Monday, February 3, 2014

The PA Melting Pot - Germany: - German Sects Part 2: Bavaria, Moravia, Holland and Switzerland

Photos and Recipes Links are below the column!!


Part 1 – German Sects 2:  Bavaria, Moravia, Holland and Switzerland

This is Part 2 of the German Series.  There are 50 million German descendants living in the US from all parts of Europe.  This column will speak about 4 countries due to their proximity to Germany that speak German or a German dialect.  There are pockets of German neighborhoods in Allegheny County (Reserve Township which claims 50% German), and in Pittsburgh (Spring Garden which claims 48%).  26% of Allegheny County’s population is German.  15% of Uniontown PA and 19% of Morgantown WVA residents are of German descent. 

Bavaria is a free state located in southeastern Germany. The Bavarians speak a Bavarian dialect and standard German. 

Common Foods of Bavaria:  Wurstsalat (sausage)

 salad), Kartoffelsaladt (marinated boiled potatoes

 and Leverspatzlesuppe (soup with pork liver  

dumplings, Weisswurst (veal and bacon),
 Schweinsbraten, (pork with gravy and  dumplings), Bratwurst mit Sauerkraut and 
Leberkäse (liver cheese) and is normally served  with bread or Kartoffelsalat and mustard. 

Desserts include Apfelkrapfen (pastry with apples) and Apfelstrudel (apple strudel). And, of course, Bavaria is famous for its three types of beer:  Weißbier (wheat beer), Helles (straw blond lager), and Dunkles (dark lager).

Moravia is a country in the eastern part of the Czech Republic and due to the proximity of Germany and its history the Moravian language formed its own dialect combining German and Czech. 

Common Foods of Moravia:  Roast goose with dumplings and sauerkraut, pork knee (Moravian and Czech), roasted pork (“Moravian sparrow”) with stewed cabbage and dumplings, various dishes with savoy cabbage (like baked rabbit meat), sweet noodles with poppy seeds, pies with sweet cottage cheese and plum jam, Halušky (soft cooked noodles or dumplings), pickled gherkins, and their beverages are pivo (beer), wine and apricot brandy (slivovitz).

Holland is where they speak Dutch (“low” German). This dialect evolved due to the proximity of Holland to Germany.  Dutch cuisine comes in three parts.  
Common Foods of Holland:
NORTHEASTERN:  Fish, game, Rookwurst (smoked sausage) served with hutspot (sauerkraut), pastries and cookies which are hard in nature and spiced with ginger such as Kruidkoek (spice cake), Fryske dumkes (cookies) and spekdikken (savory pancakes). They drink bitters and high proof liquors. 
WESTERN: Kaas (cheeses such as Edam and Gouda), rich butters, buttermilk, Schaal-en schelpdieren (seafood) and pastries and cookies with lots of sugar.  The traditional alcoholic beverages of this region are beer (strong pale lager), jenever (a high proof juniper-flavored spirit) and Advocaat (liqueur made from eggs, sugar and brandy).  
SOUTHERN:  This area’s haute (high) cuisine is influenced by French and German cuisine.  It is renowned for its many rich pastries, soups, stews and vegetable dishes.  Moorkop and Bossche Bol are typical sweet pastries. These Dutch drink beer and wine.

Switzerland is bordered on the North by Germany so that fact affects the language, culture and cuisine of northern Switzerland. 

Common foods of Switzerland: Zurcher  Geschnetzeltes (veal with mushrooms in a cream sauce),  Swiss cheeses (Emmantal, Gruyere, Vacherin, and Appenzeller), cheese dishes such as fondue and raclette (cheese melted over a fire, scraped onto bread or boiled potatoes and served with cornichons or baby pickles), Cervelet/cervelas (the national sausage), Rosti (potato dish Älplermagronen (Alpine herdsman's macaroni), Tirggel (Christmas biscuits), Zopf (bread), and tarts and quiches (tarts are made with different toppings, from sweet apple to onion).  Wine, beer, brandy and absinthe are popular. 


















  
HISTORIC MAP






























BAVARIA



MORAVIA

LINK to WIKI on Moravia

There is a strong link between Bohemia, Germany and Moravia.  Moravia with a large German population is known for its Czech Republic and German Food. 

LINK TO Czech-German cuisine


HOLLAND


SWITZERLAND

LINK to WIKI on Switzerland


Switzerland is the land of German, French and Italian cuisines.  See the Swiss-German section. 


LINK to German-Swiss Cuisine

LINK to Swiss Recipes


---------------------------------



Next column will be German Sects 3 

For blog posts and recipes visit www.ThePAMeltingPot.com.  Christine Willard, a native of western Pennsylvania, researches and blogs about the food unique to western Pennsylvania. She currently resides in North Carolina.

No comments:

Post a Comment