Making donuts during the Karneval season is no longer a surprise around here (I started by trying my hand at Pączki in 2021, and then moved on to Berliner, which I’ve been making ever since), but I’ve never made three varieties at once before! This year, I decided to make a double batch of Zitronen Berliner (lemon donuts), and since I had 24 of them to work with, I thought we should try some different fillings. I started with homemade lemon pudding, and dusted the donuts with powdered sugar:
Next I made a homemade vanilla custard filing, and also a chocolate glaze for the top:
And finally, an old classic, filled with plum jam and sprinkled with granulated sugar:
They were all delicious, and honestly, I’m not even sure which ones I liked best, but I’m always thinking of even more tasty fillings!
It’s finally time for a look back at all of the Festive Feasts we enjoyed over the holiday season, and all the baking we did!
Let’s start with Thanksgiving, which was our traditional turkey dinner with the addition of some delicious roasted fennel this year:
And a record-tying nine pies!
Our next big holiday was Nikolaustag, and it’s become a tradition for us to enjoy Döner kebab on that day (or, as was the case this time, several days later, once Bunny got home from college). We also had a gingerbread-based dessert as has become our custom…this time, I made gingerbread bars with a cream cheese frosting that were amazing!
On Santa Lucia Day, we enjoyed lussekattes for breakfast, and potato pancakes with smoked salmon and Kielbasa for dinner (a day early), plus an cranberry-orange layer cake with rosemary for dessert:
On Christmas Eve, we had a peppermint chip cake after church:
And coffee cake for breakfast on Christmas morning:
On Christmas Day, we had the best dinner of the year, the “pick out dinner.”
And then things got kind of messed up because I hurt my back. We postponed the fancy Christmas dinner we were supposed to have on the 27th, but we did manage to have our annual hot chocolate bar on New Year’s Eve:
And I also postponed the (different) fancy dinner we were supposed to have on New Year’s Day, but I did manage to make a gingerbread layer cake with molasses mousse filling and cinnamon whipped cream frosting, garnished with sugared cranberries:
On Ryan’s birthday (which was also Epiphany), I finally made the tenderloin that was supposed to be the star of our fancy Christmas dinner, plus s’mores pie for dessert:
Yesterday, I finally got around to the turkey dinner we were supposed to have on New Year’s Day. We also tried a new recipe for replica Starbucks’ cranberry bliss bars for dessert. I haven’t had the original, but Bunny tells me these are even better, because they don’t have that mass-produced flavor!
Before my back injury, we spent a few days baking our favorite Christmas cookies (and I put together a Bunter Teller!):
And we did eventually get around to the sugar cookies (not the gingerbread, though…we just ran out of time, but at least we had lots of other gingerbread desserts!):
I made kinderpunsch, wassail several times (not pictured), and eggnog over the course of the holiday weeks:
And then there were lots of other festive treats spread through the holiday season, from the weekend before Thanksgiving when we made soft pumpkin chocolate chip cookies to the Valentine’s Day Funfetti Bunny made for us before she went back to school (and also my first attempt at Dampfnudeln, which were amazing!):
By my count, we ended up short one fancy meal, because normally the tenderloin wouldn’t have been available for Ryan’s birthday dinner. We were also short the gingerbread cookies and the cannoli that I had hoped to make for New Year’s Day, since I simply didn’t have the strength or energy to do much the whole week between Christmas and New Year’s. It certainly wasn’t my best effort at holiday food, but at least I hit all the highlights, right?
It’s been almost a year since the last time I shared a look at the German cooking I’ve been doing, so it’s time for an update. I’ve been cooking at least one German recipe a month thanks to the great suggestions in my Rare Dirndl Facebook group. Some have been new versions of recipes I’ve made in the past (like Kartoffelpuffer, not once, but twice, with two very different recipes and a new serving suggestion of smoked salmon), but most have been new to us. I also made a lot of new German Christmas cookies last Christmas, and I’m really looking forward to making some of them again this year! I really enjoy trying recipes my ancestors might have enjoyed in their home country, and sharing them with my children to help them feel a connection to the past!
Martinsbrezeln
Lebkuchen
Vanillekipferl
Pfeffernusse
Kardamom Plaetzchen
Zimtsterne
Swiss Cheese Fondue
Bratkartoffeln
Beef Rouladen
Kartoffelpuffer
Brötchen
Lemon Strawberry Dutch Baby
Krautsalat
Currywurst
Summer Flammkuchen
Bavarian Obatzda (and pretzels!)
Kartoffelpuffer with Smoked Salmon
Sacher-Torte
I’m looking forward to continuing my adventures in German cooking!
Time for a look back at another Markel Family Easter, which started, as it does every year, on Maundy Thursday:
On Friday, I made hot cross buns (again), but this year, I tried a new recipe:
The Good Friday service was, as always, lovely and moving:
On Saturday morning, while we watched Rick Steves’ European Easter, we made our Paschal Candle for the year…I think this may be the nicest job we’ve ever done!
While I did have work to do on Saturday to prepare for our Easter dinner, most of the day was really spent waiting until it was finally time for my favorite service of the church year, the Great Vigil of Easter:
After church, we stopped at Wendy’s for Frostys and fries:
We’re still getting used to the fact that we don’t have to get up for a sunrise Easter service, so we felt a little more leisurely about getting ready. We were still at church early enough to take pictures outside:
And some indoors, including our traditional by-the-baptismal-font Easter pictures:
The church looked especially beautiful!
Ladybug even got to acolyte:
And we got a nice family picture after the service:
When we got home, I made Easter breakfast, which included Kaiserschmarrn (the Kaiser’s torn pancakes) with Rhabarberkompott (rhubarb compote), hard-boiled eggs (this is really the first time we’ve ever dyed eggs…you’ll see why in a minute), and pomegranate juice:
While we watched Easter Parade and My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding, I found time to play a little Animal Crossing: New Horizons so I could visit with Zipper T. Bunny. I also caught up with Roald, who was wearing an egg suit…I wonder if that’s what he looked like when he hatched?
I spent most of the rest of the day working on dinner and setting the table:
I chose an Italian theme for this year’s dinner. I served the same lamb in the slow cooker we had last year (technically Greek, but more generically Mediterranean, so close enough), lemon parmesan risotto, insalata caprese, roasted cauliflower, panzanella, breaded artichokes, capers, olives, Italian Easter bread, and lemon Italian soda.
I stuck with the Italian theme for dessert…we had cannoli and Italian sprinkle cookies:
This was an especially nice Easter. Maybe it’s because things felt more “normal” (I actually shook hands for the first time in over two years!), maybe it was because the church services were so meaningful, maybe it was because this may be the nicest Easter dinner I’ve ever made. Whatever the reason, I’m thankful we had such a wonderful celebration of Christ’s resurrection!
I’ve always enjoyed ethnic cooking, especially German, Austrian, and Hungarian recipes that reflect my own heritage (two of my family’s favorite dishes that I’ve been making for years are spaetzle and Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte). For the last six months or so (ever since I started doing German lessons with Duolingo and wearing dirndls), I’ve really been trying to introduce more personal ethnic recipes into our meals, so I’ve been doing a lot of German cooking, mainly with recipes from Dirndl Kitchen and the Easy German Cookbook. It’s been a lot of fun trying new things, and it really helps me feel to connected to the generations who have come before me. Here’s a look at the recipes we’ve sampled since I began this little project:
Döner Kebab on Pide Bread (A Turkish Recipe by way of Germany)
Linsen mit Spätzle (Lentil Stew with Spätzle)
Berliner (Jelly Filled Donuts)
Linzer Augen (Jam Filled Cookies)
Schweinelendchen mit Pilzrahmsoße (Pork Medallions with Mushroom Cream Sauce)
Haschee (Meat Sauce)
Goulaschsuppe (Goulash Soup)
Blitztorte (Lightning Cake)
Hühnerfrikassee (Chicken Fricassee)
Kabbeljau mit Senfsoße (Cod with Mustard Sauce)
Königsberger Klopse (Prussian Meatballs in White Caper Sauce)
Milchreis (Rice Pudding)
Kartoffelklöße (Potato Dumplings)
Senfbraten (Mustard Roasted Pork Loin)
Versunkener Apfelkuchrn (Sunken Apple Cake)
Speckbohnen (Green Beans with Bacon)
Quarkbällchen (Jelly Filled Donut Holes)
I’m not done trying new German recipes by any means…I haven’t even made it all the way through the cookbook yet! But this is a look at where I’ve been so far, and as I try more new dishes, I’ll make sure to update the list!
