My System by J.P. Muller

I happened upon this article and had never heard of this gentleman before. He wrote this book in the very early 1900's and if people still (minus the corsets) did these daily, we'd all grow up to be Jack Lalanes! Click on the title of the post for the link to the book online. It was very interesting...at least to me.

Pfeffernüsse

If you click the above title you will find the lovely wikipedia link to these yummy cookies.  They are delicious and mine really dont fit the definition now that I read it.  This is probably because I had absolutely no idea what the result was supposed to be when I baked them, having never eaten any in my life. Oh well.  Hard as a rock cookies arent really my thing and I thought my result was freaking great, so there.  I am sticking with mine, even if they are authenticity-challenged.

These are a combination of two different recipes I found with some substitutions because that star anise stuff is nasty and the name is nasty sounding too because it sounds like anus and I am just not putting that in my food, so there. A certain very intimidating girl that I know introduced me to these and she said use ginger instead.  I like ginger so I went with that. It worked great.  Thank you mean girl named Ellen.

So, here is my rendition that I will now make every holiday season until I croak because they just taste like little bites of Chrismas joy....even when you arent feeling particularly joyous.

Pfeffernusse (Pepper Nuts)

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp dried orange peel (alt. candied orange peel)
2 tsp lemon or lime zest
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup brown or raw sugar
1/4 cup local honey
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
3 tbsp vanilla extract or brandy (or a combination)
1 cup powdered sugar for dusting
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In medium bowl mix flour, salt and pepper, spices, zest and baking soda.  Set aside.
In large mixer beat together butter, sugar and honey until fluffy...about 4 minutes.
Beat in the egg and yolk.  Reduce mixing speed to low and add flour mixture and then vanilla.
Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for several hours.

(at this point decide if you would like cookie sized ones or little tiny bite sized ones.  i did bite size.)

Roll handfuls of dough into long snakes about 1/2 inch diameter and then cut into little 1/2 inch pieces.  You can put them pretty close together on the cookie sheet because they only rise very slightly.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes if you want them kinda chewy.  Maybe 15 if you want them hard and crunchy.
Cool on wire rack and then roll them in powdered sugar.

This is the size and look of the dough.


In the oven


The final product...ugly but delicious. Need a bit more powdered sugar than in this pic, as well. Food photography is obviously not my forte.


Here is a person with way more photog skills than me who made hers into big cookies...same idea but cuter.

Metaphors involving flatulence (not really)

Julia loves her some Tokio Hotel.  Tokio Hotel is a German band,  aren't even from Tokyo, and obviously can't spell.  Also, Tokio Hotel looks kinda.....goofy. She thinks they look awesome. They dont...they look goofy. Even knowing how this blog post is going to end (she is sitting right beside me), she is still indignant that I would even say such a thing. I am forced to remember myself at the EXACT same age sitting in the back of a crappy grey oldsmobile on an infamous trip through Death Valley (my parent's "vacations" are legendary and involve endless hours of driving). I was reading (aloud) to my my mother the pointless ramblings---TOKIO HOTEL IS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MWAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!---sorry, i walked off for two seconds and Julia came in here and hacked me!

Anyway, I was reading aloud to my mother from Star Hits magazine (only for cool people) and I remember the quote exactly...it was Andy Taylor that said it. I remember because my mother was extremely irritated and agitated after i read it and told me to stop reading immediately and that Andy Taylor was nasty. The interviewer asked him what he enjoyed or something and he said, "metaphors involving flatulence". I had no idea what flatulence was...or metaphors for that matter. (Just more proof that my daughter is smarter than me because she knew immediately.) I had to look it up in the dictionary once we got home because neither parent would tell me what flatulence was the entire trip! My mother never did enjoy "entertainment" or the word "fart"...but i digress....

Julia put a new facebook profile pic up today...it's nuts.
This is Bill Kaulitz, singer and her beloved.

I do not deny that his hair is only made to look less silly by the enormous amount of makeup he is wearing, but then per-chance you have met Mr. Nick Rhodes, keyboardist extraordinaire.....

Julia says Nick's problem is that his hair looks too normal and it doesnt balance the makeup properly. I say Nick (awesome jumpsuit) always did look girly, but it a kind good, sorta cuteish way...i would never go so far as to say Nick was "sexy", that was Simon (singer and my beloved). I have a thing for singers...


Julia right now is about to cry...she keeps saying "Why are we the same?! I am so much cooler than you!! Whaaaaa!!"
Read em and weep, Julia!!

Duran Duran


Tokio Hotel


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Duran Duran


Tokio Hotel


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Duran Duran


Tokio Hotel


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Duran Duran


Tokio Hotel


Yes, Julia. You are cooler than me RIGHT NOW, but I was freaking AWESOME 20 years ago!! So there!!!  Duran Duran ROCKS!!!!!!

Nein!!! Tokio Hotel Rocks!!!!!!!

Shut up, Julia and stop talking to me in German. Have i mentioned she is learning German because of them...?  For the record, Julia, Georg is the hot one.