BERLIN
Berlin was a party! We celebrated the German NOON at the stunning Hotel de Rome, with (lots of) champagne, with friends who came all the way from Lisbon, France, and Vienna, and with many good conversations. And we even sang at the end.
Celebrating a new book in my home city, Berlin, makes me feel both calm and very excited at the same time. I’m surrounded by my people, by my beloved city; and launching a book for the third time at Hotel de Rome, makes it feel even more like home.
So many kept offering me help, there was so much love and support that, although the launch was rather wild, it didn’t feel overwhelming for a second. Our event was set for two hours - we extended it slightly - but not even ten hours would have been enough to fit in all the conversations that I would have loved to have. About 80 guests (I lost track), the champagne kept pouring, the snacks from NOON were relished with sounds of pleasure (so much praise for the Hummus and Sauerkraut on Sourdough Bread from the book! Click here for the recipe), we didn’t even need any background music as the chatting and laughing filled the hotel’s Opera Court, a grand room in the former bank’s building (you can read more about the hotel’s history here).
Restaurateur Billy Wagner of Nobelhart & Schmutzig, no. 45 of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants, thankfully agreed to do the talk with me at our event. About two years ago, we had done a Meet in Your Kitchen feature and a podcast episode together. A few months ago, I bumped into him at an exhibition. After I had left, I was already on my bike on my way home, I thought “Billy, he’s the one for the Berlin NOON talk!.” So I quickly cycled back, asked him, still out of breath, if he’d be up for it and, luckily, he was.
When he asked me his questions in his calm Billy-way - some even unexpected, which I like - I stayed relaxed and inspired throughout the entire conversation. I think our exchange about food, noon, cookbooks, rituals, and recipes was as much fun for me as it was for our guests. Billy kept the string tight, without letting it tear - that’s a great gift to guide through a conversation.
To organize an event this big, you need partners, a team who you can trust and who trusts you too. The Hotel de Rome is not only one of Berlin’s most beautiful five-star hotels - and has the city’s most stunning roof terrace - it also has the best staff. Türkan Arikan, Director of Communications, has been a great supporter of my work since 2015 when we first met. It almost felt like love at first sight and even three books later, it hasn’t lost any of its magic.
I met Ingrid Meyer-Lohrmann, a natural networker with the biggest heart and passion for connecting people, around the same time as Türkan. Ingrid was the one who introduced me to Hotel de Rome eight years ago, and now, she brought Lallier Champagne into my life, whose delicious pink bubbles definitely lifted the crowd’s mood. Matthias Runge, the hotel’s Executive Chef, has been a fan of my recipes for years, we often chat about flavor combinations, so seeing him prepare the dishes for our event, made me feel very safe.
Today, I’m sharing one of the recipes from NOON that we also chose for the launch and that helps to slowly slip into the groove for autumn: Roasted Squash, Parsnip, and Grape Salad with Blue Cheese (recipe below).
The Berlin launch felt like a party - and I loved that. I’m quite happy that I don’t have to host a big event every week, however, when I think about it, the same rules that count for events also count for private gatherings. To be a good host, you need to feel good. You can only spread good vibes, when you feel them inside yourself. And to feel good, you need to surround yourself with the right people, you need to choose recipes that fit the occasion and to your schedule, and then it’s so much easier to stay relaxed and confident all night.
In the end, never forget, it’s your party. So accept imperfection and believe the ones around you when they offer you help. I’ve never accepted my imperfections more than I do now, I’ve never asked for help in such an honest way like I do now, I’ve never been so accepting with my own flaws. And I’ve never been so happy.
The next stops of my NOON book tour will be London on October 5th:
You can join me in conversation with Helen Goh, hosted by Hanna Geller at Building Feasts in a beautiful (secret) location (we will send you the address when you buy the ticket), with Lallier Champagne and snacks from NOON!
GET YOUR TICKET HERE and we’ll see you in London!
I want to thank everyone who made the Berlin launch of NOON possible - and so glamorous and glorious! Our guests, I loved seeing and hearing your laughters, seeing you dive deep into conversations, enjoying yourself and this night. There were just good vibes, thank you for that!
Thank you, you amazing people around me:
Türkan Arikan, General Manager Ulrich Schwer, Matthias Runge, and the entire team at Hotel de Rome, Billy Wagner, Ingrid Meyer-Lohrmann and everyone at IML Kommunikation, Champagne Lallier and Johannes Rohmer, Pia Werner and the best team at Prestel Verlag, Marcel Schwickerath, Tobias, Sira, Marta Greber for coming all the way from Lisbon (I’ll never forget that!), the four women / girl who inspired me to write NOON (Anne, her 4-year-old daughter, Gabi, and Laurel), all our guests - and Pat Appleton for singing for us before the lights went off!
Lots of love, Meike xxx
The photos taken at Hotel de Rome are by Marcel Schwickerath. The salad picture is by me.
Roasted Squash, Parsnip, and Grape Salad with Blue Cheese
from NOON: Einfache Mittagsgerichte für jeden Tag, Prestel Verlag (German)
NOON: Simple Recipes for Scrumptious Midday Meals & More, Chronicle Books (English)
Serves 2
FOR THE SALAD
12 ounces (340 g) seeded squash, preferably peeled butternut or Hokkaido with skin, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) wedges
6 ounces (170 g) seedless red grapes, on the vine
3 ounces (85 g) peeled parsnip, cut into wedges
¼ cup (60 ml) olive oil
Flaky sea salt
6 large radicchio leaves, torn into large pieces
8 small romaine lettuce leaves
1½ ounces (40 g) Roquefort or Stilton, crumbled (optional)
FOR THE DRESSING
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
Fine sea salt
Finely ground pepper
Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
For the salad, spread the squash, grapes, and parsnip on a large baking sheet, but keep them separate. Drizzle with the olive oil and gently toss to coat, again keeping the squash, grapes, and parsnip separate. Season with a little flaky sea salt and roast for 15 minutes, then gently flip the squash and parsnip over and continue roasting for 10 to 15 minutes or until the squash and parsnip are tender and the grapes start to soften. Remove from the oven and let everything cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
For the dressing, whisk together the olive oil and vinegar in a small bowl and season to taste with fine sea salt and pepper.
Divide the radicchio and lettuce leaves between two large plates and layer the squash, parsnip, and grapes (on the vine or snipped) on top. Sprinkle with the Roquefort, drizzle with the dressing, and serve immediately.
To prepare the salad for transportation, let the squash, parsnip, and grapes (off the vine) cool completely, then pack in a container and spread the radicchio, lettuce leaves, and Roquefort on top. Keep the dressing separate in a jar and assemble just before lunch.
To 35 years of friendship, through thick and thin:
A Salad of Caramelised Parsnip with Maple Syrup, Goat Cheese and Thyme
At the moment I could eat roots and turnips all the time luckily, as tasty spring vegetables are still a few months away. It's always the same, around March I start to miss ripe tomatoes, juicy cucumber, crunchy lettuce, zucchini, the ripe tastes of summer. Greenhouse vegetables reach their watery peak at this time of the year so they are not really an alternative. The cherry tomatoes I bought the other day had thick skin and when I ate them I had to image tomatoes rather than tasting them. I don't really feel like cabbage anymore, so I stick to everything that grows in the ground.
I enjoyed my Monday's Ginger Honey Navet Steaks so much, their sweet, syrupy juices were delicious, that I thought about other combinations of roots and syrup. My choice was caramelized parsnip roasted with maple syrup and thyme leaves, combined with fresh goat cheese in a warm salad. The juices make a great thick syrup, glazed around the roots they are a perfect match for the milky cheese crumbs and strong wintery herb. You could make it as a side dish, still hot, we ate it as a warm salad, I didn't want the cheese to melt.
I cut three parsnips into long strips and glazed them with 3 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of maple syrup mixed with salt and pepper. A dash of white wine and the leaves of 4 sprigs of time on top, everything well spread in a roasting tin, I baked it for 15 minutes in the hot oven set to 200°C / 390°F, Rotitherm roasting setting. When the parsnip was done, golden on the outside and soft inside, I let them cool for a couple minutes before I crumbled 80g / 3 ounces of fresh, soft goat cheese over the roots. The two us cleaned the tin with our fingers, not to waste a drop of the sweet syrup.
Lasagna with Sauce Bolognese and Parsnip
Rich, with a fruity sauce Bolognese with lots of tomatoes and herbs, parsnip, Parmesan and a bit of chicken liver - that's my lasagna and I enjoy every hearty bite of it! I take the casserole dish with the steaming lasagna out of my oven and by the time I put it on the table it has already filled our entire apartment with the sweetest, mouth-watering smell of herbs, baked cheese and tomatoes. It's a real teaser!
It's only my second time using wavy lasagna pasta and I'm impressed with the result. They are done within just 25 minutes (still al dente), the lasagna keeps its shape on the plate and - most importantly - it gets a crispy crust on top, neither too hard nor too dry. I make my sauce Bolognese with pure minced beef and a bit of chicken liver. You don't really taste the liver but it makes the beef taste more intense. I add carrots and parsnip as I prefer a balanced mixture of meat and vegetables in a sauce Bolognese in general. I cook the sauce for about an hour with red wine, tomato paste, thyme and rosemary - it is very concentrated and strong. And finally the cheese! Parmesan is the perfect choice as it's so tasty that you don't need to use much, which would just make the meal cheesy and heavy.
Lasagna with Sauce Bolognese and Parsnip
I use a 27cm x 20cm / 10.5" x 8" baking dish, definitely big enough for 4 people.
For the Sauce Bolognese
minced beef 300g / 10.5 ounces
organic chicken liver, chopped, around 100g / 3.5 ounces
carrot, sliced, 1
parsnip, sliced, 2
onion, chopped, 1
tinned tomatoes, chopped, 400g / 14 ounces
red wine around 500ml (you could also use 250ml red wine and 250ml broth)
tomato paste 2 tablespoons
a sprig of thyme
a sprig of rosemary
garlic, crushed, 1 clove
salt and pepper
olive oil for frying
Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the vegetables for a couple minutes on medium heat. Add the meat (beef and liver) and fry until all the liquid dissolves. Add the tomato paste, mix and fry for a minute. Deglaze with a little red wine, mix, cook for a minute and repeat two more times. Add the tinned tomatoes and the rest of the wine (you might not need all of it at once). Add herbs, garlic, salt and pepper and simmer on low temperature for about an hour. Stir in between and add more wine if the sauce becomes too dry. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
For the Sauce Béchamel
milk 600ml
butter, melted, 30g / 1 ounce
plain flour 30g / 1 ounce
bay leaf 1
a pinch of nutmeg, grated
salt and pepper
Mix the milk with the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Whisk the flour into the hot butter. Bring the milk to the boil and whisk into the roux. Continue mixing until smooth. Add the bay leaf and cook for around 5 minutes on low heat until the texture is thick and smooth. Take the bay leaf out and season with salt and pepper.
For the Lasagna
lasagna pasta around 250g / 9 ounces
Parmesan, grated, around 100g / 3.5 ounces
Set the oven to 180°C / 355°F.
Butter your baking dish. Put down a layer of pasta, 1/3 of the sauce Bolognese, 1/4 sauce Béchamel and some Parmesan. Repeat twice, cover with a final layer of pasta (you should have 4 layers of pasta) and cover with sauce Béchamel and Parmesan. Bake for 25 minutes or until the pasta is done, switch on the grill for 2 minutes or until the pasta becomes golden brown and partially crisp. Take the lasagna out and let it sit for 10 minutes.
A hearty Potato and Parsnip Gratin
I feel really excited when I see food bubbling in the oven. I can sit in front of the glass oven door and watch it become golden, rising up and down and filling the kitchen with the kind of smell that you just achieve with oven dishes. Especially with a gratin! For tonight we will have a very hearty gratin with potatoes, parsnip, onions and bacon and enhanced with nutmeg, cloves and brandy. This creates an addictive combination of hearty and sweet through the parsnip and brandy. We always plan to make bigger portions to have some leftovers for the next day but with gratin we never manage. Today is the same - it is all gone already.
Potato and Parsnip Gratin
For 3 as a main, or 4 as a side dish, you need
large potatoes, peeled or rinsed and sliced, 4-5
large parsnips, peeled or rinsed and sliced, 4
small onion, cut into thin rings, 1
bacon, cut into small cubes, 40g / 1.5 ounces
butter 30g / 1 ounce
heavy cream 75ml
milk 200ml
water
garlic, crushed, 1 clove
nutmeg, preferably freshly grated
brandy for deglazing
sea salt and pepper
Set the oven to 220°C / 430°F. Our oven has a Rotitherm roasting setting which works perfectly for gratin, it combines the grill setting with fan circulation, but the top / bottom oven setting works as well.
Heat the butter in a large pan, fry the bacon and onions on medium heat until golden and add the garlic. Add the potato and parsnip slices to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes. Deglaze with brandy and pour the cream and milk on top, add a little water until everything is covered. Now add the spices and season with salt and pepper. Let it simmer until the potatoes and parsnip are almost done. Arrange the potato and parsnip slices in a baking dish or roasting tin and pour the bacon/ milk/ cream mixture over the vegetables. Bake for 8-10 minutes in the oven until golden brown.