Introducing Breadblogging and Treatblogging

This here is a loaf of incredibly delicious altdeutsches Roggenbrot (old German rye bread.) (Plus chopped sage and goat cheese to accompany chickpea soup.) We were kind of gobsmacked by the deliciousness of this beautiful loaf - kinda sour, with wonderful toasted malty flavor, and really complex. That it's organic and whole grain is pleasingly beside the point.

And the thing is, bread like this is just normal here! These Germans are spoiled by this embarrassment of riches and probably take it for granted - and at the same time, the rest of the world doesn't know that German bread is arguably the best in the world! Did you know German bread is incredible, varied, and very different from French and Italian bread? I didn't until I got here, and I'm kind of obsessed with food.

So in a bit of much-needed German culinary promotion, I'm starting a new regular feature: Breadblogging.

I'm far from an expert on German breads - and it may well be that when I talk about "German breads" I really mean Rhineland breads - but from what I can tell, German breads are often moister, darker, and a bit more sour than the breads you find in the US. They're often made with whole grains, and not just wheat: rye and spelt are both really common, and we've had breads made with the "lost" ancient grain emmer. More on breads in later posts!

And what about Treatblogging? Germany has marvelous sweet baked goods, too, quite different from American treats. German goodies are mostly eaten as a snack with coffee or tea in the afternoon (Kaffee und Kuchen), so they tend to be less sweet. Instead of sugar, German treats get their flavor from nuts and marzipan, spices, and fruits. Sometimes the techniques are really different than those used to make American treats; for example, Zimtsterne (Cinnamon Stars), a Christmas favorite here, look like a pretty typical rolled cookie, but the recipe is based on ground almonds and calls for no flour and no butter or other fat! They're super yummy.

There are a bunch of such standard treats here that I'd never heard of before: Nussecke, Bienenstich, Mandel Hörnchen.... I absolutely love them - I feel like they're the baked goods I've always wanted to enjoy but never knew existed. And they taste like real recipes that have been around for many years, not goofy de-sugared versions of treats that are meant to be fatty and supersweet. Hopefully I'll get to blog a great many before we have to leave Germany!

So here's this week's Treatblogging: a giant Lebkuchen man that we hand-carried to NJ for Christmas.
Pure gingerbread deliciousness, replete with candied orange and lemon peel, anise and fennel seed! Keeps (really well) for weeks and weeks, too!