Birchermüesli - an Interpretation

Antipo Déesse has asked for the recipe for Birchermüesli. No doubt, a charming lady's wish shall be my command.

Birchermüesli had been invented by Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner, who was a Swiss physician and pioneer of whole food. He postulated eating raw fruit, raw vegetables and nuts instead of meat and white bread. He was truly a bit revolutionary for the late 19th century. Dr. Bircher's original recipe goes:

• 1 tablespoon rolled oats, soaked in 2–3 tablespoons water for 12 hours
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon condensed milk
• 200 grams apple (about one large, preferably a sour variety), finely grated and mixed with the above directly before serving
• optionally top with 1 tablespoon ground hazelnuts or almonds

I've slightly modified this recipe to my preferences. I usually start with some yoghurt.



This could be plain or with fruits. If it's plain, you might add some sugar too. Fruit yoghurt has usually already sugar in it. Some people use cream or whipped cream, but i.m.h.o. it tastes so much fresher with yoghurt.

Then I add plenty of finely cut seasonal fruits and berries. Today I took blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, apricots, nectarines and bananas. You might also add some lemon juice. Then the fruits don't oxidate.



You can use whatever fruits you like. However, grated apples are mandatory. Use a sour variety when possible. Some slobs do not grate the apples but finely cut them. This is definitely not my thing. I like my muesli to be smooth.

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I add the cereal flake mix only right before serving. I like my muesli not only to be smooth but also crunchy at the same time. I use a mix with no added sugar and no dried fruits.



Serve and enjoy. It goes well with a piece of bread and butter and a coffee with milk. If you like to have your food with some wine, Toño recommends a Moscato d'Asti.

Being A Good Patriot

For a Swiss, 1^st of August is about being a good patriot. But how, when there is not a single Swiss flag in the house? I thought being super clever when solving the problem by turning the Birchermüesli into a Swiss flag and almost failed...



... but corrected it before we dug into it =S



I tried to make up for this slip up by dragging Toño to the Swiss National Museum where the new permanent exhibitions «History of Switzerland» opened today.



Since it was free today, it was heavily crowded. The most impressive exhibit was the wheel* of Swiss myths, which was big enough that we could see it despite all the people.



And I (accidentally) trample égalité under my feet. But that is a French thing anyway.



* I have no idea why it is a wheel. Nobody claims that Switzerland invented the wheel. Though, I could start a rumour here.

Bresaola Chiavennasca

Due to all the dancing on the vibes of spring, brunch had to be postponed to early afternoon.

The table on the balcony was loaded with a hearty Bircher müesli, aged sbrinz, cheese treated with chardonnay, cheese treated with elderberry wine and Manser's Bürli.

However, the pièce de résistance was the delicious Bresaola Chiavennasca from the Valtellina*.



* Valtellina would be part of Switzerland, but it was lost due to the pathetic all-or-nothing strategy of the Swiss delegation at the Congress of Vienna.

Amselspitz Or No Amselspitz?

We live in a world full of uncertainty and contradictions. Yesterday, I saw a glimmer of hope in farming. However this morning, when Toño brought the newspaper to the bed (while I made some coffee), I had to read that Swiss milk production run into the pork cycle - in other words: there is too much milk. Nevertheless, half an hour later, when I showed up at our bakery to get some Amselspitz yoghurt for the Müesli, all flavoured yoghurt were sold out.



Although we have the luxury of a bakery just around the corner, I hardly shop there. It's probably the worst bakery in town. The baker has a wild passion for American cars, which allows little space for the ardour of savoury bred. The frequency of my visits at the bakery only started to increase, when I serendipitously discovered these Amselspitz yoghurt.

Amselspitz are produced without preservatives and artificial ingredients. It's the freshest yoghurt, I've ever eaten. You can't amass them, because they have to be eaten within a few days.

Tomorrow there supposed to be a new delivery. Shall I camp in front of the shop?

Müesli Mania

It started a week ago and we are still into this. We officially declare Müesli Mania. Are you ready for the age of Müesli?



I was raised with Müesli. However not for breakfast. It was a side dish at lunch and, at least for me, it substituted vegetables. I loathed vegetables, but loved and still love Müesli. Although my love is not unconditional:
a) it has to be really fresh
b) it has to have a tiny touch of sour
c) the (compulsory) apples have to be grated. I go quite taliban on cut apples in a Müesli.

Green Beans and Other Desires

It is funny how - out of the blue - desires to eat a specific kind of food surface. In my teenage years, I spent about a year eating bratwurst and French fries for weekday dinners. No, that was not what I wanted. Last Saturday, I felt the need to eat green beans. Sadly, I did not manage to get my lazy butt out of bed in time to shop at the farmer's market. I had to get them from Migros and they were set to half price. This is fare worse than it sounds, because it means the goods are in such a bad state that you have to cut 50% away - only work and no gain. Nevertheless, the dishes, I made Toño make out of it, were delicious:

Veal Strips in Saffron Sauce with Steamed Green Beans and Noddles Noodles



...which was accompanied by a bottle of Markowitsch Redmont 2006.

...and...

Fasolakia Ladera



...which is a Greek vegetarian dish with green beans in tomato sauce. Toño added also potatoes and sprinkled it with feta. The wine Toño served with it was a Norton Perdriel Single Vineyard 2004. He even dared to tell me what I had to pay for it - though, it was worth it.

Other Nutritional News

A) We pay tribute to Olympia by eating athlete food that gives stamina (spaghetti) with Chinese style serviettes.



B) The morning smoothie is gradually replaced by the traditional Bircher-Benner muesli, however, no wine is yet served with it.