Champignon Schnitzel

Mushroom Pork Cutlets
Champignon Schnitzel

Okay, the Austrian’s rule in the types of Schnitzel.  These are Pork Schnitzel (Cutlets) in Mushroom Sauce and are very good as well.  I found the recipe in one of my Austrian cookbooks.  I have translated it from German.  Thankfully my scale will give me the metric measurements.  These Schnitzel are pork, pounded thin, salted, dredged in flour on one side, browned in a pan with a little butter on both sides.  Placed in a casserole to be kept warm in the oven and then served with a mushroom sauce and parsley.  My husband was happy to have some German food again as I have not made any for a while.

Champignon Schnitzel

Austrian Pork Cutlets in Mushroom Sauce

Serves 4

Adapted from an Austrian Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 4 pork cutlets, pounded thin (or 8 if they are small)
• salt
• 4 Tbsp flour
• 5 Tbsp butter
• 4 cups sliced white button mushrooms, (or Cremini mushrooms)
• For the sauce:
• water
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp flour
• 1 bundle parsley, finely minced

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Pound the cutlets with the flat side of a meat mallet until it is about 1/8 inch.  Sprinkle the cutlets with salt.  Dredge them in the flour, but only on one side.  Melt about 1 Tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Brown the cutlets on both sides and remove them to a baking dish.  Pour about half a cup of water in the skillet and use a whisk to remove the browned bits.  Pour the pan sauce over the cutlets in the baking dish and put in the oven to keep warm.  Repeat the procedure with remaining cutlets.

Melt about 1 Tbsp of butter in the skillet and cook the mushrooms until they are browned.  Add about 1 cup of water to the mushrooms and bring to a boil.  Make a paste with the remaining flour and butter, mashing them in a small bowl with a fork.  Add to the mushrooms and water.  Simmer until the sauce has reduced by about half and is not as watery.  Add the minced parsley to the sauce and pour the mushroom sauce over the cutlets that are being kept warm in the oven.  Cook for about 20 minutes or until the cutlets are tender.

Serve with a side of pasta, crusty French Bread and a vegetable.  Another great very Austrian side would be Semmelknoedel (Austrian Bread Dumplings).

Source:  Thea: Einfach Kochen Kochbuch Nr 11 Seite 59

Printable Recipe

Bauernkrapfen

No, I did not choke.. that is the word for this delightfully wonderful fried pastry that I ate growing up in Austria.  “Bauernkrapfen” is a rustic version of a doughnut, with less sugar than the American equivalent.  Traditionally, it is brushed with Apricot jam and dusted with powdered sugar, but you can use any jam you wish- strawberry or red currant jam would also be very good choices. I woke up this morning thinking about the Bauernkrapfen, so I called my Mom for the recipe she had from the friend who first introduced us to them.  A “Bauer” is the German word for “farmer” – “Krapfen” is the German word for “doughnut” (usually the jelly filled type without a hole in it).  These are easy to make, though a little time consuming, and my kids enjoyed them too, but would have preferred a different type of jam on them.

Bauernkrapfen (Austrian Farmer’s Doughnut)

Yields: 15-20 recipe translated from German into English – it is an authentic recipe

Ingredients:

• 6 oz milk
• 6 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar
• 3 large egg yolks
• 2 yeast packets
• 3 cups all purpose flour (400 grams)

Additional ingredients:

• Apricot jam (or strawberry or red currant)
• powdered sugar

Instructions:

Pour milk in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until it is steaming.  Turn off the heat and add the butter and allow it to melt in the milk, stirring a few times.  Allow to cool 5 minutes.  Pour the milk into a large mixing bowl.  Add the sugar to the milk mixture and stir to dissolve.  Allow to cool to lukewarm temperature (100-110)  Add the yeast and egg yolks.  Stir to combine.  Add the flour about a cup of it at a time, stirring to incorporate it to a dough.  Add a little more flour if it is sticking to the bowl, just enough to get it to release (I only had to add another tablespoon of flour, but it may vary depending on the size of the egg yolks you used).  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for at least 1 hour.  Form the dough into 15-20 balls, roll each ball in a little flour and cover with a tea towel and allow to rest 30 minutes.

Stretch each ball a little, similarly as you would pizza dough, a thin layer of dough in the center and a rim slightly thicker on outside.

Heat 3/4 inch- 1 inch of oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  When the oil is hot, carefully add 4-5 of the doughnuts to the oil and fry to a golden brown color on each side (this takes about 30-45 seconds per side).  Remove the doughnuts to a cookie rack to drain Tip:  I place my rack upside down on a cookie sheet that I have lined with paper towels, this allows the excess oil to be pulled away from your doughnut and keeps it from becoming soggy.

Heat the desired jam in a saucepan until it is slightly runny and warm.  Glaze the tops of the doughnuts with the warmed jam using a pastry brush.  Sprinkle a dusting of powdered sugar over the tops of the jam and doughnut.  Best still served warm, but tastes okay at room temperature as well.

Printable Recipe

 

 

Savory Pork Roast

On the topic of crock pot meals… here is another recipe from the current “Fix-It and Forget-It” Magazine that is available until 4/12.  It called to me because it sounded very German!  Pork and Sauerkraut with caraway is a classic German combination! This one is easy to make and very yummy indeed.  Be sure to drain the Sauerkraut, but don’t rinse it – it will add flavor to the roast.  After removing the pork and sauerkraut, the sauce is thickened in the end with a slurry of cornstarch.

I will make this again.  I served it with wide egg noodles and peas.  I used a pork shoulder roast, but you could use one that is less fatty.  The good thing about pork shoulder is that it really falls apart after long cooking times without being overly dry. Another change I made, was seasoning the pork with salt and pepper before browning it.  It added a touch I think that was needed.

Savory Pork Roast

adapted from Fix-It and Forget-It Magazine (2012 issue) p 29

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2-3 lb pork roast (boneless is preferred, but bone in pork shoulder works as well)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, sliced thinly
• 1 jar Sauerkraut, drained (I liked Nathan’s New York Style Kosher)
• 1 tsp caraway seeds
• 3/4 cup water

Thickeners:

• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 2 Tbsp water

Instructions:

Season your pork roast with salt and pepper on all sides and heat a large pot over medium high heat.  Add vegetable oil to the pot and then proceed browning the pork roast on all sides, turning the roast about every 4 or 5 minutes.

Once the roast is nicely browned on all sides, place it into your crock pot.  Sprinkle the minced garlic over the top of the roast and top with sliced onions, drained sauerkraut (but not rinsed) and caraway seeds.  Pour the water around the outside of the roast.  Cover and cook for 6-8 hours on low heat.

Remove the cooked pork and sauerkraut to a large platter and strain the cooking liquids.  Place just the liquids back into your crock pot.  In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and cold water and stir to combine.  Add the cornstarch slurry into the cooking liquid.  Cover and cook for about 15 minutes to thicken the sauce, stirring occasionally.  Serve the gravy with the meat.

Printable Recipe

Marillenknödel – Austrian Apricot Dumplings

My folks are in town for a few weeks.  We wanted to make some German/Austrian food while they were visiting.  Today we made Marillenknödel (German for Apricot Dumplings) for lunch.  They are apricots wrapped in a cheese dough, then cooked in simmering water for 15 minutes.  Then you roll the dumplings in toasted breadcrumbs and coconut flakes.  Sprinkle each crumb coated dumpling with a little sugar and extra breading on the side and enjoy.  It was nice to work with my mother to make these. One word of caution though, if the fruit is very juicy you need to take care or it could squirt hot fruit juice.  You could easily swap out the fruit with plums (but they would be called “Zwetschkenknödel”in German).

Marillenknödel- Austrian Apricot Dumplings

adapted from a traditional recipe used in Austria

Serves 6

Dough:

• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 6 Tbsp flour (plus more if needed)

Breadcrumb coating:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup dry plain breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut

6 apricots (or plums- or even large strawberries)

Instructions:

Mix cream cheese, egg and salt together.  Gradually add flour – enough to make the dough  not overly sticky and easy to handle, but soft and pliable.  Split the dough into 6 equal size balls.  Flour a pastry board and us a rolling pin to gently make small discs of dough.  Roll the apricots in flour and place in center of the dough rounds.  Gently wrap the dough around the fruit and seal the seams.  Repeat with remaining dough and fruit.  The process of wrapping the dough takes some patience, but it is well worth the effort.

Allow the dumplings to rest (at room temperature) while you get a large pot of water to the boiling point.  When it is at a full boil, lower the dumplings carefully into the hot water.  They may sink to the bottom while others may float.  Lower the heat so it is still simmering, but not a full boil while the dumplings are in the water.  Gently stir the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to loosen any dumplings that may stick to the bottom, but this is usually not a problem.  Cook for about 15 minutes.

In a large non stick skillet, over medium heat, melt butter.  Add the dry breadcrumbs (Progresso is fine) and coconut flakes and stir to toast the crumbs.  Remove the dumplings with a slotted spoon and place in the crumb mixture, carefully roll and spoon the crumbs over the dumplings.  Place on a serving platter.

To serve, sprinkle each dumpling with about 1/2 tsp of sugar and enjoy.  This makes a great breakfast, lunch or dessert.

Printable Recipe

Pictures:

Sauerbraten

My husband is of German descent.  I grew up in Austria and have a love for German and Austrian food.  A little German restaurant that we used to frequent in Anaheim had a good Sauerbraten – though the last time we went there the spätzle were not very good and the Sauerbraten also was not on its usual game either – we are a little scared to go back and try it again.  Many Americanized recipes for Sauerbraten have a super sweet gravy that has been sweetened with gingersnaps, but I found that the authentic recipes are not super sweet.  Many thicken the sauce with bread (dark rye bread) or a slurry of cornstarch.  Like most things in life there is more than one way of doing things.  I wanted to find a recipe that was not too sweet.The variations of Sauerbraten are as diverse as the regions that make it, so if you like it sweet find a recipe with gingersnaps.  This time I made a rendition that I found on a German recipe site on the internet.  It claims to be someone’s grandmother’s recipe. (link) I served ours with red cabbage and homemade spätzle (Wolfgang Puck’s Goulash and spätzle recipe follow directions for spätzle.)

Why is it called Sauerbraten? Sauer means sour.  Braten means roast.  What makes this dish unusual is the time it marinates.  I let mine marinate for 3 days before preparing it.  I made it to celebrate my husband’s birthday because he loves German food.  I used a larger roast than the original recipe, because of the effort it takes to make the roast and because I wanted to get two meals out of it.

Sauerbraten (German recipe)

Serves 10

Ingredients:

• 3-4 lb rump roast
• 3 onions, peeled and quartered
• 4 carrots, cut into pieces
• 8 Juniper berries (I found them at my local grocery store.  Brand: Morton and Basset)
• 4 bay leaves
• 1 leek, cleaned and cut into quarters lengthwise
• 3 1/4 cup vinegar (you could use red wine vinegar or white)
• 3 1/4 cup water
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 Tbsp canola oil
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp salt
• dash pepper
• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 3 Tbsp cold water

Instructions:

In a large pot, combine the quartered onions, pieces of carrot and cleaned leek.  Add the vinegar and water.  Add Juniper berries, bay leaves, salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 5 minutes.  Turn off the heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

I lined a large pot with a liner that is used for crock pots and folded the edges over the rim of the pot.  I placed the roast into the bottom of the pot and poured the marinade (now at room temperature) over the roast.  I tied the plastic liner shut and covered the pot with a lid (you do not have to use a liner, I wanted the keep as much as the roast covered as possible and the plastic “pulled” the liquid up and around it more than if it had just been in the pot by itself)  Place the covered pot in your refrigerator.  Turn the roast over once a day to allow the marinade to penetrate the roast completely.  Do this for 3, 4 or even as long as 5 days.

Remove the meat to a plate and blot it dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the roast with salt and pepper on all sides.  Place the vegetables into a bowl and pour the remaining marinade through a mesh sieve to remove the Juniper berries and other seasonings.  You will only use half of the marinade for the roast, discard other half or marinade

Heat a large pot over high heat and add canola oil.  Brown the roast in the oil on all sides, 2-3 minutes on each side until it has a nice crust develop.  Pour the reserved liquid over the roast to douse the roast and return the vegetables to the roast.  Bring to a boil and reduce heat.  Cover the pot with a lid and and simmer for 90 minutes or more depending on the size of the roast.  My roast was closer to 5 lbs than 3, so I found it was not finished after 90 minutes and because I had used my pressure cooker pot, I removed some of the liquid to a bowl and continued using the pressure cooker for 60 minutes so it would speed the cooking process.  I am unsure now if my cut of meat was the right type.  In hind sight I should have used my enameled cast iron pot and had it roast in the oven for 2 hours at 400F.

When the meat is done, remove it to a cutting board, remove any strings that may have been tied on by the butcher and slice the meat into thin slices.  Place the meat into a baking dish and keep warm in an preheated oven (300 F).  Return the liquid to the pot.  Use an immersion blender to blend the vegetables into the sauce.  Taste the sauce for flavor and add seasonings if you desire.  I found mine to  be nicely flavored.  I had a lot of liquid after blending the sauce.  I poured about half of it to a smaller skillet to make the gravy.  I made a slurry with the 3 Tbsp of water and 2 Tbsp of cornstarch in a small bowl and added the cornstarch mixture to the gravy in the skillet and brought it to a boil and cooked until thickened.  Serve the gravy over spätzle and slices of Sauerbraten.

Printable Recipe -also included are the recipes for spätzle and red cabbage

Take two

Apple strudel take two.. that’s right. I made a few errors in forming my apple strudel and wanted to see if I could do it right.. I did.  I made changes to the strudel dough to make a larger quantity making it easier to work with.  I used Rick Rogers’ recipe as a guide and made a 1 1/2 recipe for the dough.  This pulls out to a much larger surface, but is still workable and not too big to handle.

Becky’s Strudel Dough

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2/3 cups water
• 3 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 3/4 tsp apple cider vinegar

Preparation:

Place the flour and salt in the bottom of the mixing bowl of your Kitchen Aid mixer (if you have one: you could also mix by hand).  Use the paddle attachment to mix the ingredients at this point.  Combine the liquids in a glass measuring cup.  Slowly add the liquids to the flour and salt with the mixer on low.  You may need to add more water – I actually added a little flour as it was sticking to the bottom of the bowl a bit (not very much though less than 1 Tablespoon).  Scrape the dough into a ball and  switch to the dough hook attachment.  Continue kneading the dough at medium low to make a soft ball.

Transfer the dough to a un-floured pastry board.  Knead by hand and occasionally pick it up and slam it down hard on your board from time to time, this will get the gluten activated and make the dough pliable.  Remember you will be stretching it into a very thin layer of dough, much like a filo dough.  Pour about 1/2 teaspoon of vegetable oil into the palm of your hand and gently rub the top of the dough with the oil.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for at least 30 minutes even better 1 1/2 hours or more!

Wash your hands (wear a t-shirt) and wash your forearms all the way to your elbows and take off any jewelry or watches that could snag and damage the dough as you pull it.

Use a table, kitchen island or card table for the next step.  Cover your work space with a clean table cloth (if the table cloth has a pattern it is actually an aid you should be able to see the pattern of the cloth through the dough and you can see where the dough still needs stretching)  and sprinkle it with flour and rub the flour around to cover the work space. This time I did not roll the dough out with a rolling pin.  I picked the dough up and stretched it a bit much like you would a pizza dough, rotating it to stretch it in a circle. Once it was too big to handle I placed it on the floured surface and proceeded as I did the day before.

I found that pulling the dough was easiest when using the back of my hand to pull and stretch the dough.  My hands would be toward the center of the dough and my arms had dough draped over them — I pulled from the center going out, walking around the kitchen island to work on different parts of the dough.  In the end I had an almost 2 foot by 3 1/2 foot dough pulled – I imagine it could have and should have been pulled out more, but it was my first time and this was my first strudel. The edges will be thicker than the inside and that part gets cut away..  kitchen shears make this process very easy.  Once the edges are trimmed away it is ready to be filled.  Choose your filling.  This time I am making apple strudel, so I will use apples, rum soaked raisins, tossed with cinnamon sugar, but other fillings can also be used.

For filling see previous post to complete the strudel.  Even though I made the amounts larger for the dough the filling stays the same.

Here are the pictures of my “Take Two”.  As you can see the dough still had holes, but less of them and the strudel was prettier in the end.   I served it with the same vanilla sauce as in the previous entry.

I will keep the changes I made to the strudel dough.  It worked out nicely.

Apfelstrudel – Apple Strudel

The Austrian part of me has been wanting to make Apple Strudel for some time now.  My husband, who is of German heritage, returned from a recent business trip to Munich just before Christmas.  He raved about the Apfelstrudel (German for Apple Strudel) that he enjoyed there.  He was in San Diego on a speaking engagement and I wanted to surprise him upon his return home with homemade Apfelstrudel.  One of the reasons this was a secret mission was that if it failed miserably he would not be disappointed.

When I was in college, I was invited to a friends house to make Apple strudel from scratch.  She and I pulled the dough into a flaky layer that you could read through.  I walked away feeling intimidated by the task.  I have several German and Austrian cookbooks that address how to make an apple strudel, but it scared me.  I finally found a book that spelled it out beautifully.  The book was written by Rick Rodgers, who has authored or co-authored about 20 books and is a culinary instructor.  Armed with his “hand holding” I finally got up the gumption to make one. The book I used is Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafes of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.  The book is out of print now, but you can still find copies through Amazon.  I do highly recommend this book.

I knew two things going in:  The dough had to be thin and my first attempt would not be perfect.  I was right, but it sure was yummy no matter.  I did succeed in pulling the dough into a thin flaky crust, but I also succeeded in putting a lot of holes in it.  I baked the poor strudel too long in the end and it started to caramelize more than I wanted, but it was still yummy.  Not burnt, but just a few minutes past that golden I was going for.  Don’t let the intimidation of the task stop you like it did me for so many years!  It is so worth the process and really not THAT difficult.  Use a good quality unbleached flour.  I love King Arthur’s unbleached all purpose flour and buy it exclusively now for all my baking.  You do need room to pull the dough and preferably a space you can walk around.  I used my island in the kitchen, but a table, even a card table, will be large enough.  I was surprised to find vinegar in the list of ingredients for the strudel dough, but it is such a small amount you do not taste it at all.  I am sure it serves some purpose…I love that this version uses a Kitchen Aid mixer to make it.  Many strudel recipes are made by hand. This made it more fool proof for me.

Strudel Dough

Makes 1 strudel that serves 5-6

Adapted from Rick Rogers Kaffeehaus pages 78-79

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cups unbleached all purpose flour (King Arthur’s brand is wonderful)
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 7 Tbsp water, plus more if needed
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil, plus additional for coating the dough
• 1/2 tsp cider vinegar (I used Apple cider vinegar)

Preparation:

Place the flour and salt in the bottom of the mixing bowl of your Kitchen Aid mixer (if you have one: you could also mix by hand).  Use the paddle attachment to mix the ingredients at this point.  Combine the liquids in a glass measuring cup.  Slowly add the liquids to the flour and salt with the mixer on low.  You may need to add more water – I actually added a little flour as it was sticking to the bottom of the bowl a bit (not very much though less than 1 Tablespoon).  Scrape the dough into a ball and  switch to the dough hook attachment.  Continue kneading the dough at medium low to make a soft ball.

Transfer the dough to a un-floured pastry board.  Knead by hand and occasionally pick it up and slam it down hard on your board from time to time, this will get the gluten activated and make the dough pliable.  Remember you will be stretching it into a very thin layer of dough, much like a filo dough.  Pour about 1/2 teaspoon of vegetable oil into the palm of your hand and gently rub the top of the dough with the oil.  Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest for at least 30 minutes even better 1 1/2 hours or more!  I think mine rested for 3 or even 4 hours while I picked up kids from school, carted them to the doctor, returned home with dinner, ate dinner, made phone calls, helped with homework… Yes, it was still okay.. I was tired, but the dough was fine!

Use a table, kitchen island or card table for the next step.  Cover your work space with a clean table cloth (if the table cloth has a pattern it is actually an aid you should be able to see the pattern of the cloth through the dough and you can see where the dough still needs stretching)  and sprinkle it with flour and rub the flour around to cover the work space.  Roll the dough out with a well floured rolling pin (sprinkle with flour between as well, or the dough will begin to stick to the rolling pin- don’t ask me how I know.. I just do!).  Roll it out as thinly as you can and then the fun begins.

Wash your hands (wear a t-shirt) and wash your forearms all the way to your elbows.  You will be using these surfaces to stretch it out as well.. thank goodness for the invention of gravity, that helps in this process as well!   Take off any jewelry or watches that could snag and damage the dough as you pull it. I found that pulling the dough was easiest when using the back of my hand to pull and stretch the dough.  My hands would be toward the center of the dough and my arms had dough draped over them — I pulled from the center going out, walking around the kitchen island to work on different parts of the dough.  In the end I had an almost 2 foot by 3 1/2 foot dough pulled – I imagine it could have and should have been pulled out more, but it was my first time and this was my first strudel. The edges will be thicker than the inside and that part gets cut away.. I used a knife, in hind sight I should have used my kitchen shears that are used only for food — NEXT time!  (My husband likes the sound of that I am sure).  Once the edges are trimmed away it is ready to be filled.  Choose your filling.  This time I am making apple strudel, so I will use apples, but other fillings can also be used.

Printable Recipe

Apple Strudel Filling:

Makes 1 strudel that serves 5-6

adapted from Rick Rogers Kaffeehaus page 80

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp raisins
• 2 Tbsp golden rum
• 1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon (I increased the amount from the original)
• 1 stick butter, melted (divided use)
• 1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs
• prepared strudel dough
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts- I like pecans better)
• 2 lbs tart cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4″ slices (I used 4 Granny Smith apples)
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice (to toss the apples in to prevent them from browning)

Preparation:

Mix the raisins with the rum and allow them to soak up the rum. I did this before pulling the dough to give it time to absorb all the goodness. Combine the sugar and cinnamon in another bowl and set aside.

In a small pan, heat 3 Tbsp of the butter and add the bread crumbs to the pan.  Toast the bread crumbs in the butter over medium high heat for 3 or 4 minutes or until they are nice and golden brown.  Spread the bread crumbs out on a large plate to allow them to cool completely.

Preheat the oven to 400F.  Line a large baking sheet with either parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Melt the remaining 5 Tbsp of butter in a small dish.  I used the microwave for this it took about 45 seconds on high, but watch it carefully.  Use a soft pastry brush (a bristle one may be too rough- use a feather one if you have one.. I don’t have one I used my hands after the butter had cooled some.  Remember to reserve some butter to brush the top of the strudel just before baking.  Sprinkle the dough  with the toasted bread crumbs.  Spread the nuts in a 6 inch strip along the long side of the strip, but stop about 3 inches from the short ends of the dough. (I actually made an error here and spread the apples across the whole strudel rather than having one 6 inch strip and then rolling it but NEXT time I will get that right!) You will use the ends to fold over the filling before rolling the strudel up.

Toss the sliced apples in the lemon juice to prevent browning and combine with the raisins.  Add the sugar and cinnamon and mix to combine.  Spread the apple mixture over nuts.  Fold the short end of the pastry dough (the 3 inches) I found the table cloth to be an aid in this next part- using it for leverage to roll the strudel.  I used the end with the holes as the inside of the strudel, as you roll it it adds layers (if you did it correctly) and those imperfections will be hidden.

Lift the strudel onto your prepared baking sheet.  If you did it correctly the strudel will probably not break. (I did it wrong, so mine did, but it won’t next time! I will read the recipe 4 times instead of 2 times next time! Learn from my mistake will you? lol)  Brush the top of the strudel with the remaining 2 Tbsp of butter, leaving any solids in the bowl.

Bake in the preheated 400 F oven for about 30 minutes.  When it is golden brown remove the strudel from the oven.  I should have removed mine at about 25 minutes it got a little browner than I wanted and the juices that escaped actually caramelized more than desired.  Allow to cool at least 30 minutes before slicing with a serrated knife.  Serve with whipped cream or the vanilla sauce – more like a vanilla custard (Recipe follows).

Printable Recipe

Vanilla Sauce

adapted from Rick Rodgers Kaffeehaus page 18

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp cornstarch
• 2 1/2 cup milk, divided use
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract (the increased the amount I used after tasting it)

Preparation:

Pour 1/2 cup milk in a Pyrex measuring cup. Sprinkle the cornstarch over the milk and whisk it.  Add the egg yolks and sugar and whisk well to combine.

In a small sauce pan, bring remaining 2 cups of milk to a simmer over low heat.  Slowly pour the egg and sugar mixture into the simmering milk whisking constantly. Continue to cook, stirring frequently with the whisk, over low heat just until the mixture comes to a boil.  At this point whisk in the vanilla extract.  Pour the custard through a fine sieve into your serving dish.  Serve warm (If you make this sauce ahead of time, reheat it in a glass bowl over hot water over the burner.)  Pour the vanilla sauce over a slice of apple strudel.  Enjoy.

Printable Recipe

This first attempt though it was not perfect, still had my husband who usually has good table manners licking the plate after he finished the strudel.  I think it must have turned out well enough!  My children loved it as well.  They especially liked the vanilla sauce that was with it.  Yes, it was time consuming to make, but I think it will only get better as I practice making strudel, so my family can look forward  to my making Apfelstrudel again soon.

My strudel dough had holes in it, but it still worked (and I spread the filling across the whole dough, and not along the long edge like instructed-this is your opportunity to learn from my mistakes.)

Strudel before baking – it had some tears, but it was still a beautiful thing:

Here is the baked strudel.  You will see that the juices caramelized almost to the point of burning, but the dough itself was golden brown.  I should have removed it at 25 minutes rather than going  to 30.  Do watch carefully towards the end.

Raclette

Many of you are familiar with Cheese Fondue which has its roots from Switzerland.  Raclette is another Swiss innovation.  It is melted cheese (broiled) that is served over boiled baby potatoes and accompanied by pickled vegetables, pickles and olives.  A few models of Raclette ovens have a grill pan on the top of the broiling elements where you can cook meats, seafood, bacon or grill vegetables if so desired.  My parents gifted us with a wonderful Raclette oven a few years ago (link) and we have enjoyed it over the past few years.  My daughter especially likes shrimp and though I know that shrimp and cheese do not typically get served together I do make some for the kids.  There is even a Raclette cheese.  I buy mine at Trader Joe’s, but you can find them at well stocked grocery stores from time to time.  I have had success in freezing the cheese too – to keep it until the day I make it. If you cannot find Raclette cheese Gruyere will make an excellent substitute as it is similar in taste and texture.  Preheat the Raclette oven for about 10 minutes before using.  The cheese is melted in non stick trays under the broiler.  The meats and vegetables are grilled above on the grill pan if your Raclette oven has that option.

Melt the cheese and serve over boiled baby potatoes that you have roughly mashed with your fork. Season with caraway seed if desired, and dried minced oregano.  Serve with pickled vegetables, roasted bell peppers, pickles and an assortment of olives.  For meats I cooked Filet Mignon cut into 1 inch pieces and jumbo shrimp that had been peeled and cleaned.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zwetschkenkuchen (Austrian Plum Cake)

Yes, I know too many consonants and not enough vowels – but that is German for you! Here is a recipe my Mom would make frequently, when I was growing up.  Recently I had beautiful organic plums that I wanted to use up and asked my Mom for the recipe.  Now I can share it with you.  It is not a very sweet dessert – I find American’s use way too much sugar in desserts anyway. This is best enjoyed with a nice cup of coffee.  The batter is pretty thick, and plums are cut and placed on top of the batter and baked.  A dusting of powdered sugar and this simple dessert looks attractive.

You could make a variety of Kuchen (Cake in German).  Cherry (Kirschkuchen); Apricot (Marillenkuchen).  Cherry is my all time favorite, however because they are so small they leave the pit in the cherries which complicated eating the cake – I remember accidentally biting down on a cherry pit, which was not pleasant.  You could probably even use pineapple as a topping too.

Zwetschkenkuchen – Austrian Plum Cake
Serves 12

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 Tbsp water
• 1 lb plums, cut in half
• powdered sugar

Directions:
Beat eggs and vanilla well, add sugar, beat, gradually add dry ingredients, add water, mix well.  Pour into a greased 13x9x2″ baking dish.  Press the plums (cut side down) on batter.  Bake at 350 F for 20-35 minutes or until lightly browned.  When cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar and cut into 12 squares.

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Buttered Potatoes

In Austria, Buttered Potatoes are commonly found on the menu of restaurants.  It is comfort food to me.  My family also enjoys eating these little nuggets of goodness.  I like to use the Baby Potatoes (sometimes Baby Dutch Potatoes).  Pre-cook them in boiling water for about 12-15 minutes, or until fork tender.  Drain the water.  Let the steam evaporate for them to completely dry.  Add 3 Tbsp of butter and 3 Tbsp of olive oil to a hot skillet.  Add the baby potatoes and toss them in the butter.  Season with a few grinds of sea salt and sprinkle with parsley flakes (fresh or dried work fine).  If you like garlic add garlic powder.  Toss and stir the potatoes to coat from time to time and cook in the butter for a few minutes.  Serve.  They never last long at my house.  My husband circles my son’s plate like a vulture if he does not eat them all and then when no one is looking pops them into his mouth.  (I have eyes in the back of my head, so I know this).

Austrian Butter Fried Parsley Potatoes

• 1 package Baby Yukon (Baby Dutch) Potatoes – even baby red potatoes will work, boiled until fork tender
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
• 3 Tbsp. butter
• 1 – 1 1/2 tsp dried parsley flakes (or fresh if you have it)
• Salt and pepper (Sea salt is lovely with this recipe)

In a large skillet, heat the butter and olive oil until hot.  Carefully add the cooked potatoes (make sure they are dry or they may splatter).  Toss to coat them in butter.  Add the salt, pepper and parsley flakes.  Cook for 5-10 minutes.  Serves 4-5.

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