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A taste of Germany
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By JANE KABLER, Staff Writer
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This week I will share with you some recipes from family and friends from Germany. Of course my heritage is German and I guess that is why I love their foods. I also had a wonderful neighbor back in the 80s from Germany and she lived close to the Black Forest where she often rode her bike. She shared with me several dishes that I enjoy making for my family. My first Black Forest Cake was in her home and I have never had better. I am sharing with you an easier version of the cake but delicious. In the early 90s, I visited Germany and it was a delightful trip. The cuisine was rather good with the exception of peas and potatoes which were served with most every meal and deli luncheon meats which were served everywhere and everyday for breakfast.
The original unification of Germany in 1871 brought together three separate kingdoms, Prussia, Bavaria and Saxony. This is why there are so many varieties of foods available in the restaurants and bakeries.
The area of the Black Forest was one of my favorite places to visit simply because my neighbor had lived close as a child and I had heard many tales about that area. The Black Forest is a mountain range in southwestern Germany. Baden-Baden is a popular city for tourists and cuckoo clocks have been made in this region since the eighteenth century. Other places of interest are Lake Mummelsee, Ortenberg Castle, Hohenzollern Castle, River Titisee, the Felburg and hiking trails in the mountains.
The German Cuisine varies somewhat from region to region. Breakfast usually consists of bread, rolls, jams, deli meat including salami and various cheeses, cereal and strong coffee. The noon meal used to be the main meal with a sandwich for dinner, now the evening meal is the big meal for the day. I really couldn't look at deli luncheon meat for a few months after being in Germany. I was totally burned out.
Pork, beef and poultry are the main meats consumed and pork is the favorite. Chicken is common and duck is a favorite during holidays. Some game meats are also popular. Vegetables are commonly used in soups and as side dishes. Fried onions are often served with the various meats. White asparagus is most popular and is plentiful in late Spring. White asparagus is known as spargel.
Noodles are thicker than our pasta and are served with a variety of meats and broth. My favorite is spatzle and this can be made rather easily. It is also available in our local markets. Recipes for various types of dumplings are available and found in broths and soups.
Of course you can't mention Germany and not think of their great sausages and mustards. Anytime you are in a speciality meat market and you see bratwurst, knockwurst, liverwurst and liver cheese you know the owner is probably of German heritage. Check out the speciality markets and see the variety of German mustards available. Bavarian specialties are the best and are also available in our local markets.
German recipes are rarely spicy or hot. Some sausages are just a little spicy but not other foods. The most popular seasonings are parsley, cardamom, thyme and chives. You don't find garlic in German recipes.
Desserts are plentiful and range from sorbets to ice creams, to tarts, cakes, cheesecakes, doughnuts and fruit puddings, but over whelmingly the Black Forest Cherry Cake is at the top of my list.
The country uses wheat and rye for many of their breads and brag that there are over 6,000 varieties of breads and over 1,200 pastries to be found in their country. Pumpernickel bread is the most popular, it is a dark bread and the authentic pumpernickel bread is not baked but steamed.
Ranked among the most popular foods in restaurants are sauerkraut, spatzle noodles, dumplings, roasted pork, gingerbread, sausages of all kinds, boiled or fried potatoes, meatballs in white sauce, warm potato salad, red cabbage salad, roulatin, Springerle cookies, pretzels, meat broth with dumplings, corned beef and Stollen.
Hot German Potato Salad
6 medium, peeled potatoes cooked in salt water and drained
8 slices of bacon, cooked crispy and grease saved
2 stalks of celery, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 hard boiled eggs, diced
1 tablespoon of flour
1/2 cup of cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
4 tablespoons of sugar
2 teaspoons of celery seed
1 teaspoon of mustard seed
Cook potatoes until tender, then slice 1/8 inch thick. Keep warm. In a skillet fry bacon and remove to a plate, save 2 tablespoons of drippings in the skillet. Mix flour with vinegar. Cook celery and onion until tender in bacon grease then blend in the flour and vinegar mixture, and add all other ingredients except the hard boiled eggs. Cook on medium for five minutes. Add eggs and crispy bacon and pour over warm potatoes. Serve hot.
Black Forest Spatzle
3 cups of all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
4 eggs
1 cup of milk
Combine flour, salt and nutmeg. Add eggs and mix. Pour milk into the dough little by little, until a smooth batter forms, slightly thinner than brownie batter. Let rest at least five minutes. Bring two quarts of water with 1/2 teaspoon of salt to a boil in a heavy 4-5 quart pan. Plan on boiling at least two batches from this recipe.
Set a large colander, one with large holes, over the saucepan and press the dough, a few spoonfuls at a time, through the holes directly into the water. Boil for 5-8 minutes until the noodles are tender to the bite. Remove noodles with a slotted spoon and place in cold water then drain a little longer in a sieve or mesh strainer. Toss with a little olive oil. When ready to use, heat a skillet and place butter or margarine in the skillet over a medium high heat. Add spatzle and saute, until golden on the edges. Serve with gravy, put in soup or add butter and herbs. Tip: A variation is to add herbs to the spatzle after it is cooked, such as parsley, chives, thyme, sage, or nutmeg. Salt and pepper spatzle to taste. Spatzle can be prepared the day ahead of serving, but toss it well with oil and refrigerate. Then when ready to use, do the skillet process.
Konigsberger Klopse (Meatballs in White Sauce)
1/2 lb. of lean ground pork
1/2 lb. of lean ground beef
2 slices of day old bread or rolls
2 egg yolks
2 small onions, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of margarine, and 2 more tablespoons of margarine
4 cups of beef broth
Salt and pepper to taste
5 whole peppercorns, cracked
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons of flour
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
3 oz. of white wine
4 tablespoons of sour cream
24 capers, drained
1 pinch of sugar
Soak the day old rolls or bread in a little water and squeeze almost dry.
Melt one tablespoon of butter and cook one chopped onion until tender. Cool, slightly. Place the ground meat in a bowl, add cooked onion and the bread, broken into pieces. Add salt and pepper to taste, about 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Mix everything well by hand and form into small meatballs. If too dry add a little broth to the mixture. Make 12 meatballs. Bring the rest of the broth with the spices and 1/4 of an onion to just under a boil. Add the meatballs carefully and cook until done. Keep warm. Discard the bay leaf.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a sauce pan and add the flour, making a roux. Little by little, stir about 1 1/2 cups of the broth, strained, into the roux. Stir to make a smooth sauce. Take out 1 cup of the warm sauce and add it into two hand beaten egg yolks. Stir quickly and add all of this back into the sauce. Then add the capers and the white wine, then taste. Season the sauce to taste with the lemon juice and sour cream. Tip: When adding the sour cream, take out one cup of the sauce and add the sour cream into that and stir quickly so it doesn't curdle, then add all of it back into pan. Add a pinch of sugar. Stir and heat for 2 more minutes. Place meatballs in the sauce and keep warm. Serve warm. Serve meatballs with noodles or potatoes and pickled beets or beet salad.
Weihnachtsgans (Christmas Goose)
4 1/2 lb. goose, cleaned and dressed, no liver or gizzards
2 apples, peeled, cored and quartered
1 small onion, cut lengthwise into 1/4 inch strips
2 teaspoons of thyme
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons of flour
14 oz. of chicken broth
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash and dry the goose. Salt and pepper and place the thyme inside the goose. Fill cavity with apples and onion strips.
Mix one tablespoon of salt with one cup of water and pour that in the bottom of the roasting pan. Place a roasting rack in the pan. Pierce the goose in several places to let the fat drip out as it cooks. Put the goose, breast side down, on the rack and place in the oven for 50 minutes. Baste the goose several times with the juices in the bottom of the pan. Add more water to the drip pan if necessary. Turn the goose over onto its back and cook, basting as needed for 50 more minutes.
Let the goose rest for 5 minutes. Make the gravy with the drippings and flour. Gravy: 2 tablespoons of fat drippings, 2 tablespoons of flour, mix together in a saucepan and cook for 2 minutes. Gradually add the 14 oz. of broth and stir. Add salt, pepper and thyme to taste. Keep warm.
Serve with potatoes, brussel sprouts, the cooked apples and onion. Also cooked whole cranberry sauce is a great condiment.
German Beef Roulatin
4 flank steaks, cut very, very thin
4 tablespoons of Dujon mustard
4 strips of bacon, cut in half
2 cups of chopped sweet onion
Maggi Seasoning (found at Kroger)
Marinate the onions in the Maggi Seasoning for 2-4 hours. Spread each flank steak with a tablespoon of Dujon mustard and a handful of chopped, marinated onion, two strips of raw bacon and roll up and tuck in ends. Use a metal skewer to hold this together. Place the four stuffed steaks in hot oil and brown on all sides. Then add 3 cups of beef broth to the pan, 2 tablespoons of Maggi Seasoning and 1 teaspoon of black pepper. Bring heat up to a good boil and then turn down to simmer. Place lid on top and cook on a low simmer for one hour.
When tender, carefully remove from the pan and make the gravy. Take some of the broth and blend with 1/4 cup of flour, add back into the pan and cook until thickened. Stir constantly and scrape the bottom for the good drippings. Serve the Roulatin with gravy, noodles or mashed potatoes, a green salad and rolls. Warms over really well.
Frikadellen (meat patties)
1 cup of chopped onion
1 teaspoon of oil
1 day old roll, softened in milk, squeezed dry, and torn into small pieces
1 lb. of lean ground meat, half beef and half pork
1 teaspoon of Maggi Seasoning, found at Kroger's
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of salt
1/3 teaspoon of fresh ground pepper
3 tablespoons of fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon of dried
1 tablespoon of fresh marjoram or 1 teaspoon of dried
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Place chopped onion in a small bowl, drizzle with one teaspoon of oil, cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high 2-3 minutes or until tender. Cool slightly.
Break soften roll into little pieces and add meat and the rest of the ingredients and the cooked onion and mix well with your hands.
Heat butter and olive oil together in a skillet and form 4 patties and fry over medium heat until browned on both sides. Place the patties on a baking sheet and place in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until done. Tip: They should be cooked until not pink inside. Serve with a lettuce leaf, slice of tomato and side of potato salad, roll and mustard. This also can be used in a sandwich.
Black Forest Cake
1 chocolate cake mix
1 four serving size Jello Chocolate Instant Pudding and Pie Filling Mix
21 oz. of cherry pie filling, drained of most of the liquid
1/4 cup of cherry brandy, Kirsch
12 oz. of fresh whipped cream or Cool Whip French Vanilla Topping, divided
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, prepare cake batter as directed on package. Add dry pudding mix, beat until well blended. Pour into two greased and floured 9 inch pans.
Bake 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely on wire racks.
Mix slightly drained cherry pie filling and kirsch in a bowl. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cherry mixture for the top garnish.
Spoon remaining cherry mixture evenly over one layer of the cake. Place second layer of cake on top and ice the cake on the sides and top with your favorite chocolate icing. Top with reserved cherry mixture in the center and dollops of whipped cream or place whipped cream on the side when serving. Store in refrigerator. |
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