I grew up on good, hearty German food.
In this section, I am sharing all my favorite authentic German recipes.
You will love that they are all very easy to make and barely use any special ingredients.
Find everything from German appetizers, mains, and side dishes to desserts and drinks.
I love making my German cabbage rolls but don’t always have the time for them. Enter my easy Unstuffed Cabbage Rolls that I like to call Kohlrouladenpfanne (literally: cabbage rolls skillet). This is the kind of recipe that I have made countless times when I wanted something quick, easy, delicious, and hearty. Now you get…
Growing up in Germany, apple dessert meant my grandmother’s cake, made with apples from her own trees, and baked apples at Christmastime. I have lived in America for over 30 years now, and every fall, as soon as apples are in season, I still bake the German way. In this roundup of apple recipes for…
When I was growing up in Germany, homemade whipped cream was the only kind we ever had. I still remember my Omi standing in her kitchen with her tall Sahnetopf, whipping fresh cream for our coffee and cake in the afternoon. I have never bought a can of whipped cream since. Making it yourself is…
This German potato soup (Kartoffelsuppe) is the soup I remember eating at my grandparents’ house in Germany. They made it fairly often, and theirs was the frugal, everyday kind: just the vegetables simmered into a simple soup for lunch. No bacon, no sausage, nothing fancy. When they had company, that same humble soup came to…
Every fall, as soon as apples are in season, I make this German apple crumb cake, or as we call it in Germany, Apfelstreuselkuchen. This is an updated version of the cake we had at the table of my Omi, my German grandma. It has a buttery shortcrust, a layer of sautéed apples, and a…
This German meatloaf goes by a funny name back home: Falscher Hase, or “fake rabbit.” I found it in one of my 1904 cookbooks, where it was the thrifty alternative to a roast rabbit that many families couldn’t afford. More than a century later, it’s still on regular rotation in our house, and my sons…
The smell of butter and apples baking together still takes me straight back to my grandmother’s kitchen in Germany. She had apple trees in her garden that produced more fruit than any family could eat fresh, and this versunkener Apfelkuchen, or sunken apple cake, was one of her favorite ways to use them up. Apple…
If there is one flavor that takes me straight back to summers in Germany, it’s hazelnut ice cream. Every town had a local Eiscafé, usually run by an Italian family, and a scoop of Haselnuss tucked into a waffle cone was always my absolute first choice. Rich, nutty, and just creamy enough without being heavy….
If there’s one cake that takes me straight back to my German childhood, it’s Rhabarber-Streuselkuchen. Rhubarb crumb cake. It’s the cake that shows up every spring, the moment the first stalks are ready to harvest. Picture generous slices, served alongside coffee with a good helping of Schlagsahne on top. This is real Kaffeeklatsch food, exactly…
Whether you intentionally made a double batch of German pancakes yesterday or simply find yourself with a few leftovers, there is a brilliant way to repurpose them. In Germany, we do not let good food go to waste. Instead, we transform those extra Pfannkuchen into a traditional, comforting Swabian dish called Flädlesuppe – which translates…