German Potato Salad

In my family, traditionally a BBQ means hot dogs and hamburgers. However, my co-workers last year introduced me to the beauty of a well-made sausage. This discovery prompted me to throw a German-themed grill party.

On the menu: smoked bratwursts from local authentic German deli Morant's; freshly baked rolls from the Grateful Bread bakery; mixed greens with lots of vegetables, including the first tomato from our patio garden (wonderfully sweet and delicious!!); fresh fruit platter by my friend Heidi; German potato salad; and for dessert, my friend Chelsea brought (what else?) German chocolate cake.

We had a wonderful time laughing with friends and devouring our German feast and sampling a variety of root beers... But I'll have to blog about our tasting conclusions next time! I will share the recipe for the German Potato Salad, which was given to me by a sweet little German lady who is a client of the law firm where I work. Her name was Ingeborg (you gotta love a lady with a name like that!) and she shared it with one of my associates who lived in Germany as a child, who then made copies for all of us. This salad is cool and refreshing and light, very good with sausages of course, and an excellent alternative to a mayo-based salad for those who are scared of food poisoning (or just don't like mayo)! It serves 8-10 people.

P.S. I threw some green onions in for added color, then garnished with chopped red bell pepper and flat-leaf parsley.

Bavarian-style German Potato Salad
Courtesy of Ingeborg Wright

5 large potatoes (I used red potatoes)
1 small red onion
1 1/2 c. water
1/2 T. salt
1 tsp. vegetable oil
1 3/4 T. distilled white vinegar
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. dill weed

Wash and clean the potatoes (do not peel). Boil potatoes in large pot until done (when they feel soft when pierced with a fork). When done, remove potatoes and set aside until cooled to lukewarm. THEN remove the potato skins (I left some on for texture) and cut potatoes into small pieces.

Dice the onion into tiny pieces. Combine with ALL the other ingredients in a container and mix well. Pour about half of the mixture over the potatoes and let soak for 20 minutes - THEN stir. Add a little of the remaining mixture and let soak for about 10-15 minutes and stir again. Repeat this procedure until the mixture is all or almost all used up. (Sometimes you will not have to use all of the mixture - do not make the potato salad too thin.)

Cover and store in refrigerator. Tastes best when allowed to soak overnight before serving. It will keep for several days when refrigerated.

German Apple Cake

Now that I've given my soapbox speech on nutrition, I shall proceed to share a recipe for... German Apple Cake! One of the best things about balance is you can still indulge occasionally, and this one really satisfied my sweet tooth. It's so simple, but when the quality of the ingredients is high, so is the finished product. I made this for dessert tonight when the missionaries came over and it was delicious. My husband insisted it was "a must" for the blog and a culinary "success". (I think he liked it; what do you think?) This recipe comes from my "Rustic Fruit Desserts" cookbook. I used Gala apples, my Microplane box grater to do the zesting work, and FYI: turbinado is coarse/raw sugar, which adds a wonderful texture to the top of the cake.

Mimi's German Apple Cake

1 T. unsalted butter, at room temperature, for pan
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. unsalted butter
1/2 c. sugar granulated sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
2 eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 apples, peeled, cored, and each cut into 6 pieces
2 T. turbinado sugar

Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter a 9-inch round baking pan.

Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl. Using a handheld mixer with beaters or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar, and lemon zest on medium-high speed for 3-5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition, then stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture all at once and mix on low speed just until incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it smooth.

Score the peeled side of the apples with the tines of a fork and arrange the apples atop the batter around the perimeter, with 1 slice in the center. Sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the cake and bake for about 40 minutes, or until the cake is lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Sometimes the batter around the apples looks slightly underdone, but not to worry; it's just the moisture from the apples.

Storage: Wrapped in plastic wrap, this cake will keep at room temperature for 2-3 days.