PREPARATIONS

• Place the beef shanks on a rack over a drip tray or a deep baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Roast in the oven at 250°C on the grill setting for about 25 minutes, until browned and starting to render fat.
• Meanwhile, cut carrots, onions, and celery into large chunks. Sauté the veggies with crushed coriander seeds and peppercorns in a large pot with a bit of olive oil. Stir in tomato paste and cook for another 1–2 minutes.
• Add water to the pot and toss in bay leaves.
• Remove the beef shanks and bones from the oven and add them to the pot. Cover with the lid and simmer for about 2 hours.
• Once the cooking time is up, strain the broth through a sieve into a measuring cup. Discard the vegetables and bones, and set the meat aside in a bowl. If you want to go the extra mile, strain the broth through a cheesecloth, though it’s not essential for this recipe. You’ll need 600 milliliters of broth and all the meat for this cottage pie.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Peel and halve the potatoes, then place them in a medium pot with cold water. Bring to a boil and cook until soft, about 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, gently heat milk and butter in a small pot until the butter melts. Grate Parmesan and slice chives into fine rings—set both aside. Finely dice the onion, peel the garlic, and dice the carrots into small cubes. Weigh the peas and set everything aside.
3. Once the potatoes are soft, drain the water. Add the warm milk-butter mixture and mash the potatoes. Stir in cream cheese and Parmesan, then season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Finally, fold in the chives. Cover and set the pot aside.
4. Heat olive oil in a large pot or ovenproof pan. Sear the ground beef, remove it, and set aside.
5. Add the onions and carrots to the pan and sauté briefly. Press or finely grate the garlic, sauté for a moment, then stir in tomato paste and cook briefly as well.
6. Dust with flour and stir well. Add the ground beef and beef shank meat, then deglaze with the beef broth. Stir in Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, paprika, cinnamon, brown sugar, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until the carrots are soft. While it simmers, finely chop the parsley.
7. Once the carrots are soft, stir in the peas and parsley. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Spread the meat mixture evenly into an ovenproof dish. Smooth it out, then spread the mashed potatoes on top, smoothing and optionally decorating the surface.
8. Bake for 15–20 minutes, until the edges are bubbling. Switch to the grill setting and cook for 5–7 minutes until the mashed potato topping turns golden brown. Let the cottage pie rest briefly before serving.

• Thoroughly wash the cucumber, carrot, tomatoes, radishes, dill, and chives. Peel the cucumber and carrot and cut them into fine strips, halve the cherry tomatoes, slice the radishes thinly, finely chop the dill, and cut the chives into little rolls. Put everything into a medium-sized bowl and mix with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. If the feta cheese is very salty, I would not add any more salt to the vegetables.
• Place the feta cheese in the food processor and turn it on. Gradually add 3 tablespoons of olive oil until the cheese is creamily blended.
• Spread the feta on a flat plate and smooth it out. Distribute the vegetables over the cheese and serve. If you store the plate in the fridge, the cheese might harden a bit. I would recommend bringing it to room temperature before serving.

1. Peel the carrot and onion and roughly chop them as well as the celery. Put the pieces into the blender. Pour in the oil. Blend on the highest setting until there are only tiny pieces of the vegetables left.
2. Pour the mixture from the blender into a medium-sized pot and heat it over medium heat to a temperature of about 99°-102°C (210°-215°F), and maintain this temperature for the next 40 minutes. Stir occasionally, making sure the temperature remains steady and nothing gets burned.
3. Prepare a bowl large enough to fit a medium-sized pot, and fill it with cold water and a handful of ice cubes. Also, hang a fine sieve strainer over one medium-sized bowl and another fine sieve strainer, with a coffee filter inside it, over another medium-sized bowl.
4. Now, place the pot in the ice water and stir to cool the oil quickly. Once the oil is almost cold, remove the pot from the water and pour the oil into the prepared fine sieve to catch the coarse particles.
5. Then, pour the oil into the second sieve, which is equipped with a coffee filter, to catch the remaining finer particles.
6. Allow the oil to drip through for about 1 hour or maybe less depending on how many remaining particles are in the coffee filter. Once all the oil has passed through the coffee filter, transfer the collected amount of oil into a sealable container or directly into an oil bottle. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.

1. Peel the carrots, roughly chop them and put them into the blender. Pour in the oil. Blend on the highest setting until there are only tiny pieces of the carrots left.
2. Pour the mixture from the blender into a medium-sized pot and heat it over medium heat to a temperature of about 104°-106°C (219°-222°F), and maintain this temperature for the next 40 minutes. Stir occasionally, making sure the temperature remains steady and nothing gets burned.
3. Prepare a bowl large enough to fit a medium-sized pot, and fill it with cold water and a handful of ice cubes. Also, hang a fine sieve strainer over one medium-sized bowl and another fine sieve strainer, with a coffee filter inside it, over another medium-sized bowl.
4. Now, place the pot in the ice water and stir to cool the oil quickly. Once the oil is almost cold, remove the pot from the water and pour the oil into the prepared fine sieve to catch the coarse particles.
5. Then, pour the oil into the second sieve, which is equipped with a coffee filter, to catch the remaining finer particles.
6. Allow the oil to drip through for about 1 hour or maybe less depending on how many remaining particles are in the coffee filter. Once all the oil has passed through the coffee filter, transfer the collected amount of oil into a sealable container or directly into an oil bottle. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.

PREPARATIONS

• Prepare dumpling wrappers or defrost store-bought ones.
• Peel and finely chop or grate the ginger. Set aside.
• Peel and finely chop or press the garlic cloves. Set aside.
• Clean the mushrooms and dice them into small pieces. Set aside.
• Chop the napa cabbage into small pieces and wash it. Set aside.
• Peel and finely dice the carrots. Set aside.
• Pluck the cilantro leaves from the stems and finely chop them. Set aside.
• Separate the green and white parts of the green onions and slice both into fine rings. Set aside.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat a large pan over medium heat and add 1 tablespoons of clarified butter. Start by sautéing the white parts of the green onions, ginger, and garlic for a few minutes. Next, add the carrot pieces and sauté for a few more minutes. Then, add the mushroom pieces, mix well, and finally add the napa cabbage. Let the napa cabbage cook until soft, then stir everything together. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool.
2. Once the mixture has cooled down, add 2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro, the green parts of the green onions, 1/4 teaspoon of ground white pepper, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, and 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil. Mix everything well.
3. Set up your vegetable filling, the dumpling wrappers, and a small bowl of cold water. Also, prepare a large plate dusted with a little flour where you can place your finished dumplings. Now, put on your favorite series or podcast and start filling your dumplings.
4. Take a wrapper and place about 1-1.5 teaspoons of the vegetable mixture in the center. Dip a finger in the water and moisten the edge of the upper half of the wrapper. Fold the wrapper like a taco shell upwards and press the left tip of the wrapper with your left hand. Now, with the right hand’s index finger and thumb, hold the closed tip with your left thumb, place a small fold at the top edge against the backside of the wrapper and press it firmly. Continue this until the wrapper is completely closed and you have a finished dumpling in your hand. Place the finished dumpling on the floured plate. This folding technique might take a little practice. For a visual demonstration, just scroll down to my video at the end of the recipe. Continue this process until all the dumpling wrappers and filling are used up.
5. Fill a medium-sized pot with enough water to fill just over half the pot. Bring the water to a boil.
6. Meanwhile, you can prepare the Sesame Miso Soup in the other pot. Add the following ingredients to the pot: tahini, white miso paste, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, crispy chili oil, water, and grated garlic and ginger. Bring everything to a simmer over medium heat. Keep the soup on a low flame on the stove.
7. Once the water in the other pot is boiling, turn it down slightly and add 6-8 dumplings depending on the size of your pot and let them cook for about 8 minutes. Since dumplings expand while cooking, do not overcrowd your pot. Once the dumplings become translucent and the filling is clearly visible, they are done. Place the dumplings in the bowls in which you want to serve them. Continue this for all dumplings until all are cooked.
8. Once all dumplings are ready, evenly distribute the soup from the other pot over the dumplings. Top each bowl with some cilantro, Crispy Chili Oil, and toasted sesame seeds.

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C (430°F)
2. Grate the Parmesan cheese into coarse shavings. Set aside.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
4. Peel the carrots and cut them into long sticks. Don’t throw the peels in the trash – instead put them in a plastic bag to your other veggie scraps in the freezer to cook vegetable stock from scratch. Place the sticks on the baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and mix well.
5. Spread the carrot sticks in a single layer on the sheet, making sure they don’t overlap or stack on top of each other. Then, distribute the grated Parmesan over the carrots and put the sheet in the oven to roast for 25-30 minutes.
6. In the meantime, prepare the dip. Peel and finely chop the garlic or press it with a garlic press. In a small bowl, mix crème fraîche with salt, pepper, and the garlic. Next, chop the parsley and set it aside.
7. The carrots are done when the Parmesan has spread among them and become crispy. The carrots should have some brown spots but still be firm to the bite. Now, remove the carrots from the oven. Serve them on plates, garnished with parsley and the dip.

1. Preheat the oven to 176°C (350°F)
2. Use a mortar and pestle to grind the cloves.
3. Grease the cake pan with 1 teaspoon of butter.
4. Peel the carrots and grate one half of the carrots coarsley and the other half into thin shreds.
5. Sift flour, cinnamon, cloves, and baking soda through a sieve into a medium-sized bowl. Grate 1/4 teaspoon of fresh nutmeg into it. Set aside.
6. In a large bowl, mix sugar, oil, and vanilla extract. Then add the eggs and beat everything together briefly.
7. Next, gradually add the flour mixture and stir well. Finally, fold in the carrots.
8. Pour the batter evenly into the cake pan and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
9. Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for about 60 minutes, then invert it onto a cake stand or plate.
10. Meanwhile, prepare the frosting. Using a hand mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy and firm. Gradually add powdered sugar and vanilla extract, continuing to beat until it reaches a firm consistency. Take 1-2 tablespoons of the frosting and put them into two small separate bowls.
11. Once the cake is cool, spread the frosting over the cake and smooth it out.
12. Now color the remaining frosting in the two small bowls with green and orange food coloring to the desired intensity. Fill each colored frosting into a small plastic bag and cut a tiny opening in the corner of each bag. Then, with very light pressure, draw the carrot design on the white frosting. Keep the cake in the fridge until serving.