Pumpernickel is a dark German rye bread. It gets its color from baking for up to 24 hours in a low, steam-filled oven. Some modern manufacturers cheat on the long baking time and instead add molasses, coffee, cocoa powder and other coloring agents.
So why the funny name? Some suggest that the bread was named by an 18th-century Frenchman who dismissed its non-baguetteness as "bon pour Nicole" -- good for Nicole, his horse.
Others have guessed that it comes from the word pumpen, a German word for "fart," plus nickel, a nickname for Nikolaus that can mean either a half-wit or the devil himself. Another theory traces the bread back to the 1450s, when it was distributed to the poor during a famine in Osnabrück, earning it the nickname of bonum panicum, or "good bread," which later morphed into "bumponickel" and finally into "pumpernickel."
A latke is a potato pancake. Most people think of the potato pancake as a Jewish dish, but potato pancakes of some sort exist in potato-eating cultures around the world.
Your basic latke is made by frying grated potatoes in oil until nicely browned on both sides, and seasoning them with salt and pepper. Some latke recipes add egg, chopped or grated onion, minced garlic, milk, melted butter or herbs and spices to the preparation.
Latkes can be eaten plain as a snack, with a side salad, topped with applesauce or sour cream, as an accompaniment to roasted meats, or with a fried egg on top. The French sometimes serve potato galettes with coq au vin. The Poles stuff them with goulash. Jews eat them during Hannukah, but only because they are fried, not because they play a special role in the religious holiday. The Swedes add grated potatoes to a pancake batter, while Germans and Austrians eat them with garlic, salt and butter.
Potato pancakes can also be made by simply dropping a pile of grated potatoes into hot oil and frying until browned and cooked through, then seasoning them with salt and pepper while they're still hot.
Related: Brys' Latkes With Fried Eggs And Caviar (Cookthink blog)
Video: How to make potato latkes (Handmade TV)
Not to be confused with the similar-sounding strudel (a famous Viennese pastry), streusel is a crumbly, crunchy dessert topping that's common in Central Europe.
A mixture of flour, butter and sugar—plus optional flavorings like cinnamon, vanilla extract, lemon zest or nuts—it's sprinkled atop coffee cakes, muffins, fruit-based crumbles and other sweets before baking. (The word is derived the German verb "to scatter.")
Streusel is also the name of a round Alsatian brioche covered in sweet shortcrust pastry and sometimes filled with cream.
Reference: What is a crumble? (Cookthink)
Recipe: Maple Plum Crumble (Cookthink)
Sauerkraut is easy to make at home; it mostly requires cabbage, salt and time.
First, clean and core the cabbage.
Next, finely shred the cabbage to about the thickness of a nickel.
The key to good sauerkraut is controlled fermentation; this is acheived by cool temperatures and lactic acid-loving bacteria. Your hands and the container need to be immaculately clean so that the cabbage does not pick up bacteria that may rot it instead of fermenting.
A large, enameled stockpot is a good place to make sauerkraut should you lack a wooden barrel or a piece of glazed crockery. The heavy metal will help to keep the temperature steady and the enamel will prevent the salt and lactic-acid brine from reacting with the metal. Under no circumstances should you use a bare metal pot to make sauerkraut, as the acidic brine would leach metals out into the cabbage.
After thoroughly coating the shredded cabbage with salt and layering it into the crock of your choice, make sure that there is enough brine covering the cabbage. (This may take an hour or so for the liquid to leach out of the leaves and cover the future sauerkraut.) A little extra brine may be made from boiling water and salt, cooled and then added to the shredded cabbage before covering the whole assembly with plastic wrap and a heavy plate. The plate will serve to keep the mixture submerged so that fermentation is undisturbed.
After a few weeks of fermenting at 50F, the finished sauerkraut is a pale, creamy color and full of rich, briny flavor. It is recommended that sauerkraut is rinsed and drained before use to control the salt levels in the dish.
Sauerkraut is a classic fermented dish popular in Germany, France and all over northern and central Europe that was invented as a way to preserve cabbage over the winter.
Fresh sauerkraut is high in vitamin C and was frequently taken on long sea voyages by European explorers to help prevent scurvy.
The version that is most popular in the U.S. involves very thinly shredded cabbage. It is salted to draw out its juices and then sits in the resulting brine for 4 to 6 weeks as it cures and ferments. The bacteria that ferment the cabbage help to turn the sugars in the leaves to lactic acid, which imparts the distinctive taste.
There are many variations on the sauerkraut theme, including using red cabbage for a bright pink result and adding various spices to the brew. Caraway seeds and juniper berries are traditional additions; black peppercorns and slices of apple are also found in many recipes.
Reference: How to make sauerkraut
What kind of cabbage can I use to make sauerkraut?
What kind of cabbage can I use to make sauerkraut?
You can use any kind of cabbage to make sauerkraut: green, red, savoy, Napa or any other variety and in any combination.
Since different varieties of cabbage have different colors, flavors and textures, the resulting sauerkraut will reflect that. For example, Savoy cabbage is firm, so a sauerkraut made with it will hold together more than a sauerkraut made with Napa cabbage, which is softer. A combination of red and green cabbage will lend your sauerkraut a pink hue.
If you like, you can even toss in vegetables like carrots and Brussels sprouts, and aromatics like onions and garlic for different flavor combinations. The possiblities are endless.
Choose cabbages that look fresh and healthy -- with no wilted or limp leaves, slime, black or brown spots or blemishes.
The leaves of firm green or red cabbages should be compact and tight; the leaves of softer cabbages like Savoy and Napa should look healthy and crisp with well-defined veins in their leaves.
All cabbages should feel heavy for their size.
It's best to store whole cabbages tightly wrapped in plastic in a refrigerator drawer.
Kept this way, firm green and red cabbages will last at least a week, and more tender cabbages like Savoy and Napa will last 4 to 6 days.
Slliced cabbage can be stored the same way, but keep in mind that once cabbage is cut, it starts to lose its vitamin C.
Fermentation is a process where certain so-called "good" or "preferable" microbes living on the surface of plants flourish and feed on those plants, supressing the growth of "bad" bacteria. These microbes also produce substances like lactic acid and alcohol, preserving food's texture and nutrients and enhancing its taste and flavor.
Commonly fermented foods and drinks include wine and bread, where yeast is encouraged to consume sugar. To make olives, preserved lemons, sauerkraut and pickles, vegetables are submerged in brine to create the proper oxygen-free atmosphere for good bacteria to flourish, extending their shelf-life.
Juniper berries are not really berries, but the seed cone of an evergreen tree that is found all over the world.
Used as a spice in many cultures, juniper berries are traditionally used to flavor sauerkraut dishes such as choucroute garnie from Germany and the Alsace region of France. The "berries" are usually crushed before use since the flavoring resins are inside the berry and not in the exterior skin.
Mentioned in literature as far back as Roman times, juniper berries were found in the tomb of Tutankhamun.
what you should know
Pale, homely and modestly dressed, sauerkraut may not be the most fetching vegetable dish in the world.
But underappreciated fermented cabbage is more than just a doormat for hot dogs or a classic reuben on rye.
hello sailor A recession-friendly dish with a storied past, sauerkraut is said to have been invented to preserve cabbage throughout the winter months. And it once nourished scurvy-fearing European explorers on the high seas.
heading west Popular in Germany, France and all over northern and central Europe, sauerkraut means "sour cabbage" in German. But if we've been using the German name for pickled cabbage since the 1600s, the Chinese were apparently eating sauerkraut more than 2,000 years ago. And Genghis Khan is said to have brought sauerkraut to Europe in the 13th century.
cheap date During this long winter of our economic discontent, why not cozy up to sauerkraut? Tangy, salty and vitamin C-packed, sauerkraut costs little and is surprisingly adaptable in everything from one-dish meals to dessert.
what you need
You can buy prepared sauerkraut in cans, jars or plastic bags in the refrigerator section of the supermarket.Jarred sauerkraut can keep for several years, while bagged sauerkraut should be eaten within a few weeks.
To make homemade sauerkraut, all you need is cabbage, salt, a few weeks and one of these handy crocks (or a heavy-duty, non-reactive stockpot).
A set of silicone tongs will help to preserve the flavor of your homemade sauerkraut.
Homemade sauerkraut kept air-tight and under 60F will keep for months, though it tastes best fresh.
You can make sauerkraut from finely slicing any kind of cabbage -- green red, Napa or savoy. A mandoline makes this an easy task.
Using a green-and-red cabbage combo will lend your sauerkraut a pinkish hue.
When choosing cabbage, look for firm leaves with well-defined veins. Cabbages should feel heavy for their size.
Until you're ready to use it, refrigerate cabbage covered tightly in plastic wrap.
what you do
Germans and Alsatians like to flavor sauerkraut with juniper berries, white wine or kirsch and use it as a foil for pork in a one-dish choucroute garnie. And the French specialty choucroute de la mer swaps seafood for pork in a surprising and delicate twist on the classic.
Don't have time to make an elaborate choucroute?Try this time-saving microwaved version. Or whip up a quicky, hearty dish of sauerkraut with beer-braised sausages.
Sauerkraut also works well as a side dish -- flavored with bacon and simmered in Champagne or mixed into a creamy dilled potato salad flecked with lemon zest. A warm sauerkraut and red pepper slaw is spicy, tangy and sweet.
Mixed with browned onions and mushrooms, sauerkraut makes a warm bed for a Polish-inspired dish of comforting winter pierogi. Northern Italians like to add sauerkraut to bean soup.
Featured recipe: Nobody will ever guess that fermented cabbage is the secret ingredient that adds body and moisture to this all-American rich chocolate cake.
Nutmeg is best when it's freshly grated. We prefer to use a microplane zester (like one of the ones shown above) to prep nutmeg. (There are all sorts of fine graters available for use with nutmeg; some of them are even designed specifically for that use.)
To prep nutmeg, simply rub the nut over the grater (being careful to keep your fingers away from the grater) into a small bowl. The outer skin is not as flavorful as the oily interior that it protects, but the outside grates easily and is fine to include.
