Supper Club Berlin!

Mr Wagget is a mean cook.  He's got a sweet flat too.  So after a evening with a bit too much Wein, and way too much boasting about Supper Club successes at Keston Road, a beautiful idea was born:

brought to you by Keston International and Andrew Enterprises….
                                   ….an Ellis / Waggett Production…..
                                                  … Keston Kuche Collaborations is  proud to announce…...

The Berlin Supper Club

The concept was perfectly transferable to Berlin.  Gather a group of interesting folk who have never met each other before, ply with wine, sit at a table… and dine.

The  evening had a taste of danger from the outset.  With sub-zero temperatures and pavements packed so tight with ice it was like walking on marbles, we all felt relieved to have arrived alive.  And ready for a glass of wine.

The starter was deliciously rich but not heavy.  Somewhat high-maintenance for a Supper Club given last minute multiple egg poaching, but the scraped-clean plates were testament to its success.

Salad with blue cheese dressing, crispy pancetta and poached egg.

Next up was a course for which I can claim no credit.  The need to do justice to an exquisite beef fillet and time the cooking to perfection was the danger of this decadent main.  Topped with portabello mushrooms and cheese, baked until perfectly pink, and served with freshly fried home-made chips…. Mr Wagget earned his place in the Keston Kitchen history.

Mmmm Meaty Morsels

Finally, I brought out a tried-and-tested Keston classic: Calvados Rice Pudding brûlée.  So rich and creamy it makes you think you've died and gone to heaven (and you'll probably get there a lot quicker if you eat enough of these indulgent little puds).  The danger of the dessert was my treacherous walk through the ice-rink streets of Prenzlauerberg with 8 freshly baked puds in ceramic ramekins, a blow torch….. and slippery-soled shoes.  Somehow we all made it in one piece.  

Playing with the new toy

Lecker und süß

A highly successful Abend and excellent addition to the Berlin culinary scene.  Nice work Wagget!

Jules x

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Snowy Sunday in Berlin: Red Lentil and Spiced Carrot Soup

Hearty red lentils and spices make this a warming, satisfying soup

Winter is resolutely refusing to budge in Berlin.  A few milder days in early February lulled us into false hopes that the worst was behind us, but the cold bit back with a vengeance.  It's the sort of cold that seeps into your bones and hovers over the city with sinister force; trying to dissuade potential revellers from venturing outside.

I put my survival to date down to two vital ingredients:

1. Duvet coat

2. Soup ….

... and copious amounts of it.  Making soup on a Sunday (when everything in Berlin is shut) is a therapeutic antidote to the preceeding night's adventures which invariably involve artic conditions and trudging from one bar to the next on perilous ice or slush.  Cook a big batch to keep you warm through the rest of the week when the weather is too schlecht to bother with the shops and too dark to inspire you to cook.

This gently spiced soup is particularly warming, and the lentils make it hearty and satisfying.  Curl up and enjoy a big bowl with some crusty bread.  Guaranteed to provide resilience until Spring arrives.

Jules x

Ingredients:

small piece of fresh ginger

1tsp cumin seeds

a pinch chilli flakes

1 onion

2 large carrots

150g red lentils

1litre vegetable stock (I use Marigold bouillon)

small bunch fresh coriander

Finely chop the onion.  Peel and grate the ginger and the carrots.  Heat some olive oil in a large pan and fry the ginger and spices for a couple of minutes.  Add the carrot and onion and cook for 5 mins.  Add the lentils and stock.  Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 mins, stirring occasionally.  Check the lentils are tender, if not cook a wee bit more.  Blend.

Sprinkle the coriander to serve.  You can stir through a spoonful of natural yoghurt if you fancy.

Enjoy as it warms your bones.

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Berlin - 5 days of food

Last weekend i went to visit Julia and her Keston Kuche in Berlin. The weather was very chilly but the cafes were warming and there is an amazing choice of food to sample from traditional German to cuisines from around the globe.
Berlin may not be the obvious choice for a foodies paradise but if you go to the right places (and hanging out with a resident definitely helps) you will be pleasantly surprised.
Her are some of my culinary highlights, take note if you are planning a trip there!

Rachael x

 My favourite gallery in Berlin is the Hamburger Bahnhof, before embarking on the art we paid a visit to the restaurant in the gallery. I have been to Berlin a few times and always avoided currywurst and the orange sausages they serve everywhere but this menu made it sound appetizing and promised that the sausage was organic. It came with lots of mustard and fresh horse radish which made it edible!

For dessert at the gallery restaurant we had apple strudel with vanilla sauce which was absolutely delicious and not to be missed!

It was Julia's friend Andrew's birthday while we were visiting so Ju whipped up some black bottom cupcakes (from the humming bird bakery cook book) and a lovely coffee cake to celebrate.

This brunch featured in the previous Keston Kuche post and rightly so, i was keen not to miss out on trying it for myself. Anna Blume is a bustling cafe in Prenzlauer Berg, the brunch was worth making the trip for - a tower of meats, cheeses, salad, fruit and jams and a basket of bread to go alongside.

 Julia and I stopped for cake at a cafe in the Hackescher Markt courtyards, i had a huge slice of apple, walnut and caramel cake with cream cheese and caramel frosting. Ju had an equally exciting looking carrot cake.

After a long morning of culture in the sub zero temperatures we were in serious need of a hot meal, we stopped at a restaurant called Schwarzwaldstuben for a hearty lunch of schnitzel with fried potatoes and a cucumber salad. 

Back to Anna Blumes for a fruity breakfast

 

We headed south one evening to a jazz night in Neukolln at Cafe Engel and stopped off on the way for a Korean meal at Kimchi Princess. Lu and I opted for this feast which was strips of pork belly that you barbeque yourself at the table and the eat wrapped in lettuce with a selection of tasty curry pastes and spicy cabbage. I will definitely be keen to try more Korean food in future.

  

 The last thing i ate before leaving Prenzlauer berg was at my favourite cafe from previous visits. Kauf Dich Glucklich on Oderberger Strasee does the most amazing waffles with a huge choice of toppings. Every time a visit i have the same though - apple sauce and cinnamon!

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Brunch in Berlin

577 miles between us but Keston Kitchen teamwork is still going strong.   So as Keston Kitchen UK was dishing up an exotic brunch at the Elrington Table, Keston Küche has been dutifully dining out at some of the best brunch tables in Berlin.

Brunch platter for two at Cafe Anna Blume in Prenzlauer Berg

Brunch is a Berlin institution.  It's reflective of this city's laid back mentality that Sundays are perfectly designed to help you gently and easily recover from the night before.  You stroll into one of the many and varied cafes when you wake, anytime between 11 and 5pm, establish yourself in a comfy spot - in the last throws of summer this has been on sunny terraces outside - and prepare to stay a while.  

I've been to two types of brunches.  The first is the standard choose-of-the-menu brunch.  I guess the difference here is the array of choice and the generous portions, designed to be consumed slowly as you digest the events of the night before with a couple of bleary-eyed pals.

Then there's the brunch buffet.  But this is no mad rush to stock your plate with cold toast and greying scrambled eggs; it is a delicious ever-evolving spread that will gently bring you back to life.  When you first arrive, there's fresh fruit and yoghurt... then at some point croissants and bread and cheese emerge... then you notice the meats beginning to take over the table…. and for the hungrier there's pastas and hot dishes from mid afternoon.  Who could fail to feel right as rain after this?  And once you've spend a couple of hours at brunch, you stroll home and… do nothing.  And that is Sunday in Berlin.  Perfect.

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