Kraut Stroganoff - NO
Kraut Seitan with Garlic Spinach & Penne Pasta - NO
Grandma Wissman's Chocolate & Sauerkraut Cake - NO
Caramelized Kraut Ice Cream - NO
Kraut Whoopie Pies - NO

OK...one of the Sandbox regulars HAS to attend, take a camera and report back--I'm betting EL would let you post a guest topic--on the Kraut Whoopie Pies.

Inquiring minds want, uh, HAVE, to know...

The guy on the Travel Channel, Andrew Zimmern - who eats anything, recently ate sauerkraut pie and pronounced it delicous. This is a guy who also eats bugs, grubs and worms so I don't really hold his opinion too high, but I thought it sounded interesting. I might try it - sauerkraut pie, not bugs, grubs, etc.

Widerstand ist vergeblich.

Kraut ist Leben. Lebengestank.

Owl,
You make me laugh out loud at work, even if it requires a translator.

"Kraut is life. Life stinks."

Maybe we should hold off on the Deutsche, so's as to not scare off the visitors?

Not to sound too overly sensitive, but I kinda resent the "German= bad/unattractive" vibe being stirred around here. Germany happens to be a gorgeous country with attractive people, and beautiful towns, stylish fashion, and delicious upscale food. The German stereotype in the US is so inaccurate and undeserved.

Life is sour might work better. Still, that would make a lovely hipster t-shirt.

Sauerkraut is one of my favourite things.

I can scare people in a number of languages Chico de la Sol and apparently drive Hal nuts in a made-up language.

I think it's kind of sad that a city and state with so much German-American heritage to be proud of, does not embrace like we used to.

Politically correct? Maybe. I read once that as an immigrant group, the Germans had been more successful than any other since they have effectively disappeared as any kind of coherent group except in isolated areas.

German Americans represent the single largest ethnic group (49 million and counting) in the U.S.

Did anyone have a chance to get to the Christkindmarkt at Zion Church this year?

Owl, how is your Esperanto?

Owl, it's not that much of an accomplishment to drive me nuts. :-)

If I had realized it was you, I would have been more patient.

Kraut Whoopie Pies?? Is that any worse than carrot cake or zucchini bread??

Esperanto: we still have the text books for Esperanto that my wife had in high school (Key School, Annapolis, in the very beginning) -- let us know if you need any vocabulary words looked up!

Bryanintimonium, I went to Christkindlemarkt. Always I go. Aber Ich habbe forgessen mein Deutsch.

wow that guy in the pic is really cute but he doesn't look German

is he cooking in his PJs?

Mike,
I agree that Germany is a great place, and while I've never been, I would love to visit. I just thought that people visiting the blog might not want to stay long if the comments were in a foreign language. I didn't mean to portray Germany as a bad place, and the posters who decided to comment in German don't feel that way either.

Owl,
Chico de la Sol? Maybe I could use that as my "handle", since you and the Single One like it so much. Its all good, but I don't want to give up my membership in the League of Roberts.

Roberto de la Sol

Roberto de la Sol

Score, Buckminster Fooler.

Oh Mike, there's no anti-German anything here. America is truly more German than anybody realizes. Thank god, because otherwise we would be English and that just doesn't work. Despite being on opposite sides in two world wars, America has always been German friendly. Do you think we got our work ethic from England? Hell no. German culture assimilated very easily into the existing culture here. Hell, the Queen of England is just a goofy old German woman with an enormous handbag. No German dislike or prejudice here from me or anybody. But really, the German language is very unromantic. If I want a love poem, I'll go Italian, French or Spanish. If I want a hand gun, autoclave, or performance vehicle, I'm going German. Love Germany. If you followed my posts from earlier this year you would have seen some about my childhood there. I never met a country I didn't like.

At the time of the American Revolution, more Americans spoke German than English. English speakers were merchants and craftsmen, German speakers were farmers. And died on both sides (just as many Irish died in the Civil War).

I actually do find German very romantic. It sounds a lot better to my ear than French or other Romance languages.

Lissa, always the contrarian!

"I actually do find German very romantic. It sounds a lot better to my ear than French or other Romance languages."

I have a daughter who married a German. They lived ther for about 5 years before moving to London. She is fluent in the language, as are her two older daughters, 5 and 7. The youngest doesn't yet, as she is just 1. I find nothing appealing about the language, except to marvel at the complexity! So harsh.

German sounds romantic ... well you would think that Lissa the Berserker.

Gut punct Herr Eule, during the unpleasantness of 1914-1945, the royal family changed their name from von Saxe-Coburg-Gothe to "Windsor".

Sehr gut... I mean jolly good show!

I think what I love most about German cuisine is it's total lack of pretension. Honest and usually made from the poorest ingredients into something good.

One of the best food related things I saw when traveling through Germany was in a tiny medieval town called Dinkelsbuhl. On one side of the steeple of their church, the stained glass windows were shaped like pretzels because they had been sponsored by the bakers guild.

Grandma Wissman's Chocolate & Sauerkraut Cake - NO

Owlie - don't jump to conclusions here. I've made chocolate sauerkraut cake before. It does not taste like sauerkraut at all. There is just a slight tang like you'd get if you used buttermilk or sour cream. And there is no texture of sauerkraut. It seems to just disappear into the cake.

(Slightly off-topic, but German nonetheless)

I am happy to report that I won my German Christmas Nativity Carousel on Ebay last night. I've been in love with these since I was little. I wanted a "real" one from Germany, not one made in Japan. Yet I did not want to spend $150+ at Valley View. I researched and bid, and got outbid, and researched some more. I finally won an authentic "Weihnachts Pyramide" last night for $41. Woo-hoo! I am soo excited!

I did learn alot about German Christmas tradition along the way tho.
I also got a smoker, from Germany, which is adorable. It's a house and the smoke comes out the chimney.

Now I just need to find incense cones.

Dahlink, I'm not always contrary.

German is not complex. You can put all the grammar you need on one side of an index card, and figure everything else based on that. It is really very simple.

French...that is hard. And English! Only the dead have time to learn English.

My old friend from Norway told me that the Berserkers used to get stoned on some kind of mushrooms that made them mad violent.

Fly agaric. That is one theory. You don't want to know how they ingested it.

Actually, Joyce, you'd probably be amused.

the Berserkers used to get stoned on some kind of mushrooms that made them mad violent.

Rachel Ray does that to me.

Aimez-vous un peu du foie gras?
vs.
Essen Sie eine Schweinswurst!

You decide.

Aimez-vous? Um..no, a literal translation is beyond stilted here. Don't go all Lady Marmelade on us!

Lissa, you are right, I'd love to know!

Just for you, Joyce. Look for the section on Siberians. NSFW (not safe for work, probably filtered if you are behind one).

Erowid on Amanita muscaria

Thanks, Lissa - and thanks for the timely warning! I will check out when safely home later tonight! Don't want to tempt the firing gods in this economy!

Don't know if it interests you Lissa but Afterellen.com is revealing the spoiler for the coming season of the L Word. Would do that link thingy but I don't do link thingys. You'll find it (if you haven't already).

Lissa, I will never be fluent, but I can stumble along in German and French--and I for one find French much easier! It's something about the word order business that ties me up in knots with German. And those loooong words!

Joyce, I never seem to turn my TV on except for hockey games (alas, not here) and the Olympics. Since Xena went off the air, I just don't see the point. Plus I don't have cable.

Dahlink, I took French first, then German in high school, and have always found French confusing and German easy. I think case throws people.

German is just so logical! And those danged French r's...I swear, r is the hardest sound to make in any language.

I don't speak German, but having sung in church choirs for 40 years, my accent is pretty good. German is fun to sing, especially when the music was written by the wonderful "three B's."

Ok, Lissa, you were absolutely right - amused! Ick - but funny!

Amazing what people will do for a buzz. Anyone else try the dried banana peel thing?