Do you also have a nagging to-do list in the back of your head? Filled with little projects that you want to approach at some point, but chances are slim you’ll ever get to tackle them? I do. I have. Back in 2008 Melissa had planted a seed in my brain when she composed the spice rack of her dreams and ever since I had found way too many excuses to dodge the effort. The fine art of procrastination. But now I can finally tick this one off!

Read the rest of this entry »

If you follow German food blogs, chances are you have come across a dessert called Arance. Robert originally dug out this fruit dessert from one of Marcella Hazan’s books and while it is the incarnation of the word simple, it never ceases to amaze people. Many food bloggers have joined the praise since his original post and I – too – have added this recipe to my list of quick and proven dessert fixes. That was back in 2007.

Read the rest of this entry »

What?! You’ve never heard of Thylehogichi? Well, neither have I. But THYme LEmon HOney GInger CHIli tea sounded a little stiff and boring, hence the new word creation by simply using the ingredient’s first letters (the kind of creativity, that arises from somebody who has caught a major cold, *cough*).

Read the rest of this entry »

I know that most of you come here for the recipes and rest assured, I have something sweet up my sleeve (and perhaps a little intimidating on first sight) – just not today. Today is about a topic that is close to my heart and – as all your copious comments on an earlier post on delicious:days have shown – close to yours, too: how to organize recipes. Having used an imperfect, sometimes chaotic mix of online bookmarking tools, a couple of folders for rip-outs and handwritten Moleskine recipe books, I was never really satisfied with the situation.

Always on the hunt for the perfect solution and being an avid computer user, I tried to warm up to different recipe tools – several times! But nothing really stuck and convinced me to stay, either because of lacking functionality or rather bland layout style. Too impractical, neither flexible nor accessible enough. And on top, as soon as the iPhone moved in with us, the wish to access my favorite recipes from just anywhere grew exponentially. Still, the perfect tool for my needs was nowhere to be found. Then one day last summer I thought out loud. The fatal words: Why not design and program my dream tool ourselves?

Read the rest of this entry »