German Recipes

Spatzle with Browned Crumbs

1/4 cup butter

1 cup dry bread crumbs

parsley

In a heavy skillet heat butter. Add dry bread crumbs. Brown lightly over low heat, stirring frequently. Add drained hot boiled noodles. Carefully mix crumbs through noodles. Sprinkle with parsley and serve hot with pot roast, pork chops, or wieners and sauerkraut.

Homemade Spatzle (Noodles)

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons milk

1 cup sifted flour

Beat egg until light. Stir in salt and milk. Mix in sifted flour to make stiff dough. Roll very thin on floured surface and let stand 20 minutes. Roll up loosely and cut into strips with a sharp knife—1/8 inch for fine noodles, 1/2 inch for broad noodles. Unroll and allow to dry (about 2 hours) before using or storing. Cook uncovered in boiling salted water about 10 minutes.

Lebkuchen (Christmas Honey Cakes)

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup molasses

3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)

1 egg

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

2 3/4 cups sifted flour

1/2 teaspoon soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon cloves

1 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1/3 cup cut-up citron

1/3 cup chopped nuts

Combine honey and molasses and bring to a boil. Cool. Stir in brown sugar, egg, lemon juice, and lemon rind. Sift together and stir in flour, soda, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg. Mix in citron and nuts. Chill dough overnight. Roll small amount of the dough at a time, keeping the rest cold. Roll 1/4 inch thick and cut into 1 1/2 by 2 1/2-inch rectangles. Place 1 inch apart on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 400º for 10 to 12 minutes, or until no imprint remains on cookies when touched lightly. Brush glazing icing over cookies as soon as taken from the oven. Cool and store to mellow. Makes about 6 dozen cookies. (To mellow cookies, store in an airtight container for a few days. Add a cut orange or apple—changing it frequently to insure freshness.)

Glazing Icing

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar

Boil sugar and water together until first sight of a thread appears (230º). Remove from heat. Stir in confectioner’s sugar and brush hot icing thinly over cookies.