German slang has a funny word for all those trinkets whose sole purpose seems to be to accumulate dust: Staubfänger (literally “dust catchers”). While we have a bunch of those around our house (who doesn’t?), only a few give away my German background. I do not collect beer steins or Hummel figurines, nor I do not have a cuckoo clock. Continue reading
If there is one thing that has always been associated with junk food in Germany, it’s sweet woodruff (Waldmeister). There is sweet woodruff-flavored Jell-O, hard candy, soda, and Italian ice, all of them a neon-green color.
Jell-O is also called Götterspeise in German, „Food for the gods.“ And that’s what it felt to me as a kid: heavenly yet rather unreachable. Continue reading
It’s been more than 12 years since I started my ongoing exploration of Germany’s food. As my long-term readers know, I have been a broken record writing over and over again that authentic German cuisine and what Germans eat is diverse, colorful, seasonal, and ranges from tasty to delicious. With the first ZEIT Kochtag today, April 17, there is another living proof that people eat well in Germany. And that they can cook. And how! Continue reading
Spoonfuls of Germany 