Gingerbread Mensch

I goofed off a lot in my high school German class and found myself in a bit of trouble my Junior year. Cutting class to dress like a pirate and go sailing down the Nooksack River was fun, but I paid for it. To make up for skipping, we were allowed to do a number of things, but taking in to consideration my great talent for eating, I thought I'd take a stab at baking. A friend and I researched various German deserts and fall/ winter-themed delicacies (sweets, naturally) and stumbled upon Lebkuchen- which literally translates to "living cookies." They're gingerbread-esque snacks that one can whip-up in a snap, and though they're not the healthiest holiday food, your taste-buds will thank you. Here's a site happy recipe that I used years ago. Surprisingly it still exists.

If'n your the baking type, check this website out.

I know it may be a bit early for holiday-themed foods, but if you get as excited about these things as I do, then methinks you'll appreciate the cookies. Have a lovely thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving in Germany!

Although German speaking countries may not celebrate Thanksgiving the way we do, there is fall holiday similar, Erntdankfest (harvest thanksgiving festival).   Generally celebrate on the first Sunday of October, which is also usually the first Sunday following Michaelmas (Sept. 29)Like the American Thanksgiving Erntdankfest is an all day event.  However, unlike the big day family festis that is typical in the USA, Erntedankfest is not a family get-together of feasting but rather mostly rural, religious holiday.  As a religious holiday it typically contants church services (morning and evening), a parade, music, dance, and of course food.

(A church altar Erntedank display in Germany.)

And of course as most Germans have American relatives it would make sense that within the last few decades Erntdankfest is starting to look a lot like the American Thanksgiving such as the turkey!  Turkey has become within the last few decades a popular dish often replacing the traditional goose.  Happy Turkey day!!!

(amazingly tasty looking turkey)

Zwetschgentorte

When pondering the dishes I would help prepare for Thanksgiving this year, I decided it would be fun to bring some German pizazz into the course. While I am big a fan of pumpkin pie, it will never compare to many of the German cakes I've tasted in recent years. Thus, I decided to whip up a German
Zwetschgentorte (Plum Cake) as a fun fall alternative to the traditional pumpkin pie Thanksgiving dessert! 

The recipe to this cake is as follows (recipe courtesty of http://www.europeancuisines.com/Germany-German-Zwetschgentorte-Autumn-Plum-Cake):


For the cake dough:

• 200g / 1 cup butter, softened

• 150g / 3/4 cup sugar

• 250g / 2 cups flour

• 150g / 3/4 cup potato starch

• 4 level teaspoons baking powder

• 4 eggs, separated

• 1 kilogram / 2 1/4 lb small juicy plums, washed, stoned, and quartered (or sliced smaller if necessary: slices should be about an inch thick)

• 50g / 1/4 cup sugar to dredge the plums in (more if necessary)

• A 22 centimeter-wide springform pan

• About a teaspoon of butter to grease the pan

• Two tablespoons of fine dry breadcrumbs or cornflake crumbs to coat the buttered pan

• Powdered sugar / confectioners' sugar / icing sugar to dust the finished cake

(A note here about the potato starch: this stuff turns up a great deal in continental baking as a binding agent in cakes, especially where fruit is involved: it seems to help the batter absorb the fruit juices without getting overly heavy. It's worth going out of your way to find it, but if you can't, you can probably safely substitute half a cup of flour with a tablespoon of cornstarch mixed into it.)

For the filling:

• 1 kilogram / 2 1/4 lb small juicy plums, washed, stoned, and quartered (or sliced smaller if necessary: slices should be about an inch thick)
• 50g / 1/4 cup sugar to dredge the plums in (more if necessary)

You'll also need:

• A 22 centimeter-wide springform pan
• About a teaspoon of butter to grease the pan
• Two tablespoons of fine dry breadcrumbs or cornflake crumbs to coat the buttered pan
• Powdered sugar / confectioners' sugar / icing sugar to dust the finished cake

Method:

First, butter the springform pan well: then put the bread crumbs / cornflake crumbs in it and turn and shake the pan until all interior surfaces are well crumbed. Leave any loose crumbs in the bottom of the pan.

Cream the butter and sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy. Meanwhile, sift together the flour, baking powder and potato starch (or substitute). Beating all the time at medium speed, start adding the sifted flour mixture a couple of tablespoonsful at a time to the butter and sugar.

By the time all the flour is added, the dough is going to look very granular. Don't worry: this is normal. Add the four egg yolks to the dough and continue beating. The dough will now become very solid and lumpy. This too is normal. Beat until the egg yolks are completely combined. Then stop the beater and, in another bowl, beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Add the egg whites to the dough and beat just until they're completely combined with the mixture. It should now start looking a little like cake dough.

Preheat the oven to 200° C / 400° F.

While the oven's heating, take half the dough and spread it evenly across the bottom of the springform pan. Because of the crumbs, the dough is going to try to slide around when you do this -- so your best bet is probably to spread it out with your fingers while holding the dough still. Once this is done, when the oven is ready, put the pan in and bake the bottom of the cake for 10 minutes.

While this is going on, wash, stone and slice the plums (if you haven't done this beforehand), put them in a bowl, add the sugar set aside for this purpose, and stir them well to coat them. Then add them to the remainder of the dough and stir them well into it. The dough is going to remain thick and lumpy and will not coat the plums at all evenly. Don't worry too much about this.

When its first ten minutes in the oven are done, remove the springform pan and lower the oven heat to about 375° F / 180° C. Pile the plum and dough mixture into the pan -- it will completely fill it -- and push the plums gently down into the pan, smoothing the dough a little on the top. Put the springform pan back in the oven and bake for another 30 minutes.

When finished baking, allow to cool for ten minutes or so before running a knife carefully around the edges of the form to loosen it from any stuck-on sugar or plum juices. Dust with powdered sugar while still warm.

Fenstersterne Selber Basteln! (Craft your own window stars!)

On my run this morning I noticed a house that had some stars and snowflakes displayed in its front window, and it reminded me of the Fenstersterne or Window Stars that appeared at wintertime all over my neighborhood when I was in Germany. I did some" research" (snooping around the internet) on window stars and found that most of the how-to books and tutorials were German, so I thought I'd do a little How-To for those of you who either have children who like to basteln (craft) or like to do so yourselves!

Usually, Fenstersterne are constructed out of Kite Paper, which is almost like wax paper but colored. I didn't have any so I used tissue paper, which worked out pretty well. As long as it's see-through you should be good to go.

You'll need scissors, a glue stick, and 4 squares of paper, cut in half to make 8 rectangles.

Fold each little guy in half lengthwise:

Then, fold his little corners in:

And on one end, fold the edges in a second time. Make sure to put a tiny dab of glue under each flap, to hold it in place.

 Tada!

Now all that's left to do is glue them together! Line up the edge of the section on top with the center fold of the section that's on the bottom:

Continue in this way with the rest of the little sections. 

  

When you get to the last piece, glue him on as usual and then tuck his un-glued side under the first section, and glue in place. And then you're done! 

Now, go hang your Stern on the Fenster!

Sunday with "Germany vs USA"! Foreign Languages!

Hey everyone, sorry this is a day late! My mind was all mixed because of the three-day weekend. Viel Spaß beim Schauen!

Gesundheit!!

Growing up, I had uncles and aunts in rural areas scattered across Whatcom County, (the most northwestern county in Washington). My relatives really had a thing for furry critters of all shapes and sizes. As a kid I had a few goldfish, a dog for just under a year, and a few frogs which never seemed to enjoy the dixie-cup terrariums I designed for them. Aside from a few instances with the fish, I never had a pet-able pet, primarily because every time I touched an animal with fur I'd swell up like a blimp and explode in hives. My eyes would water and my breathing became incredibly labored whenever I was near a dog or cat. As my poor auntie bore testament to, even horses set me off. I had crippling allergies which would throw me into minute-long sneezing fits. I had to load up on antihistamines before visiting either of my childhood best friends, because if I didn't god knows I'd sure pay for it.

"Bless you." "Excuse you." "Kazundhide." "Danny, that's enough, knock it off."

Kazundhide was always my favorite. I had absolutely no idea what the person saying it was trying to say, but it always came out sounding like a drunken slur. I went through the first fifteen years of my life with no idea what kazundhide meant, but that doesn't mean I didn't use it every chance I got- it made me feel intelligent and cultured. I later learned in one of my high-school German classes that the word was actually Gesundheit-  which translates to health. 

Sneezing is one of the more ridiculous spasmodic reactions of the human body- it occurs when the nasal mucous membrane is irritated, and fires a shotgun-blast of mucous and spit into the air at an incredibly high speed. A myth developed during the Renaissance that sneezing momentarily caused the heart to stop beating- thus saying "bless you" would revitalize, or protect the sneezer from a sure mucous-firing doom. Gesundheit- or wishings of good health- is the German equivalent of  "bless you." 

If anything, I suppose the purpose of this post is to draw attention to a word that so many people, at least in my experiences, don't understand. Gesundheit. Tidings of good health, as I impart unto you.  

Goethe Institut Videos

Here's the deal with learning a language: you can take numerous language classes, study up on all the grammar, and learn new vocabulary everyday and still have a hard time holding a conversation in german. The key in learning a language, which I finally learned after studying german for three years, is to immerse yourself in the language--total immersion! While packing up and moving to Germany for an extended period of time may not be in the cards for you, you can still immerse yourself in the language right here in the US. Whether its participating in German events that take place in your city and meeting other German-speakers or choosing to read your summer reads in German rather than English, there are many opportunities to practice your language skills. One of my favorites, however, is watching videos. As you have probably heard of the Goethe Institut, I want to share a section of their website that has hundreds of interesting videos on all aspects of German culture and on life in general. Most of the videos are spoken in German, so it's a great way to learn and practice your listening skills at the same time! I hope you find this website helpful!

http://www.goethe.de/lrn/duw/sul/enindex.htm

Vote for Voldemort and emigrate!

(I don't know about you but I find this sign immensely humorous)

Elections, elections, elections!  It's all everyone can talk about with the big date looming over our heads.  Who is America going to choose?  And what will happen to the other half that lost? Hypothetically we'll say that Romney is elected and if you ask liberal/dramatic democrats what are they going to do, you might get a "move to Canada" answer.  Americans have a long history of emigrating to Canada for political reasons dating back  to the Revolution.  The loyalists no longer feeling welcome in their own land fled all over the western world but those who remained in North American went to Canada.  But why Canada right now?  For those left leaning Americans Canada's universal healthcare, few abortion restrictions, strong bank regulations, no capital punishment and legalized same sex marriage (to list a few) is regarded as a liberal refuge from Red State America. And although Germany too has a long history of political emigration that has recently taken a turn in a new direction.

Germans or Germanic people have with the rise and fall of new lords and kingdoms emigrated from their home lands since Rome.  But unlike the new country, USA economic reasons have been just as prevalent  if not more so.  During the 19th century, the potato famine and American gold rush saw the flooding of emigrating Germans looking forward to a land of new economic possibilities.  Then during the early and mid 20th century post world wars and rise of the USA as a global power saw an entirely new flood of German  emigrants(out of Nazi and East Germany) looking economic and political escape. But the late 20th saw a slowing of German emigrants and a spike in growing immigrant numbers.  Newly united and economic powerhouse Germany is a very good answer to that sudden change.  But looking at the 21st century and current emigrants there is a specific trend as to who is emigrating and it does not bode well.  Most of those who leave, are highly qualified.
Germany is doing amazingly well.  A little too well, jobs are extremely competitive, so competitive that even academics in their mid-40s are considered problem cases.  Many professional Germans seem to be fed up with lottery like job opportunities and are moving to countries that may not be as strong economically  hold more economic promise, countries such as India and China.  The typical emigrant is a growing problem for Germany.  Typically in his or her prime, ages 25-45, good education and already well into their career.   Germany is loosing their academics and elites promoting  a possible economic loss.

Here are two articles relating to these topics.
New York Times: At a Loss? There's Always Canada
Der Speigel: Bye Bye Deutschland

Saturday with "Germany vs. USA"!: Walking!

Here's this week's episode of German vs USA!  Viel Spaß!

Waldorf Schools in America

I’d like to devote my post today to Waldorf education. Being a graduate of a Waldorf elementary school program myself, it is quite near and dear to my heart.

You may be thinking “wait, isn’t Waldorf a type of salad?” And I’ll tell you– the only thing Waldorf education has in common with the salad, it that you might find the latter at one of the regular seasonal festivals of the former.

Well then, what is “Waldorf”?

One of the fastest growing educational movements in the world, Waldorf education began in Stuttgart, Germany in 1919. Based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, Waldorf education is structured in a way that it presents material at a time and in a way that is considered particularly suitable for the child at a certain age.

For example, at the Kindergarten level, activities that are easily learned by imitation, such as baking, painting, gardening and handcrafts are the focus. In addition, the child’s power of imagination and play-acting is also nurtured, and the love of music so central to Waldorf education begins to take root.

Such early educational classroom environments are typically warm, loving and home like, and contain an array of natural toys for guided play, such as colored silks, smooth wooden toys, stones and small, soft gnome and fairy toys made of natural fibers.

After Kindergarten, the emphasis is on artistic expression across a wide variety of visual and performing arts. Children enter the first grade and become acquainted with their their Class Teacher, who very often remains the student’s primary teacher throughout grades 1-8. Beginning in the first grade, children are commonly taught 2 languages, in English speaking countries it is usually German, and then either Spanish or French.

As the child progresses through the grades, the subject material progresses with them. For example, in grade 4 it is common to do a study block on “man and animal”– man’s relation to the earth, the animals and plants around us. In the 5^th, 6^th and 7^th grades the focus moves on to ancient civilizations, such as Ancient Egypt, Greece, Mesopotamia, and Rome. In 8^th grade focus moves on to the middle ages, the Renaissance, and further.

Whatever the subject might be, it is first introduced through a series of stories, illustrations and songs. Rather than relying on standardized textbooks, the students great their own illustrated and constructed “textbooks” known as Main Lesson Books.

A sense of respect for the beauty and value of childhood, a focus on a nurturing social environment, and the incorporation of music, art, movement and language is common throughout the entire K-8 curriculum.

Seasonal festivals, performances of plays, and visits to 4-day long “camps” each spring (such as the “Potlatch” in 4^th grade, “Olympiad” in 5^th grade, “Roman Encampment” in 6^th grade and “Renaissance Faire” in 7^th or 8^th grade) are also important parts of a Waldorf education, (the camps more so in the American Waldorf schools).

Rather than take up even more of this page with my typing, I will put the links to some informational websites below, incase you want to learn about Waldorf education!

The School my 'Class Teacher' started!

More Information

Seattle Waldorf School

Eurovision

Last spring, when I was studying abroad in Austria, everyone was talking about Eurovision. Before last spring, I had no idea what Eurovision was. But thanks to the large press and great fan base it receives in  Europe, I was fortunate enough to get addicted to the show the like so many Europeans do each year. It's a song contest television show that's truly, quite entertaining. Some songs express a cultural tradition unique to the representative's country, while others exude a more globalized pop-culture sense. Regardless, it's a great way to broaden your perspective and to see how all the different European countries are represented by their participants and fans. Here's a video of Germany's representative, Roman Lob performing Standing Still during Eurovision 2012's Finale hosted in Baku, Azerbaijan. Roman Lob took 8th place in 2012's contest. Enjoy!

Also, I highly recommend that you watch the 2013 season of Eurovision that will take place in Malmö, Sweden. Visit the Eurovision website for more information on how to watch: http://www.eurovision.tv/page/malmo-2013