Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Cranberry Salad




Omi's Cranberry Salad Recipe
(Beck Family Thanksgiving & Christmas Tradition)

Cook 1lb cranberries until done about 10 mins in 1 quart of water.  
Add 1 1/2 cup sugar, 1 3oz package lemon jello and 1 3oz package of strawberry jello to the hot water and cranberries.  Stir until dissolved.  
Add 1 10 oz package of marshmallows.  
When melted and cooled, add 1 can pineapple (15 or 20 ozs) and 4 cups peeled sliced apples and 1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional).  
Chill in the refrigerator overnight.

Monday, May 28, 2012

Cream Puffs


Cream Puffs (Wind Beutel)

1 c. water
1 stick butter
Grated rind from one lemon
1 c. flour
4 large eggs



Bring water, butter, and lemon rind to a boil in heavy saucepan, until butter is melted completely.  Sift flour.  Remove pot from burner and add flour all at once, beating hard until smooth.  Put back on burner, beat until mixture leaves sides of pan (1-2 min.).  Add one egg while mixture is still hot, blend (beat) well.  Let cool about 10 min., then add the rest of the eggs, one at a time, beating vigorously after each one.  Put 2 tsp. or 2 T. (depending on size) on greased and floured baking sheet.  Bake in hot oven at 375 deg. F for 20 min. (30 min. for larger size).    Turn oven off, let puffs stay in oven for 10 min.  When cool, split and fill with whipped cream.  Dust with powdered sugar. 


Notes: Don’t open oven for the first 15 min. while baking.  Cream puffs are best when fresh.  “Work for muscle man!”—Mom’s own words.







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Blog Dedication

This blog is dedicated to the memory of our mother and grandmother Gertrud Beck (1928-1997).  Karl and Gertrud immigrated to the US from Germany in 1954 and lived in Indiana for most of their lives.  Gertrud was a talented cook, baker, and gardener.  She especially had a magic touch with cakes and pastries.  In this blog we intend to share recipes of foods that Gertrud made.  We hope people will enjoy the seeing the recipes and maybe try them out at home.  Guten Appetit!

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Plum Cake (Pflaumkuchen)


Plum Cake (Pflaumkuchen)



Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup warm milk (105 F/41 C to 115 F/46 C)
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
pinch sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled down to below 115 F/46 C
3 egg yolks
pinch salt
5 pounds Italian prune plums
3/4 cup cinnamon-sugar mixture

Directions:
In a large mixing bowl place flour; make a well in the center. In a small bowl combine warm milk, yeast and pinch of sugar; stir to dissolve. Pour yeast mixture into well and let set 5 minutes. In a small bowl combine butter, egg yolks, and salt; add to well. Knead liquid into dry ingredients until dough is smooth, elastic, and easy to shape into a ball. Work in more flour (about 1/2 cup) if needed. Dust with flour. Cover with a damp towel and proof in a warm spot until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch down dough; turn onto lightly floured surface and roll out 1/2-inch thick. Place on a greased 15x10x1-inch baking sheet; cover with a towel and proof for 20 minutes. Cut plums into halves lengthwise, removing pits. Arrange plum halves on dough horizontally, touching side by side, pressing slightly into dough. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cinnamon-sugar. Cover and proof for 10 minutes. Bake at 390 F/200 C for about 40 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar.   Serve warm with whipped cream.



Note:  Mom used to make this cake in the fall from plums from the trees at the end of the garden.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Dominosteine

Dominosteine

1 c. honey
1/3 c. sugar
½ stick oleo or butter
2 eggs
1/8 tsp. lemon extract
1 tip of a knife cardamom, ground
1 tip of a knife cloves, ground
1 tsp cinnamon, ground
1 ¾ cup flour, sifted
2 T. cocoa (15 grams)
3 tsp. baking powder (level)
Currant or Raspberry jam
Semi-sweet baking chocolate, melted

Heat the honey (do not boil), add sugar, butter, and then cool. When cold, add the spices,
the eggs one at a time, and then add the flour, baking powder, and cocoa. Put dough on a
buttered jelly roll pan and spread *evenly.* Bake at medium oven (325-350 F) for about
25 min. When cake is cold, cut into 1 inch pieces (2 ½ x 2 ½ cm). Each cube is cut in
half, and filled with jelly, also all the sides, except the underside, then dipped in chocolate.
Keeps a long time in tins or in the freezer.

Notes: I remember Mom making these at Christmastime. They require a lot of labor,
but are very tasty! You can sometimes buy these at international grocery stores around
the holidays. I typed this up from a recipe that Mom wrote out by hand and gave to Mrs.
Deimling.

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