Traditioneller Käsekuchen

Last week, I made a Himbeer Käsekuchen (raspberry cheese/cake) and G informed me that it wasn't real Käsekuchen. He wanted me to actually bake a traditional Käsekuchen. Hard to please, right? Well, here it is - my first real cheesecake, albeit a Fruchtiger Käsekuchen (fruit cheese/cake)!

A Fight On My Wedding Day

If we weren't getting married on September 22nd, we would be going to Oktoberfist! Vitali Klitschko is coming out of retirement for this fight and it's taking place in Munich and on the first day of Oktoberfest. Boxing is the only sport we watch together and we both were anticipating going to a professional fight in Munich. Guess it won't be this one;) Isn't the name awesome?

Mein Dirndl

I finally purchased my first Dirndl, the traditional Bavarian dress. We're taking our parents to Oktoberfest, the day after the wedding and I must admit, I'm really excited to wear it but I'm also a little bit apprehensive because I'm wondering what kind of reactions I might get. I'm sooo not Bavarian:) I bought my Dirndl at Angermaier and surprisingly, the salesgirls were extremely nice and helpful. I think they gathered that I was completely out of my element. I'd like to think I'm pretty stylish but when you're talking about ruffled blouses and aprons, I'm lost. I originally wanted a basic black Dirndl but they pushed me, no - shoved me, into buying a gold embroidered Dirndl with a pink apron. Yes, even I'm shocked at that combination. So now I'm looking for shoes. I've seen traditional shoes but I'm wondering what's common with our generation. Pumps? Sling Backs? Mary Janes?
Any suggestions?

A big BUT.

Brenner Grill

Saturday night, we had dinner with two of our good friends, at Brenner Grill. There are so many great things about this restaurant - I don't know where to begin. First, the location is perfect, right on Maximilianstraße and walking distance to most lounges or clubs in that area. The crowd (easily 300) was very eclectic - young and fabulous, old and rich, couples, a few families, a little bit of everything. The restaurant features two huge open grills in the center, where every dish is prepared. And every dish on our table was fantastic. Collectively, we ordered lamb, tuna, and carpaccio, and we all agreed - the food was excellent....BUT

The service was horrible. Zum Beispiel, we were missing napkins and side plates which took a very long time to be replaced. Too long. Our server appeared in blurs. There was a heated and loud argument, right next to our table - between three servers. The cocktails were on time - except mine, which didn't arrive until 40 minutes later. I'm not exaggerating. Our after dinner espressos arrived with the bill.

And then, they overcharged us.....twice.

Another Sneak Peak

Friday night's sneak preview was The Transformers. I can remember playing with my brother's Transformers when I was a kid. They were really cool....for about 10 minutes. The same feeling applies to the film.

This can't be true...

The constant drilling, sawing, pounding, and beeping, directly outside our house, was very annoying on Monday. The construction workers who, upon seeing any woman walking by, immediately stop working , and blatantly stare at you (from neck to toe and back up again) was kind of creepy on Tuesday. The whole building vibrating and then literally shaking enough to make poor Roby run and hide, was a little scary on Wednesday. The non stop construction work, for 12 hours, was enough to give me a serious headache on Thursday. And today, on this gorgeous Friday morning, I would love to shower and go enjoy the day...if I had water.

Himbeer Käsekuchen

Now that we are back to beautiful summer weather, I decided to try Käsekuchen (cheese/cake). This "no bake" recipe is super easy. It calls for Götterspeise Zitronen-Geschmack or Lemon Jello but I used Himbeer (raspberry). I was a little worried about altering the recipe with Himbeer but considering G is not a fan of lemon flavored desserts and after walking to 3 stores and not finding Zitronen, I just crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. G and I took our first bite, and both mouthed, "Mmmmmmm!" It's the perfect little dessert on a hot sunny day. And you gotta love a pink cheesecake.

LEGOLAND!

Robbie's Wedding Outfit

Full tuxedo or..












Rhinestone collar?

Endlich!

The search is over. I ordered my gown today! I would love to post a picture but I'm going to try to be traditional (shock!) and surprise G on our wedding day. But I will tell you that after searching for so long for the perfect formal gown, in a nontraditional color, in the end I chose an ivory lace wedding gown - with a sweep train!

Standing Ovulation!

Last night's sneak preview was Knocked Up. ****1/2 out of ****!

2 Years 2 Cakes!

Yesterday was our two year anniversary. G and I met on July 4, 2005, in Miami. And the rest is history, our history. So, I decided to surprise G with two cakes...oh yeah, I'm on a role. The first cake is called Marmorkuchen (marble/cake). I was a little nervous about trying the recipe when I realized that I had to use a fork to make the marble pattern in the batter....

Well, as you can see, I'm going to need some practice with that part! My Marmorkuchen is missing the marmor. However, the cake tastes terrific. It's very moist and rich, especially the chocolate half. It reminds me of Marble Cake from home.

The next cake is Kokosnusskuchen (coconut/cake). We really liked this cake. I ate four pieces last night! If you like coconut, this is an easy and fast recipe that will knock your socks off. You can sprinkle powdered sugar or coconut flakes on top but we paired it with a big dollop of whipped cream.

And just because it was our anniversary, we didn't forget about Independence Day. No matter where I am in this world, I am patriotic on the 4th of July. We went to Munich's New York Tabledance to celebrate.