Quarkbällchen - doughnut heaven

Yep. You heard right. Gluten free doughnuts. Homemade, deep fried, and so completely German!

As some of you might know, Germany is THE place to be at Christmas time. We actually discovered that the region we live in, the Erzgebirge (or Ore Mountains), is the birthplace of Christmas as we know it today. The Christmas tree, ornaments, and especially the lights we put up came from this region of Germany! They also started the wildly popular European tradition of Christmas Markets. And boy are they amazing! They build little villages for the whole month before Christmas and they are right out of a Hallmark card. Lights everywhere, music playing, people drinking mulled wine and eating... doughnuts! Ok, they're eating quarkbällchen, which is basically a doughnut.  They have all different flavors: vanilla, almond, cinnamon sugar, etc. So of course Levi tries one. And he LOVES them. So we get them a few more times. And finally, I'm a little fed up with watching someone else eat delicious, German doughnuts...

These are not just any doughnut. They are made with a special dairy product called quark (hence the name). It loosely translates as curd cheese. This is different than cheese curds and most closely resembles cottage cheese. I checked and I guess they sell it at Whole Foods! Not sure about regular grocery stores as I can't really check until I get home this summer. It's everywhere here. Very popular and treated almost like yogurt. They flavor it and eat it right out of the container. This is completely new to me so excuse me if this is common in the US. Maybe I've been living overseas too long...

So what do I do when I want something I can't have? Make it myself! And boy was it worth it.

This is adapted from a German recipe so all the ingredients are listed by weight.  I have a kitchen scale (which is awesome) so I didn't convert anything to typical US measurements. Sorry!

Gluten Free German Christmas Doughnuts (Quarkbällchen)
Makes: 20-30 doughnut balls               Time: 10 min prep, 20 min frying

INGREDIENTS

• 250g All-purpose gluten free flour (see my blend here)
• 250g Quark (or cottage cheese if you have to)
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 113g Sugar
• 8g Baking powder
• 3/4 tsp Guar gum
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract
• 2 Eggs
• Oil for frying (I used vegetable oil)
• Toppings: powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar

METHOD

1. Add about 4 cups of oil (or 1 liter) to a sauce pan and heat on medium or a little higher. You're deep frying so be careful! You'll have to test the oil temp with a few tester doughnuts to get it right. You want it to sizzle but not get dark too quickly. The inside needs to be cooked and the outside golden brown.
2. This is exactly why this recipe is awesome: put all the ingredients in a bowl (except the oil and toppings) and use a hand mixer to make a smooth batter.
3. Take a mini ice cream scoop, or use two spoons, and scoop small balls of dough into the oil. Do a couple at a time so they cook evenly. Trial and error is the name of the game. Make one, cook, cut it open. Is it done on the inside? Is the outside a dark golden brown? Did it take forever to cook? Change the temp accordingly and be aware it takes a while for the oil temp to change.
4. Once they're cooked, fish them out with kitchen skimmer. Put on paper towels to soak up excess oil.
5. To finish them off, either dust with powdered sugar or roll in cinnamon sugar.

Eat them while they're fresh! They are incredible. Light, fluffy, sweet. Have with a mug of hot mulled wine to get the full German Christmas market experience. Invite friends over and they will be floored. Or don't because you really want to eat them all by yourself.

Oh, and Merry Christmas!

Here's some websites that talk about the history of Christmas in our region:

• http://www.christkindl-markt.com/erzgebirge-germany-home-christmas-ornaments-a-12.html
• http://www.live-like-a-german.com/germany_related_articles/show/The-Erzgebirge-Christmas-Country-in-Germany

Zucchini Bread - it will change your life

Hi everyone! It seems crazy but our regular season is already over! It's playoff time and we're really excited to actually be in the playoffs this year. That also means that our time here is almost over. Whenever something is coming to an end it makes you look back and remember that stage of your life. Our time in Poland has been great. Sometimes hard, frustrating, even boring but overall we've enjoyed ourselves here.

Looking back at my year usually involves thinking about the best things I've made. This one was actually brought to my attention by one of our teammates. I made some zucchini bread at the beginning of the year and brought it to some of our friends. He thought it was the best thing he's ever eaten. And he kept telling me how great it was. He ate the whole loaf in one sitting. Then he told me he would invest in my bakery if I ever opened one in Israel. That was definitely one of the best compliments.

Honestly, I've always loved zucchini bread. My mom has made it ever since I was little and it's one of my favorites. So being gluten free was not an excuse to leave behind one of my favorite things.

So I found a recipe online and adapted it to be gluten free. And it just so happens to be dairy free. After a couple of trials I have tweaked it to be just right. Not that it needed changing. Just perfecting. That's kinda how I do things :)

I adapted this recipe to be gluten free from this regular version: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/moms-zucchini-bread/

Zucchini Bread

Time: 1 hr 20 min                              Servings: 2 loafs

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 cups All purpose gluten free flour (see my blend here)
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Baking soda
• 1 tsp Baking powder
• 2 tsp Guar Gum (or xanthan gum)
• 2 tsp Ground cinnamon
• 4 Eggs
• 1 cup Vegetable oil
• 1-3/4 cups Granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp Vanilla extract
• 2 cups Zucchini, grated
• 1 cup Walnuts, chopped (optional)

METHOD:

1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch loaf pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Combine flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, guar gum, and cinnamon in a medium bowl.
3. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar in a large bowl. Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in zucchini and nuts. Pour batter into pans.
4. Bake for 45-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If the top becomes too brown, tent it with some aluminum foil. Cool bread in the pan for 20 minutes.

You're supposed to wait until the loaf is completely cool before you slice it, but it's soooooo good warm from the oven. It's kinda like cake that you pass off as a bread. If I make it for dessert, I don't put the nuts. You could even add a glaze to be extra fancy. Either way, you will love this. It might unofficially be the best thing I've made this year...

Love,

Maura