Courses: treats

Chai Spiced White Chocolate Cookies from Kati – blackwhitevivid

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Ohh these cookies!

As you already know I love to be in contact with other Food Blogger from all over the world! I love to share the same passion, to talk about food, blogging, food photography and…. cats. Kati is one of the first food blogger I followed on Instagram. She inspired me with her wonderful food creations and we share our deeeeeepppp passion for cats. She is a traveller and loves to live on different places all over the world. And everywhere she stay she find some cats around her.

I’m so happy to share her Chai Spiced White Chocolate Cookies with you as well as an interview.

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1. What’s your name?

Hey, my name is Kati and I’m the author and creator of the blog and Instagram account black.white.vivid.

2. Where are you living?

I’m originally from Germany, born in Stralsund, a small town situated right at the Baltic Sea. However I do live abroad since many years. In the last few years I’ve lived in Hong Kong and Cairo among others. Currently I’m enjoying life in Istanbul where I moved to last year, together with my boyfriend and our two cats.

3. Can you tell me something about you?

Since I’m young I have been dreaming of living an international life. After I graduated from High School, I moved abroad and never looked back. I did my Bachelors and Masters degree in Marketing and Management in Holland, the UK and France. After that I came back to Germany where I worked at Amazon for two years before I moved to Hong Kong with my boyfriend. And this is where my culinary journey begins. I became vegan when I was living in Munch and during that time I was already taking care of my diet and myself. But when I moved abroad again, the combination of my healthy life style and new cultural as well as culinary influences brought my approach to food to the next level. That was 3 years ago and it lot has changed in terms of food since then. I’m not vegan anymore but I do believe in a balanced and healthy life. It took me quite a while to start my blog black.white.vivid. and at first I didn’t know that one day it would be so food and since lately travel-focused. Today I work as a part-time e-commerce consultant from home for a German company and part-time blogger and photographer.

4. Wheat means healthy living for you?

For me, a healthy life is a balanced life. I disapprove of strict diets and food trends. I also think that not everyone needs to meditate or do yoga. Crochet can be equally relaxing and a good steak once in a while does wonders to some people. When it comes to sleep however, I’m very consequent. If I don’t feel well or have skin issues I usually have lots of water and go to bed very early. Sleep has real healing power. Of course, healthy living also means to live a conscious life. It’s still important to pay attention to you diet. If you add 10 tablespoons of sugar to your coffee every day, that’s probably not going to improve your well being in the long tern. But a sweet treat once in a while is perfectly fine. Apart from that, greens and fruits but also high-quality grains are very important for me.

5. What is your favorite meal?

At first I thought this question would be difficult to answer. But then I more or less immediately had an idea: Buddha Bowl. Just a short explanation in case. – A Buddha bowl is a bowl filled with raw, cooked and roasted ingredients. As a base you add a grain, I personally like quinoa. Then, throw in some fresh salad leaves, roasted pumpkin or bakes sweet potato. Hummus and avocado is an essential part of my Buddha bowl. I just love that you can easily create your bowl with flavors from different countries. Just add spicy Mexican beans, Asian spiced tofu or sweet cinnamon carrot from Morocco. There are now rules, really. Just be creative.

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Chai Spiced White Chocolate Cookies
 
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Author:
Recipe type: treats
Ingredients
  • ½ cup / 100 grams coconut oil, soft
  • ½ cup / 115 grams coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
  • 4 tbsp aquafaba
  • ¾ tsp baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 1¾ cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp chai spice
  • 4-6 pieces of vegan white chocolate
Instructions
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, pinch of salt and chai spice
  2. In a separat bowl mix sugar and aquafaba until smooth, then add the coconut oil and whisk for about 2 min
  3. Add the flour mixture tot he sugar mixture and then stir until well combined
  4. Preheat to 180°C / 350° F
  5. Line baking sheet with parchement paper
  6. Using a tea spoon, scoob about 1-1.5 spoons worth of cookie dough and form a ball in your hands, flaten it and place it on baking sheet
  7. Cut chocolate into small pieces, devide it between al cookies, springle it on top and gently press it into the cookie dough
  8. Bake for 10-12 min but don’t overbake
  9. Let it cool before serving

 

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Weisse Schokoladen Kekse mit Chai Gewürz von Kati – blackwhitevivid

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Ohhh diese Cookies!

Wie ihr sicher schon wisst, bin ich ein wahnsinniger Katzenliebhaber. Eine Leidenschaft, die mich mit vielen verbindet. So auch mit Kati von black.white.vivid.

Kati ist eine der ersten Food Blogger, denen ich auf Instagram begegnet bin. Sie ist eine wahr „Weltenbummlerin“, was man auf ihrem wundervollen Blog sehen kann und liebt ihre Katzen über alles. Nicht nur ihre! Denn überall, wo man Kati antrifft, in welchem Land auch immer, scharren sich die Katzen um sie herum.

Ich freue mich sehr, euch Kati in einem kurzen Interview vorzustellen und ihr neustes Rezept „Weisse Schokoladen Cookies mit Chai Gewürz“ mit euch zu teilen!

kati-mittel

1. Wie ist dein Name?

Hi, meine Name ist Kati und ich betreibe den Blog und Instagram Account black.white.vivid.

2. Wo lebst du?

Ich bin ursprünglich in Stralsund an der Ostsee geboren aber lebe bereits seit vielen Jahren im Ausland. Zu meinen letzten Stationen zählen Hongkong und Kairo. Momentan lebe ich mit meinem Freund und unseren zwei Katzen in Istanbul.

3. Erzählst du uns ein bisschen über dich?

Schon als junger Mensch hat es mich immer wieder ins Ausland gezogen. Seitdem ich mein Abitur in Deutschland absolviert habe, bin ich ständig unterwegs. Meinen Bachelor und Master im Bereich Marketing und Management habe ich im Ausland abgeschlossen. Danach war ich für 2 Jahre im schönen München berufstätig bevor ich mit meinem Freund damals nach Hong Kong gegangen bin. Dort fängt auch meine kulinarische Entwicklung an. Die Jahre in München hatte ich zwar schon vegan gelebt aber in Kombination mit einer neuen Kultur, habe ich mich noch einmal völlig neu mit dem Thema Essen auseinandersetzen können. Das war vor gut 3 Jahren und nach einer Weile entstand dann auch mein Blog black.white.vivid. Heute arbeite zur Hälfte als E-Commerce Beraterin für ein deutsches Unternehmen von zuhause aus und die restliche Zeit stecke ich in meinen Blog und mein Instagram um meine Food & Travel stories zu teilen.

4. Was bedeutet „gesund leben“ für dich?

Gesund leben bedeutet für mich ausgeglichen leben. Ich halte nichts von strengen Diäten oder Ernährungstrends. Auch denke ich nicht, dass jeder meditieren oder Yoga machen sollte. Häkeln kann auch entspannen und ein ordentliches Steak (aus Bio Anbau) tut dem einen oder anderen ab und zu sicherlich auch sehr gut. Beim Thema Schlaf bin ich jedoch sehr konsequent. Wenn ich mich unwohl fühle oder Hautprobleme habe, dann trinke ich einfach extra viel und gehe früh ins Bett. Das hilft oft Wunder. Sicherlich bedeutet gesund leben auch bewusst leben. Man muss schon auf seine Ernährung etwas achten und jeden Tag 10 Esslöffel Zucker in seinen Kaffee zu schütten, wird langfristig wenig dem Wohlempfinden gut tun. Viel Grünzeugs und Früchte aber auch hochwertiges Getreide sind für mich extrem wichtig.

5. Was ist dein Lieblingsessen?

Ich dachte erst die Frage würde mir unglaublich schwer fallen, aber mir kam sofort eine Idee in den Kopf: Buddha Bowl. Kurz zur Erklärung, die Buddha Bowl ist eine große Schale gefüllt mit rohen, gekochten und gebratenen Zutaten. Meist kommt eine Getreidesorte rein. Bei mir zum Beispiel am Liebsten Quinoa. Dann noch ein paar frische Salatblätter, gegrillten Kürbis oder gebackene Süßkartoffel. Humus und Avocado darf natürlich auch nicht fehlen. Ich liebe es auch meine Buddha Bowl landestypisch zu würzen. Entweder mit scharfen mexikanischen Bohnen, asiatisch gewürzten Tofu oder süßlich mit Zimt gebratene Karotten so wie in Marokko. Hier ist der Kreativität und dem Geschmack keine Grenzen gesetzt.

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Weisse Schokoladen Kekse mit Chai Gewürz
 
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Author:
Recipe type: treats
Ingredients
  • ½ Cup / 100 Gram Kokosnuss Öl, weich
  • ½ Cup/ 115 Gram Kokosnuss Zucker (oder braunen Zucker)
  • 4 Esslöffel Aquafaba
  • ¾ Teelöffel Backpulver
  • Prise Salz
  • 1¾ Cups Weizenmehl
  • 1 Teelöffel Chai Gewürz
  • 4-6 Stückchen vegane weiße Schokolade
Instructions
  1. In einer Schale, mixe Mehl, Backpulver, Salz und Chai Gewürz zusammen
  2. In einer zweiten Schale, vermische Zucker mit dem Aquafaba bis es eine Masse ergibt und gebe dann das weiche Kokosnuss Öl dazu und verrühre alles ordentlich für weitere 2 min
  3. Nun füge den Mehlmix zum Zuckermix und rühre bis es eine festere Masse ergibt
  4. Heize den Ofen auf 180 °C vor
  5. Belege ein Backbleck mit Backpapier
  6. Mit einem Teelöffel trenne 1-1.5 Löffel vom Teig ab, forme einen Ball, drücke diesen leicht platt und lege es auf das Backblech
  7. Schneide die weiße Schokolade in kleine Stücke, verteile sie auf die Anzahl der Kekse, streue die Stückchen vorsichtig über die Kekse und drücke sie behutsam in den Teig
  8. Die Kekse müssen 10-12 min backen, jedoch nicht viel länger, da sie ansonsten zu hart werden
  9. Vor dem Servieren kurz abkühlen lasse.

 

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Almond vanilla balls and my experiences in food photography

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As you know I’m sharing my food photography pictures on Instagram as well as on my blog. Some people ask me why I’m sharing my pictures on Instagram as well. The main reason is to improve my food photography skills. To learn from others and to share my experience and to get experiences back from other food photographer.

Social media is a good place to interchange.

To be honest. Working as a food blogger in your free time means to focus on your favourite tasks. Otherwise you can burn yourself out really fast. Food blogging is such a big field where you can work hours and hours to get more follower and traffic on your page. Everybody need to find his real passion in this niche. Mine is taking pictures. Not getting more and more follower.

I like to share a little bit of my food photography journey as well as my recipe today. I won’t go into the details. This is only an idea how my journey has been.

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Food photography

Food photography is a big part of my life and I’m always really thankful to find time for it. I’m only taking pictures when I’m sure I have no other obligations during the day to focus myself completely. It’s a kind of creativity and silence for me. Something where I can stop thinking.

Some of you follow me since I started my blog or my Instagram account 1,5 years ago. As you can see in my pictures my results getting better and better. To be honest. I invested a lot of time and patience to learn how to take good pictures. Why? Because I love taking pictures. I love to look at stunning food photography and I love to realize I can do it as well.

Example 1: Turmeric cashew smoothie with lemon

One of my very first pictures was my turmeric cashew smoothie with lemon.

Kurkuma Cashew Smoothie NEU I

As you can see this picture isn’t really clear. Ist blurred.
It is overexposed and the props are really simple. But when I shot it I was so proud of it. Haha.

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I took this shot a few days ago with my new skills. My new lense and I edited it in Lightroom. This picture has a nice  depth of Focus and the probs are so lovely. It isn’t too loud. As you can see it looks much more professional in total. But it takes 1 year to learn how to shot it.

Inspirations

First of all I got a lot of inspirations from other cook book authors, bloggers and Instagramer. I always have a look and think about which kind of food photography I prefer. I read a lot. I bought books to learn how to start. I could tell you in detail how I improve my skills. But it’s so much better to have a book on hand and learn it step by step.

My German recommendations for good books: Food-Fotografie: Leckere Bildrezepte für Einsteiger and  Food-Fotografie – Essen perfekt in Szene setzen (Digital fotografieren)

Natural light & Props

I started using natural light early because I read it everywhere! Natural light is one of the most important things to follow in taking good food pictures. I didn’t use man props like napkins, towels or different cutlery in the beginning. My first pictures were really simple. But I was really proud of every single one because I took it. LOL. Later I discovered my pictures looking better and better when I use some props.

Example 2: A simple smoothie in a small jar

Look at the difference between these two smoothie pictures. I didn’t used probs in the first one. It looks so lonely and not inviting. Sad smoothie.

Kakao Amaranth Smoothie I

In contrast you feel the athmosphere when you look as this simple banana almond smoothie. I try to avoid too many colors but I added some green in the backround and red from the figs to create a nice view. It fits perfect to the wood I used in that picture. Wooden boards are always a good idea.

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Camera Equipment

I started with a good DSLR camera. Maybe this was the reason I had so much fun when I began. You can easily take pictures with your mobile phone as well but trust me the results with a good camera is so important to improve your skills. And when you decide to take pictures in the future and to invest time to learn it, the camera invest is appropriate.
I use a Nikon DS5200 with a 50mm f/1.8D Lens .

Editing program

In the beginning I used a freeware program to edit my picture. It is from google and the name is picassa. You have the possibility to start editing your pictures without buying an expensive program like Lightroom. You can play around and try out how you can edit your picture to make it looks better. One year later I spend all my money and bought an Apple IMAC with Lightroom. I use it 2 month now and it is the best I ever bought. My results are so much better! I’m also really happy to use Dearnas Food Fotography Guides to learn how to take good pictures and how to edit them in Lightroom.

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My journey isn’t at the end

I’m sure I can learn so much more about this amazing creative hobby. I’m so happy I discovered my passion of food photography because it’s a place I can turn myself off.
I love to share this recipe today because I’m proud of one of my absolutely first action shots. I watched a guide from Dearnas Food Fotography Guides how to take this kind of pictures. And these balls are really delicious, easy to prepare and healthy. My plan was to make almond butter with peeled almonds. But is don’t works. So I decided to convert the paste into balls.

So let’s go!

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Almond vanilla balls
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Treats
Ingredients
  • 100g almonds (1 cup)
  • 100g desiccated coconut
  • 400g medjool dates (2 cups)
  • 3 tbsp coconut oil
  • 2 tbsp ground vanilla
  • 4 tbsp raw cacao powder
Instructions
  1. Mix up all ingredients (except the cacao powder) in a food processor.
  2. Form the paste into balls.
  3. Sprinkle the balls with cacao powder or icing sugar.
  4. Enjoy!

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Pistachio Orange Cookies

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Pistachio Orange Cookies – all my loveliest ingredients in one Cookie!

There are not that many ingredients I love more than vanilla. But one are pistachios. I love pistachios since I was a little child. I eat pistachio ice cream 7 times a week (ok maybe 3 times ;o)) and there are my best friend at school. Ate them often roasted and salted. In the meanwhile I don’t eat them salted because too much salt isn’t good for your body.  So use less salt and more spices.

Pistachio as a super healthy source of protein

I add a lot of nuts to my diet because nuts are one of the best source of good fats, high quality protein and vitamin-e (the vitamin for a good skin). Just a hand full of pistachios a day provides enough recommended levels of anti-oxidants, minerals, vitamins, and Protein.

I learned this year to add orange zest in my cookies, cakes and muffins to have an amazing flavor. The combination pistachio and orange taste so good that I like to share this cookie recipe for these Pistachio Orange Cookies with you. This recipe is gluten-free and raffinated sugar free.

Pistachio

Pistachio Orange Cookies
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Treats
Serves: 12
Ingredients
  • 1 cup roasted pistachios
  • 1 cup ground almonds
  • 3 cups rolled oats
  • ½ cup raisins
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • ¼ cup coconut oil
  • ½ Cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp ground vanilla
  • Zest of 1 organic orange
  • ½ tsp sea salt
Instructions
  1. Combine all the dry ingredients (except the pistachios and raisins) together in a bowl.
  2. In another bowl combine the wet ingredients and mix well if you use dates.
  3. Mix both with the pistachios and raisins and set aside for 10 min.
  4. Preheat the oven to 175℃ and make 10 medium cookies.
  5. Bake for about 15 minute and let them cool down on a wire rack.