt sauce, mangos and white rice. The dish was very fresh and delicious. The place only offers two dishes and the menu changes daily.Every morning, the chef spontaneously decides what should be cooked, based on the weather, mood and contents of the refrigerator. Then he disappears into the kitchen for hours, where he creates dishes using the best ingredients to produce freshly prepared vegan meals for the day. They also have a sizable tea list and a variety of vegan/sugar free desserts, which looked incredible. I was going to purchase a chocolate banana cake for Brad, but decided against it. We had great conversion and I think we will get together again. I told her about my gym and she gave me some restaurants to try. All in all it was great!

Here is the website (http://tushita.eu) and maybe I will take Missy and Don for lunch when they come to visit us this July. However, I did mention the cake to Brad this evening and he requested that I go back and purchase him one. Maybe I will get him one for Valentines Day!

Afterwards, I went to Kare (a shop filled with home goods) to purchase a vase I had seen there earlier in the week. Then, I headed to Karstadt to purchase a few fake flowers to place in the vase, but unfortunately did not find any I liked. I guess I will have to keep looking as I do not want to just buy something to buy it. Luckily the vase looks really nice in our bedroom without any flowers, so I can wait until I find the perfect flowers. Maybe the stores will come out with more in the spring.

On Tuesday, I made my first brunch reservation (over the phone) and hopefully it will be on the list. I am not sure as the woman on the other end did not ask for my phone number or how to spell our last name. I probably should have just given my first name instead, but oh well. Brad and I are going to Vorstadt Café this Saturday for brunch. Hopefully it all works out.

German Supermarkets

I do have one complaint with German and maybe it is because I have been extremely spoiled in the US and never had to think about it prior to moving here. I cannot tell you how many times I have planned to make certain dishes that contain ingredients I know my grocery store has, but when I go to purchase them they are nowhere to be found. Therefore, I have to go to two or even three other markets in order to obtain the items on my list. I guess the stores in Munich only order products when they run out of them, which causes items to be missing from the shelves for weeks. This then causes you to think that they no longer carry items as they will not be there for weeks (ie the bread I like). Therefore, after weeks of waiting and checking, you finally decide to change and of course the minute you buy an alternative, the product you were looking for shows up on the shelf the following day. Super annoying, but at least I am not working and have time to go to three or four different markets to find things.

Also, it is difficult to figure out the days they restock as I feel like they are always restocking some part of the store and it is never the same day of the week. For example, I will go to the store on a Tuesday and notice that they are stocking milk, but then the following Tuesday the milk shelves are low but they are not restocking. However, I did learn that the large grocery store close to us is relatively new and maybe they do not have the operations portion down yet. Only time will tell.