June 29, 2014

Dachau Concentration Camp

The Fam and I visited Dachau Concentration Camp today. Our original plans were a drive to Karlovy Vary, but the rainy weather changed our minds. I'm so glad it did, because we had quite an experience on our new adventure.

Today we immersed ourselves in history, led by an amazing guide who actually had family that served during WWII. Dachau is well known for being the first concentration camp formed in Germany. It was the basis for all the other camps that spread across Europe during WWII. Ironically, though it was open for 12 years, the camp had one of the best survival rates and was not known as an extermination camp (unlike the infamous Auschwitz in Poland). Still, nearly 42,000 perished here.

The prisoners at Dachau were widely varied and included not just a Jewish population, but also Russians, Italians, German politicians and "traitors", Catholic priests, Jehovah's witnesses, and many, many more.

We were very impressed with our guided tour (at a cost of only 3 euros each), and I highly recommend it if you visit yourself.  An audio guide was also offered, but the human experience couldn't be topped. I liked being able to ask questions and engage in lively discussion.

Here are some of my cell phone images from today. I captured many more with my DSLR, which I plan to sort through soon. Feel free to comment below and share your experience at this memorial, or any of the other camps you may have visited around Europe.


Main gate entrance to the camp
The main yard
Sculpture by Nandor Glid. It symbolizes and
commemorates those prisoners which commmited
suicide by throwing themselves against the electric fence
"Never Again"


Marking system for prisoners. Different groups were
color-coded with different triangles

Ovens in the crematorium
Jewish memorial, "Grave of Thousands Unknown"
"May the example of those who were exterminated here
between 1933-1945 because they resisted Nazism, help to unite
the living for the defense of peace and freedom and respect for their fellow men"

Until next time, my friends.



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June 28, 2014

The Past Few Days…

The past few days have been pretty busy in this ArmyLife household. You see, every summer my mum and my littlest sis come to visit me, wherever I happen to be. They're pretty awesome. This year, of course, they've come to stay with us a while in Germany! They arrived two days ago.



Day 1: Spaghetti Eis

We have many, many, many travel plans whilst they're here. I was very worried I wouldn't be able to blog as much as I usually do. I know, the problems of a blogger…

But I've come up with a solution! When I can, I'll keep posting army life tips, and recipes, and all the good stuff you're used to. And when I'm super busy, I'll simply post some captioned photos that follow our summer traveling adventures.

What do you think?! You like it, right? Ok good. I'm glad we're in agreement.

Here's your first post of summer fun! I hope you're out adventuring as well, and making the most of free time with your families.

DAY 1: Jet Lag



Jet lag… 


The Kid wakes up long enough to help me cook dinner



DAY 2: Jewish Tour of Regensburg

Stolperstein, or "stumbling blocks" commemorate
victims of the holocaust at their place of residence or work 


Document Neupfarrplatz
Regensburg Wirtshaus for lunch

Regensburg Cathedral
Oskar Schindler House

DAY 3: Hike to the "Broken Castle"


I look a little over-excited, ha! 
The broken castle



Butterfly on trail


The view from the top



Proof, we made it up there! 


Tomorrow is another day, and we're off for another adventure, this time to Karlovy Vary! I'll be back soon, my friends (I hope!). Until next time, happy travels!




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June 23, 2014

Fried Egg Pizza

I know what you're thinking… whhhhhaaaaatt? Fried egg on a pizza? Well, you gotta tryst me here, peeps. This is fantastic.




See what I mean? This pizza takes a little extra effort, but it's worth every minute. You could choose any toppings you want, but I really liked this combination as a starting point: Dijon roasted onions, prosciutto, ricotta, and of course the fried egg.

You really want a slice of this right now, I can tell. Let's get started!

Roasted onion marinade
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees, peeps.

I chose to roast my onions in this yummy dijon marinade. If you're in a rush, you can always skip this step and have sautéed onions (or mushrooms, nom) instead. Begin by slicing a yellow onion into thick wedges. Then in a medium bowl whisk together ½ tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard (I like country style), 1 clove of minced garlic (I had the stuff in the jar, so used that), a dash of rosemary, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and some salt and pepper to taste.

Once the marinade is well-combined, add your onion wedges to the bowl and toss to coat. Spread onto a cookie sheet and roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes, tossing about halfway through. You want your onions to brown a little, but not too much. Mine were a little over, but they were still delicious.

Roasting the onions

Now for the pizza part! I buy my dough fresh at our local grocer and slice it into personal sized portions. This recipe makes two personal pizzas. If you'd like a whole pizza, you can easily multiply the ingredients.

Ingredients

As per the usual, I forgot an ingredient in the picture, whoops. I added a bit of ricotta cheese to my pizza, but this is totally optional. See, that must be why I didn't include it in the pic! I know... excuses, excuses.

Spray your pizza pan and dust it with a bit of cornmeal. Pre-bake your dough for about 5 minutes if it's quite thick. If you're making a thinner crust you may not need this step. Spread your favorite sauce over the top of the dough. My dough comes with a sauce, so we use that, about 3 ounces total.

Layer your pizza with a few slices of shredded prosciutto, a few teaspoons of ricotta (optional), then some fresh mozzarella (sliced thin), the roasted onions, and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.


Put the pizza back in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly. While your pizza is baking, fry up two eggs. I crack mine into a shallow ramekin first, but you can crack directly in the pan if you want to.

To fry your egg: Warm a skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon butter to the pan and swirl to melt. Gently add two eggs to the pan, and then let them alone. Seriously peeps, the best way to make a good sunny-side up egg is to let it be. You can spoon some of the melted butter over the whites only to help them cook. The eggs are done when the whites are cooked, but the yolks are still runny. I fry the egg on one side (sunny-side up), but you can flip yours to fry the other side if you want and let it cook for a minute. The yolk will not be as runny, but it's still good.

Top your cooked pizza with the fried egg. Then eat it, and know you are awesome.



Seriously, peeps… this pizza is da bomb. Try it once, give it a chance. I doubt you'll regret it!

Until next time my friends, happy cooking! As usual, the standard recipe is below.



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The Standard Form:


Individual Fried Egg Pizza
Ingredients:

2 personal-sized pizza crusts
3 ounces pizza sauce
1 medium yellow onions, cut into wedges
½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 cloves garlic, minced
Dash rosemary
2 tablespoon olive oil
4 slices prosciutto
¼ cup ricotta cheese, optional
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 eggs
1 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper, to taste
Cornmeal, for dusting

Directions:

Pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees.

In a medium bowl, mix together the lemon juice, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, rosemary, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the onions to the bowl and stir until well coated. Spread the onions in a single layer on a cookie sheet, and roast for 30-40 minutes, just until the edges start to brown. Toss onions halfway through cooking time.

Spray a pizza pan and sprinkle with a bit of cornmeal. Place your pizza crusts on the prepared pan and bake for 5 minutes (this may vary based on the type of crust you use). Remove from oven and divide the sauce between the two pizzas, spreading evenly.

Shred the prosciutto with your hands and divide between the two crusts. If desired, add a few teaspoonfuls of ricotta to each pizza now. Top with the mozzarella, then the roasted onions, and the parmesan cheese. Return pizza to the oven and  bake an additional 10-15 minutes, until crust is golden and cheese is melted and bubbly.

While the pizza is baking, fry your eggs in a skillet on the stovetop.  Crack your eggs into a shallow dish or ramekin. Warm the skillet over medium heat, then add the butter. Swirl to melt the butter, then gently add your eggs to the skillet. Let the eggs sit, don’t move them around too much. Gently spoon some of the butter over the egg white to help it cook. I prefer a sunny-side up egg, which is only fried on one side. Once the whites are cooked, remove them from the pan.

Top each pizza with an egg, and enjoy!