King's cake

Because today is Epiphany (also the day before Christ's Baptism and my name's day in Romania),  let me share with you a recipe for King's cake or Galette des Rois, a French pastry, typical for this time of the year.. I am making it according to the northern France recipe, meaning it is a flat puff pastry cake with an almond paste interior. And it is super easy to make.

All you need is puff pastry - 2 round pieces similar to the ones for quiche (there is an idea for another recipe), almond powder, sugar, some butter and about 3 eggs, paper and scissors  for the crown and a coin or bean to use as the trinket hidden inside the cake. And that is it!

That seems like a weird recipe, right? Let me explain. The tradition asks for a King or Queen of the party which is the person who will provide the next year's cake. And wear the crown for today. How to chose this royalty? This is where the trinket comes in. Originally a bean but more recently a small figurine, it is hidden inside the cake and the person to find it in his or her piece of the pie receives the crown.

Here is the full recipe with step by step pictures.

You need:

2 round puff pastry doughs (roughly 600gr in total)

For the almond paste:

200gr ground almonds*

75gr soft butter**

100gr sugar

a few drops of almond or vanilla extract if you like it or replace some of the sugar with vanillated sugar

2 eggs

1 egg yolk for the outer layer
a trinket for example a coin you cleaned before
* I chose to mix 100gr almonds with 100gr Pralins which is a mix of caramelized almonds and nuts. I also put less sugar because of this
** You can put less butter and it's ok you liquefied it before by mistake, like me, it will still be delicious.

 Take the puff pastry out of the fridge. Put one in the mold and pierce it with a fork. I also had to cut mine into a round shape to better fit my pan. Preheat the oven to about 200°C.

 Make the almond paste: mix together the almond powder, sugar, the extract if you put some, the soft butter and the eggs until they make a paste.

Put this paste in the puff pastry already in the mold. Spread the paste evenly and put your trinket close to the edge this will minimize the chances of it being found while cutting the cake.

Fix the second puff pastry on top like a lid and close it well. Make creative marks with your knife on the lid of the cake if you want to decorate it or put almond flakes on top.

 Cover with the egg yolk diluted in some water or milk. Make some holes so the cake doesn't blow up while baking.

 Bake at approx 210C for 30-40min. Check on it around min25 and make some holes if necessary. Et voila!

When you serve the cake, tradition asks for the youngest person to sit under the table and announce who will get the piece being served. This way there is no cheating. Can you guess where the coin was in my cake?

Tell me if you tried the recipe and if you found the surprise, did you feel like royalty?

I used for this recipe some inspiration from marmiton.org, from here and here.

Thieu: Miracle of modern engineering

A while ago we went to Belgium. Yeah, my weekends are full again, as they have been in the past 4 years. So one weekend we went to Belgium. I don't say I went to Brussels because on this trip I saw very little of it and more of the rest. Belgium is a small country, but with lots to see.

The first thing we saw was a huge boat elevator (no, not an ecluse or a water lock but a real elevator for boats). It's a huge MF. I don't know if my pictures capture this well enough but there is a wooping 75m difference in level. And the elevator can take up 1350 tons worth of boats, passengers and merchandise.

The boat lift

Boat in the boat lift

Boat going up

Boat going up

Boat reaching the upper canal

Strepy-Thieu boat lift

And this is just one elevator, because there are in fact a series of elevators and man-built waterways known as the Canal du Centre. There are inclined elevators like the ones pictured below (I did not see them personally) and there is also a huge waterway bridge . Well this particular waterway sits over a motorway that just takes your breath away if you think of the horror of it breaking and flooding a whole valley. And we passed underneath it with the car, oblivious of the huge mass of water on top, because it looks just like another bridge.

The canal leading to the boat lift

This motorway for boats and all the elevators build for this system were intended for the transport of coal. The mines that shaped the scenery so much are now closed, but we still have changes they brought about, in the waters and hills of the region. And in the lives of the people who now have to find other means of living. The elevator is still working, there were about 5 boats transported in the span of an hour or so. I'm no engineer but the machinery got my respect. And gave me a lesson in history and economics.
If you are interested in knowing more about boat elevators, here is our friend Wikipedia, with more info here. The Strépy-Thieu boat lift is the biggest of them all, until the Three Gorges Dam is finished and the Falkirk Wheel must be the most spectacular. I'm only sorry I didn't get a chance to go up with a boat and ride the Canal.
These Belgians are crazy!

Asia: idei de vacanta pentru 2013

Eu prefer sa imi petrec Craciunul in familie si Revelionul cu prietenii. Asta pentru ca in familie avem inca o strabunica in putere si pentru ca prietenii ii vad rar. Altfel, as lua rucsacul in spate si as disparea in locuri exotice.

Dana Rogoz a ales sa faca o plimbare lunga prin Cambodgia in aceasta perioada a anului. Si mi se pare o idee foarte buna. De urmarit aici.

Asia de Sud Est este printre destinatiile mele preferate dar pe care inca nu le-am atins. Acesti doi tineri insuratei, Simona si Lucian isi petrec luna de miere plimbandu-se prin Asia.

Cateva idei de vacanta, ca sa incepeti sa va faceti planuri pentru 2013.

Source: sphotos-c.ak.fbcdn.net via Katie on Pinterest

Greetings 2013

Greetings to everyone and may you have a healthy, wealthy, happy 2013.

I spent my New Year's Eve in the Capital of Christmas, Strasbourg. We launched lampoons and had  specialities such as foie gras and duck breast burgers. As soon as my friends share the pictures with me, I will share some with you too.

For now, take a look at these pictures of Strasbourg Christmas market. You'll see why this is the Capital of Winter Holidays.

Ocean Mare

O dată de mult, pare foarte de mult, am fost la ocean. Parcă a fost în altă viaţă dar totuşi îmi aduc perfect aminte de sclipirea apei şi de mirosul vântului, bărcile care ondulau în port şi piratul cel fioros, şi farul.... atâtea amintiri frumoase.

Se făcea că plecasem departe de casă, în Franţa, mai precis în frumosul oraş numit Nantes, mulţumită zânei celei bune numite programul Erasmus. Şi cum eram în Franţa şi cum vremea era frumoasă iar Oceanul atât de aproape, am luat trenul şi am plecat spre oraşul La Rochelle. Cel mai frumos oraş, dacă îl ascultam pe cel care ne-a vândut biletul.

Şi într-adevăr, este un oraş foarte frumos cu un port de agrement şi o zonă pietonală ascunsă după zidurile cetăţii. Legată printr-un pod de oraş este insula Re, paradisul pescarilor şi al agricultorilor în ţinuturi mlăştinoase. Foarte aproape de La Rochelle se afla şi insula fortului Boyard, da, există şi se vizitează.

Eu visez să mă plimb din nou pe străduţele cu piatra cubică, printre casele vechi şi cafenelele ce servesc fructe de mare unde la fiecare colţ de stradă ai impresia că vei da nas în nas cu un pirat. Este locul perfect pentru o plimbare cu bicicletă, pe lângă port, pe podul bătut de vânt, spre insula mlăştinoasă înconjurată de plaje de nisip fin. Dacă stai un pic mai mult vei descoperi mareea.

Vă las cu câteva imagini pline de soare care sper că vă vor încălzi.

Portul de agrement din La Rochelle

Portul de agrement din La Rochelle

Intrarea in port

Portul si orasul vechi

Plaja de pe Ile de Re

Poarta spre orasul La Rochelle

Spinning Queen, Baby!

I don't want to admit it too publicly so if you ask me I will probably say no, but I am starting to really enjoy this spinning thing. Maybe I will take it outside, too, you know what I mean, like real biking. Remember Josephine? She was good to me, come spring, I might take her out again.

In the mean time, I am pedaling at gyms in Plzen. We go there about once or twice a week and the instructor already knows us, me and the 3 Frenchmen (sometimes more), she calls us Tour de France. I'd find it hilarious if I wasn't dying on my bike. She even knows us by name.

Sometimes we have spinning marathons of 4 hours. This take place on Saturdays at our favorite gym: the owner sometimes spins with us and she always comes at break to give us mandarins and chocolate. The music is fun, sometimes themes such as 80's, 90's or disco and I sing a long, sometimes it's rock and I suffer.

On Mondays I have the tae bo sessions. That is intense too and I just love punching and kicking the air. I sometimes punch the boyfriend as well, he so likes to play the victim and "complain" but he really loves the attention.

And when I cannot or don't feel like spinning or tae bo, I dance in front of my Wii to the rhythms of the Just Dance game. It's a good substitute to zumba but i need some new songs. I used to go to Zumba quite a lot but I dropped in favor of tae bo but I am still thinking of going back, once or twice, I even bought a groupon. I just don't like going on my own so I do my best to drag a girl friend to zumba but none of them seem to have been hooked. I blame it on the teacher, not showing you the moves before the song starts: we are not all dancing queens.

After all this sport you'd expect me to be fit. Well I am just about as fit as a 31year old, haha, I am only 27. But I do feel better and I have certainly gained considerable muscle, according to my scale. I actually did a test and I have nearly the perfect weight considering  my muscle build but I do have to shed a couple of kilos to have the perfect weight for my bone structure.

So I am waiting for spring now. Real spring, with sun and a bit of warmth, a sweet breeze, flowers. I want spring so I can finally enjoy the clean air and the Saturday morning of sports and shopping for gardening supplies for my balcony garden and generally spinning around like a bee.

*Image from http://www.fitness-husovka.cz

Romanian Road Trip Day 4&5 Brasov and the Mountains

As I am preparing for a new Romanian road trip in July, I have decided to finish the story of last year's visit, where I left off so here and here for the first parts.

After a quick stop in Brasov, we headed for the mountain resorts of the Prahova Valley, stopping in Busteni, a great spot for winter sports and summer hiking. Accommodation is very easy to find, several of the locals offer rooms in their houses for the weary travelers and you can even enjoy a tuica or plum brandy with these mountain people. That is what we did: we spent the evening eating and drinking local food and in the morning, after a big breakfast, we set out to conquer the mountain.

The clouds were very low so no one believed me about the wonders on the mountain: the Sphynx and the Old Ladies and the Great Cross. There are several ways to get there: 4x4 cars for the lazy and not so eco friendly, hiking for the really really brave ones and the cable car for the patient. We had to wait in line for about an hour before we could hop on  but the passage through the clouds and up to the heights was quite smooth and fun. If you don't care about the scenery, inside is interesting as well: the cable car is an old Italian model that has seen the Alps and the driver has icons of the Virgin.

Up on the Plateau is a cottage with warm meal if you feel like it. If not, just follow the crowds of people going for the sights nearby.

A dog was fast asleep on one of the old ladies. It was a huge Saint Bernard and it was snoring loudly, probably on a break from taking pictures with the tourists.

Down the valley, sheep were grazing. Down there, there are more cottages and a beautiful lake and one can even reach the other resorts. But we decided to take a short trip, about one hour and a half, to the Cross that was still not visible on top of the mountain, nearly 2400m high.

The path is winding but quite easy to take. We meet up with more tourists and more sheep. The clouds were coming and going, sometimes we were inside a milky white cloud, other times we felt like we were sitting at the brim of a crevice.

We stopped near some melting ice, it was the beginning of August, but still there was some dirty snow left. We had some of the local salami, Salam de Sibiu it is called but the Salonta version is better :) and then we continued to the cross. We met with some more tourists and sheep on the way, below is a black sheep and a white one without a head, oops.

 As we neared the cross, the clouds parted for an instant and we could enjoy a nice view. But then they were back and while we were up at the Cross we only had a flitting moment to see the valley below.

And then we went back. The next stop was Bucharest, where we stayed for a few days before going back to CZ. But you've seen quite a lot of pictures from Bucharest so I will not bother you with that and instead I will show you a beautiful manor just close to Bucharest. Next time...

Chartres, Acum 6 Ani

Ma rog, acum 6 ani si vreo 20 de zile dupa cum imi spun informatiile din poze, eram in Franta, Erasmus la Nantes si am decis sa fac o mica plimbare in vacanta dintre semestre. Frig rau, ca si acum, crunt, dar cum toti prietenii erau in vacanta si eu nu, am ales sa plec la drum.

Si am ales foarte bine, am vizitat un orasel simpatic dominat de impunatoarea catedrala Chartres. Catedrala se vede de departe, aflandu-se pe un fel de promontoriu deasupra orasului, terbuie doar sa ridici ochii si o vezi de peste tot. Oraselul in sine e simpatic dar nimic spectaculos, stradute pietonale, cateva atractii de genul o casa acoperita cu bucatele de sticla colorata, un rau cu parcuri pe maluri, dar nu am poze asa ca tebuie sa ma credeti pe cuvant.

Cum va spuneam, se ajunge usor la catedrala, trebuie doar sa ridici ochii. Asa ca de la gara, fara harta, fara nimic, cu fulgii de nea care dansau in jurul meu, am purces spre tinta mea. M-am oprit bineinteles la Oficiul de Turism unde am luat o harta, o brosura cu hosteluri sau hoteluri pentru ca aveam de gand sa raman peste noapte si o brosura cu locuri interesante de vizitat in zona. Interesant este ca Oficiul de Turism se afla pe o strada mai speciala, in sensul ca inclinarea aparenta a strazii nu este cea reala. Apoi am purces spre catedrala.

M-am simtit un pic precum un pelerin, dovada fiind si inscriptia din fata catedralei si pe care am intalnit-o de-a lungul timpului in mai multe locuri de pe traseul pelerinilor si am fotografiat-o aproape de fiecare data.

 

Apoi am intrat in catedrala si am reusit sa obtin o vizita ghidata cu un specialist care s-a ocupat de renovarea superbelor vitralii. Mai jos aveti cateva imagini, rozeta este imensa, nu stiu daca se vede prea bine cat de mare este catedrala, te simti cu adevarat mic pe langa, ghidul ne-a explciat ca asta si este scopul.

Catedrala a fost mereu un loc de atractie, daca acum turismule ste laic, cu sute de ani in urma se chema pelerinaj si lumea se ingramadea sa vada relicvele sfinte. Relicva de aici era o bucata din camasa sfanta a lui Iisus. Cum adapostea una din cele mai importante relicve, numarul de vizitatori era mare, si catedrala trebuia sa fie pe masura, de unde si usile imense.

 Interiorul este si el impozant, detaliile sunt mirifice. Desi imensa, catedrala pare ca se ridica spre cer datorita elegantei sculpturilor gotice.

 Pelerinii moderni sunt atrasi de labirintul de pe podea, probabil ca nu era neaparat o atractie acum cateva sute de ani, dar astazi, multi pelerini il parcurg ca un simbol al calvarului lui Iisus.  Imi amintesc ca in zilele acelea citeam o serie de carti in care un element predominant era un labirint.

Am zabovit un pic in catedrala, dupa vizita, sunt multe simboluri si legende asociate catedralei, din nefericire am uitat multe din ele dar am acasa o carte, scrisa de cel care a fost ghid atunci, si toate sunt explicate foarte frumos. Mai multe informatii gasiti si aici, nu uitati sa faceti o donatie din cand in cand :)

 Cum v-am spus, catedrala este imensa, impozanta, am facut un tur pe afara si mi s-a parut parca si mai mare. In varful acelei cupole verzi este o statuie a Arhanghelului Mihail caer mi-a amintit de Mont St Michel.

La sfarsit am luat pranzul meu improvizat, o salata de ton adusa de la Nantes, in parcul din spatele catedralei, cu vedere spre oras. Pana la urma am decis sa nu raman peste noapte (deh, buget de student), dar tare mi-ar placea sa mai trec pe acolo candva, am vazut multe catedrale si biserici, dar aceasta este unica.