Saffron Cake
1 cup mashed potatoes
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup potato water
1 cup milk
1/2 cup shortening
1/4 teaspoon saffron
1/4 cup boiling water
2 eggs, well beaten
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 cups bread flour
Thoroughly mix potato and 1/2 cup sugar. Dissolve yeast in lukewarm potato water; add to potato and sugar mixture. Cover; let set in warm place about 3 hours.
Pour boiling water on saffron. Bring milk to a boil. Add shortening, egg, sugar and salt. Carefully drain saffron water into this mixture (save saffron for Crumbs).
When lukewarm, add yeast mixture and 4 cups flour. Beat well. Cover; let rise until bubbly, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Add remaining flour or enough to make a dough that can be kneaded until smooth. Place in a greased bowl; cover and let rise about 4 hours or until double in bulk. Roll about 1/3 inch thick and place on greased cookie sheets. Brush tops with butter, cream or beaten egg. Cover with Crumb Mixture. Let rise about 1 hour or until double in bulk. Bake at 325 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes.
Makes four 9-inch cakes.
Crumb Mixture
2 cups light brown sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup shortening
Saffron
Mix ingredients well with hands.
Quick Liver Pate
11 ounces Braunschweiger
2 ounces melted unsalted butter
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons brandy
Salt and pepper
Salad cress and black olives
Place sausage in a bowl with butter, brandy, garlic, salt and pepper. Beat until smooth. Pour mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a rosette tube.
Choose a large serving dish or individual plates and pipe out several swirls of pate. Garnish with sliced or whole black olives and salad cress.
Quarkspeise
3 ounces pumpernickel bread made into crumbs
3 tablespoons brandy
2 1/2 cups quark*
1/3 to 1/2 cup granulated sugar
8 ounces whole cranberry sauce or fresh raspberries
3 slices pumpernickel, cut into small
squares or triangles (for garnish)
Place pumpernickel crumbs in a bowl and sprinkle the brandy over the crumbs. Stir to coat evenly and let stand.
Combine quark and sugar together and mix thoroughly. When crumbs have softened, fold into the quark. Spoon a layer of quark-pumpernickel mixture into the bottom of each of 6 glass dessert dishes. Spoon over a layer of cranberry sauce or raspberries. Continue layering the pumpernickel-quark mixture and cranberries or raspberries, ending with a layer of quark on top. Decorate the top with the squares or triangles of pumpernickel and a fresh raspberry or spoonful of sauce.
Chill before serving.
* Quark is a low fat, soft cheese available in supermarkets and delicatessens.
Potato Kugel
3 eggs, beaten
3 cups grated, drained raw potatoes
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons grated onion
4 tablespoons melted butter
Mix well. Pour into a greased 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees F for one hour or until browned.
Pork Chops with Knockwurst (Schweinskoteletten mit Knackwurst und Kortoffeln)
4 pork loin or rib chops, about 1/2 inch thick
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 stalk celery, sliced
2 sweet pickles, finely chopped
6 ounces knockwurst, cut into 1/4-inch slices
2 teaspoons caraway seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3/4 cup water
3 potatoes, sliced 1/8-inch thick
Trim excess fat from pork. Heat oil in 10-inch skillet until hot. Cook pork over medium heat until brown on both sides, about 15 minutes; remove pork.
Cook and stir onion, carrot, celery, pickles and knockwurst in skillet until onion is tender, about 5 minutes.
Arrange pork on vegetable mixture; sprinkle with caraway seed, salt and pepper. Pour water over pork. Arrange potato slices on top. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer until pork and potatoes are tender, about 45 minutes.
Garnish with minced parsley or chives if desired.
Yields 4 servings.
Maraschino Cherry and Pineapple Strudel Filling
Strudel Dough
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 1/2 cups fresh pineapple, diced
1 cup seeded raisins
1 cup walnuts, ground
1/2 cup maraschino cherries, cut fine
Pear Bread (Switzerland)
2 cups scalded milk
3 cups granulated sugar
4 teaspoons salt
1 cup fat
2 cups water
3 packages active dry yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
3 pounds raisins
2 pounds dried pears
2 pounds currants
1 to 2 tablespoons anise powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
Flour
Combine scalded milk, sugar, salt, fat and water. Cool to lukewarm. Soften yeast in the lukewarm water. Stir in the yeast and enough flour to make a sponge dough. Add the fruit and enough flour to make a dough that will not stick to the board. Put into a bowl and let rise until double.
Shape into loaves and let rise again until double. Bake at 225 degrees F about 2 hours.
Peanut Confection (Erdnusskonfekt)
1 tablespoon butter
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup milk or light cream
2/3 cup peanuts, toasted, peeled and chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
Melt butter in a saucepan. Add sugar and milk or cream. Bring the mixture to a boil, and simmer until it forms a soft ball when dropped into cold water (soft-ball stage on a candy thermometer).
Remove the pan from the heat, and beat the mixture until it is thick and creamy. Sprinkle the nuts with the salt, and stir them into the mixture. Turn the mixture out onto a buttered baking sheet. Let it cool until it is just warm to the touch before cutting it into 1-inch squares.