My local cemeteries just a short walk away.
All posts by Helle Møller
Chickpea flour pancakes
These are easy and quick to make, and also a healthy grab-and-go lunch if you are going to be out and about and with no even remotely healthy food within reach but only those train-station-sandwiches made with refined wheat and filled with highly processed meat/cheese/whatever, not to mention E-numbers, that are being peddled wherever you look when on the move in and around Berlin.
The quantities below can of course be doubled or trippled and the pancakes then frozen.
Mix 150 g chickpea flour with approx. 4 dl oat milk (or any other plant milk or animal milk, or even water). Start with less and add until you have the desired texture which depends how thin or thick you want your pancakes. Let rest while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Then add 1 tblsp baking soda (natron), 2 tblsp psyllium husk, and 1 tsp salt, and mix well.
Then add whatever you want as a filling. If you want sweet pancakes, add for example any kind of berry, and some maple syrup.
In this case, I added half a pack of broccoli, from the freezer, chopped; a red onion, finely chopped; two garlic cloves, finely chopped; half a tsp turmeric; a tsp moringa powder; a tsp dried methi leaves; a tsp ajwain seeds, a healthy dose of black pepper, and a pinch of chili flakes, and a tblsp nutritional yeast.
Other ingredients can be chopped red bell pepper, aged black garlic, curry leaves, nori strips, fresh herbs, shredded beetroot, chopped olives, crumpled feta cheese, a tsp amla powder, ……
Then bake as you would any other pancake.
If you do not need to eat them right away or within a day or two, freeze them in order to be able to grab them and put them in your rucksack for a lunchbreak when out walking.
Christmas Markets in Berlin and beyond 2024
LAST UPDATED 16 December PM
This is a continuation of the post about Christmas markets in 2023, which is when I started the quest of taking myself out of my comfort zone and visit and photograph as many of them as possible.
The ones I did not manage to visit are listed here.
NOTE: If you are looking for inspiration, you should primarily use the post from 2023, since this list only comprises those I did not manage to visit last year. Please also double-check dates and times in the links given.
ONLY ON 24 November
Natural and unprocessed at Ökowerk.
ONLY ON 30 November
ONLY ON 29 November-1 December
VISITED 30 November: “Small but fine” in the medieval village of Alt-Marzahn. Fr 14-22, Sa 12-22, So 12-22. Underwhelmed. Only redeeming feature: One stand with West-African streetfood. I had expected a bit more in Marzahn. Just a couple of photos, starting with a typical Berlin sight as seen from my home that morning: Garbage in trees. Very popular, in fact too popular to everbe removed. The trash on the photo came from the infinity building site next door during a storm years ago, and although Cresco Capital has the equipment to remove it, they would not dream of it.
ONLY ON 30 November-1 December
A piece of Danish Christmas culture. 12.00-18.00, Admission free.
Holy Shit Shopping (that IS what it is called): Admission 8 euro. From 12.00 to 19.00.
ONLY ON 1 December
Church choir and handmade gifts in Lübars. This ought to be idyllic, and can be combined with a highly recommended walk up to Köppschensee. Unfortunately, again this year, I will not be able to make it.
Long-standing tradition on the outskirts of Berlin. Lichtenrade.
Evang. Johannesstift, Zehlendorf
VISITED on 1 December: Along the Landwehrkanal*). Nowkoelln X-mas flow. 10-16.30. The Nowkoelln Xmas Flow takes place at the Maybachufer in Neukölln, directly at the Landwehrkanal between Volkspark Hasenheide and Görlitzerpark.
Why on earth this is called a Christmas market is beyond me. Nothing christmassy about it. Just piles of second (at least) hand junk. One stand with Japanese street food as the redeeming feature. Still, the weather was nice and the walk there along Landwehrkanal pleasant:
ONLY ON 1 AND 8 December:
“Potters, painters, arts and crafts, fashion and jewellery designers”. Artisan advent in Charlottenburg.
Evang. Johannesstift, Zehlendorf
ONLY ON 6 December:
Strausberg. Not in Berlin, but I will attempt to visit this one
ONLY ON 6-8 December:
Rixdorf – a lot of home-made stuff: “Berlin’s most romantic Christmas market.”
ONLY ON 7 December
“A very British Christmas” at St. George’s Church
Schiffshebewerk Finow on my wishlist every year but so far, I have not managed to fit it in.
ONLY ON 7-8 December:
Christmas market for dogs and their humans. (Why am I not surprised?)
Italian Christmas market. Street-food etc.
Arts and crafts, sausages and mulled wine, in Frohnau.
On the banks of the Havel River: Christkindlmarkt Kladow
Fairytale Christmas market at the oldest surviving castle in Berlin.
Kunstadvent in Berlin-Friedrichshagen.
“Typically Berlin Atmosphere at Bröhan”.
ONLY ON 8 December:
ONLY ON 8, 15, AND 22 December:
Weddingmarkt Christmas edition
FIRST THREE ADVENT WEEKENDS
VISITED 1 December: By many called the prettiest Christmas market in Berlin – Späth’sche Baumschule
Very cosy with a stage, and a big fire, and good quality things to buy if that is what you are looking for. Also the nice “Hofladen” was open. Relatively crowded. Did not take any photos (too cold :-)).
ON ALL WEEKENDS IN ADVENT
Nordic/Medieval at Schloss Britz
ON EVERY ADVENT SUNDAY
Sustainable consumption at Kollwitzplatz eco market.
ONLY ON 13 to 15 December:
VISITED 14 DECEMBER: Alt-Stadt Strausberg
Of course not in Berlin, but I wanted to take a closer look at Strausberg wich is only about an hour away on the S5. I gave up the original plan to walk around the lake first – too cold, dark and drizzly – but the Christmas market was cozy. However, not cozy enough to actually take my camera out of the rucksack, so just took a few smartphone snaps (The first two on the way from the station:
Not in Berlin but would like to visit: Königs Wusterhausen
ONLY ON 14 December:
Dicke Linda Christmas Market at Kranoldplatz. NOTE: In Neukölln
Covered Christmas stroll on Kranoldplatz. NOTE: In Steglitz
ONLY ON 14 to 15 December:
Unconventional in a cool location in Prenzlauerberg
ONLY ON 15 DECEMBER:
ONLY ON 21 and 22 December:
VISITED 21 DECEMBER: A falconry show and Jochen the talking elephant in Westend. I went mostly for the – alledged – falconry show but saw no signs of that being true at all. There were some stands with good quality things – for example had I been looking for things like gloves, hats, scarves …. I could easily have found something I liked. Relatively well visited though the atmosphere a bit subdued, or maybe that was just my imagination, after the Magdeburg tragedy the day before.
VISITED 22 DECEMBER: Arts, crafts and delicacies in the very south of Berlin. (Rudower Weihnachtsmeile). Quite nice, some interesting streetfood, including Chinese. As in Westend yesterday, the atmosphere seemed a bit quiet.
NEW THIS YEAR: FROM 8 NOVEMBER TO 29 DECEMBER: Wintertraum in Niederschöneweide
Monday to Thursday 14.00-22.00; Friday and Saturday 14.00-23.00; Sunday and holidays 12.00-21.00. Closed 24 December. Entrance free.
From 15 November to 16 Februar:
From 18 November to 30 December:
All-inclusive next to an iconic bridge over the River Spree*). Note high admission fee and online tickets with much included in the way of drinks and food. At the Spreespeicher at Oberbaumbrücke
From 25 November to 22 December:
VISITED 28 November: A piece of Scandinavia in Berlin
Moose sausages and other game products. And if you want – alledgedly – real glögg, and not the wishy-washy Glühwein, this market claims to have the real deal. I saw Danish, Finnish, Icelandic and Swedish glögg on offer. (Or you can make your own).
From 25 November to 30 December:
VISITED ON 12 DECEMBER: Tempelhofer Hafen. Very small, traditional, with “the usual suspects” plus one stand with Tibetan street food. For some strange reason does not make the best of the location right next to the harbour. Did not take any photos.
From 28 November to 1 January:
VISITED 13 DECEMBER: NEW THIS YEAR: Teuffelsberg
“Berlin’s highest Christmas market”. Highest is undoubtedly true, but calling it a market is a bit of a stretch. Too boring – and cold – to even take my camera out of the rucksack, so just took a few smartphone snaps, except one photo I took on the way back to S Grunewald:
Also: (Not in Berlin but would like to try to squeeze them in
25.11.-22.12.: Rostock (combined with a walk on the beach in Warnemünde)
25.11.-22.12: Frankfurt (Oder) (also one 7.-15. December)
An almost-healthy, almost-candy, cake
First published 9 December 2012
Contains a minimum of white flour and no refined white sugar (except the icing sugar which is optional).
Here is my customised take on panforte (which is usually based on dried figs and too much flour):
Mix
400 g mixed nuts, can be hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds, pistacios, and even some pumpkin and/or sunflower seeds, lightly dry-roasted (optional) and coarsely chopped
with
400 g mixed dried fruit, can be dates, apricots – figs if you insist but I prefer dates and dried apricots with a little bit of candied orange peel and some ginger in some form or other (stem ginger in a syrup, or candied, optional but to me, ginger in this recipe is essential). I would imagine dried cherries would also work
and
3 tblsp cocoa powder
1,5 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp roasted, ground cloves
1 tsp roasted ground coriander seeds
Ground seeds from ten cardamom pods
1 tsp ground black pepper
Heat 400 g of a mixture of honey, brown sugar and syrup – maple, or ginger syrup – must not boil – and add 150 g dark chocolate and two tblsp butter or oil (I am an olive oil freak so that is what I always use).
Pour over the fruit/nuts/spice mixture, mix well (most easily done with your hands but be aware of the heat). Press the mixture into a well-greased oven-proof plate or a round baking tin with baking paper covering the bottom. You may have to use a bit of brute force as the mixture settles. Make sure there are no air pockets at the bottom, sides or corners. Make the surface as smooth as possible.
This portion fits into a baking plate measuring 25×25 cm and will then be a couple of cm tall.
Bake at 150 degrees C in 35-50 minutes depending on the thickness of the layer. The cake should still feel slightly soft and wobbly in the middle, since it does not set completely until it cools off.
Dust with icing sugar. Keep well wrapped in clling-film in the fridge and it will keep for weeks.
Glögg
First published here 1 December 2012.
For 8-10 persons:
- 2 bottles of redwine
- 1 bottle of port
- ¼ bottle brandy or rum
- 250 g dried currants (normally raisins but I prefer (Danish): korender, (German): Korinthen (MUST be organic, otherwise they are waxed and the wax melts when heated and it is disgusting)
- 1 vanilla pod
- 2 cinnamon sticks (Sri Lanka or Ceylon – NOT Kassia)
- 10 cloves
- 8 cardamom pods, slightly crushed
- If you like your glögg extra spicy, add 10 black peppercorns
- If you like a slight licorice note, add 4 star anise as well
- 1 knob of fresh ginger, sliced
- The peel of 1 lemon
- The peel of two oranges
- 150 g chopped almonds
- Sugar to taste, but remember that the port and the raisins/currants are sweet
Please note that at least all fruit must be organic. Otherwise it is treated with some kind of wax (among many other toxins) which really does not work when heated, or at all.
Mix the brandy/rum with the raisins/currants and leave for at least 24 hours.
Mix some of the port with vanilla, peels and spices, bring to just under boiling point, remove from heat and leave to infuse for at least 24 hours. Will keep longer in a well-sealed container in the fridge. For convenience, place the peels and spices (which need to be discarded before serving) in a gauze bag or a tea filter bag, or just pour it through a fine-meshed sieve before heating and serving.
To serve:
Heat all ingredients gently in a heavy-bottomed pot, making sure it does not boil. Serve piping hot in mugs or glasses, with a spoon for the raisins and almonds.
Photowalk with VHS “Praktische Tour zur Fotografie: Stadt” 7 December
The teacher is Johannes Rigal, whose courses I always enjoy.
We were in the area of Hardenbergstraße, Ernst-Reuter Platz, Fasanenstraße, Kurfürstendamm ….. and the first assignment was to do with “describe ‘city’ to someone who has never seen one’. There were about six other assignments later on, but I got kind of stuck on the first one.
Will need to pick 10-15 photos from the following:
Vegan cinnamon stars
Recommended by “PINK – Aktiv gegen Brustkrebs”, which of course means they contain no refined sugar.
Once I start making them, I will translate as I go along.
Gesund naschen in der Vorweihnachtszeit
Was wäre die Weihnachtszeit ohne selbstgemachte Plätzchen?! Da wir im PINK!-Team selbst große Naschkatzen sind, möchten wir Ihnen ein ganz besonderes Rezept vorstellen, das beweist, dass Plätzchen nicht immer kalorienreiche Fett- und Zuckerbomben sein müssen. Es ist vegan, kommt ohne Haushaltszucker aus und weil die Plätzchen nicht gebacken werden müssen, sparen Sie bei der Zubereitung auch noch jede Menge Zeit.
Rezept für vegane Zimtsterne (ohne Backen)
Zutaten:
- 300 g Datteln
- 1 kleiner Apfel (gerieben)
- eine Prise Salz
- 250 g gemahlene Mandeln oder Haselnüsse
- 280 g Hafermehl
- Zimt
Zutaten für die Glasur:
- 3 EL geschmolzene Kakaobutter oder Kokosöl
- 1 EL Zitronensaft
- 1-2 TL Ahornsirup
- 3 EL Kokosraspeln
Zubereitung:
- Geben Sie die Datteln mit dem geriebenen Apfel und einer Prise Salz in einen Mixer.
- Pürieren Sie alles, bis eine homogene Masse entsteht.
- Vermengen Sie Hafermehl, Zimt und Mandeln in einer Schüssel.
- Geben Sie die Dattel-Masse zu den trockenen Zutaten und verrühren Sie alles, bis ein weicher, fester Keksteig entsteht.
- Kneten Sie den Teig im Anschluss mit den Händen noch einmal gut durch.
- Rollen Sie nun den Teig mit einem Nudelholz aus und stechen Sie mit einer Ausstechform kleine Sterne aus.
- Legen Sie die Sterne auf einen Teller und lassen Sie diese für mindestens eine Stunde im Kühlschrank ruhen.
- Für die Glasur vermengen Sie Kakaobutter oder Kokosöl mit Zitronensaft und Ahornsirup, geben dann die Kokosraspeln hinzu und rühren alles noch einmal gut durch.
- Verteilen Sie die Glasur mit einem Löffel oder Pinsel auf den Zimtsternen.
Munich and Karlsruhe February
Main purpose the exhibition on surrealism and antifascism, in Lenbachhaus. Also visiting Dachau on the same occasion. And in Karlsruhe: Art Karlsruhe.
A regular morning visitor
This Goshawk (DE Habicht) makes a brief appearance most mornings in a tall tree at the back of my courtyard, right next to Berlinische Galerie. He keeps a watchful eye on the ground for a while, then swoops down, and flies away. I have not yet been able to see if he actually finds some food here, but there are plenty of mice and small rats in the area, so I wish he would bring his friends along to help keeping them at bay.
It is almost worth investing in a longer lense just for that, but for now, here are two not very good photos:
Vegan Palak Paneer with Tofu
IN PROGRESS
Ingredients
- 397 g extra firm tofu (press out the water, then cut into ½-inch cubes)
- 20 g cashews (use pumpkin seeds if nut-free)
- 454 g frozen spinach (substitute with two large bunches of fresh spinach*)
- 15 ml avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 4 cloves
- 1-inch piece cinnamon
- 5 green cardamom pods
- 2 g cumin seeds
- 1 large onion (finely diced)
- 3 cloves garlic (thinly sliced)
- 34 g ginger-garlic paste
- 3 medium tomatoes (finely diced)
- 1 g turmeric
- 2 g cayenne (adjust up or down based on your taste)
- 5 g ground coriander
- 2 g ground cumin
- 5 g garam masala
- 4 g kasoori methi (dry fenugreek leaves). Optional, but I strongly recommend it.
- Salt to taste
For optional tadka finish
- 15 ml avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 1 tablespoon ginger (julienned)
Instructions
- If you’d like to bake or air-fry the tofu cubes before adding them to the recipe, do so in advance.
- Make cashew cream by blending the cashews with 3 tablespoons water until very smooth. Set aside.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon and, when they start to color, add the cumin seeds. When the cumin seeds begin to darken and become aromatic, add the onions and the garlic. Add a pinch of salt. Saute for a few minutes until the onions start to turn golden-brown.
- Add the ginger-garlic paste, saute for a couple of minutes, then add the tomatoes. Add the turmeric, cayenne, cumin and coriander powders and mix well. Cover and let the tomatoes cook until they are very soft and pulpy.
- Add the kasoori methi, if using, and mix well. Add the spinach puree, mix, and let the sauce come to a boil. Lower the heat and continue cooking the spinach for 10 minutes. Add some vegetable stock or water if it looks too thick, but don’t add too much liquid at this point– you want the spinach to cook thoroughly and lose any raw flavor.
- Add the garam masala, then stir in the tofu cubes. Let the sauce simmer a couple of minutes. Add the cashew cream, add salt, stir in, and turn off heat.
Make optional tadka
- In a small skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the julienned or grated ginger and saute for a minute, stirring constantly. Carefully pour over the cooked palak paneer. Serve.