Strudel, Noodles and Dumplings: The New Taste of German Cooking. Anja Dunk

and popularity of Italian, Greek and Turkish restaurants. Every taste was catered for, and perhaps because so many new ideas and flavours were filtering into each kitchen, the hunger for regional dishes, many that had been forgotten for a time, was also stronger than ever. Food that was directly connected to the surrounding landscape and to those families who had lived in it for many years was an important thing for people to cling on to as society changed. This is the food I grew up with – lost food, regional food, frugal food, seasonal food, exciting, new and brilliant German food.

      COOK’S NOTES

      SUGAR

      I use unrefined golden granulated sugar and golden caster sugar – they are more expensive than regular white granulated and caster but worth the extra pennies for the assurance that they have been less messed around with. I tend to err on the lighter side of sugar quantities in cakes and just generally, but feel free to add more to any of the recipes should it feel right to you.

      SALT

      I always use sea salt unless otherwise stated. If using flaky sea salt I scrunch it between my fingers before adding it to the other ingredients.

      EGGS

      All eggs are free-range and medium in size unless otherwise stated.

      CITRUS

      I use unwaxed citrus fruit (easily found in most supermarkets these days), and I try to use organic as much as possible.

      BUTTER

      I cook with unsalted butter only. Salted for spreading.

      MILK

      All milk is organic whole milk unless otherwise stated. When possible I personally like to buy raw milk, but please do check health advice on this for yourself (and for your family).

      VEGETABLES

      We grow a lot of vegetables and soft fruit at our allotment; as a cook I feel it’s important to understand how our food grows. Tending this small plot of land over the last two years has made me have a new appreciation for the vegetables and fruit we eat, not to mention realise how undervalued much of what we buy from the shops is. I try to buy locally grown vegetables and fruit from markets and small shops as much as I can, but also do a weekly supermarket shop.

      MEAT

      I use the butcher to buy the best (local) meat possible – that is to say organic, free-range happy animals – but, quite rightly, it doesn’t come cheap, which means we only eat meat once or twice a week. I would rather eat no meat at all than buy cheaply farmed meat with dubious or uncertain provenance.

      We are lucky to have a wonderful shop near us that sells artisan salami, cured meats and sausages – I try to avoid the processed, vacuum-packed stuff.

       SOUR MILK SOUP

       THE SIMPLEST YOGURT

       SHORTCUT QUARK

       BLUEBERRY BUTTERMILK

       HUNG BUTTERMILK (QUARK) WITH BROWN SUGAR AND SPICE

       QUARK FRITTERS WITH HONEY AND THYME SALT

       APPLE ‘DOUGHNUT’ FRITTERS

       CHILLED BUTTERMILK SOUP WITH LEMON AND BAY

       WARM BUTTERMILK SOUP WITH CORIANDER MUSHROOMS

       WHOLEWHEAT BUTTERMILK WAFFLES

       SUNDAY WAFFLES

       GROSSMUTTER’S OMELETTE

       HAZELNUT OMELETTE

       BAKED PANCAKE WITH RAISINS AND LEMON ZEST

       ALL-DAY BREAKFAST

       BAKED QUARK

       STRAMMER MAX

      DAIRY

      Herr Winter’s farm was positioned at the top of a gently sloping hill, just up from my grandparents’ house, and it was where we collected the milk from each day. It was a topsy-turvy kind of place, most un-German, I used to think. The gate, which must have looked splendid once, was now rather sad; it felt forgotten, and every time I pushed it open some of the peeling green paint would stick to the palms of my hands.

      Inside, hidden from view behind thick hedges, felt like another world – the smooth, clean tarmac of the pavement gave way to ancient cobblestones that were so hard to walk on they made you look drunk. We would cross the yard, heading towards the milk pails in fits of giggles, Omi and I, causing the doves to flap away into their dovecotes, cooing madly.

      We had two enamel pails, one black, one white, and each day we would swap the full one for the empty one, with the lid turned upside down, where a Deutschmark would be stored as payment. At home we would each drink a glass of this fresh milk, sweet, creamy and still warm, straight from the churn before the rest was chilled or made into other things, indulgent and pure – a simple pleasure.

      I get my love of dairy from Omi – she didn’t eat bread with butter, she ate butter with bread. If something on the stove lacked flavour she added a large knob of butter – ‘Always makes it taste better,’ she would chant as she whisked it into sauces and soups, and I find gravy especially benefits from the addition of butter – I can still hear her now beside me when I cook, gently nudging my arm towards the butter dish.

SOUR MILK SOUP

      My great-grandmother believed sour milk was the secret to a long, healthy life, and drank a glassful every day. Beyond the drinking glass, though, sour milk is a great example of how resourceful the German kitchen is – where we might deem it an ingredient fit for the bin, they see its beauty.

      I tend not to drink sour milk straight up, but when the milk curdles in my coffee I either make a fresh curd cheese with the rest of it or we have a sour milk