Camilla’s Noodle Salad

Posted on by September 28, 2020
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Ingredients:

  •     1 lb    Elbow Noodles
  •   1 can   Peas and Carrots,  15 oz
  •     1 lb    Bologna, thick sliced
  • ¼ cup    Onion, finely diced

Dressing:

  •   ½ cup   Beef Bouillon
  •   10 tbs   Miracle Whip
  •     3 tbs   White Vinegar
  •    2 tbs    Sugar
  •    1 tbs    Brown Mustard, medium hot
  •    2 tbs    Heavy Cream or Condensed Milk (unsweetened)
  •   ½ tsp    Paprika
  •   ½ tsp    Granulated Garlic
  •                Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Directions:
Cook the noodles al Dente, do not overcook. Drain, rinse with cold water then place into a bowl. Let cool down!
Cut the Bologna into strips.
Drain the Peas and Carrots.
Add the Bologna, chopped onion and Peas & Carrots to the noodles and toss.

To make the dressing combine the ingredients and mix well together.

Scoop dressing over noodle mixture and fold in.

Flammkuchen

Posted on by June 14, 2020
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During our trip to the Christmas Markets in Germany we were reintroduced to the equivalent of a Pizza – German Style – the Flammkuchen. A specialty served in the Southern States of Germany.

Flammkuchen with Goat Cheese, Sun Dried Tomatoes and topped with fresh Arugula

Ingredients:
Dough:

  •    250g    Flour
  •    2 tbs    Oil
  • 125 ml    Water, lukewarm
  • 1 pinch    Salt

For Toppings see suggestions below

Directions:

In a bowl mix all dough ingredients and knead into a soft dough.
Divide into desired portion and roll out into a wafer thin, round disc on a table dusted with flour.

Top with your preferred toppings leaving a ½ inch rim.
Bake at 400°F for 10 to 12 minutes until the exposed crust is golden brown.

The 2 different types of Flammkuchen are savory or sweet.
A traditional savory type is topped with caramelized onion rings and smoked ham or bacon on a bed of Cream Fraiche, Quark, Ricotta or Cream Cheese.
Other toppings can include Mushrooms, Spinach, Serrano ham, Smoked Salmon, Sun Dried Tomatoes, Leek, even Sauerkraut and Bacon or any other topping or combination thereof, you might like. Leave it up to your imagination and your taste buds!

They can also be topped with fruit like berries, apple pieces, pineapple pieces or pears sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar on a bed of Mascarpone cheese and baked. To make it really fancy drizzle with rum and flambé, taking precaution not to burn the house down.

Depending on the size it can be cut into slices or individual sizes can be rolled up and eaten like a Wrap.

Not traditional but faster, put the toppings on a flour Tortilla and bake for a really quick meal.

 

Toppings offered at one of the Christmas Markets: Bacon and Onion, Spinach and Cheese, Sauerkraut and Bacon, Mushrooms with Red Onions and Leek Rings, Smoked Salmon and Leek Rings, Serrano Ham with Paprika and Parmesan Cheese, Goat Cheese with sun dried Tomatoes and Arugula

 

Flammkuchen with onions and bacon. Photo taken by Rama, linked from Wikimedia Commons

 

 

 

 

Brotzeit (bread time)

Posted on by May 16, 2020
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A Brotzeit platter served at Krug Brewery in Breitenlesau

A Brotzeit is a daily Bavarian occasion and could be translated as “Bread Break”, it is usually considered the morning break between breakfast and lunch, a time for a sandwich and may be a beer. Besides, considered the time out from your working schedule.
The “Brotzeit” is now also the name for a variety of dishes you find on Bavarian menus and it can be served at any time during the day.

The Bavarian Brotzeit: The dish as it is served in restaurants and beer gardens:
As the title says you have to start with bread, usually a small basket of the hearty double crusted sourdough rye bread with butter, sometimes Griebenschmalz is served with it, and a couple of crunchy hard rolls accompanies a sometimes wooden platter filled with different types of luncheon meats, sausages, boiled ham, hard cheeses and often also a soft cheese spread like an “Obatzda“ or other locally famous fresh prepared cheese. Add a pickle and some mustard or even a Mustard-Pickle and do not forget the most important part, a cool “Blonde” known as Lager or Pilsner!

Saturday Brotzeit in our house

In Franconia, the northern part of Bavaria, a Brotzeit is always a dish which is not heated, so a soup and a sandwich would not be considered a Brotzeit there. Included in the Brotzeit menu could be a mixed Brotzeit platter as pictured above, a Cheese platter with breads, one with just different types of Ham, “Bavarian Wurstsalat“ or even a Steak Tartar open sandwich. Also specialty cheeses like a nice ripe smelly Limburger served with onions and vinegar and oil.
I stand corrected: During my last visit I found also some warm menu items under the Brotzeit category like Currywurst and a pair of Wieners on a bun, if my memory serves me right these used to be considered “Imbiss” (German fast food).

This picture arrived with my package from Geier’s Sausage Kitchen Sarasota, Florida

Some of the cold cuts and sausages like those offered in Bavaria are shown in the picture on the left. A wide variety of authentic “Wurst” is produced in Sarasota, Florida by Geier’s Sausage Kitchen, which is run by a Franconian/Bavarian Master Sausage Maker who settled there. This makes a good Bavarian/Franconian Brotzeit an occasion to look forward to, together with one of the superb local “Bier’s” you might think you are in seventh heaven. I mentioned Geier’s, as my Christmas order just arrived by UPS and I could not help but fix myself a Brotzeit right away and I am enjoying every bite of it while writing this.

Another example of this traditional custom would be at one of the world’s most famous beer gardens in the shadow of the Chinese Tower  in the English Garden in Munich, where you can actually bring along your Brotzeit and just order your beer/drink from them.

We added different Brotzeit salads like a tomato salad with or without bologna, a herring salad, a couple different wurst salads and also “Fleischwurst mit Musik” at ingeskitchen.com.

Our homemade Suelze with extra diced onions and more vinegar poured over it add a double crusted Rye Bread and it is also a Brotzeit worth mentioning.

I have to end now as one of those tall, cool “Blondes” mentioned above is waiting for me.

Brotzeit pictures from the Reiterstueberl in Grosswendern:

 

Griebenschmalz

Posted on by October 16, 2020
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The translation of Schmalz is Lard.

In years gone by Lard was used all over the food industry, to fry the famous Paczkis – “Krapfen” before Ash Wednesday, French Fries, Pates and pastries. Lard is considered the rendered fat of pigs, while “Schmalz” can contain the fat you skim off the top of the gravy of your holiday goose or duck or even rendered chicken fat.
As the goose and duck fat is almost liquid at room temperature pigs lard is added to make it more spreadable. Besides spreading some Schmalz on a hearty piece of double crust rye bread and sprinkle it with salt, instead of butter, with a good “Brotzeit“, can’t be beat. It also is excellent, adding it when cooking Bavarian style Sauerkraut or Red Cabbage.

So you bought a whole boneless pork loin and cut it up into roasts and cutlets and by doing this you trimmed off all the extra fat and trimmings, some with a little bit of meat in it.
Now if you are a good Bavarian it is against your grain to throw the fat out, as you can render it into Griebenschmalz.

Griebenschmalz is the lard that still has the rendered bits of fat or crackling in it. It will keep in the refrigerator for a few weeks. Adding apples or onions will reduce the shelf life.

Ingredients:

  •    2 lbs    Uncured raw Bacon or Back Fat from Pork with a little bit of meat in it
  •    10 g    Salt
  •    10 g    Sugar
  •      2 g    White Pepper
  •      2 g    gran Garlic
  • 1 dash    Maggi
  •         1    apple (optional)
  •         1    onion (optional)

Directions:
Cut pork into small pieces (¼ inch square). They may still have a little meat on them. Place them in a large skillet over low to medium heat. You may use a lid at any time to help them heat up. Do not use a non-stick pan.

Heat and stir until the cubes start to melt. Continue to heat and stir for an hour or more, until the pieces turn into brown cracklings (Grieben).

If you are adding the apple and onion, peel both, chop fine and add at this time. Keep cooking the fat until the apple starts to turn golden brown, 15 minutes or more. You may add salt, if you wish, but it is usual to salt the dish on the bread just before consumption.

Pour into a crock, do not use glass as the hot fat could burst it. If you would like smooth Schmalz, pour it through a sieve or even cheesecloth, to remove all browned bits. Cool completely.

Serve as bread spread sprinkled with some salt.

Keep the lard in a cool spot. It will keep for many weeks.

If you don’t combine the cracklings with the Schmalz, you might want to save them to use in soups or bean pots. Freeze them in a plastic zipper bag, patting it down until the contents are about 1 inch thick. Then just break off what you need and return the rest to the freezer.

..

Falscher Hase

Posted on by October 24, 2021
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Link to a picture of the finished meatloaf.

A German post World War II Dish, as meat was scarce, meals were stretched with hard boiled Eggs.**

Ingredients:

  •       500 g    Ground Beef or Beef & Pork Mix
  •              1    Hard Roll, day old or 2 slices of French Bread
  •              2    Eggs
  •      1 large    Onion
  •         1 tbs    Prepared Mustard
  •         1 tsp    Salt
  •         1 tsp    Pepper
  •               2    Hard Boiled Eggs

for the Gravy:

  •    1  Liter    Beef Broth
  •      1  tbs    Prepared Mustard
  •      1  tbs    Flour
  •      1  tbs    Butter
  •                  Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Soak the bread in water and squeeze the water out. Finely dice the onion.
In a bowl combine the meat, bread, eggs, onion, mustard; season with salt and pepper and knead together until it binds.
Shape the meat into a loaf form placing the hard boiled eggs into the center, surrounded by meat.
In a ovenproof pot heat the broth and stir in the mustard.
Place the meat into the broth and bake in the oven at 350ºF for about an hour. Check internal meat temperature with a thermometer.
While baking baste with broth occasionally.
Prepare a roux with the butter and flour and blend into the sauce at the end. Bring to a short boil and season the gravy with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with potatoes or noodles and mixed vegetables.

** I remember when my mother made Sauerbraten, Rahmbraten or Rouladen, if gravy was leftover she made poached eggs, added them to the gravy and we had another meal.

Cajun Fried Rice

Posted on by October 24, 2021
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Ingredients:

  •   ¾ cup    Dry Rice, (cooked measure 1½ cups)
  •      ½ lb    Smoked Sausage Links*
  •      ¼ lb    Smoked Ham
  •      ½ lb    Shrimp, fresh optional**
  •    ½ cup    Onion, finely diced
  •    ¾ cup    Red and/or Green Peppers, cleaned and diced***
  •           2    Eggs
  •     1 tsp    Cajun Seasoning, or more to taste
  •     1 tsp    Knorr Instant Chicken Bouillon
  •     2 tbs    Vegetable Oil

*    such as Knockwurst, Stadium Kielbasa, Hungarian Sausage, Andouille.
**  if not using Shrimp increase Smoked Ham and Sausage to come up to weight.
*** Frozen Pepper and Onion Mix can be used

Directions:
Clean Shrimp**, cut into bite size pieces.
Slice the Sausage and dice the Ham.
In a bowl scramble 2 eggs.
Cook Rice according to package instruction, some Instant Chicken Bouillon can be added while cooking.

In a large pan saute the shrimp** with some oil and a little Cajun Seasoning, remove from pan when done and set aside.
Add a little more oil to the pan and fry the sausage, add the onions, the peppers and in the end the diced ham and shrimp.
Fold in the rice and season with the Cajun Blend to desired taste.
If needed, instead of salt use Instant Chicken Bouillon granules to round out the taste.
Pour the eggs over it and fry until eggs are set, while stirring the dish.

 

 

Tomato Soup

Posted on by October 10, 2021
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Ingredients:

  •    1 can    Tomato Sauce, 15 oz
  •     1 tsp    Knorr Instant Chicken Bouillon
  •    1 cup    Water
  •     2 tbs    Sour Cream or more to taste

Directions:
In a pot heat 1 cup of water and stir in Bouillon granules.
Add tomato sauce and bring to a boil.
Turn down heat and whisk in sour cream.
Top with some freshly ground Black Pepper when serving.

This is the base recipe my mother-in-law used.
The soup was usually served with different added items, like cooked rice, croutons, meatballs, mini Ravioli, Tortellini and her signature Beef Uszkas (Polish Dumplings).
Her Uszka recipe did not survive and we are trying diligently to recreate it. When we perfected it, we will share!

 

Cheesy Leek Soup

Posted on by October 10, 2021
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Ingredients:

  •        4    Leek, medium size
  •        1    small onion
  •  1 Tbs    Vegetable Oil
  • 500 g    Ground Beef
  • 500 g    Ground Pork
  •  1½ L    Vegetable Bouillon
  • 400 g    Mushrooms
  • 200 g    The Laughing Cow Cheese, Original
  • 200 g    The Laughing Cow Cheese, Creamy Garlic and Herb
  •              Salt and Pepper, to taste
  •              Chili powder, to taste, optional

Directions:
Wash the Leek and cut into thin rings.
Clean the onion and mince.
In a large pot break down and brown both ground meats.
Add the Leek and onions and saute until onions are glassy.
Pour in the vegetable bouillon and simmer for about 20 minutes.
Clean and finely slice the mushrooms.
On low heat, add the cheese and stir until cheese is melted.
Drop in the mushrooms and bring up to boil. Do not cook!
Season with salt and pepper and garnish with thinly sliced leek rings.

Enjoy!

Tuna Fish Pizza – Pizza Tonno

Posted on by May 15, 2020
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Tuna fish Pizza – Pizza Tonno

Ingredients:

Dough for 10 inch Pizza:

  •    250 g    Flour
  •   ½ Pkg    Dry Yeast
  •  125 ml    warm Water
  • 1 ½ Tbs   Olive Oil
  •    ¼ tsb    Salt

Sauce:

  •   200 g    Tomatoes or 1-8oz can Tomato Sauce
  •     5-10    Fresh Basil leaves, chopped
  •    ½ tsp    Salt
  •    ¼ tsp    Sugar
  •    ¼ tsp    Pepper

Topping:

  •    1 can    Tuna Fish in Water or Oil
  •        20     Capers
  •  1 small     Onion
  •      1Tbs    Pizza Seasoning
  •     200 g    Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, optional

Directions:

Dough:
Stir the dough ingredients together.
Knead by hand to form a smooth dough.
Let rise at 90°F for 1-1½ hours, until the dough doubles in size.

Prepare a 10 inch round baking sheet with parchment paper.
Punch down the dough and roll out onto the baking sheet.

Sauce:
Combine all ingredients in blender and puree.
Spread onto dough, leaving a ½ inch edge empty all around.

Topping:
Slice onion into thin rings.
Distribute Tuna Fish on the sauce, sprinkle with the capers and place the onion rings.
Season with Pizza Seasoning to taste.
Top with Mozzarella cheese if desired.

Heat oven to 400°F and bake for 10-15 minutes until crust is golden brown.

Cut into pieces and enjoy.

Topping for a Pepperoni and Cheese Pizza:

  •    200 g    Mozzarella
  •    100 g    Pepperoni – Salami
  •  1½ Tbs    Pizza Seasoning or to taste

 

 

Egg Salad with Creamy Dressing

Posted on by May 14, 2020
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Ingredients:

  •           6    Hard Boiled Eggs
  •  6 slices    Swiss Cheese
  •     2 tbs    Onions, finely minced

Dressing:

  •     3 tbs    Sour Cream
  •     4 tbs    Mayonnaise
  •     1 tsp    prepared Spicy Mustard
  •    ½ tsp    Sugar
  •                 White Pepper
  •                 Salt
  •     ½ tsp   Fresh or dry finely chopped Parsley

Directions:
Peel eggs and cut in half.
Remove yolk and set aside.
Dice the egg whites.
Slice the cheese into short strips.
Gently mix the egg whites, cheese and onions together .


Stir together sour cream, mayonnaise, sugar and mustard. Mix in chopped parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Mash up egg yolks with a fork and incorporate into the dressing.

Fold the dressing into egg white-cheese mixture.

Serve with crackers as a snack or appetizer, add a bread or hard roll and serve as a meal.