Fahrvergnuegen

I love me a hearty "Pellekuchen" - a slang term meaning Potato Cake aka a potato omelet. This is comfort food for me. Everyone I have ever made this for has come back for seconds. And a few have walked away with my recipe. It is truly a simple but delightful dish and can be enjoyed anytime of the day.
My grandmother used to make this for me and often leftovers were added into the egg mixture; sausage, cheese, lox etc.
I am not saying all of it at one time, but you can add one or ten items - if you like it....go ahead and make it!
My friend Cheryl left me a message on Facebook reminding me how much she likes this dish and now shares it with her kids. She has lovingly renamed it Fahrvergnuegen.
Cheryl and I share a love of food. Many of times have we sat at the kitchen table and humming softly while we are eating. If you have never hummed or wiggled while eating, you have not found food that completely delights you! Psstt....we do it out in public too. Which has always embarrassed my daughter! Score! Bonus Points!

I like starting my Pellekuchen from raw potatoes, but many start this with boiled potatoes. I also like my potatoes with skin on. Of course this again is a personal choice. Go ahead and peel yours if your prefer naked spuds.
Cooking time is cut if you already have leftover boiled potatoes. Experiment and see what you like to use best!
Since the star of this meal is the potato - selecting the right variety is important. I prefer the golden Yukon but I like red potatoes as well. The only ones you want to stay away from are Russets. They will make your dish too dry. Save your russets for a baked potato or French Fries.

Ingredients:

Golden Yukon Potatoes (2 per person)
Eggs (2 per person)
small onion
Vegetable Oil
(Bacon or Sausage Grease)
Splash of Milk
Salt
Pepper
FRESH Chives and/or Parsley
Pat of butter

I love love love to make this dish in a cast iron skillet. Heat it up on Med High. Add your vegetable oil so your pan is covered. I add two table spoons of bacon and/or sausage drippings, which I usually collect.
Slice your potatoes in even strips. You can dice them if you like. You simply want to ensure even cooking.

Add potatoes to HOT pan. Let them sit for ten minutes and turn potatoes over. Fine dice your onion.

After another five minutes of cooking add the onions on top of your potatoes.

While this is cooking make your liquid for your omelet.

Crack your eggs into a bowl, add a splash of milk, some pepper and salt and whip it up until bubbles have formed on top. I add fresh herbs at this point. Chives and Parsley are always fabulous with potatoes.


Turn potatoes - you want to get them brown on all sides. Once the potatoes are done, turn down heat, add a pat or two of butter.... and slowly add your egg mixture on top of your potatoes.

This now has to sit so the eggs can harden and bind. I will loosen the sides with a spatula and slowly shake my pan back and forth to get the eggs to cook.
Once you see it set, take a bowl or a lid and slide the omelet onto it and flip it over in the pan.
Make sure your eggs are cooked through. Cut into portions and serve while warm.

I add chives and parsley (yes..yes FRESH!) on top.
This entire dish will take about 30 minutes or less depending on how many potatoes you are making, and if you have chosen to make it with raw potatoes or already cooked potatoes.
One of my favorite versions is adding crispy bacon and some shredded cheese to the egg mixture...ohhh gosh..absolutely YUMMY.
....ohhh and one more thing...SHOULD you have leftovers, they will store just fine and eating them cold is great, or reheat.

GUTEN APPETIT!!!

I am just going to jump in with both feet and blog. Food is a funny thing - we all eat it - and we all need it to survive. Some of us however really get food. Do you like to smell your food? Do you hum and even wiggle while consuming food? Do you get excited when you know you are about to try something new for the very first time?
I DO! I DO!
Will you order the same dish in different restaurant just to taste the difference? Is there a dish you make often because people ask you to prepare it? Check and Check!

I used to really fuss when I had to help my Grandmother in the kitchen...now I am eternally grateful that she shared her knowledge with me. I lived with my grandmother for ten years in Germany. She had taught young girls how to cook and even at one point owned a restaurant. I am happy ...that I was one of those girls she taught.
However, I do not consider myself a FOODIE (which the dictionary defines as a person keenly interested in food, esp. in eating or cooking). And don't ask me to put a label on myself....not happening!

Recently I because very nostalgic about my past and as I was cleaning up my kitchen (YIKES!!)...I came across my grandmothers and mothers cooking books. In German of course. Two of them are hand written recipes passed on by family members and friends. Some of the recipes I can prepare from without ever having to look at a page because I make it A LOT!
Thumbing through some of the pages, I realized how much I missed the German cuisine I grown to love. Talk about comfort foods...we Germans love us some potatoes and noodles. And we certainly aren't shy about eating meat. Except those that are catholic and skip meat on Friday's and opt for either vegetarian or fish. I don't have that issue...so I eat what I feel like it at any given time.

"Fat Girl gotta eat" - a phrase I hear my friend Connie mutter quite often and I simply nod my head. It is a silent understanding that we are on the same wave length. At least when it comes to food. Let's face it....none of us want to face the possibility of having a plain bowl of oatmeal three times a day, seven times a week.
The wonderful thing about food is, it never has to be boring...and just like our tastes in music...we are allowed to have different tastes from someone else.
Before I share the dish I prepared today - let me tell you that my day will always start with a GREAT cup of coffee. For this I can promise you....I am TOTALLY ADDICTED to coffee and the experiment of finding the next wonderful bean to have in my cup (after my husband has turned it from a green bean into a wonderful roast).

As I was thumbing through the cookbooks my eye fell on "Bratklops". Loosely translated as baked or friend meatballs. However - I have always added my own touch or changed a recipe slightly to accommodate my taste and this is what you are going to get.
Should you chose to make the dishes as I share recipes, please feel free to leave me a note and tell me how it turned out. I would love to know if you got as excited as I did, or if it fell flat for you after making it.

Now let me share Bratkloepse with you and I hope you will enjoy them as much as I did. I opted for a lighter version in my mixture of beefs, choosing turkey over ground pork. But you may combine any two meats you feel like, or just use one. I also opted for the leaner versions. Just be careful, less fat and you could dry out the meatballs.

One pound of Ground Beef (80/20)
One pound of lean Turkey (90/10)
1/2 cup of unseasoned dry bread crumbs
1 small onion, chopped finely
1 egg
Salt
Pepper
and about one cup of flour

Mix your meats, bread crumbs, onion, egg and add some salt and pepper. Don't overmix this tends to make the mixture tougher. Form Meatballs (I use an ice cream scoop to get consistent size balls about 2 inches round)into balls. I like mine bigger, but you certainly can make them small. Then roll each one in flour. I season my flour with salt, pepper and garlic.

Arrange on a foil lined baking pan. I bake them at 400 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. Even if they are still medium or medium well inside, they will continue to cook when you add them into the gravy.
If you like a caramelized version of this meatball, fry them in a pan. Use canola oil and if you have it add a little bacon fat to the pan.


Take meatballs out of the oven and set aside. Use the drippings from the pan to make a roux adding butter and white flour. Again, adding some bacon fat only gives it more taste, but I am presently opting for a little bit of a lighter version. Season to taste with salt and pepper. I add about one teaspoon of fresh cut parsley and fresh cut chives. This also gives you a little color for the dish.

While you are working on the roux, boil your egg noodles (and don't over cook your noodles, it has to be one of the worst things one can do to food!)in some salt water.
When the gravy has thickened to your liking add the meatballs back into the pan to warm them up.

When noodles are done and drained, add a cup of noodles to a plate. Cover in gravy add some meatballs and sprinkle a touch of parsley and chives on top.
VOILA! you are ready to eat "Bratkloepse".