Schinken Noodle Mausi Style (Egg and Bacon Pasta)

 Schinken Noodle is a german dish and one of the dishes which my husband taught me how to make. It is egg and bacon with rotini noodle. It is not like Carbonara. It is more like scramble egg and bacon pasta. My husband and I love this pasta because it is super easy and we always have egg and bacon and pasta at home. And of course, it is delicious!

I added two additional ingredients to make it little bit a little bit my own. Nothing fancy. I just added some onion and cilantro because I had these at home and I thought these will enhance the flavor of this pasta.

Here is how I made it.

Schinken Noodle Mausi Style
Serves 4

Ingredients
Rotini Pasta   1lb
Onion            1
Bacon            5 slices
Cilantro          1/2 cups (chopped)
Egg                 3
Olive Oil         1 table spoons
Salt and Pepper    For taste

1. First, chop onion and cilantro. And also Bacons.

2. Start boiling water and cook Pasta.

3. Add olive oil into frying pan and saute onion until soft. Then add bacon.

4. When bacon is cooked, add cilantro.

5. When pasta is cooked, add them to onion and bacon mixture in the frying pan. Then add eggs and mix then well in the pan.

6. Serve with some fresh chopped cilantro for garnish.

Easy and simple delicious Schinken Noodle. It tasted even better when I add some onion and cilantro!

By the way, I added Pin it hover button so if you hover over images on this site, you see pin it button. Feel free to pin any of these images to your pinterest board!

Christmas Items from Germany

My husband had a business trip to Germany the other day and his parents gave us lots of Christmas sweets and decorations and gifts. 

First of all, I asked them to get this special Christmas cake called "Stollen". I didn't know about this cake before I met my husband and ever since then I crave this for Christmas. It has some candied fruit in it and very buttery and yummy. This is the one which my mother-in-law brought for us from this famous department store in Munich called "Dallmayer"

This is how it look opened. It is sliced already and it is a perfect size for me to have it after meal. You can actually find stollen here in the U.S. but I wanted to eat the real one from Germany :-) Thanks for buying these for me!

Also, this is another Christmas sweets which we crave. It is called "Domino". Actually, this is my husband's favorite. Inside, it has three layers of marzipan, some kind of jelly and ginger bread and coated with chocolate. Even though I am not a big fan of marzipan, I really like this domino. This is really sweet so I am fine with one one these at one time but my husband can have many at once. I asked him. "Isn't it really really sweet?" and he said "Yeah, it is perfect! I can eat them all at once if I want to." OK. but we should try to eat little by little so we can have them until Christmas :-) 

Another item is almond chocolate from Lindt. This one has cinnamon and cardamon flavor and in my opinion it is Christmas flavor. Normally, I don't care much for chocolate but this one is different. It is so good that I can not stop with just one. I have to eat three at once. It is a dangerous chocolate to have at home :-) 

And this one is marzipan sweet. I am not a big fan of marzipan so this will be all for my husband. My husband loves marzipan. These little balls of marzipan just looks like small potatoes. It looks really cute. 

Also, we got lots of Christmas decorations. My mother-in-law is great at decorating. Aren't these cute? Some cute socks with little gifts in it and also very Christmasy table runner. and heart shaped Christmas wreath. I love them! We didn't have much Christmas decoration at home so I am excited to hang these and make our house more Christmasy!

I think December 6 was Santa Clause day in Germany and Santa visit kids on Dec 6. I am not sure if he brings presents on this day or not but I think they open Christmas presents on Dec 24 normally. I feel like it is already Christmas here at my house! I found a 24 hour Christmas music channel on TV. I am so excited about this holiday season. We have lots of fun things planned and also will have many relaxing days with Christmas music and bake some cookies! I never really thought much about Christmas before but this year for some reason, thinking of Christmas season make me very happy and warm :-) 

Pork Schnitzel & Mushroom Spaetzle

I made something from my husband home country. This is a dish I always have every time I go to Germany. The best Schnitzel is of course my husband's grandam's. I think normally people use veal for this dish but I was watching Tyler Florence on TV the other day and he was using pork so I used his recipe this time for Schnitzel and Spaetzle.

Here is Tyler Florence's recipe I used for pork Schnitzel. Click here to go to Food Network website.

Also, here is Tyler's mushroom mustard spaetzle recipe. Click here to go to Food Network website.


My Schnitzel was thinker than it should have been. I tried to pound them thinly but I guess it was not enough. While I was cooking, it started to curl up a little. I should pound more thinly next time. But it tasted good.

For Spaetzle, I used this special tool which I bought in Germany. Tyler was using pasta colander for spaetzle so I guess you don't need this special tool but I like this tool. There are small holes in the bottom so when you add dough and press it, the noodle comes out from the hole. When it hits the hot water in a pan, it will be cooked immediately.

The dough is pretty loose but sticky.

This is how it looks in the pot.

This is after I drain them.

This time, I followed Tyler's recipe and mixed these spaetzle with mushroom, mustard, thyme and heavy cream. It was really tasty.

The spaetzle was easier than I thought and my husband was so happy when he saw it so I think I will make this more often from now on. There is also a dish called "Cheese Spaetzle" and this dish can be eaten by itself. It normally has caramelized onion and cheese with Spaetzle. Maybe I will make that one next time.

I think I need to work more on Schnitzel still to make it perfect. However, I guess I will never be able to make Schnitzel like oma. I am looking forward to have oma's Schnitzel again sometime soon :-)

Trader Joe's Flammkuchen & Our Tomato Bruschetta

A few years ago, I visited a town which was a border of Germany and France. (I forgot the name of the town) and had their famous flammkuchen. I loved it so much. It looks kind of like pizza but it is very thin crust and comes with cream and bacon and caramelized onion. Oh, it was heavenly.

Since then, every time I go to Germany and find flammkuchen at a restaurant or cafe, I have to have it.

The other day, I went to Trader Joe's and found this flammkuchen in their frozen section. I immediately have to buy it. Then, I tried it that night. Since it was a frozen flammkuchen, I didn't have too much expectation, however this flammkuchen was really good!

It was creamy and bit tangy and sweet and salty at the same time. I definitely buy this again when I go to Trader Joe's next time. I love Trader Joe's!!

Well, flammkuchen was bit too small for two people so I also made tomato bruschetta. This is something I make quite often and it is easy but always good.

I just cut some baguette and drizzle olive oil and bake them in the broiler until it is crispy. Then, rub some garlic on it while it is hot. Then top with chopped tomato and mozzarella mixed with some olive oil and vinegar with salt and pepper. Oh, I also add some basil to it.

Easy yet delicious and fun!

It was such an easy dinner but very satisfying and delicious. Oh, I really want to eat that flammkuchen again! Trader Joe's, here I come!

Back in Frankfurt and final eating spree with friends

We went back to Frankfurt to finish our Germany trip and went to have dinner with our friends.

First, we went to Ethiopian restaurant with a couple whom we have kwon for a while. Actually, last time when I went to Germany last August, we have stayed at their place for one night. 

Beer which came in a cup that looks like coconut.

We order one dish for each but then they will bring all together in one big plate like this.

Open the lid. Tada~!

You eat these with some kind of bread? which is very spongy and soft and bit tangy. Of course we ate with hands! They were really good. They were not as spicy as I thought. Maybe they make it milder for German customers. I like the fact that I can eat many different kind of dish :-)

I love spending time with this couple. They are so nice. The lady was my husband's friend from university but now I am also her good friend and she actually read my blog everyday! She is one of the biggest supporter of my blog. It makes me happy to know that someone is enjoying my blog :-)

On the next night, we went to have dinner again with this couple and also one other couple. This time, we went to the city where they live in which is about 1 hour away from Frankfurt. It is very nice area.

I met this other couple for the first time on this trip but I really liked them. I felt like I was able to connect with them. The lady is an artist. It's so cool! I wish I could paint or make some kind of art...  I also went to their gallery which was coincidentally showing Japanese artists works. It was so cool to see these arts and also it was cool to get some explanation or the artists' insight about the pieces.

So, we went to my favorite lebanese restaurant in this city. Ever since I went to this lebanese restaurant, I am trying to find some good lebanese restaurant in NY also.
First, appetizers.

I absolutely love those appetizers. Since we ordered a lot of appetizers, I shared one main dish with my husband.

I ordered the same thing which I ordered last summer. It was ground lamb with eggplant. This was amazing. I love this dish. Silly me. I forget to remember the name of this dish again. I never learn. Well, I remember the taste so I will try to make this at home!

Also, a lebanese white wine which I had there was also really good. My friend wrote down the name so I need to ask her for that :-)

This dinner was also so much fun! I wish I can see both of the couples again sometime soon. Oh, I really wish they live close by. I wish all of my friends live close to me. I know it is very selfish thing to say but I think it will be so much fun, I mean it will be so so so much fun to have all of my friends around all the time. Well, my friends are all over the world so I think it is a bit difficult thing to do. On a blight side, I can go all over the world to visit all of my friends!

Anyhow, I also walked around Frankfurt by myself and ate so many things. One of the thing which I ordered and had no idea how it looks was "Sausage Salad"

It was definitely different from what I had expected but it was good. Though it was too much, I really liked those potatoes! (Did I mention it enough? Potatoes!!!)

Then, there was this restaurant which was in the middle of the big shopping street. I really liked this restaurant and ended up going there twice.

I was in Germany, I had to eat sausage, right? But the best thing about this plate was the french fries!!! I have said it many times but I will say it again. Potatoes in Germany are great! I think this french fries were one of the best french fries I ever had in my life!

Also, their tomato soup and turkey salad were great.

This turkey was sauteed in curry and sweet chili sauce flavor and the salad dressing was honey mustard. This salad was really good. This is also something I would like to try making at home.

In Germany, there are many immigrants from Turkey. So, I had to eat Turkish food also.
I had Adana kebab. It was juicy and delicious. Quite a lot for one plate.

And to finish this wonderful turkish meal, I had turkish tea. My favorite!

I met so many people and ate so much delicious food. I had a great time in Germany. I hope my Germany trip report made you wanna go to Germany!

Over the weekend, one of our good friend couple and their son are visiting us. I am so excited. I might not be able to update my blog until Tuesday but I will be back!!

Meeting family & friends in Munich and of course, Eating more!

I also went to Munich which is my husband's hometown to see family and friends. Of course, I ate a lot here in Munich also!!

First, my mother-in-law cooked White Asparagus for us. I believe this is special spring dish for Germans. It was still very beginning of spring so these white asparagus was one of the first ones which came out at the vegetable store. My mother-in-law tried them before to make sure it is really good ones. So those were the excellent asparagus!

This is cooking the peeled asparagus.

Then, she served them with butter sauce. She also made Schnitzel and potatoes for us! She knows we love schnitzel :-) They were really good! I have never really pay much attention to white asparagus before but I would love to try cooking this wonderful vegetable from now on.

We also went some really good restaurants with family. One of them was an Italian restaurant. The waiters were talking each other in Italian and I felt like I was in Italy.

Mu husband and I had eggplant and prawn appetizer. I love both eggplant and prawn so this is perfect appetizer for me!

For main course, I had pasta with prawns and tomatoes. (Prawn again!) This was awesome. The pasta was perfectly cooked and tomato and prawn were fresh and tasty.

My husband was having Truffle with fresh pasta. This smelled so good. I had to taste them. Mmmmm, Yummy. Look at the amount of truffle. They are very generous.

I know that Truffles are quite expensive. My husband and I were just wondering if you can cultivate Truffles. I have seen people walking around the mountain with their Truffle pig or dog to find Truffle but we just wonder if it is possible to cultivate them.

Anyhow, we had lunch at a nice cafe in downtown. This was a goat cheese and herb risotto which my husband was eating. I am not crazy about goat cheese so this amount of goat cheese will be too much for me but it was perfect to get a few bite from his dish. And it looks beautiful.

At this cafe, I saw many people drinking this pink stuff. First, I thought it must be pink grapefruit or pink lemonade but my husband asked the waiter and found out that it was rhubarb juice. I have never tried rhubarb juice. I had to try. I forgot to take a picture of it but it was quite good. Tangy and refreshing.

Also, we met many of our friends at a restaurant for dinner. We were so happy that many people were able to come join us. We had a great time. I ate schnitzel again here. Their schnitzel was pork instead of veal. I think I like veal schnitzel better. But their french fries were awesome! This is such a huge schnitzel, it must be for two people.

During the dinner, one of the friends told us that they are planning to go to a midnight movie sneak preview. My husband told me many times that he used to go to these midnight sneak preview and he loves this movie theater. He wanted to go so I decided to go with him to see my husband's favorite movie theater. They told me that most of the movie they show there are English movies so I can understand.

This was a quite interesting experience. This is called sneak preview and you don't know what movie they are showing until it actually starts. It seems like before they show those movies to the general public, they do this sneak preview and see people's reaction to the movie and then decide if they are going to show them to the general public or not. At the end of the show, you put your ticket stub in one of the three cups which says "good" "so-so" or "bad".

It is quite exciting to sit in a movie theater without knowing what movie I am going to watch. The movie was...... not so great in my opinion. It was OK. It was a movie I have never heard of before. I think it was called "A Single Man". (I am not even sure about it) The actors were good and the movie wasn't bad but it was not great in my opinion. So I put my ticket stub in the middle cup.

However, I really liked this experience. My husband was also happy to take me to this movie theater which he has many good memories.

Eating everyday with Grandma in Germany

My husband's grandma lives in a winery area of Germany so you can see the grape vines everywhere in whole surrounding neighborhood. We walked together between these grape vines. It must be very pretty in summer. Grandma also has her own garden which she makes vegetables and flowers. I wish I had a garden like hers. It is quite big and she takes good care of it. I heard that there are some places in NY where you can rent a garden but there is no garden or farm around where I live so there is no such a thing here. Too bad.

It seems like I had been eating non-stop when I was visiting grandma. I was pleasantly surprised how much grandma can eat and drink! I think she can eat and drink more than I do. Maybe it is her secret to longevity :-) She enjoy eating good food and drinking good wine or beer.

One of the restaurant which my husband's cousins took us was an Italian restaurant. This Italian restaurant was really good. We ordered about 6 appetizers and shared them and also had each main course.

There are not so many photos of appetizers we ordered but one of the appetizers which I liked was this octopus appetizer. It is not too easy to find octopus dishes in the U.S. so I was quite happy to eat this octopus. We eat octopus quite often in Japan so I miss this kind of food sometimes.

My main dish was pasta! Of course. They had something special like this rolled Lasagna. Isn't it a great idea to roll up Lasagna like this? It was with porcini mushroom and the thick creamy sauce was divine! This was really really good. I would like to recreate this at home sometimes.

Grandma was eating Mushroom Tortellini. This was also very creamy and rich and delicious. Since I was sitting right next to grandma, I stole a few of her tortellini :-) It was sooooo good!

I never imagined that Italian food can be this good in Germany. Who knew, right? I feel like the quality of food at restaurants in Germany are really good. Maybe because people always take me to good restaurants but so far all the restaurants I went in Germany were really good!

The following night, we went to a neighborhood restaurant and ate a lot again.

I had stake at this restaurant. Look at this garlic! This was great for a garlic lover like me!
Also the potato croquette on the side reminded me of Japan because we also eat potato croquette.

My stake came with salad. I liked salad in Germany because salad dressing is mild and salad leaves are very tender.

My husband was eating Spaetzle which is a special noodle in Germany. I have made this at home before. It is great with cheese and sauteed onion.

Grandma was eating two kind of fish special with some vegetables and pasta. It is quite and amount isn't it?

I was happy to be able to visit grandma. This was the second time for me to see her and I really enjoyed spending time with her. She is just so cute! Her smile make me feel very happy. And, I realized that she likes eating like I do :-) I am looking forward to seeing her again sometime soon!