ONLINE EXTRA — GERMAN CUISINE: Beef Rolls Bavarian . . . Himmel und Erde . . . German Plum Tart, etc.

Beef Rolls Bavarian

6 to 8 slices lean bacon

3 pounds beef top round steak, sliced ½-inch thick

6 to 8 teaspoons German-style mustard or other hot prepared mustard

¼ cup finely chopped onion

3 or 4 large dill pickle spears, halved lengthwise

2 cups water

1 cup coarsley chopped celery

¼ cup sliced leeks, white part only

3 sprigs fresh parsley

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon finely chopped, peeled parsnip (optional)

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

In a 12-inch skillet, cook bacon until done, but not crisp. Drain bacon on paper towels, re-serving drippings in skillet. Set bacon and drippings aside.

Trim fat from meat. Cut into 6 to 8 rectangular pieces. Place each rectangle between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Using the flat side of a meat mallet and working from center to edges, pound each piece of steak to ¼-inch thickness. Remove the clear plastic wrap.

Spread top of each rectangle with 1 teaspoon mustard and sprinkle with the chopped on-ion. Place a slice of bacon across the center of each piece of meat. Place a pickle slice across the narrow end of each piece. Roll meat around the pickle. Tie the beef rolls at each end with heavy cotton cord.

In the reserved bacon drippings in the skillet, brown beef rolls over medium heat, turning to brown evenly. Transfer beef to a plate.

Carefully pour the water into the skillet and bring to boiling, scraping up browned bits in the skillet. Add the celery, leeks, parsley and salt. Add the chopped parsnip, if you like. Return beef rolls to the skillet. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 1 hour or until meat is tender, turning beef rolls once or twice during cooking. Transfer the meat rolls to a heated platter and keep warm.

Strain the cooking liquid and vegetables through a fine sieve, pressing on vegetables; dis-card vegetables. Measure liquid (you should have about 3 cups). Return vegetable broth to the skillet and boil briskly about 10 minutes or until the sauce mixture is cooked down to 2 cups. Remove the skillet from the heat.

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour. Cook over medium-low heat until mixture begins to brown. Gradually add the reduced vegetable broth, beating vigorously with a whisk until sauce is smooth and slightly thickened. Season to taste.

Pour some of the sauce over beef rolls; pass remaining sauce. Garnish with apple wedges and parsley sprigs, if you like.

Yield: Serves 8.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 355 calories 355, 14 grams fat, 118 milligrams cholesterol, 928 milligrams sodium, 4 grams carbohydrates, no fiber.

Himmel und Erde (Heaven and Earth

2 pounds well-seasoned, mashed potatoes (see note)

2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice

Place hot mashed potatoes into a large bowl, then cover and set aside. Bring a pot of water to a boil then blanch the diced apple. Cook them just al dente. The apples should not be mushy.

Mix the drained, hot apple pieces into the mashed potatoes.

Serve immediately as a side dish with pork chops and caramelized onions.

Yield: Serves 6 to 8.

Notes: Traditionally, this dish is served with German blood sausage. Be sure to use mashed potatoes with flavors that pair well with apples. A good example is Yukon Gold potatoes seasoned with cream or milk, butter, salt, pepper and a dash of nutmeg. Avoid seasonings such as garlic or chives.

German Plum Tart (Zwetschgenkuchen)

2 cups flour

¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon grated lemon peel

¼ teaspoon ground mace

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold

1 egg, beaten

2 tablespoons cold water

Filling (see recipe)

¼ cup slivered almonds

In bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, lemon peel and mace.

Cut in butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs.

In small bowl, mix egg and water; stir into flour mixture.

(Alternatively, dough can be mixed in food processor. Use quick on-and-off pulses to cut in butter and again to add egg-water mixture only until mixture becomes crumbly.)

Gather pastry into a ball; knead 5 or 6 times in bowl with lightly floured hands.

Press dough evenly on bottom and up side of ungreased 10- or 11-inch tart or springform pan, depending on how thin you like the crust. (If you use a smaller springform, you may have extra filling.)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and prepare filling ingredients.

Sprinkle half the sugar-flour-cinnamon mixture into pastry. Place plum halves cut side down and overlapping slightly in pastry-lined pan.

(Or, for more elegant presentation, fan plum slices in concentric circles in pan with a half plum in the center.)

Sprinkle remaining sugar-flour-cinnamon mixture on top. Sprinkle almonds over filling.

Bake in preheated oven until pastry is golden brown and plums are bubbly, 35 to 40 min-utes.

FILLING:

2 pounds purple or red plums (Italian plums are the classic)

¾ cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Halve plums and remove pits. (You should have about 5 cups.)

For a more elegant presentation, cut each plum half — except one — into 6 wedges.

In bowl, combine sugar, flour and cinnamon.

Yield: Serves 10 to 12.

German Potato Salad

6 to 7 medium red potatoes

½ pound bacon

1 pasteurized egg, beaten

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1 teaspoon each: salt, sugar

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

½ yellow onion, diced

¼ cup freshly chopped parsley

Place the potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with cold water. Heat to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat to a simmer. Cook, partially covered, until potatoes are fork-tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Drain, set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, place the bacon in a large skillet; cook, turning occasionally, over medium heat, until bacon is crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer to paper towels. Turn off the heat; dis-card all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings.

Peel and slice potatoes; set aside. Beat together the egg, vinegar, salt, sugar and pepper in a medium bowl; stir into the reserved bacon fat in the skillet. Add the onion and potatoes; toss mixture together lightly. Add bacon and chopped parsley; toss.

Yield: Serves 8.

Approximate nutrition analysis per serving: 176 calories, 24 percent of calories from fat, 5 grams fat (1 gram saturated), 37 milligrams cholesterol, 27 grams carbohydrates, 7 grams protein, 524 milligrams sodium, 2 grams fiber.

Plum Kuchen

TART:

1½ cups flour

1 stick unsalted pareve margarine or unsalted butter

2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

15 to 20 Italian plums or 10 large dark plums, sliced

TOPPING:

½ cup granulated sugar

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1½ tablespoons chilled unsalted pareve margarine or unsalted butter, diced

For pastry, place the flour, margarine and confectioners’ sugar in a food processor; pulse until it becomes a sandy consistency, about 30 seconds. Press mixture into a greased 9- or 10-inch tart pan (with removable bottom) or 13-by-9-inch greased baking pan. Freeze 45 minutes or refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove crust from freezer or refrigerator; place plum pieces on top of prepared crust in an attractive pattern.

For topping, stir the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl; sprinkle evenly over plums. Dot with margarine. Bake until edges are golden brown and mixture is cooked through, about 50 minutes. Remove from oven; transfer to a rack. Cool about 1 hour.

Yield: Serves 10.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 225 calories, 44 percent of calories from fat, 11 grams fat (7 grams saturated), 29 milligrams cholesterol, 29 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein, 6 milligrams sodium, 2 grams fiber.

Traditional German Christmas Stollen

2 cakes (0.6 ounce each) compressed yeast

1½ cups plus 2 tablespoons lukewarm milk

3 1/3 cups flour

1 stick (4 ounces) butter, room temperature

1 stick (4 ounces) margarine, room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons salt

3 1/3 cups flour

Grated peel of 1 lemon

½ teaspoon each butter flavoring and almond extract

1 cup sliced almonds

1 cup raisins, washed and soaked in rum overnight

½ cup each candied lemon, and orange peels

½ cup quartered candied cherries

MARZIPAN:

1 pound almonds, blanched, peeled and coarsely chopped

3 large egg whites at room temperature

¼ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons rosewater (if unavailable use 4 teaspoon almond extract or vanilla

3 to 4 cups of powdered sugar

Crumble yeast into lukewarm milk and stir until dissolved. Stir in 3 1/3 cups flour. Cover and let rise 20 minutes.

In large mixer bowl, beat together the butter, margarine, sugar, salt, 3 1/3 cups flour, grated lemon peel and flavorings. (Mixture will be very stiff). Add yeast mixture and mix well at slow speed until well combined. Add almonds, drained raisins and candied peels. Let dough rest for 30 minutes until increased in volume by about ¼.

Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the marzipan into a rope and place it in the center of the dough. Fold the dough over to cover it; pinch the seams together to seal. Place the loaf, seam side down, Repeat with second half of dough.

Transfer breads to greased baking sheets seam side down. Cover and let rise about 30 to 40 minutes or until dough has increased in volume by ¼. Bake at 330 degrees about 45 minutes, until golden brown and a knitting needle inserted into bread comes out clean. Wash with melted butter. Sift with confectioner’s sugar.

Marzipan Preparation:

Grind the almonds in a blender or coffee grinder — or with a mortar and pestle — until they resemble a fine powder.

In a bowl, beat the egg whites with salt until frothy. Add the vanilla, almond extract or rosewater.

Sift in the first 3 cups of powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, kneading the mass in the bowl af-ter each addition. Add just enough of the last cup of powdered sugar to form smooth, pliable dough that is not too sticky.

Divide the dough into portions and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Keep refrigerated in an airtight container up to 8 weeks

Yield: Serve 14.

Traditional German Pumpernickel Bread

4 cups rye flour

2 cups whole-wheat flour

2/3 cup bulgur wheat

2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons molasses

3½ cups warm water

1 tablespoon canola oil

Lightly grease 2 loaf pans and set aside.

Combine the rye flour, whole-wheat flour, bulgur wheat and salt in a large bowl.

Mix molasses with the warm water and vegetable oil.

Add liquids to the flour mixture and combine to form a dense dough. Kneading isn’t neces-sary.

Divide dough between the two prepared pans, pressing it into the corners and leveling the top. Cover with greased plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place for 24 to 48 hours.

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees.

Remove the plastic wrap from the pans, then cover them tightly with aluminum foil.

Fill a deep pan ¾ full with boiling water and place on lower rack of your oven.

Place covered loaf pans on the top rack, and bake 4 hours.

Raise the oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Uncover the loaves and add more water to the pan below them if needed.

Bake for another 40 minutes or until the loaves are firm crusty.

Let cool in the pans for a few minutes before turning out onto a rack to cool completely.

Wrap tightly in plastic and let “cure” at room temperature for 24 hours.

Yield: Serves 30.

Kartoffelsalat

8-10 salad potatoes

1 onion

½ cup of warm meat broth

White wine vinegar, sunflower oil and salt to taste

Pepper

Steam the potatoes in their skins until tender. If you have any potatoes from the day be-fore, even better as they are easier to slice. Scrape them and let them cool slightly until just warm.

Chop the onion finely.

Slice the potatoes thinly with a potato slicer or a vegetable knife. Place in a large bowl.

Add the onion and enough warm meat broth so that the potatoes are quite moist but not sitting in broth! and leave to soak for an hour.

Last, add enough sunflower oil, vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.

Mix thoroughly. The potato salad should not be too dry, but quite moist.

Wiener Schnitzel

1 pound turkey cutlets, or boneless chicken breasts,or if you’re feeling really fancy,actual veal

1 cup breadcrumbs

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon parsley flakes

1 egg

Cooking oil

Pound meat until it is less than ¼-inch thick.

Into a large skillet, pour oil approximately ¼-inch deep; heat until oil bubbles when you drop in a pinch of breadcrumbs.

Beat egg, add:

4 teaspoons lemon juice.

Add parsley to breadcrumbs.

Dredge meat in egg, then breadcrumb mixture; fry until golden brown on each side.

Sprinkle with remaining lemon juice.

Yield: Serves 4.

Wiener Schnitzel with Spaetzle

1½ pounds veal scallops

¼ teaspoon salt

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup butter

1 lemon, thinly sliced

SPAETZLE:

2 eggs, beaten

1½ cups all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 cup dried bread crumbs

¼ cup lemon juice

½ cup milk

¼ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons butter

Pound scallops gently to an even 1/8-inch thickness. Combine flour, salt and pepper; dip scallops in flour, then eggs and bread crumbs. Melt butter in large skillet until very hot; fry scallops, a few at a time, until golden brown. Remove scallops to a heated platter. Add lemon juice to pan drippings; cool for 2 to 3 minutes. Pour over scallops and garnish with lemon slices.

Spaetzle directions: combine eggs and milk; stir in flour, salt and nutmeg. beating until smooth. Drop dough by teaspoons into nutmeg, beating until smooth. Drop dough by tea-spoons into boiling water (or pass dough through colander); boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain and toss with butter or melt butter in skillet and gently fry spaetzle until brown, about 3 to 4 minutes.

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