Rollkuchen Meatpockets

I remember the years when I was a teenager, we lived close to the church and my parents would often invite company for lunch. My mom usually had a pot of soup ready and often made Rollkuchen to go along with the soup. They were always the best!  She always said the trick is to fry them fast, in very hot oil - a cast iron pan works best. I’m posting her recipe  for variety and choice.

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• ¾ c milk
• 2 Tbsp vinegar
• 2 Tbsp oil
• 2 cups flour - could be more
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 generous tsp baking powder
• oil for frying

Filling:

• left over sloppy joe sauce or chili

Method:

1. In small bowl, mix eggs with fork and then mix in the rest of the wet ingredients.
2. In another larger bowl, mix flour, salt and baking powder, make a well and stir in the wet ingredients. Stir with wooden spoon until all ingredients are mixed well.
3. Knead slightly with hands to smooth, adding flour if needed and roll out thinly on floured board or counter.
4. Place a tsp of filling about one to one and half inches apart in a row, along one end.
5. Fold dough over top of filling and press with a cup to form a perogie like crescent. No need to pinch. Lay on floured cookie sheet until all done before proceeding to fry.
6. Heat about 3 - 4 cups of oil – test with a little dough to make sure it fries quickly, or throw in a few kernels of popcorn. Oil is ready when they pop. The trick to not having deep fried food soak up too much oil is to fry it quickly in very hot fat. Use 2 forks and have a pan lined with paper towel ready.

Don't forget dessert - a few bow ties with strawberry jam or syrup.

Ikra

I don't know how many of you will know what this is, but it is a Mennonite side dish (with, I'm sure, Ukrainian influence) that was/is a favorite of my husband. It is not unlike Salsa, maybe, but it is made with carrots as the main ingredient.

Here is the recipe.

Ingredients (It is a large recipe but I like to put it into jars, sealed for future use -- you may cut the recipe down to desired amout )

24 cups of grated or finely sliced carrots
8-10 cups of green pepper (chopped)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup mazola oil

cook above ingredients for 1 hour

then add.....

6-8 or more onions browned in 1/4 cup oil
2 1/2 tbsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 14oz tomato soup (or tomato paste with water to make it gluten-free)
6 large tomatoes (optional)
5 hot red peppers (or less if you want it milder)
1/2 cup of hot ketchup (or use regular if you wish, I do)

Cook for 20 minutes to 1/2 hour . Remove from heat , and ladle into prepared canning jars or store in fridge for immediate use.
This is eaten cold.

Napoleon Torte'

Do any of you recognize this?
I have noticed the Napoleon Torte Recipe on the side link.
But have any of you made this same recipe in the cookie sheet?

This has been an all time favorite for many years in my family.
My Grandmother made this for many special occasions.
We could never get enough.
Now my kids are asking for it.

I know my Mennonite friends in Calgary also make this recipe.
That's where I took the snapshot.

What I'm really looking for;
Is there someone who would show me
step by step how to make this cake?

I know that it needs perfection all around.
The pudding has be just the right consistency.
The crusts have to be just the right thickness.
I know that it's a whole day effort.

Let me know if anyone is ever making this.
Maybe I could stop by and watch.

I'm hoping that I'm not stepping out of line by asking.
But who else would know, but my Menno friends.

Charlotte's Gooseberry Moos

Fresh Gooseberry Mooss(Stachelbaare or Kjressbaarmooss)

This is a wonderfully tart, refreshing Mooss with a delicate flavor. Kjressbaar lovers will enjoy this treat.

• 4 c. fresh or frozen gooseberries
• 5 c. water
• 1 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. flour
• 1 1/2 c. cream
• 1 1/2 c. milk

1. In a saucepan bring gooseberries and water to a boil. Simmer 5 - 6 minutes.


2. Stir a thin paste of the sugar, flour and part of the cream.


3. Add slowly to the gooseberry mixture, alternating with the remaining milk and cream.


4. Stir constantly. Remove from heat. Cool.

Maybe served warm or cold.

A Canadian version would be to add an egg to the thickening after the berries have been boiled to make it more custard like. Add a little hot fruit to the flour/sugar/cream and/egg mixture. Stir well. Then return egg mixture to the gooseberries. Stir constantly. Boil 2 minutes, 1 tsp. vanilla is optional. Cool, Enjoy!

Charlotte's recipe is above. . I cut and pasted it here into its own post.

I added the egg and served it chilled. I had to smile as I put it into a crystal sherbet dish. . it was not served like that when I grew up and I always passed it by. Now, it seems like something that would be seen in a menu at a Fine Dining Restaraunt. . . .called something different like .. .

Gooseberry Creme Anglaise. . .

If you see a gooseberry .. . and you love yogurt .. maybe try it, your taste buds might have grown up a little.

Perishky

Our extended family is still blessed to have someone who regularly supplies us with these tasty little “pies-in-a-pocket.” I consider it another one of those “labor of love” recipes, and have gladly pretended that I could never make them, but I’m beginning to think that one day I may change my mind, because they will remind me of the most beautiful woman in my life . . . my Mom. The funny thing is that she will never just make enough for the family gathering, but enough so that grandkids can take home “the leftovers.” One thing she keeps saying is, not to put them in a sealed container (except for in the freezer), because they will get soft.
Since I had my hands free for most of the observation, I was able to get lots of pictures, and now have a hard time choosing what is necessary for explanatory’s sake and what is merely “ornamental.” If this gets too long to print, be sure to "unclick" images for printing.

Ingredients:

3 c flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 c shortening
1/2 c margarine
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk

Filling: 4 - 6 cups blueberries or finely chopped fruit such as apples and/or rhubarb.
2 cups sugar mixed with ¼ c flour and ¼ c cornstarch if using apples
OR ¾ c combination of cornstarch and flour, if using berries or juicy fruit

Method:
1. Cut shortening and margarine into dry ingredients with pastry blender.
2. Add combined beaten egg and liquids. Stir with fork until everything is moist. If dough is too moist, sprinkle with a handful of flour and knead gently (or turn, up and over to mix in dry crumbs from the bottom, using a firm spatula) until dough holds together nicely.
3. Refrigerate overnight or a few hours.
4. Divide dough in half and roll out to a square or rectangle (approx 16” x 16”) so that you can cut about 12 – 16 square patches.


5. Sprinkle about 1 tsp of sugar mixture in the center of each square, top with fruit and another 1-2 tsp of sugar mixture on top of fruit. Brush edges of pastry with water.

6. Fold up corners and pinch edges very well.
7. Place on parchment paper lined cookie sheets, not too close together.
8. Bake at 400 F about 20 - 30 minutes or until golden brown and juices run out. (you can freeze the unbaked Perishky and bake later; bake frozen Perishky a little longer)

One tip is to use your darkest baking sheets. The ones that ran out are likely the ones that I pinched,  but no worries . . . parchment paper allows for easy clean up and the Perishky will be just fine! In fact, I like seeing what kind of fruit to expect.

butter soup

Butter Soup. . .pronounced. . . . "bu .. tta soop" (as in book) I really think this was one of the clinchers in obtaining a marriage proposal .. my mom made it. . his mom did not.

I've learned to make it and every now and then we have it for a treat for our lunch.

It really is a poor persons soup. It can be gussied up by adding some smoked meat but really . . . .it tastes quite nice as simple as it is. If you love noodles, there is a good chance you will like this. Did anyone else ever have this growing up?

Butter Soup

• 8 cups of water
• 1 large onion
• 6 medium fresh potatoes. . with the skin left on
• 1 large bay leaf
• 5 whole cloves
• 8 peppercorns
• 1 star aniseed
• a handful of fresh parsley

1. Bring water to boil, add the onion and the large diced potatoes. . .simmer 15 minutes.
2. Add all the spices but the parsley . . wrapped and tied in cheesecloth. Let simmer another while you make the noodles.
3. Add the chopped parsley to the soup separately from the cheesecloth.

Noodles

• 1 large farm fresh egg
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 cup of flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Stir together the egg water, salt and stir in half the flour and then dump it onto the counter and knead in the rest of the flour. You may need a little more.
2. The way my mom did it and I continue to do it. . I cut it into strips, and with a clean scissor, I cut noodles, some small and others a bit bigger. No need to be perfect here. Doing it this way, you don't add a lot of extra flour into the soup.
3. Stir the noodles into the soup, bring to boil and boil a few minutes until the noodles are done.
4. Ladle it into bowls, and put a dollop of butter onto the top, serve with a bit of fresh cream.

Bienenstich (Bee Sting Cake)

I'm sure that this is a staple recipe in most Mennonite households. . . .so it needs to be included here as well. I was merrily putting this together yesterday. I was half way finished when I suddenly remembered that I originally got the recipe from Anneliese .. .who also contributes to the blog. . .I emailed her and told her that I was making her recipe, I would take the picture and send it to her and she could post it. She graciously told me to go ahead and post it myself.

So. . .here is Anneliese's and most likely her Mom's Bienenstich. . .  A few minor changes were made to the topping when a reader called me to say they did some experiments on the topping and the end result was fantastic.

Base:

• 4 farm fresh eggs
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• Pinch Salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons butter

Beat the eggs and sugar together really well in a large bowl .. .Beat them until they are thick. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir this into the beaten eggs and sugar. Heat the milk and butter till very hot .. not quite boiling. Add the hot milk/butter to the batter. Pour into a large shallow greased and parchment papered pan. Bake at 350 F for 15 - 20 min
Topping:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 8 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup shredded or medium coconut
• 1 1/2 cup slivered or flaked almonds
• 6 tablespoons whipping cream

While the cake it baking, spread the coconut and almonds separately on cookie sheets and put them in the oven to slightly toast.  Remove from oven and set aside. In a medium saucepan, heat together the butter and brown sugar and the whipping cream until it just comes to a boil. Add the toasted coconut and the almonds. Spread onto the baked cake as even as you can. Broil carefully for a few minutes until it is nicely browned. .. Do not walk away from your kitchen.

Filling:

• 2 cups of whipping cream ( or the remainder of a 500 ml container)
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• a packet of whipping cream stabilizer or 2 tablespoons of instant vanilla pudding

Whip the filling together.
Now comes the tricky part. Take the cake out of the pan. . with the paper on. Set it on the counter and with a long serrated knife slice it in half. Very carefully slide your hand under the top layer and slide it off .. as best you can. Put the whipped cream on the bottom layer and then slide the top layer back on top.
Voila. . .well done. Now, just set it in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve. This actually freezes really well and cuts very easy when partially frozen. I did this to take the picture. Thank you Anneliese for this wonderful recipe. . I've been making it for nearly 30 years I'm sure.

Oma's Glazed Chocolate Cookies

Oh, I'm sooo excited to share about the wonderful day I had with my Mom yesterday, I'm shaking inside! My family has been bugging me for a long time that I NEED to learn how to make Oma's chocolate cookies and perishky! I bake pretty well anything else, but I've played ignorance with some of her specialties because I just want to enjoy them when she makes them.
It was so cute how she was almost giddy about me taking pictures of her while she was doing what she knows how to do best! Now, I'll post the cookies first. I'm excited to have figured out how to do these collages to save picture space and I hope they make sense.
The Perishky are coming later . . . I do need to get away from this computer for a while and do life as well . . . Oh, and these cookies are the best cookies to take camping because they keep so well. Good Luck and don't be afraid to ask questions because I may have missed something.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup honey
• 1 egg yolk
• 5 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp soda
• ½ cup cocoa
• ½ cup milk
• ½ cup whipping cream

1. Mix butter and sugar, stir in yolk and then honey well.
2. Add combined dry ingredients alternately with milk and cream.
3. Refrigerate overnite.

4. Roll pieces of dough into long 1 1/2 inch thick rolls and slice (approx 1 inch slices).
5. Form into balls and bake at 375F about 12 -15 min.
6. Cool. Frost with sugar glaze.

Sugar glaze:

1. Beat 1 egg white and set aside.
2. Bring to boil 1 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water and cook on med heat about 3-4 min until “slimy looking” or syrupy.
3. Pour syrup into beaten egg white, while beating, and continue beating for a few minutes, until you can form stiff peaks.
4. Scoop some glaze up with your hands and coat each cookie, first bottom and then top.(If glaze is cooked too little it will be very easy to coat, but harder to dry.
   If glaze is cooked too long, it dries quickly and doesn’t go on as smooth. It helps to wet your hands)
5. Place on waxed paper until glaze dries.
6. Store in ice cream bucket in cool place or freeze. Yield: 6 doz.
   
    

(My mom adapted this recipe from the Mennonite

Treasury Cookbook, (1962) page 171)

kotletten

I can't give you the history of these tasty little deep-fried meatballs...but I know they were a regular menu item in the home in which I grew up. They are wonderful right out of the pan...and not so bad the next day, right out of the fridge!

Our meals were pretty basic 'back in the day'...meat, potatoes and gravy, vegetables and maybe apple sauce. So that was the kind of meal we had for dinner tonight.

I cooked 'Crash Potatoes' for the first time...something I will definitely be making again. (The recipe comes from the Pioneer Woman Cooks website...click on link.) I boiled new red potatoes until tender...crushed them into mounds with a potato masher on oiled pan...sprinkled liberally with salt, pepper, and herbs...

...and baked at 425 degrees F for another 20 minutes.

Kotletten

1 pound ground beef

1 egg

1 potato, peeled and finely grated

1-2 slices day-old bread

1 small onion, finely chopped or grated

1 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

(I did three times the recipe today.)

Soak bread in milk or water.

Add to ground beef along with egg, potato, onion and seasonings.

Mix well with your hands.

Form meat balls of desired size.

Heat about 1/2 inch oil in frying pan and cook over medium-high heat.

Turn meat balls after well browned on the bottom side...cook several minutes longer.

Enjoy...hot or cold!

Tip* I soak the bread crumbs, then put in blender along with sliced potatoes (unpeeled), sliced onion, egg and seasonings. Blend until smooth...then mix with meat.

Enjoy another recipe from the past...

Cabbage Rolls (Holubschi)



This recipe takes me back to my Mom's kitchen and early years of marriage when I wanted to make

something fancy. We called them Galopsay but I feel like this name  is not too familiar to most. Although we don't have these that often any more, (mainly because we have so much to choose from today) I still do enjoy that "comfort food" flavor. It's a good recipe for a meal that you want to prepare ahead because they are always good re-heated. It's also a good casserole type food for pot-lucks and very economical. This recipe makes 12-14 rolls. Sometimes I form few meatballs and add them for those who don't care for the cabbage.

Ingredients:
Rolls / Filling:
1 head Savoy cabbage
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tsp salt
pepper
1/2 grated onion
1/2 cup sour cream
1 – 1 1/2 cup cooked rice
Sauce:
½ chopped onion
½ chopped pepper, any color
4 Tbsp flour
4 c water (approx)
1 bouillon cube (Knorr chicken)
3 Tbsp tomato paste ( or acc. to taste)
salt and pepper, to taste

Place cabbage in a large pot of boiling water and peel off leaves as they become soft.
Then set aside. If you are using regular cabbage, cut around the core before placing it in the water.

In a large frying pan, cook onion and pepper in a small amt of oil until tender. Mix flour and
half of the water in a sealed container until well blended and add to onion/peppers. While cooking,
add the rest of the water and stir until smooth and bubbly. Add bouillon cube and tomato paste.
For more sauce, mix more flour and water and add another bouillon cube for flavor. Adjust amounts
according to desired consistency and add salt and pepper according to taste.

Mix raw meat, salt, pepper, onion, sour cream and cooked rice. Place a few Tbsp of meat mixture
onto each leaf, fold ends and roll up. Place close together in roaster.

For a very large recipe, add 1 can of tomato soup. Pour sauce over cabbage rolls and bake at 350F
for 1 - 1 1/2 hours.