muhn rolls for nahal

muhn (AKA poppy seed) cake is one of my favorite desserts. when i was last in germany (berlin) it was my quest to find the best muhn cake possible... funny enough, nothing came close to the muhn cake i used to get at spitalfields market in london, around 2002. these german cake ladies were unstoppable! my friends and i used to bring back large moist slices of poppy seed, apple and rhubarb and slowly eat them with cups of pg tips. delicious memories.

recently on a trip to sahadis, i spotted poppy seed filling! i was excited, because i had been talking about making poppy seed filled something for so long. most traditional recipes for the filling require quark, which is really hard to find outside of germany/austria/hungary... i am going to work on a homemade filling recipe soon, but this was a great way to get my muhn fix in the meantime. i should also mention that while i was in line waiting to buy the filling, michael shannon was sanding behind me singing christmas carols...




it was my friend nahal's last day of work friday. i thought it would be nice to make something for breakfast that a bunch of us could share. originally i was going to make cinnamon rolls and then i remembered the poppyseed filling. mmm! i used a basic cinnamon roll recipe and just used the poppyseed filling instead. it was quick, easy, delicious and it looked lovely when i was done!



the dough:
3/4 cup cottage cheese (4% milk fat)
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup granulated sugar
4 tbs unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups flour; more for rolling
1 tbs. baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
sugar for sprinkling when done*

filling:
poppyseed goodness
melted butter

icing:
3/4 cup powder sugar
2 tbs milk (maybe more, depending on how thick you like it)
splash vanilla

combine the cottage cheese, buttermilk, sugar, melted butter, and vanilla. process until smooth. add the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. the dough will be soft and moist. put on a well floured surface. knead a few times. roll out into a rectangle. cover with melted butter. add poppyseed filling. slowly roll the dough to form a long roll. take a very sharp knife and cut out rolls. place in a well buttered dish/pan. sprinkle with sugar. bake at 400 for 20 minutes. after this has cooled, cover with icing.





nom nom nom! muhn rolls for nahal <3

hot chocolate boyfriend brownies!

a few months ago one of the legal interns brought in the most amazing brownies. of course i told her she had to send me the recipe. she finally did... going by her original recipe produces delicious results, but i decided to change it up a little bit. half of these went to my new boo, but some of them made it into the office, which was very appreciated. this recipe also produces some of the best brownie batter i have ever tasted--- i really didn't think you could beat box brownies--- but these do!

Ingredients



* 2 eggs

* 3/4 cup sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla

* 1/2 cup butter

* 3/4 cup ghirardelli ground chocolate
* 2/3 cup flour

* 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

* 1/4 teaspoon salt

* teaspoon vegetable oil
* 2 teaspoons of milk
* 1 tablespoon cinnamon
* semi sweet chocolate chips
* hot chocolate mix for dusting (cadbury is my pick)


directions



1. oven at 350 degrees F.

2. cream butter with sugar and vanilla; add eggs. beat till well mixed.
3. mix ground chocolate with flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

4. stir into egg mixture; add oil, milk, and chocolate chips last.
5. 8 x 8 well greased pan
6. Bake 40-45 minutes







the flavor reminds me of the hot chocolate in barcelona. straight up brownies are effing delicious, but sometimes it's nice open yourself up to something a little different...