I wanted to talk about the difference between a
German Cheesecake (Käsekuchen)
and say a New York Style Cheesecake.
The German style is not as sweet usually.
First let's talk about the Cheese.
My Grandmothers German cheese cake uses what she
called an "old fashioned" cottage cheese instead of
a cream cheese. This is also called a dry curd cottage
cheese, Farmer's cheese and I understand some of the
Pennsylvania Dutch called it Smearcase.
It is similar to Ricotta cheese which is usually smoother,
and that will work also in this recipe, however my dad
doesn't like it as well.
True ricotta cheese is made from just the whey left
from the first batch of cheese.
The word ricotta means "twice cooked" because you
heat the whey up twice to get it to form the loose soft curds.
Farmers or Dry Curd Cottage Cheese was called
cottage cheese because it was a simple cheese
that could be made at the farmhouse or in a cottage.
The recipe is quite simple, and anyone can make it.
Here is a nice video on how to make my grandma's "Old Fashioned Cottage Cheese" as she called it.
Now Let's talk about making the Käsekuchen
This Käsekuchen differs from your New York Cheesecake not only
in the cheese but in the crust. Usually a cheese cake has a graham cracker crust
or maybe even a flaky short crust. this has a crust that uses eggs, butter and flour.
I think that my grandma used this crust because it held the delicate cheese filling
better but I am not sure.
If you can't find the old fashioned cottage or farmer's cheese you can just rinse off cottage cheese and you will get the same result.
This recipe is over 100 years old so it was made in a wood stove oven. My grandma used to close a piece of folded paper in the door wait a minute and pull it out, check how brown it was to determine if the oven was the right temperature. So you may want to turn the temperature of your oven down a bit as she wrote on the recipe 375 degrees.
I snapped some pics of how I made this cheesecake for my folks last month.
I got many comments on the last newsletter about Kaethe's Kartoffelsuppe, that gelbe Rüben had translated it into being yellow beets and what she probably meant was carrots.
yellow beets are generally translated into gelbe Rüben and
carrots are often called gelbe Rübe. Carrots are much
easier to find and a great substitute for the beets.
There was also some comments that I need to add
The conversion from metric to US measurements.
Another comment is that you don't see many
recipes for potato soup where you start out with
bones....... I know you may think don't have time to get half of what needs to get done in a day so I am not going to fool around with BONES to make soup stock!
Well you don't need to feel bad or dis loyal to your heritage
if you use the bouillon cubes, because they are clearly German too!
A German chemist, Justus von Liebig invented
Beef extract in 1840.
In 1865 a company was developed to market his
extract.
Here is picture of the advertising used for his company.
Later they patented the name OXO for his brand
and is still being sold today in some countries.
Julius Maggi started much later making his own version
of the Beef Bouillon and is probably the most
popular in Germany today.
In fact when some
refer to Maggi they mean the beef extract in a bottle.
Sharon's Potato Soup
Sharon who is one of our readers, shares some tips on potato soup
that has been a part of her German heritage. she finds soaking potato cubes
overnight in water and this leaches out starch which gives the broth
a naturally thickened quality.
You start by in the evening before the day you intend to have this, you peel your potatoes, and dice them into cubes, [small bout the size of the diced carrots in a can of carrots].
Place in a bowl, and fill with cold water, cover and let stand all night. Next day, dump your taters, with the same overnight water in a pot, dice some onions in, as much as you like, salt [go lightly, you`ll read why start to cook.
Then in a skillet fry as much as you want in your soup, chunks of bacon, and I mean chunks, not strips cut up. When good and brown, dump the bacon, plus all the grease into your pot, [yeah I know, look out arteries etc.] Cook all together till taters are done and onions become transparent. This is delicious with home made bread or home made bread sticks with cheddar cheese in them.
Our Retail Store has moved!
Our new and improved retail store is now open in Colleyville!
The address: 5100 State Hwy 121 Colleyville, TX 76034
(817) 354-8101
Hours of operation:
Mon - Sat: 9am - 9pm
Sundays: 10am - 6pm
Hi Stephen, Do you have a recipe using liver to make bratwurst? Seems to me a German meat market back home in Hamler , Ohio advertised bratwurst made with liver.Thank you, Howard Knipp
Dear Stephen,
Recently my German wife made us Curry Wurst.
It is a very simple concoction, but it was fantastic.
I was wondering what variations on the recipe your
readers might have. I found one in one of my German
cookbooks, but that was an appetizer and calls for cocktail wieners. No good.
We made ours with kielbasa and added onions & potatoes.
What also goes without saying is how much Germans
love their curried ketchup.
I look forward to see what you might come up with.
I really enjoy your newsletter.
The song “My Thoughts Are Free” (“Die Gedanken Sind Frei”) is an old German folk song, dating to at least the sixteenth century. According to Songs of Work and Protest, by Edith Fowke, the song appears to have been written during the Peasants War of 1524–1526. The song was used in a Schiller play and sung in schools during pre-Hitler Germany. Other accounts state that the song was banned by the Nazis. German immigrants brought the song to the U.S., where it has been performed by various artists, including folk singer Pete Seeger.
The author of the song is unknown.
Several versions of the song exist, with differing translations.
One of the most popular is a translation by Arthur Kevess,
Die Gedanken Sind Frei
Die Gedanken sind frei,
wer kann sie erraten;
sie fliehen vorbei
wie naechtliche Schatten.
Kein Mensch kann sie wissen,
kein Jaieger erschiessen;
es bleibet dabei:
Die Gedanken sind frei.
Ich denk was ich will,
und was mich begluecket,
Doch alles in der Still,
und wie es sich schicket.
Mein Wunsch und Begehren
kann niemand verwehren,
es bleibet dabei:
Die Gedanken sind frei.
Und sperrt man mich ein
in finsteren Kerker,
das alles sind rein
vergebliche Werke;
denn meine Gedanken
zerreissen die Schranken
und Mauern entzwei:
Die Gedanken sind frei.
Drum will ich auf immer
den Sorgen entsagen
und will mich auf nimmer
mit Grillen mehr plagen.
Man kann ja im Herzen
stets lachen und scherzen
und denken dabei:
Die Gedanken sind frei.
My Thoughts Are Free
Die Gedanken sind frei
My thoughts freely flower.,
Die Gedanken sind frei
My thoughts give me power.
No scholar can map them,
No hunter can trap them,
No man can deny:
Die Gedanken sind frei!
I think as I please,
And this gives me pleasure.,
My conscience decrees,
This right I must treasure;
My thoughts will not cater
To duke or dictator,
No man can deny:--
Die Gedanken sind frei!
And if tyrants take me
And throw me in prison,
My thoughts will burst free,
Like blossoms in season.
Foundations will crumble,
The structure will tumble,
And free men will cry:
Die Gedanken sind frei!
Neither trouble or pain
Will ever touch me again.
No good comes of fretting.,
My hope's in forgetting.
Within myself still
I can think as I will,
But I laugh, do not cry:
Die Gedanken sind frei!
