Battle of the Yogurts

Do you like plain yogurt? (yoghurt, yogourt, whatever...) We love it! Sour and creamy, add some fresh fruit and nuts and you have a great meal!

Well, you know our buddy Al has quite a few types of plain yogurt in his little shop. So we figured, why not try all of the yogurts at Albert Heijn to see which ones are the best?

Creatures of habit, we typically buy the same one time after time: Biologische Magere Kwark. It's tasty, organic, low fat - what more could you want?

Magere Kwark, meet the tastier treat: Yoghurt Turkse Stijl

Yo, kwark! I'm taller than you and I taste better too!

Oh baby!

This stuff is so good! For those of you who like the famous Fage Greek style yogurt, we think this might even be better. It's so thick and tangy! A new favorite!

So thick!

We can't wait to sample more versions of the plain yogurts at Appie. Do you have a favorite that we should try next?

PS: we do know that kwark is not exactly the same thing as Turkish yogurt :)

Easy Lunch: Hummus Wraps

For a quick and easy summery lunch why not try these hummus wraps? Quick to assemble, you can make them at a picnic or at work if you bring the ingredients in a few separate containers.

Ingredients:

Tortilla wraps
Ready-made hummus (or make your own)
Arugula
Tomatoes, sliced
Cucumber, diced

Slather 1-2 tablespoons of hummus down the center of each tortilla, then a handful each of arugula, sliced tomato and diced cucumber. Wrap up and cut into pieces or just eat like a burrito.

Sometimes we also like to add some fresh basil leaves or tabasco if we have it on hand.

Do you have any quick and easy summer recipes you'd like to share?

The Cookie Tester: Chocolate Chip

It's a lofty goal, but someone has to do it. Test tasting all the cookies sold at Albert Heijn.


We've all had chocolate chip cookies before, right? These are pretty standard store-bought chocolate chip cookies, and at about €1 for the whole package, not a bad deal.

They come in two varieties, but the ones with chocolate coating are our favorite. Probably because there is more chocolate for your euro, haha. (I'm so cheap)


The cookies are big, crunchy yet soft, and very sweet.


Make no mistake, these are pretty good for store-bought €1 chocolate chip cookies, but they aren't anything like the real thing straight out of the oven. Which gets us thinking...time to make some real chocolate chip cookies. We recently heard that you can make chocolate chip cookies in 90 seconds in a waffle iron. No way! Gotta try it soon, we'll let you know how it goes.

Couscous and Cake at Christina's

We were treated to a delicious dinner at Christina's house the other night. Rain poured down outside but it was nice and cozy indoors. We have been having the crappiest non-summery weather lately but we did get to see a nice rainbow outside of Christina's house!

Christina prepared a yummy couscous dish that was inspired by a Jamie Oliver recipe. The couscous was fluffy and had carrots, sundried tomatoes and raisins mixed in. Very filling and satisfying on a rainy evening!

Dessert was quite an event! We had a pineapple cake prepared by master baker Fabio AND a fabulous whip cream rum mousse with chocolate chunks prepared by Christina.

The pineapple cake was dense and rich with bits of pineapple adding a sweet surprise. Fabio also made his own fresh applesauce to go along with the cake.

Christina got the mousse recipe from her mom and made two versions, one with rum and one without. Well, you can probably guess that we all chose to try the rum version first, though both were delicious, creamy and decadent.

A lovely evening with great company and everyone was full and satisfied before heading out to bike home in the rain. Thanks C!

The Cookie Tester: Mergpijpjes

It's a lofty goal, but someone has to do it. Test tasting all the cookies sold at Albert Heijn.

Today we tried the Créme Mergpijpjes. A soft marzipan shell dipped in chocolate with a creamy center. Not sure about these.

We liked the marzipan and chocolate part well enough but the mushy creamy center is a bit strange. Mergpijp translates as "marrowbone" which makes them even less appealing.

Have you tried Créme Mergpijpjes? Do you like them?

What delicious cookies should we try next?

Screaming for Ice Cream

Summer means ice cream and popsicles, right?

There are lots of great places to eat an ice cream or gelato in Amsterdam. The yummy chain IJScuypje has delectable fresh flavors like mango and banana. And we found amazing truffles, a hard dark chocolate shell filled with fresh frozen whipped cream, at L-Arcobaleno near Westerpark. Oh so super lekker!

Have you ever made your own ice cream or popsicles at home? When we were kids we always made our own popsicles out of fruit juice, most often orange juice or purple grape juice. I wish we had these awesome sailboat molds though!

Speaking of popsicles and childhood, have you ever had fudgesicles, those yummy chocolate-y frozen treats? Our fantastic friend Carrie has created a delicious dairy-free homemade version, check it out!

Do you have a favorite ice cream shop in Amsterdam?

It's Super Awesome: FIETSFORNUIS

Check out this super cool invention by Dutch designer Florike Martens. The FIETSFORNUIS (or bike kitchen) is a collapsible kitchen that tows behind your bicycle. Wow!

What a fantastic idea! Perfect for that gourmet picnic in Vondelpark with all your best buddies, and this setup is sure to attract a few hungry new friends as well.

It's super awesome!

Chicken Skewers

We recently got together for a little BBQ in Vondelpark to celebrate the American holiday 4th of July. Our lovely friend Leslie kindly supplied the BBQ, and what a cool contraption it was! She arrived on her bicycle with the metal BBQ broken down flat in her front basket. The pieces joined together for a nice sized cooking surface. We added the coal and fired it up!

We miss you Lena, Kevin and Leslie! Come back to Amsterdam!

Leslie also brought some chicken pieces coated in spices which we threaded on long metal skewers with slices of red bell pepper. While the skewers were grilling, Leslie sprinkled some lemon juice over the top. That chicken was super tasty!

We asked Leslie for her secret spice mix and she revealed it was McCormick Cajun Seasoning from Costco back in the USA. The mix contains garlic, black pepper, chili pepper, salt, onion, paprika, and oregano. We're going to visit De Volkskruidentuin on Kinkerstraat to see if they might have something similar.

There's nothing like a BBQ in the park on a sunny day! Do you have a secret spice mix you use on your meats that you could share with us? Leave a comment!

Easy Appetizers: Canapés

It's always nice to have a snack while sipping rose wine on your balcony in the evenings. Why not make one of these super quick and easy little canapés?


Cherry Tomato Excitement
Ingredients:

• Roomkaas met kruiden
• Flat crackers (we like the bruschetta toast met olijfolie en mediterrane kruiden from Appie)
• Cherry tomatoes sliced in half or quarters
• Fresh basil leaves

Spread the crackers with  roomkaas, then a half of a basil leaf, then a piece of cherry tomato. It really could not be easier. Just don't make them too far ahead, as the crackers tend to get soggy and that's no good.

Sundried Tomato Excitement

Ingredients:

• Roomkaas met kruiden
• Flat crackers (try the bruschetta toast met olijfolie en mediterrane kruiden from Appie)
• Sundried tomato tapenade
• Fresh basil leaves
• Pine nuts

Spread the crackers with  roomkaas, then a small dollop of sundried tomato tapenade, then a piece of basil and a few pine nuts. You can just throw it on there like we did in the photo, or better yet, make it look pretty! 

Snelle en lekkere borrelhapjes!

It's Super Awesome: Tea Bar

Fancy a cup of tea? Check out Tea Bar on Haarlemmerdijk in Amsterdam. Fill a small bag with one of their more than 60 tasty tea blends, or mix to create your own. The blends are lovely to smell and see, with dried flowers and fruits sprinkled throughout. Wouldn't it be wonderful to serve your tea from this awesome camel teapot?

And while you sip your tea, you simply MUST wear this adorable ring from Kits+Diezijn, don't you think?

Tea Bar is located at Haarlemmerdijk 71 in Amsterdam. If you can't make it to the shop, order online!