The Easiest Homemade Cheese Crisp Recipe Ever (gluten-free and low-carb)

I originally blogged about these baked cheese crackers back in early December 2007.  Back then I was teaching at the university during day-time and working as an intern at a restaurant in the evenings. Didn't have much time - or need - to cook at home, so these delicious and exceptionally easy cheese crisps were perfect as a late-night nibble.

Now, more than 6 years and 3 kids later, I still make these every now and then. Cheese is an ingredient I always have lurking in the fridge, as it's pretty versatile - and I love cheese. So whenever I bake something in the oven, I bake a batch of these as well. These are also suitable if you're on a low-carb and/or gluten-free diet. And if you go to sauna on Saturday evenings, like many Estonians do, then these go beautifully with beer.

You can use any semi-hard cheese on hand. I tend to use Eesti juust aka 'Estonian cheese' - a cheese similar to the Danish Havarti cheese which is available pretty much everywhere in the world. Cheddar and Parmesan would work as well, so really, use whatever you have in your fridge.

Easy Baked Cheese Crisps
(Imelihtsad juustuküpsised)

coarsely grated cheese
caraway seeds (optional, but nice!)

Take small heaps of grated cheese and place them on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Leave about 5 cm/2 inches between cookies, as they spread during baking.
Sprinkle some caraway seeds on each 'crisp', if you wish. I really love the taste of caraway seeds and find the flavour mingles wonderfully with cheese, but you could use cumin seeds or paprika powder or chilli flakes or anything else you like.
Place in the middle of pre-heated 180 C/350 F oven and bake for 5-7 minutes, until the cheese has melted and turned slightly golden on the edges. Remove the baking sheet from the oven (overbaked cheese is nasty and bitter, so be careful not to bake the crisps/cookies for too long!) and leave to cool.
The cheese crisps harden slightly when cooling.

Serve as an accompaniment to a glass of hõõgvein/mulled wine/glühwein/glögg, or even regular wine or beer.

To keep you warm in those cold days: mulled apple juice (hot cider)

Photo by Juta Kübarsepp for the January 2014 issue of Kodu ja Aed magazine (I made the drink and modelled for the photo :))

Do you love mulled wine or glögg or vin chaud or Glühwein? I do. However, once Christmas is behind us, I don't fancy red wine based mulled drinks - they simply feel too, well, Christmassy. However, this mulled apple drink is perfect for winter, and a great alternative to your regular mulled wine. And should you plan a winter walk and a small picnic, you can make a batch and put into your favourite thermos bottle!

I use cinnamon and ginger, and sometimes add star anise - feel free to play with different spices. My version is non-alcoholic, but feel free to add some calvados or rum or cognac to it ;)

Mulled apple glögg (non-alcholic)
(Alkoholivaba õunaglögi)
 Serves 6


Photo by Pille Petersoo for Nami-Nami

1 litre of good apple juice, homemade or bought
1 cinnamon stick
thumb-sized piece of ginger root
1-2 star anise (optional)
soft brown sugar or honey (optional)

Gently heat the apple juice in a saucepan. Add the cinnamon stick and peeled ginger (no need to chop, though of course you can do that), as well as the star anise. Cover and let infuse for about 15 minutes on a very low heat.

Pour through a sieve and serve in heat-tolerant glasses or mugs, sweeten with brown sugar or honey, if you wish.

Lamb and Puy lentils

January 6th - or today - is the last day to wish happy new year here in Estonia, so I'm just in time - Happy New Year, dear readers of Nami-Nami near and far! Wish you all a peaceful and productive year, full of delicious and nourishing food, with occasional treats and decadent moments!

We're in the middle of a very awkward winter here. While friends in the US and Canada are facing huge snowstorms, then we had a green and mild Christmas with temperatures hovering at around couple of degrees above zero (Celsius, that is). Most unusual and weird, though not unheard of. We're promised that the temperature drops towards the end of January and we'll get some snow as well, but I won't believe it until I see it. Still, hearty soups and stews are what we're cooking most at the moment - it is winter, after all - and this lamb with lentils was a great and promising start to the culinary year or 2014.

Oh, and as you can see, I'm now a proud owner of a beautiful red Staub Oval Cocotte - a Christmas present from my dear K (with special thanks to Tigu's Kristel for shipping one for me from Germany). I've already put this to good use.

Lamb with lentils
(Lammas läätsedega)
Serves four to six



about a kilogram of lamb pieces (on the bone)
rapeseed or olive oil
2 large onions
5 large carrots
2 celery sticks
70 g (about 3 Tbsp) concentrated tomato paste
100 ml dry red wine or port
600-800 ml (about 2,5-3 cups) beef bouillon/stock
175 g green (Puy) lentils, rinsed and drained
fresh parsley and/or rosemary, chopped

You can finish cooking this dish on the stove top or in the oven. If you're going to cook it in the oven, then preheat the oven to 180 C/350 F.

Peel the onions and carrots. Chop onions finely, roughly chop the carrots and celery sticks.

Season the lamb pieces with salt. Heat oil in a heavy cooking pot/Dutch oven and brown the meat pieces on all sides. Put aside.

Add the onions to the pot, sauté for 5 minutes on a moderately low heat, stirring every now and then.

Add the carrots and celery, increase the heat a little and fry for another 5 minutes.

Add the concentrated tomato pureé, fry for a couple of minutes. Pour in the wine, reduce by half.

Now return the browned lamb into the pot again, fitting the meat snugly between the vegetables. Pour over enough beef stock to nearly cover the meat. Put the lid on and simmer on a low heat or in the oven for about 2 hours, until the meat is pretty soft.

Now remove the lid and add the lentils. If the dish looks too dry, add a little stock or hot water as well. Cover again and cook for another 45-60 minutes, until the lamb is soft and falling off the bones and the lentils are cooked.

Season to taste, scatter fresh parsley and/or rosemary on top and serve.

We ate this as this, but you could serve it with rice or crusty wholegrain bread, if you wish.