As you can well imagine, it took a lot of ‘field trips’ to keep our 7 year old warm, fed, and happy. One of these trips, we took a drive to Bed Bath & Beyond to try and find astove-top percolator, as we were coffee-less, and grumpier for it. Imagine my surprise when we walked in and saw their newest addition – World Market. My son and I spent much too much time wandering through, slack-jawed and taste-testing everything they had available. There is more coffee and tea than I have ever seen in any one place before. The Brit in me drooled over the PGTips teas, Cadbury candy, and canned treacle pudding, while the German in us was equally enchanted by the Adventskalendar selection, spaetzle, Milka, Kinderpunsch, and jarred wurst. The Asian palates will find equally exciting items, not easily found elsewhere in the States. The selection of gourmet and international foods is simply wonderful. If I had to make one negative observation, it would be that there are too many choices. One could easily spend an hour wandering through there. And the best part? Given the specialized nature of the items, the prices are very reasonable, and somehow manage to undercut small, niche food markets.

I am unsure as to how many Bed Bath & Beyond stores are adding the World Market section, but I can tell you that there is one in East Hanover, New Jersey. Very new, and very wonderful. If you are in North Jersey, I highly recommend it. They are apparently not putting money into marketing the opening yet, as they want to ensure that there is a real interest. So please, stop by and show them how much we love the idea!

As an aside, we never did find a percolator. However, we did find stollen, lebkuchen, jarred bockwurst, and Milka bars had somehow found their way into our basket. Today we returned with my husband, who was equally flummoxed by the selection of German and Indian foods. All in all, a very good find!

Difficulty: Easy.
Preparation Time: 70 minutes.
Portions: 10 slices.

Ingredients:

Ingredients:

• 1 2/3 c. blanched almonds or hazelnuts (about 1/2 pound)
• 4 c. unbleached flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. finely ground black or white pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 1 tsp. dry powdered mustard
• 1/4 tsp. ground mace
• 1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
• 2 1/2 sticks butter (10 ounces), softened
• 1 1/4 c. light brown sugar, packed
• 3/4 c. honey
• 1/3 c. warm water
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Toast the nuts in a shallow pan on the middle rack for about 10 minutes, until they are only lightly toasted. Cool the nuts.
2. Using a food processor or blender on ‘Chop’, chop the nuts along with 1/4 cup of the flour until they are about the size of uncooked grains of rice.
3. In a large bowl, beat butter until creamed. Add the sugar and beat until thoroughly mixed. Next, beat in the honey. Reserve about 2 tablespoons of water and place the the rest into the bowl, beating to mix. It will look curdled. In a small cup stir the reserved 2 tablespoons water with the baking soda until the soda is dissolved; add to the bowl and mix.
4. In another bowl, mix the sifted, dry ingredients. Add these into the butter bowl, blending in gradually. Finally, beat in the chopped nuts.
5. Spread out three large pieces of plastic wrap or paper, wrap, and then flatten each package to about a 1-inch thickness. Place the packages in the freezer for about 1 hour (no longer) or in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.
6. To bake, adjust two racks to divide the oven in thirds and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with baking parchment or aluminum foil, shiny side up, and set aside.
7. Flour a pastry cloth and a rolling pin. Unwrap a piece of the dough. Cut it in half. Work with one half, rewrapping the other half and placing it in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it. Place the dough on the floured cloth. If it is very firm pound it a bit with the rolling pin. Turn the dough upside down occasionally while you work with it, and re-flour the pastry cloth and the rolling pin as necessary. Roll out the dough to a 1/4-inch thickness. Using a large, round cookie cutter (mine is 3 1/2 inches in diameter), start to cut the cookies on the outer edge (not in the middle) of the dough, and cut them touching each other.
8. Place the cookies about an inch apart on the lined sheets. It might be necessary to use a metal spatula to transfer the cookies from the pastry cloth to the sheets. Use a smaller cutter to cut cookies from any of the scraps that are large enough. Press any other scraps together, re-wrap, and re-chill. Bake for about 18 minutes, reversing the sheets top to bottom and front to back once during baking.
9. Bake until the cookies are golden. If the cookies on the lower rack start to darken too much around the edges, slide another cookie sheet under them – the double sheet will protect the bottoms. Cool briefly on the sheets until the cookies are firm enough to be moved. With a wide metal spatula transfer the cookies to racks to cool.
10. Dust each cooled cookie in confectioners sugar. If desired, cookies can be redusted the next day before serving, or gifting. Store in an airtight container.

Ingredients:

• 6 c. flour
• 1 1/2 tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 pound butter, softened
• 2 1/4 c. sugar
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 c. fruity wine, such as Riesling

Preparation:

1. Sift together flour, salt and cinnamon into a large bowl.
2. Beat butter with electric mixer, while gradually adding 2 cups of sugar, and beat until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then alternately beat in the dry ingredients and wine, about a third at a time. Dough will be very soft.
4. Divide the dough into 5 equal parts, flatten, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate overnight.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Roll out dough about 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. (Placing a piece of wax paper over the dough while rolling will help prevent sticking, without adding too much extra flour to the dough.)
6. Cut with cookie cutters, transfer to greased cookie sheets. Scraps may be gathered, rechilled, and rolled one additional time.
7. Brush cookies with lightly beaten egg, sprinkle with a little of the remaining sugar. Bake in batches until golden, about 20 minutes.
8. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and cool completely. Decorate or glaze as desired. Cookies taste best after sitting for 1 week.

Difficulty: Moderate.
Preparation Time: 2 hours and 20 minutes.
Portions: 6.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 to 3-pound red cabbage
• 2 tbsp. butter, or minced bacon
• 1/3 c. sugar
• 2 tart apples, peeled, cored and chopped
• 2 small yellow onions, diced
• 1/2 c. red wine vinegar (in a pinch, apple cider vinegar will also work)
• 2 c. broth (beef, vegetable, or chicken stock)
• 2 c. red wine
• 6 whole cloves (make a small cheesecloth bag containing the cloves, to be removed after cooking)
• 6 whole peppercorns
• 1 bay leaf
• Thickener: 2 tbsp. butter and 2 tbsp. flour

Preparation:

1. Remove blotchy or ragged leaves from the cabbage, cut cabbage into quarters, wash and drain thoroughly. Shred the cabbage and discard the core and tough ribs.
2. Heat butter (or bacon, if using) in a dutch oven. If using the bacon, do not let it brown, and remove the bacon when enough fat has collected in pan.
3. Add sugar to hot fat and saute until golden.
4. Add onion and apple to the sugar mixture, then cover pot and braise over very low heat for 2 minutes.
5. Add the shredded cabbage and toss until it is coated with the fat.
6. Pour the vinegar over the cabbage and mix thoroughly.
7. Cover pot and braise slowly over low heat about 10 minutes, or until cabbage has turned purple.
8. Add the broth, wine and cheesecloth bag  into the mix and stir. Cover pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours.
9. After about 40 minutes, check for seasoning. If more saltiness is desired, add salt now.
10. Once cooked, knead together butter and flour for thickening, and cut into the cabbage pot. Simmer for 3 – 4 minutes while gently stirring, until thickened.
11. Refrigerate until ready to use. This can also be canned for much later use. Warm before serving.

There are many things we love in our house. Some of the Stolze family favorites? We must have Marzipan and Butter Stollen, Pfeffernüsse, Lebkuchen (gingerbread, especially chocolate covered for the boys), and of course liqueur-filled chocolates – every year.

What to do if you don’t have someone to send them to you? There are a few options. For one thing, if you have an Aldi’s near by, they always do some German Christmas specialties this time of year. I have found Stollen, Lebkuchen, Pfeffernüsse and frozen specialty German cakes there. Some even carry Glühwein. Aldi’s is a German owned company, so they are great for finding reasonably priced German goods. Another option is Big Lots. They occasionally carry some of the German cakes and Stollen there. Not as fresh, in my opinion, but good in a pinch. Also, some Shoprites carry a good mix of German sweet items, such as Balsen brand cookies and Stollen. And if you simply can not find these near you? Try German Deli, an online German specialty retailer based in Texas.

German Deli has made it very easy and affordable to try a variety of holiday specialties. They offer the Christmas in a Box, which is essentially various sizes of gift boxes containing German holiday specialties.  You can also find items to purchase individually.

I wish you luck in you German holiday food endeavors. It can be difficult, but rewarding in the end. Trust me.

Enjoy, and happy holidays!

Difficulty: Easy.
Preparation Time: 45 minutes.
Portions: 6.

Ingredients:

• 1 (750 milliliter) bottle red wine
• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 orange
• 10 whole cloves
• Optional – 1/2 cup rum

Preparation:

1. In a medium size saucepan, combine the water, sugar, cinnamon and cloves. Bring to a boil while stirring constantly, then reduce heat and continue to simmer.
2. Cut the orange in half and squeeze the juice into the pot. Place cloves into the orange peel and drop into the mixture. Cook until the mixture starts to thicken like syrup.
3. Pour in the wine and rum (if using) and stir, heating gradually until steaming. DO NOT BOIL. Remove oranges and serve in prewarmed mugs.

Difficulty: Easy.
Preparation Time: 30 minutes.
Total Time: 42 days
Portions: 10.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs fruit (strawberries, plums, cherries, peaches, pears, raspberries, currants, blueberries, gooseberries, …)
• 1 lb sugar
• 3 cups rum

Preparation:

1. The traditional way of making a Rumtopf started with the first ripe fruit available and ended in autumn (November) with last fresh fruit (often pears). The general rule for making is: for 2 parts fruit you need 1 part sugar and approximately 3 cups Rum.
2. Be sure that your Rumtopf pot is clean and thoroughly dry. Wash and clean fruit (remove stems, seeds, and pits), pat dry and cut into bite sized pieces, if necessary. Measure them.
3. Add sugar, mix and let stand for about 1 hour. Place the sugared fruit into your Rumtopf and fill with rum to completely cover fruit.
4. Place a piece of plastic wrap tightly over the pot top, then set the lid on top. Set aside in a cool place, away from sunlight. If desired, you could even refrigerate the pot.
5. Repeat these steps with other fruit once a month until your Rumtopf is completely filled or fresh fruit season is over.
6. Take care of your Rumtopf. Fill up with Rum if necessary. It is important that the fruits are always completely covered.
7. After you have added the last layer of fruit, sugar and rum, let stand for about 6 weeks. Enjoy.

Serving Suggestions:

• Serve the Rumtopf fruits with its syrup (hot or cold) over ice-cream, cake, flan, puddings, or cheese cake.
• Serve topped with whipped cream or crème frâiche.
• Serve as a side dish with any game meat.
• Serve the strained liquid as an after-dinner cordial.
• Add two tablespoons of the strained liquid to Champagne.
• Lay some of the warmed fruit onto a crepe and roll up. Add whipped cream or ice cream, if desired.

Rumtopf – Preserving Seasonal Fruits Pt.1

Rumtopf – Preserving Seasonal Fruits Pt.2

Difficulty: Moderate.
Preparation Time: 1 hour.
Portions: 4.

Ingredients:

Dough

• 2 3/4 cups flour
• 4 eggs
• salt to taste

Filling

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 6 slices bacon, cubed
• 3 onions, diced
• 1/2 lb sausage, casing removed
• 1 hard roll, without crust
• 1/2 lb spinach, cooked
• 1/2 lb ground meat
• 3 eggs
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• salt
• pepper
• nutmeg

Paste

• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons milk

For cooking

• canned Stock

Preparation

1. Combine the flour, eggs, and salt in a bowl and mix to make a pasta dough. Add a little warm water and knead until it has a firm but elastic consistency.
2. To make the filling, melt the butter in a skillet and fry the bacon with the onions until both are translucent.
3. Combine the bacon mixture with the sausage meat.
4. Moisten the hard roll in water, press dry, and put through a meat grinder (a food processor would also work), along with the bacon mixture, cooked spinach, ground meat, leftover roast, etc. Then fold in the eggs, parsley, and seasonings; mix together.
5. On a board that has been sprinkled with flour, roll out the dough into rectangular sheets (about twice as wide as you want your ‘Maultaschen’ to be). Take a tablespoon measure and put little dabs of filling at equally spaced 3-inch intervals all down the middle of one side of the sheet of dough.
6. Mix together the egg and canned milk and apply it to the spaces in between the outer edge and the fold line. Fold the plain half of the sheet of dough over to cover the filling, press down firmly on the spaces around the little packets of filling, and use a pastry wheel or knife to separate the packets into 3-inch square or diamond- shaped ‘Maultaschen’.
7. Cook thoroughly in beef stock or boiling salted water for about 10 to 15 minutes, depending upon the size of the ‘Maultaschen’.
8. When they rise to the surface, drain thoroughly before serving.
9. Optional: Slice one or two onions into thin slices, fry in butter until golden brown and empty the contents of the skillet over the ‘Maultaschen’ on the serving dish.

These are the best candidates for a good Rumtopf (make sure fruits are pitted, cored, and with stems/leaves removed, if applicable):

• Pineapple (cut into large chunks)
• Cherries (any variety)
• Peaches (cut in halves, quarters, or slices)
• Apricots (halves)
• Nectarines (halves)
• Plums (half or quarter)
• Pears (peeled and sliced)
• Grapes (sweet seedless red or green grapes are ideal)
• Strawberries (don’t wash, just remove stem & leaves).
• Raspberries (don’t wash).
• Red currants
• Gooseberries

The following fruits are not good candidates:

• Citrus fruits (too acidic)
• Apples (odd texture)
• Bananas (mushy!)
• Blackberries and Blueberries (bitter)
• Watermelon and cantalope (waters down the mixture)
• Rhubarb (can make the mixture sour)

A few points to make.  First of all, fruit should be ripe, not overripe. Overripe fruit will become mushy and could affect the taste negatively. Also, frozen fruit is not recommended due to the excessive moisture upon thawing.

Our next segment will explain preparation of your Rumtopf.

See also:

Rumtopf – Preserving Seasonal Fruits Pt.1

Rumtopf – Preserving Seasonal Fruits Pt. 3