Over the years, I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy several trips to Germany for vacations, family visits, research trips, weddings, and even for business. Over time, I’ve created a list of travel accessories for a trip to Germany that I always pack. Some may seem obvious, and you probably already have them on your packing list. Others might be “extra,”…
Author: karenanne
The Legend of the Wolpertinger – Bavaria’s Horned Hare
Suppose you’re a young Bavarian man in the 1800s. You see a beautiful young woman, and you want to get to know her a little better. How do you get her to take a walk in the woods with you? You could tell her, “Let me show you my Wolpertinger.” I admit, it’s a poor pick-up line. So, what is…
German Easter Traditions, Facts and Customs- Easter in Germany!
Celebrating Easter in Germany is much more than a trip to church, an Easter Egg hunt, brunch, and a nice hat. Easter is a major holiday in Germany, and the events go beyond home and church. Preparations start well before Easter Sunday! and don’t end there. Many Easter traditions we follow here in the US and elsewhere stem from German customs.…
German Potato Soup with Smoked Sausage- Kartoffelsuppe
My mother cooked German soups and Eintopfe (One-pot meals) all winter. Soups transform simple ingredients into flavorful and filling meals. German Potato Soup with Smoked Sausage is the perfect example of this. The humble potato, the Erd-Apfel, was a side dish at almost every meal. (Boiled, fried, mashed, Klöße…) We were the only ones in our neighborhood with a special…
Karneval or Fasching- Here’s how they celebrate the 5th Season!
2023 marked the 200th Anniversary of the Köln Karneval Associations! What is Fasching? And is it the same thing as Karneval? YES! Karneval / Fasching / Fastnacht all refer to the pre-Lent Season, the Fifth Season in German-speaking countries. Think of this time as the German version of Mardi Gras. The celebrations date back hundreds of years, rooted in Catholic and early…
Belsnickel A Pennsylvania German Christmas Tradition
Since the 1700s, children in Pennsylvania German country, waited with anticipation for a scratching at the window to announce the arrival of Belsnickel on Christmas Eve. A big man, dressed all in furs, maybe with marks of dirt or coal on his cheeks. He carried a switch and had sweets and nuts in his pockets. The children would get sweets…
Spices, Elves, and a bit of Old Magic with author Linda Raedisch
A few years ago, while researching German Christmas practices, I picked up a book called “The Old Magic of Christmas” by Linda Raedisch. And then I found another of Linda’s books, “Night of the Witches,” about Walpurgisnacht. But it’s her latest book, “The Secret History of Christmas Baking : Recipes and Stories, from Tomb Offerings to Gingerbread Boys” that is…
Sheet Pan German Honey Cake- Honigkuchen vom Blech
When my parents moved this summer, my mother uncovered a treasure trove of handwritten recipes from friends and family members tucked away in a drawer. She and I resolved to decipher the old handwriting, make sense of the sometimes cryptic directions, and reproduce those old flavors. (Dad offered to help by tasting the bakes.) We are starting with a recipe…
Make Candied Citrus Peel for Baking
A few years ago I ran into a roadblock when starting my Christmas baking. For years my regular grocery store sold candied citrus peel all packed up and ready for me to use in Stollen, Lebkuchen, and Magenbrot. No more. The grocer told me that demand dropped over the years (and then he mumbled something about Fruitcake being yucky… I…